The Asianadian: An Asian Canadian Magazine

Revolutionary & Grassroots

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What is Asianadian?

Asianadian is a revolutionary, grassroots magazine that focuses on the social and racial issues of Asian-Canadians. It was revolutionary because it was the first magazine of its time to deal with the social, racial, and cultural issues of Asian Canadians. It is also a forum to support and promote Asian writers, musicians and artists. Asianadian is located out of Toronto and is published on a quarterly basis. The scope of the publication reached outside the confines of Toronto and spread into the United States and overseas to attract over three hundred subscribers at one point.

Reasons to buy Asianadian

Effective way to break into growing Asian market. The rapidly increasing number of Asians in North America signifies that there is a need for a magazine such as Asianadian. Asians have been prevalent in all types of industries and successful in positions of leadership. Asian Americans are hailed as one of North America’s fastest growing, most diverse, and most affluent minority groups (American Demographics, 7/91). Along with Canada’s open immigration policies, the constant flow of Asians into the country creates a fertile market.

Increasing readership will guarantee wide reach of ideas. Readership for the magazine continues to grow at an alarming rate as loyal readers have endorsed Asianadian to friends. With current technology enabling the philosophies of the magazine to be disseminated widely, Asianadian is poised to take the momentum that they have and gain financial support. This support will come from other Asian-friendly businesses as they see how lucrative and positive the magazine can be.

Little competition gives Asianadian stability. Asianadian’s uniqueness in content and business practices allows little room for competitors. This makes the magazine a good investment because the price of the stock will not be dependant on anything but its own performance. It has proven to possess a following that has been supportive in contributions and subscriptions throughout the years.

Technological advances can allow for increased revenue. With the aid of the Internet, Asianadian could utilize their website to highlight and even advertise local Asian artists, writers, and musicians. This would escalate traffic through the website with the possibility of increased advertising revenue and reader subscriptions. It would also create awareness of local Asian artists, writers and musicians.

Investment Concerns

Asianadian is currently financially unstable. The loss of subscribers could drastically influence the future of the company, as they are the main source of revenue for the magazine. Another concern is the lack of advertisers that they have attracted. To gain support they may have to compromise some of their journalistic freedom in order to stay afloat.

Visit the collective’s website at:

http://faculty.washington.edu/chanant/asianadian/

Research Question #1 (Russel Bareng)

How does the media organization affect social change in your locale?

One aspect of the Chinese World View is didactics. Confucianism highly emphasized education as an important aspect of life. This is seen in many aspects of Chinese media. Charles Elliott conducted a case study on press releases from the New China News Agency. He noticed that many news values included a form of education. “Instructive: news that serves the function of providing useful information and promoting self-education. Education is a primary intent.” (Elliot, 73).

Bobby Siu, one of the key members of Asianadian said that they saw the production of the Asianadian as the beginning of a social movement, similar to the Asian Americans' movement. The founders were also interested in creating a forum that Asian Canadians could use to speak out with, as well as a medium for sharing of ideas and insights. This is very similar to the First Amendment found in the Bill of Rights of the American Constitution which promotes a marketplace of ideas.

The heart and soul of Asianadian was to educate the public about events pertaining to Asian Canadians. Many of the articles dealt with controversial issues such as sexuality. While sexuality may not seem like a taboo issue today, it was during the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, especially among the Asian Canadian community.

The article “I dig Asian chicks!”, talked about how an Asian Canadian woman overheard a conversation between Caucasian men who had an inclination towards “Asian chicks.” The men spoke of how Asian girls behaved a particular way because of their culture. When she did confront the men, they perceived her not as an individual, but as a stereotypical representation of a particular group. The author then discusses that perhaps the men’s views of Asian women were due to their limited contact with Asians overseas. Their viewpoints might have originated from their experiences with Asian women in the sex industry. She also explains her views on her own self-image.

The Asianadian created a forum for the local Asian community to express ideas, opinions, as well as share experiences. It also challenged the norms. In the same issue that dealt with sexuality was an article on the movie The Deer Hunter and how it tried to represent certain images of Asians as the truth. Education was the main goal of the Asianadian, educating the public about issues dealing with Asian Canadians.

Another example can be found in the Spring 1980 issue. The Hawaiian cultural revival was discussed in the International Section. It discusses the history of Hawaii’s statehood and explains why Hawaii is so distinct, culturally, compared to the other states.

These examples show how Asianadian was more concerned with educating its readers than by pleasing advertisers. The Asianadian drew attention to topics that needed to be discussed. Forcibly bringing out these topics to the public did not allow people in power to hide from these issues. Now that the problem was out in the open, change was forced to happen.

Research Question #2 (Russel Bareng)

How does the content of the product reflect the media organization?

