From expert answer to media response

A national newspaper asked why cellular service prices were up 12.7% year over year in November, a big jump from previous months. The subject-matter experts sent back an accurate but technical explanation. My job was to turn it into a reply the journalist could use in their story.

Before: the expert draft

The y/y acceleration in the cellular services index is largely attributable to base-year effects. On a m/m basis, the index declined in November 2024; this decline has exited the 12-month calculation and was replaced by a comparatively smaller m/m decline in November 2025. Promotional activity across providers was also less prevalent relative to the same reference period. The multipurpose digital devices index continued to record y/y declines for a 27th consecutive month. Quality adjustment procedures are applied to maintain constant-quality comparisons.

After: the media-ready reply

Hello,

Thank you for your patience. Prices for cellular services rose 12.7% in November compared with November of last year.

Most of that increase comes from what's called a base-year effect. Year-over-year figures compare prices with the same month a year earlier. Last November, cellular prices dropped from the month before. This November, they dropped again, but by less. Because last year's bigger drop is no longer part of the comparison, the year-over-year increase looks much larger.

There were also fewer industry-wide promotions this November than last year.

Phones and similar devices went the other way: their prices were lower than a year earlier for the 27th month in a row.

If you'd like to go deeper, an analyst from our Consumer Prices Division is available for an interview.

Best regards,
Media Relations

What I changed, and why

1. Led with the number the journalist asked about. The draft opened with the explanation; reporters need the figure first.
2. Defined the jargon once, in plain words. "Base-year effect" stays because the journalist may quote it, but it now comes with a one-sentence explanation.
3. Spelled out abbreviations. "y/y" and "m/m" became "compared with last year" and "from the month before."
4. Turned one dense sentence into a short sequence. Last year's drop, this year's smaller drop, the effect on the comparison. Each step gets its own sentence.
5. Cut what wasn't asked. Quality adjustment is accurate but off-topic here, so it moved to the interview offer instead.
6. Kept every fact the experts approved. Plain language changes the wording, never the meaning.
7. Ended with a next step. An interview offer gives the journalist somewhere to go if they need more.

Putting economists in front of Reddit

Demystifying the Consumer Price Index and the 2021 Census of Population through live, community-driven dialogue.

Role: Communications Officer, Social Media · Statistics Canada

Overview

Like other federal departments, Statistics Canada shares information mostly through one-way channels. For personal subjects like inflation and the census, one-way data releases often fall short of addressing Canadians' real concerns.

I helped run a series of live Reddit "Ask Me Anything" (AMA) events that put our economists and data scientists directly in front of the public during major CPI and 2021 Census releases. The goal was twofold: ease skepticism about our data, and remind Canadians there are real people behind the numbers.

Objectives

• Make dense statistical data digestible for everyday Canadians
• Counter misinformation about the CPI and demystify 2021 Census results
• Give Canadians direct access to the people behind the numbers

My role

Before each event, I scanned our channels and communities like r/PersonalFinanceCanada to anticipate the questions and attitudes we would face. With subject-matter experts, I prepared responses to the toughest questions and ran internal rehearsals. I also worked with subreddit moderators on cross-promotion and event logistics.

During the live events, I was the bridge between our experts and Reddit users. When economists submitted complex answers, I edited them in real time for plain language and adapted them to Reddit's tone and style.

Across channels, I coordinated promotional posts so every AMA fit the broader campaign strategy and the agency's mandate.

Measuring success

After each AMA, I tracked impressions for the event and promotional posts, plus UTM-based click-through rates to our website and releases, and compared them against our baselines and previous AMAs. I also ran sentiment scans of the comment threads to see whether conversations showed more trust in the data or a better understanding of it.

Who TwoStoryTails is for

TwoStoryTails follows four cats across two floors: two domestic shorthairs downstairs, a Bengal and a Savannah upstairs. This brief defines who the content is for, what each audience needs, and how the voice adapts to serve them.

Snapshot

• Concept: 4 cats, 2 floors, domestic meets exotic.
• Platforms: Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
• Reach: 400K+ views across platforms. On TikTok, videos average about 1.3K views, roughly ten times the follower count, so most viewers are reached through discovery rather than as followers.
• What that means: the first line of every post has to work for someone who has never seen the account before.

Personas

Voice rules

One voice across every audience: a dry, observant narrator documenting a very dramatic household. What changes per audience is the format and the pacing, not the personality.

One moment, four audiences

The moment: Ramses, who almost never sits on laps, finally chooses one.

Scroll-Break Seeker · Inner monologue

Don't breathe. Don't move. Don't even think too loudly. A rare event is in progress and any sudden movement could disrupt the prophecy.

Multi-Cat Juggler · Two-floor story

Upstairs: Ramses has chosen a lap for the first time this month. Downstairs: Neo has been on one for three business days and sees no reason to celebrate.

Exotic-Breed Curious · Educational tidbit

Ramses almost never sits on laps unless it's his idea. With high-energy breeds, affection often works best on the cat's terms: let them come to you, stay still, and skip the grab.

Cozy-Content Unwinder · Quiet narration

A rare stillness settles over the upper floor. The Savannah has chosen his resting place. The human will not move for forty minutes.

How this guides decisions

• Weekly mix: every week includes at least one post for each persona, so no audience goes quiet for long.
• Hooks first: since most views come from discovery, the first line is written for the Scroll-Break Seeker, even on posts meant for another persona.
• Timing to test: humour at lunchtime, cozy content in the evening, educational carousels mid-morning on weekdays.
• Validation: compare these personas with Instagram and TikTok audience data (age, location, active hours) and recurring themes in comments, then revise.

Getting started with Lamplight

Lamplight is a calm reading app for EPUB books. This guide covers everything you need for your first session.

Add a book

Lamplight opens EPUB files, the most common ebook format.

1. On your shelf, select Add book.
2. Choose an .epub file from your device.
3. The book appears on your shelf with its cover. Select it to start reading.

Read

Tap or click the right side of the page to go forward and the left side to go back. Lamplight remembers where you stopped, so you can close the app and pick up on the same page later.

Focus mode

Focus mode shows one word at a time in the centre of the screen. It helps when you want to read without your eyes wandering down the page.

1. While reading, select Focus.
2. Set your speed in words per minute (wpm). If you're new to this, start around 250 wpm.
3. Select Play. Select Pause at any time to stop and return to the full page.

The timer shows how long you've been reading in this session.

Change the lighting

Lamplight has three lighting themes. Tap the icon at the top of the screen to switch between them:

• Sun: bright and high-contrast, for daytime.
• Lamp: warm tones for evening reading.
• Moon: dark and low-light, for reading in bed.

Where your books are stored

Your books and reading progress are saved on your device only. Nothing is uploaded, and no account is needed.

Troubleshooting

My book won't open.

Make sure the file ends in .epub. Books bought from some stores are copy-protected (DRM) and can't be opened in other apps.

My books disappeared.

Your browser's data was probably cleared. Add the books again from your EPUB files. Reading progress can't be recovered.

Focus mode is too fast.

Lower the wpm setting. Most people read comfortably between 200 and 300 wpm.