During the 2020 season of Canada Reads, Canadian writer and broadcaster Jael Richardson went “live” on Instagram every day during the competition to “spill the tea”—in other words, to discuss what happened during the debate. Although Jael tweeted that she was hosting the “aftershow” independent of the CBC, it is important to note that Jael […]
Jael Richardson spills the Canada Reads 2020 tea on Instagram
During the 2020 season of Canada Reads, Canadian writer and broadcaster Jael Richardson went “live” on Instagram every day during the competition to “spill the tea”—in other words, to discuss what happened during the debate.
Although Jael tweeted that she was hosting the “aftershow” independent of the CBC, it is important to note that Jael holds significant public literary authority based on her relationship to the CBC and to CanLit. Jael is an author, a book columnist and guest host on CBC’s q, and she founded and serves as the Executive Director for the Festival of Literary Diversity (FOLD), Canada’s first festival for diverse authors and storytellers.
The unofficial after-show
Jael streamed to Instagram Live approximately 10–15 minutes after each debate, and later posted the videos to Instagram (due to the fact that Instagram Live videos are only available for 24 hours after posting). Her videos quickly became popular with Canadians logging on to watch and comment on Jael’s later dubbed “unofficial after-show.”
Jael captioned the Day 1 video, “Canada Reads Day 1 Tea.” Jael posted a video each day of the debate, for a total of four videos. In the first two videos, she is by herself as she discusses some of the arguments presented during the debates and shares some book recommendations.
In the third video, which Jael captioned Canada Reads Day 3 Tea Party, Jael is joined by author and Canada Reads alumni Sharon Bala. After some brief technical difficulties, Jael and Sharon broke down the debate and that day’s vote.
The fourth and final video was captioned “Canada Reads Day 4 FINALE: Celebrity Tea Party. My first celebrity interview on IGTV!. Jael was joined by the Canada Reads 2020 winner Amanda Brugel, who defended We Have Always Been Here by Samra Habib.
Jael noted in this video that this was an historic event in Canada Reads history because it was the first time a woman defending a woman’s title had won Canada Reads.
Based on the studio lights in the background, it appears that Amanda Brugel joined Jael on Instagram Live from the CBC studio shortly after winning Canada Reads. For the next twenty minutes, Jael interviews Amanda on the debate and the win.
Canadians’ reactions to Jael’s Instagram Live videos
Generally, reactions to Jael’s Instagram Live videos were incredibly positive. Many users on Instagram commented that they loved and appreciated Jael’s unofficial after-show.
User @silvercanadian took this praise one step further, noting that Jael’s “tea parties” were the best part of Canada Reads.
As we have previously discussed, the predominant critique of Canada Reads is the use of celebrity panellists on the program and the reality television format. This is reflected in Instagram user @lauralolomayne’s comment, in which they compare the reality television format of Canada Reads with “traditional” author talks.
Critiquing the “strategy” of Canada Reads as a reality television show, Instagram user @thealimwriter asked Sharon Bala (during the third video) if it is possible that the celebrity panellists don’t read all of the contenders.
Sharon Bala’s response is eye-opening with respect to the celebrity panellists’ literary authority.
Given these comments—and what we know of Canadians’ perception of celebrity panellists from Fuller and Rehberg Sedo’s research—the enthusiasm for Jael’s Instagram Live streams may be attributable to her perceived literary authority. In fact, Jael says in the first video that the point of these “teas” is to talk about the topics that aren’t being addressed in the debate. Significantly, she notes that what is “really important, when we’re looking at these debates, is to break apart the parts that don’t fit into a reality TV show.”
Canadians have expressed a desire to have more access to the Canada Reads authors, as we saw in the 2021 event with authors and panellists, and Jael’s Instagram Live videos deliver just that: access to authors (Jael and Sharon) with literary authority, who provide Canadians with another source of information about and deeper discussion on Canada Reads.
The unofficial after-show was such a success in 2020 that Jael also hosted “After-show Tea Spilling IG Live” videos for Canada Reads 2021—although these videos have not been shared to her Instagram.
Fuller, Danielle and DeNel Rehberg Sedo. Reading Beyond the Book: The Social Practices of Contemporary Literary Culture. Routledge, 2013.
Further Reading
The gender divide in Canada Reads 2020
In response to the 2020 season of Canada Reads, many members of the CBC’s Canada Reads Facebook group expressed displeasure and disappointment with the 2020 panel—and, in particular, with the behaviour of the female panellists.
#CanadaReads on Instagram
So far, our social media analysis has focused on how Canadians use Twitter to write about Canada Reads, the books it features, and the culture that surrounds the broadcasts. But Canadians—especially younger generations—are increasingly using Instagram to share their thoughts, opinions, and lives.
Reading collectively during a pandemic: A digital Alice Munro book club
Last summer, after postponing an in-person conference about Canadian literature and the digital public due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we were looking for alternative ways to connect with others who shared our interest in Canadian literature.
Reading and purchasing habits of Canadians based on Canada Reads
In the CBC’s Canada Reads Facebook group, user Susan Turvey Gibson recently asked the following question: “Wondering how many viewers/readers had read any of the Canada Reads books before they became finalists? if it was not for Canada Reads, would you have picked them up?”