The staff of Asianadian had six goals that it wanted to accomplish in each issue. These were to find new dignity and pride in being Asian in Canada, to promote an understanding between Asian Canadians and other Canadians, to speak out against those conditions, individuals and institutions perpetuating racism in Canada, to stand up against the distortions of our history in Canada, stereotypes, economic exploitations, and the general tendency towards injustice and inequality practiced on minority groups, to provide a forum for Asian Canadian writers, artists, musicians, and so on, and finally, to promote unity by bridging the gap between Asians with roots in Canada and recent immigrants.

These goals helped shape the type of articles found in Asianadian. These issues ranged from breaking down stereotypes in the media, explaining the social aspects of a country going through political change, to promoting Asian artists. Another factor determining content was the staff itself. Each issue had a rotating editor which allowed each writer to make leadership decisions depending on the issues of the magazine.

Some examples can be found in the Spring 1980 edition. The article entitled Filipinos in Quebec explains the economic and political situation in the Philippines from the 1950’s to the 1970’s. Many of the problems in the Philippines came from the Marcos Regime, which the United States help put into power when the Philippines gained independence.

Most of the original staff was made up of college students. These students wanted to make a difference in their world and they tried to do this through educating the people. This magazine was also the first grass-roots magazine dedicated to Asians in Canada. Asianadian published poets and was able to get many first interviews with Asian celebrities such as the director of The Joy Luck Club, Wayne Wang. The goals of the Asianadian staff reflected in the articles they wrote. An example of one such section was called Face to Face. The Face to Face section in the same Spring 1980 edition was an interview with Camille Laurin who discussed government polices concerning minorities. Camille Lauren was the Quebec Minister of State for Cultural Development.

Bobby Siu, one of the key members responded in an email, “the magazine consisted of articles on Asian Canadians' experiences and how we viewed the world. These articles reflect well the mandate of the Asianadian Resources Workshop” (Siu, 2002). The Asianadian Resources Workshop was the collective of “like-minded Asian Canadians.” Siu emphasized that Asianadian was not a company but a collective.

1978: The Beginnings

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History of the Company (Russel Bareng)

Tony Chan, Cheuk Kwan, and Lao Bo started Asianadian in 1978. Its original intention was to be a Cantonese language magazine about Hong Kong News; Anthony Chan was not part of this original project. However, it was surmised that this magazine would not do well without an English edition. This English edition was to be a translation of the Cantonese version – one side would be in Cantonese and the other would be in English.

Chan was contacted by Kwan and was asked to do the English edition. This English edition was to be called Crossroads. Chan turned in his first issue of Crossroads to Kwan and they decided that the Crossroads edition was not a worthwhile addition to their Cantonese magazine. The project was eventually discarded. However, at the famous Mars Restaurant in Toronto Canada, the three met and talked about social justice, activism, and criticism in the Asian Canadian community. The original articles Chan turned in for Crossroads was prime material to be used for Asianadian. However, they deemed that the title was not very suitable for the types of discussion that would be found.

The original title of Crossroads contained ten letters, Asianadian also had ten letters so it was decided that this new magazine would be called Asianadian. The originally layout of Crossroads was used and the term “Asianadian” was placed over each mention of the name “Crossroads.” Thus, the first issue of Asianadian was created in 1978.

The Asianadian was in publication from 1978 to 1985. Since this magazine was not a company, it depended on many volunteers investing time and effort to create its quarterly issues. Most of the costs to cover the magazine were from the few ads placed in each issue and money from the pockets of the staff. Nearing the end of its life, Asianadian received a one-year grant from the government. Enough money was given to cover the costs of rental space for the office, labor, materials, and salaries for the four staff members at the time.

By 1985 however, the staff was burnt out from working issue to issue. Most of the key members had families and those concerns took priority to the magazine. It was also difficult to run the magazine on the budget that it was receiving. Momoye Sugiman, one of the later staff members also believed that the political fervor of the 70’s had died across the United States, taking Asianadian along with it.

Value of the company in US$ (Russel Bareng)

Asianadian Resources Workshop is the name of the organization that produced the Asianadian magazine. The Workshop was a collective of like-minded Asian Canadians rather than a company. Unlike companies, the Workshop had no interest in making profit. Much of the money required to run the magazine came out of the staff’s pockets. Tony Chan was a graduate student while working at Asianadian. Cheuk Kwan was the one of the few members who had a full-time job so he was able to put money into Asianadian.

Since Asianadian was not a traditional company, there was no stock to trade. Value of Asianadian could only be determined by the amount of advertising in each issue. Advertising rates were occasionally published in issues of Asianadian. Cost was determined by the size of ad compared to the overall page. The advertising rates were as follows: 1/12 page would go at 18 dollars, 1/8 at $25, 1/6 at $32, 1/4 at $45, 1/3 at $55, half a page at $80, 2/3 at $105, 3/4 at $115, a whole page at $150, outside back cover at $300 and finally the inside cover at 225 dollars.

The first step was to determine amount and size of ads placed. Next, the team added all of the costs for placing the ads. Once that was completed, the total cost of ads placed was divided by the number of magazines used for gathering cost data; this represents the average value of one issue of Asianadian. This number was multiplied by four to determine average yearly cost. Asianadian was a quarterly magazine so the number four was used. Since Asianadian was a non-profit magazine, deductions such as salary were not necessary. The chart below shows the breakdown of how the value of an issue of Asianadian was calculated.

A strange phenomenon noticed was how in later issues of Asianadian, there was almost a 50 percent drop in advertising.

Leadership and worth in US$ (Russel Bareng)

Since Asianadian was a collective rather than a company, there was no monetary value in the leadership. Asianadian was the first ever grass roots magazine dedicated to Asian Canadians. Most of the staff were college students with the exception of a few people such as Cheuk Kwan, who held steady jobs.

Leadership Control (Marian Tseng)

Unlike many publications today, such as Giant Robot or Yolk Magazines, Asianadian was unique in the sense that not one person dominated the publication process or had control over the collective. Since Asianadian was not a traditional company but rather a collective, the sense of equality between colleagues was especially strong. A collective is defined as a group of like-minded individuals working together for a common cause. Every member was on equal footing and was able to contribute ideas, constructive criticism, and feedback freely. Each issue had a rotating editor that oversaw the production of that particular edition but even then, decisions tended to be made as a group (Siu, 2002). Having a rotating editor, a different person in charge of a particular issue, allowed everyone to have a leadership role at one point or another but not monopolize these positions. Each member was aware of the duty they had – to bring important Asian societal and cultural issues to the surface. This duty enabled them to stay humble and work cooperatively as a group.

In addition, not having set roles in the “company” or having to be dependent on advertisers money allowed them to focus on more important issues such as portraying the Asian Canadian experience in a truthful light. This way, there was no need to restrain themselves from reporting on certain stories for fear that an advertiser would pull sponsorship from the magazine if they did not agree with the articles that were written. In fact, Jean Chong shared that Asianadian made a point to stay away from obtaining corporate funding because they wanted independence when penning their articles (Chong, 2002). This allowed each member to write unabashedly, focusing on issues that were sometimes difficult to write about at the time. Examples of these issues include stories on mental health and racism. Asianadian offered resources and support to their readers through their articles by giving them information on how to deal with these topics.

It is apparent in articles of Asianadian that these revolutionary learners were writing for the magazine because it was their passion to pass on the vision of Asianadian. It was revolutionary because it was the first magazine devoted to tackling the issues of Asian Canadians and even more noteworthy because the majority of the collective were students at the time. Although passion for the magazine consumed some writers more than others, there were no issues with people being more authoritarian. In her interview, Momoye Sugiman really stressed that the group was not a hierarchy but rather equals (Sugiman, 2002). This promoted harmony and allowed the members to work on the magazine rather than disagree with each other. By doing so, their ideas were disseminated more widely than if they had spent time worrying about advertising and bickering over control of the collective.

Profile of Stockholders (Marian Tseng)

Since Asianadian was not a company, rather a collective, they lacked stockholders. Instead, the members of the Asianadian Resources Workshop were a group of people dedicated to disseminating their vision, which was to provide a forum for Asian Canadians irrespective of their ethnicity, language or country of origin. This vision was a guide for how they wanted to organize their collective and what stories they wanted to focus on. However, when Asianadian was still in circulation, each contributing member was considered a shareholder in the collective because they were all a part of bringing this revolutionary magazine to life.

Current Value of Stock in US$ (Marian Tseng)

As emphasized before, Asianadian was not a company in the traditional sense so they had no stock in the market at the time. Furthermore, since Asianadian’s final issue was in 1985 they would no longer have stock even if they were a traditional company. During the time of the publication, the operating budget for the magazine was said to be around $6,000 Canadian or less (Chong, 2002). Most of this funding came out of the pockets of contributing writers and subscriptions

Social and Racial Justice

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Mission of the Company (Marian Tseng)

The content of Asianadian was infused with stories about social and racial justice and how to be educated about these issues. It was apparent that the aim of the publication was not focused on economics but rather on gaining insight of the experiences of Asian Canadians and the struggles and triumphs they faced.

The mission of Asianadian was printed in almost every issue of the magazine. This is an important reminder to the staff to carry out the mission of the collective in all aspects of every article and also convey to the reader the ongoing commitment to these six purposes:

To encourage pride in being Asian in Canada.

Asianadian is constantly encouraging Asian Canadian pride through their issues. This can be seen when notable Asians are interviewed such as Maria Lee, the coordinator of the Chinese Outreach Program (Volume 1, Issue 1). It can also be seen through Community News and reading about what other Asian groups are doing in the area.

The next three purposes of Asianadian’s mission are intertwined.

To bridge the differences among Asian Canadians and other Canadians.
To speak out against racism, in all forms and practiced under any conditions, in Canada
To stand up and correct misconceptions of Asian history in Canada, such as stereotypes, and also fight for inequality towards minority groups of any ethnic background

There is a plethora of articles dedicated to these aims. In Volume 4, Issue 3, Asianadian featured an article called “Racial Harassment: Individual Reflections”. Here, Asian Canadians shared their experiences with racism. At the conclusion of the article, the staff provided valuable resources for their readers when dealing with racist people or authority figures. They realized that recent Asian immigrants might not have much experience with these encounters and wanted to offer support to them.

To promote Asian Canadian writers, artists, etc. and provide them an outlet for their artistry

In addition to highlighting Asian Canadian issues, the magazine wanted to highlight exceptional artists in their community. They did this through having Asian Canadian writers submit short stories to be published such as “Paki,” a short story by M.K. Sohail (Volume 6, Number 1) and having a section of each issue devoted to poetry by Asian Canadians.

To encourage unity among Asians already in Canada and new immigrants.

This aim was achieved through community news which Asianadian wrote about. It was also achieved simply by publishing stories on both groups, new immigrants and Asians already in Canada, because it educated them on the different issues that plague each group.

These are just some of the examples of how the aims are confirmed when reviewing just a few issues of Asianadian. Often times, issues would be dedicated to a sole topic. This allowed the staff to thoroughly research and exhaust all avenues on the topic.

As a result, many valuable resources were made available to readers. For example, an entire issue was dedicated to mental illness and the Asian community (Vol. 6, Issue 1). They shared personal stories so that readers could see that this was a real problem in the community. In addition, Asianadian had a Vietnamese doctor named Bach-Tuyet Dang pen an article entitled, “My Experiences as a Vietnamese Doctor.” Dang wrote about different patients of his and how sometimes it was difficult to work with recent immigrants because they were used to traditional Asian medicine.

What is striking is the effort to convey the significance of these matters. The collective emphasized that these are topics that are important to discuss even though they are not publicized. In addition, the staff strongly emphasized that Asian equality is not abnormal and is an entitlement that should not only be allowed but is a birth-given right. Asianadian was constantly attentive to the needs of their readers rather than concentrating on profit.

Momoye Sugiman, a major contributing member to Asianadian, saw the collective’s mission as tri-fold. First, they wanted to combat stereotyping and racism. Secondly, they wanted to promote intercultural communication and understanding among the various Asian Canadian ethno-cultural groups. Finally, the members wanted to create a place where Asian Canadians could express their views and showcase their talent through writing or other outlets. Sugiman felt that this mission was achieved because although the magazine never became widely read, their readers were fiercely loyal to the magazine. This loyal readership made the collective even more determined to be committed to breaking down existing stereotypes of the community.

So while the magazine reported on the Asian Canadian community, it also targeted the audience of non-Asian Canadians in hopes to educate them. As mentioned above, they truly wanted to break down stereotypes and bring the issues of Asians to the surface.

Vision of the Company (Marian Tseng)

Every successful company needs a vision, which is used to guide a group of people successfully towards a common goal. Asianadian’s vision began in a Toronto restaurant in 1978. The conversation that morning was not centered on current events or idle chitchat but rather the vision of a revolutionary magazine. This vision became a reality due to the pioneering efforts of three people: Tony Chan, Lao Bo, and Cheuk Kwan. The magazine’s goals were dedicated to “social justice, social activism and social criticism” (Asianadian website ). The intention of the collective was to create a forum that united Asian Canadians, regardless of their ethnicity, language differences and countries of origin. This forum would aid in the dispelling of stereotypes and stand up for equality among all the races (Siu, 2002).

Asianadian succeeded in achieving this goal on multiple levels. They called on the aid of writers from diverse backgrounds to present a complete picture of the Asian experience, not just the Chinese or Japanese experience. Asianadian was fortunate to have the efforts of writers such as Satish Dhar, an Asian Indian, and Ph. Le, who was Vietnamese to bring about a broad perspective that was inclusive of all Asian Canadian communities. The collective was also fiercely dedicated to putting all their time and energy into the articles rather than worrying about getting advertisers. They recognized that they needed financial backing from investors but never allowed that to compromise their journalistic integrity. They agreed upon the magazine’s conception that their stories would not take the path of a consumerist driven publication. They did not want to encourage the rampant materialism that was so prevalent in mainstream media. Instead, they wanted to market to readers that were more activist, academic and literary. While this was a smaller audience, they were extremely devoted and active partners with the magazine.

This idea was grassroots because it was the first of its kind during a time period where Asians had little voice in mainstream media or public policy. During the magazine’s seven-year existence, over a hundred talented writers brought life and inspiration to Asianadian’s readers and challenged their ideologies. Despite the criticism and financial hardships that it would endure, the staff of Asianadian knew that they were contributing to something special and radical that was challenging the beliefs of Canadians.

Product Line/Operations (Tina Lin)

At first glance, a reader today would most likely look at Asianadian and realize it was made before the era of computers and the Internet. In fact, the process of printing the magazine was “ridiculously tedious and time consuming,” as IBM electronic typewriters were the most up-to-date word processors of the time (Sugiman, 2002). Asianadian was produced by a close-knit group of Asian Canadians based in Toronto. Members of the Asianadian collective worked together in planning, writing, typing, preparing lay-outs, graphics, and printing. Writing was, for the most part, done by people within the collective. There was never a shortage of articles as material could also be solicited from “outspoken individuals in the various Asian Canadian communities” (Sugiman, 2002). As the years progressed, however, it grew more and more difficult to find writers due to the fact that the task demanded a certain level of determination as well as skill.

The lifespan of Asianadian (1978 to 1985) was over a decade before desktop computers would become the norm. Much more effort was required in putting together a magazine at that time than it would take today. Writers had to justify the text of the article manually using a device called Letraset. Articles would sometimes have to be re-typed without self-correcting ribbon, making the process much more difficult than it is today with the advent of Microsoft Word. Once articles were completed, lay-outs were done by cutting the typed copies and manually laying them out on cardboards one page at a time. Lay-out sessions would sometimes last the entire night. Final lay-outs were then taken to a print shop for mass printing. During the first few years of the magazine’s existence, Tony Chan and Cheuk Kwan were responsible for maintaining the quality of the final product. This role would later be rotated among members of the collective. After completion of printing the issue, copies of Asianadian were packaged in boxes for mailing and distribution. Distribution was done by a company which specialized in distributing magazines throughout Canada. The collective at Asianadian needed only to pay the company, and copies of the magazine were then distributed to book and magazine stores.

Marketing Analysis and Strategies (Tina Lin)

There was discussion among the founders of Asianadian as to who would be the most likely to read this magazine. However, no official market analysis was done prior to the publication of the first issue of Asianadian. The collective of Asianadian felt an “overwhelming need to express themselves, to expose current and historical injustices, to bridge gaps between various Asian Canadian communities, and to smash stultifying racist stereotypes” (Sugiman, 2002). As far as determining who the target audience would be, founders wanted to provide a voice for the Asian Canadian community. Asianadian was resolute in expressing the viewpoints of the collective, no matter how controversial, and there was no fear of offending readers or of being labeled as radicals. Over the years, Asianadian stayed true to its mission and stood firm on its principles to be an open forum though this may have hindered growth in readership as some in the community found Asianadian to be too extreme in its views. Despite the fact that increasing the size of its readership would have potentially led to more financial support and government grants, the views of the collective were never “watered down” in order to conform to the status quo. “Shaking up the status quo [was] implicit” in the aims of Asianadian (Sugiman, 3).

With these ideals in place, Asianadian was determined to disseminate thought provoking and informative content into the Asian Canadian community. Once Asianadian was in print, marketing strategies needed to be implemented. Methods utilized to inform the public about Asianadian included “word of mouth,” promotion at public community events, and marketing to university and school libraries. Formal advertising included strategically placed flyers and exchange ads with other progressive publications. Though university libraries and other institutions and individuals subscribed to this magazine, it was difficult to put on the shelf at stores. “Left leaning” bookstores and a few “ethnic” stores were willing to carry Asianadian. For the most part, however, most “ethnic” grocery stores and bookstores found the content of the magazine to be too radical for their costumers and many potential readers found the magazine to be one-sided and radical as well.

Though turned away by mainstream stores, Asianadian did not question its content or reevaluate its purpose. From the starting block, the goal of Asianadian was not commercial success. The main interest of the collective was to raise levels of consciousness in the Asian Canadian community. Staying true to its initial intent would eventually reap its rewards and Asianadian would gain a loyal readership base. In the fall of 1979, subscribers of Asianadian amounted to approximately 300 readers from around the world. The word was getting out on Asianadian, high schools invited members of the collective to speak to students about the history the Asian Canadian community, other magazines were reprinting articles from Asianadian, even The Globe and Mail newspaper requested a front page “quote of the day” from the collective. Recognition in the community helped market Asianadian and give attention to the magazine, and “by the spring of 1980 [the collective] had clearly established the magazine as a respected, progressive Asian Canadian voice” (Sugiman, 3).

Although Asianadian was laid to rest in 1985, Momoye Sugiman still has hopes for its revival with the arrival of the Internet. The Internet presents a relatively inexpensive means for the ideas of Asianadian to be conveyed to a global audience. There would also be many possibilities for promotion on the Internet via e-mail newsletters, message boards, links on related websites, and advertising banners. By putting the magazine on the Internet for the entire world to see, there is an opportunity to spark interest among today’s progressive Asian thinkers. Momoye is optimistic and goes on to say, “Who knows? Perhaps a few young Asian Canadians – who were born when The Asianadian was launched – will become politicized after reading the entire collection of past Asianadian issues. Perhaps they will even take up where we left off back in 1985” (Sugiman, 2002).

Breakfast at Mars; College & Spadina

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Research and Development (Tina Lin)

The idea for Asianadian came about in April of 1978. Tony Chan, Cheuk Kwan, and Paul Levine (also known as Lai Bo) were sitting in a restaurant discussing issues which concerned Asian Canadians of that time period. The concept for Asianadian was inspired by the Asian American movement, which was spreading across university campuses in America during the late 1960s and early 1970s. The founders of Asianadian had set out to create a similar sense of cultural identity and political consciousness among Asian Canadians through this magazine, which would give the Asian community an opportunity to speak out.

It is unclear if market research had been done prior to putting the magazine in motion. Momoye Sugiman recalls that a reader survey was published in order to determine the type of people who were reading Asianadian. However, founders of the magazine were certain that their target audience would be the “large and varied” Asian Canadian community (Sugiman, 2002). One of the goals of the Asianadian was to give this group – Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Malaysian, Indonesian, Filipino, East Indian, Pakistani, and Sri Lankan – a sense of collective identity. Chan, Kwan, and Levine had much to share with the community themselves as well as many Asian Canadian contacts with progressive ideas and research who were not afraid to “rock the boat” (Sugiman, 2002). The magazine was launched on the basis that it was time for Asian Canadians to be heard. Asian Canadians were long in need of a forum to speak out and to share their experiences with others. Thus, the first “grassroots magazine dedicated to Asian Canada” was born, and it focused on issues such as “social justice, social activism and social criticism in the Asian Canadian community” (Asianadian website ).

Management Organization (Tina Lin)

A collective of people saw to it that Asianadian ran and operated smoothly. There were no key managers; rather the role of manager was rotated throughout the group involved with Asianadian. During the first few years of publication, Anthony Chan and Cheuk Kwan* were “key managers” though not “dictatorial” (Sugiman, 2002). A few years into publication of Asianadian, Momoye Sugiman joined the collective and immediately took on responsibility of editing issues. Once Chan and Kwan moved on in their careers and passed on responsibilities of operating Asianadian, Sugiman was ready to take over a large portion of the responsibility for managing the magazine. She arranged editorial meetings and layout meetings as well as mailed the magazine out to subscribers. Due to family responsibilities, Sugiman was no longer available to continue managing Asianadian full time after 1982. Leadership responsibilities were later passed on to Bobby Siu and Satish Dhar* until Asianadian came to a close in 1985.

Tony Chan

While a part of the Asianadian collective, Tony Chan was also studying to get his Ph.D. in modern Chinese History at York University in Toronto, Canada. He has since been to Hong Kong to work as a senior producer and reporter for Television Broadcasting, Ltd. where he hosted Focus, his own public affairs show. He has also reported for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in Edmonton, Saskatoon, Regina, and Calgary. Chan has completed many works since being involved with Asianadian, he has published many articles, books, and produced a number of documentaries. Articles he has written have appeared in the Gazette, Journal of European Economic History, Journal of Ethnic Studies, Ethnic and Racial Studies, Canadian Ethnic Studies, Adult Education, Asian Profile, Army Journal and Defence Quarterly and The Globe and Mail. His books include Li Ka-shing: Hong Kong Elusive Billionaire, Arming the Chinese: The Western Armaments Trade in Warlord China, 1920-1928, and Gold Mountain: The Chinese in the New World. Documentaries he has produced include Chinese Cafes in Rural Saskatchewan (1985), Another Day in America (1989), The Panama (1996), American Nurse (1992), and Sweet Heat (1998). In addition to this list of accomplishments, Chan has taught at the universities of Alberta, Arizona, Saskatchewan, Victoria, Saint Mary’s University, Ferris State College, California State University, and he is currently an Associate Professor of Communications and International Studies at the University of Washington.

Momoye Sugiman

Before joining the Asianadian collective, as well as for some time during her involvement at Asianadian, Momoye Sugiman was an undergraduate majoring in English Literature at York University in Toronto, Canada. During her time of study at York, Sugiman was involved with a quarterly feminist journal, Breakthrough. This magazine was distributed on campus and was a grassroots publication like Asianadian. Since her time at Asianadian, Sugiman has done freelance editing on and off mostly for non-profit, community organizations. Projects she has worked on include Jin Guo: Voices of Chinese Canadian Women and Japanese Canadian Redress: the Toronto Story. She is currently raising four children and teaching English as a Second Language to adults from around the world.

Bobby Siu

        Prior to becoming involved with Asianadian, Bobby Siu was studying for his Ph.D., and while a member of the Asianadian collective, he worked for the Canadian government.  Bobby has since involved himself in projects related to race relations, community development, human rights, and training and development.  After his involvement with Asianadian, he has taught at the university level, worked in government policy development, managed international education projects, consulted, trained, and directed programs and departments.  Siu is currently a consultant specializing in diversity management and multicultural marketing.  He provides consulting, training and research services for the business and government sectors in managing a diversified workforce, and assists them to reach out and market to multicultural communities.

*Members of the collective have since lost touch with Cheuk Kwan and Satish Dhar, therefore their profiles were not available to print in this section.

Competitors (Tina Lin)

During the time Asianadian was in print, another magazine with a similar theme was being published. The magazine was called Rikka and was run by a Japanese Canadian. Rikka originally began as a magazine focusing on Japanese heritage, however, the mission of the publication expanded to include ethnic groups outside of the Asian contingent such as “Native Peoples, Blacks, and New Canadians of other extractions” (Larson, 14). This publication documented the experience of minority groups in Canadian society much like Asianadian documented the experience of Asian Canadians. It was geared more toward a middle-of-the-road, academic and literary audience. Although this magazine had a somewhat related subject matter, the Asianadian collective did not view it as a competitor. Both magazines did in fact contain content which “frequently expressed the anger at stereotypes and treatment of minority groups in Canadian society” (Larson, 14). However, Rikka was instead viewed as a supporter in that it gave a voice to minorities in the Canadian community just as Asianadian gave a voice to the Asian Canadian community.

Data Collected

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Content Analysis (Julie Calma)

Our group selected nine of the Asianadian magazines to observe and collect data concerning the content of the issues. We divided the content into the presence of particular ethnic groups, issues, and ideas of the Chinese World View. Upon reviewing the content of the issues, we found that the issues mirrored the Asianadian aims. The aims of the Asianadian were: to find new dignity and pride in being Asian in Canada; to promote an understanding between Asian Canadians and other Canadians; to speak out against those conditions, individuals and institutions perpetuating racism in Canada; to stand up against the distortions of our history in Canada, stereotypes, economic exploitations, and the general tendency towards injustice and inequality practiced on minority groups; to provide a forum for Asian Canadian writers, artists, musicians, etc.; and finally, to promote unity by bridging the gap between Asians with roots in Canada and recent immigrants.

Since the writers and contributors of the Asianadian were a mix of different ethnic Asian groups, the magazine touched on most every Asian background. Chinese and Japanese were the most prevalent Asians discussed in the articles, although, other groups such as Koreans, Filipinos, Vietnamese, Asian Indian, Singaporeans, Pakistani, Indonesian and Malaysians were also mentioned. It was very clear that the magazine was not directed towards one particular Asian group, but to all Asian backgrounds. Among the presence of social issues, the ones that were discussed the most were immigrants, Asian equality in Canada, racism, discrimination, prejudice, human, and civil rights. In issues relating to the Chinese World View, the most commonly present were family issues, organismic wholeness/interconnectedness and education/didacticism. For example, organismic wholeness and interconnectedness are presented in an article by Ami Chiyo Hori, “Are the Sansei Avoiding Each Other?” This particular article discussed how it is becoming the norm for Japanese women to be engaged in relationships with white Canadians. Due to the rise in inter-racial marriages, Japanese Canadians have become better able to adapt to white middle class mainstream culture.

Our findings are as follows:

See Appendix A for comprehensive categorization of Asianadian content.

Government Relations (Julie Calma)

Writer and co-founder of Asianadian, Bobby Siu had informed this group that the Asianadian was published by the Asianadian Resources Workshop. This workshop was not a private sector company or a business but a “collective” of Asian Canadians offering their own time in getting their magazine published and distributed. The only relations the Asianadian had with the government was during a period of approximately one year where the workshop received a government grant. These grants were used in order to produce issues for that year, as well as provide office space, supplies and salaries for two to three staff members that were in charge of making the layouts.

Because of this team’s limited information in terms of the Asianadian and their relations with the government, the team had decided to research a bit about the media and government relations in Canada. We found on the Media Awareness Network, The Canada Newspaper Association (CNA) statement of principles tied together with the Asianadian. The statement of principles include:

PREAMBLE

This statement of principles expresses the commitment of Canada's daily newspapers to operate in the public interest. A newspaper is a vital source of information and a private business enterprise with responsibility to the community it serves.

FREEDOM OF THE PRESS

Freedom of the press is an exercise of every Canadian's right to freedom of expression guaranteed in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It is the right to gather and disseminate information, to discuss, to advocate, to dissent. A free press is essential to our democratic society. It enables readers to use their Charter right to receive information and make informed judgments on the issues and ideas of the time.

INDEPENDENCE

The newspaper's primary obligation is fidelity to the public good. It should pay the costs of gathering the news. Conflicts of interest, real or apparent, should be declared. The newspaper should guard its independence from government, commercial and other interests seeking to subvert content for their own purposes.

ACCURACY AND FAIRNESS

The newspaper keeps faith with readers by presenting information that is accurate, fair, comprehensive, interesting and timely. It should acknowledge its mistakes promptly and conspicuously. Sound practice clearly distinguishes among news reports, expressions of opinion, and materials produced for and by advertisers. When images have been altered or simulated, readers should be told.

COMMUNITY RESPONSIBILITY

The newspaper has responsibilities to its readers, its shareholders, its employees and its advertisers. But the operation of a newspaper is a public trust and its overriding responsibility is to the society it serves. The newspaper plays many roles: a watchdog against evil and wrongdoing, an advocate for good works and noble deeds, and an opinion leader for its community. The newspaper should strive to paint a representative picture of its diverse communities, to encourage the expression of disparate views and to be accessible and accountable to the readers it serves, whether rich or poor, weak or powerful, minority or majority. When published material attacks an individual or group, those affected should be given an opportunity to reply.

RESPECT

The newspaper should strive to treat the people it covers with courtesy and fairness. It should respect the rights of others, particularly every person's right to a fair trial. The inevitable conflict between privacy and the public good should be judged in the light of common sense and with decency.

Chinese World View

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Conceptual Framework (Julie Calma)

For this project, the team used the Chinese World View as the guiding principle. Organismic wholeness/interconnectedness, education/didacticism, family, rectification of names, humanism, duty and shame are all central aspects of the Chinese World View. The group found that the Chinese World View was clearly presented throughout the magazine. Also evident in the issues were the similarities between the Asianadian aims and the Chinese World View. One aim is, “to stand up against the distortions of our history in Canada, stereotypes, economic exploitations and the general tendency towards injustice and inequality practiced on minority groups.” This is clearly presented in the articles relating to social issues, such as sexism, racism etc. and ties in with the Chinese World View of producing harmony within society. An interesting article that this group found tied well with social issues and stereotyping was, “I Dig Asian Chicks!” by Jasmine Hosai-Dumlao. It is here that she specifically mentions the false beliefs and images that Westerners have of Asian women. Asian women are mostly seen as passive, possessing the quality of “oriental” femininity. For many obvious reasons, these are merely just stereotypical images. This article also discusses the insecurities Asian women have because of the content of what is shown in Western media. They are constantly bombarded with images of the typical beautiful Western woman, with long legs, double-folded eyelids and a nice bridge on their nose. Asian women tend to feel self-conscious about their own appearances, those of other Asian women, and in turn, feel the need to conform. Hosai-Dumlao raises the issue of not becoming dependent on the approval of others. The best thing to do would be to fight against the stereotypes in Western society and “separating the myth and the reality in our minds and in the minds of others” (Hosai-Dumlao, 8). In Face to Face, and interview with Jag Bhadauria, he talks about social issues, human rights and education. During the interview, he states that education is a strong element and can change the way people think. He also comments that if children more often saw teachers, principals and counselors from different racial backgrounds, stereotypes would not exist.

Our group had intended to use the Chinese World View as our guiding principle throughout our research of the Asianadian, yet, through reading the different articles did not have to search far. These two articles well represent the aims of the Asianadian and the Chinese World View. Clearly shown is that the Asianadian wants to produce harmony and interconnectedness within society with Asians of all backgrounds as well as Westerners. The Asianadian also provides a means to speak out about social injustices of all sorts and discusses many topics that would normally be taboo back in Asian societies in the east.

Methodology (Julie Calma)

A case study is one method of doing research on a social science subject. This method is used when ‘how’ or ‘why’ questions need to be explained, the researcher is completely independent of the events he is investigating, and when the issue is “on a contemporary phenomenon within some real-life context” (Yin, 13). According to the article by Robert K. Yin, case studies are used in:

policy, political science, and public administration research
community psychology and sociology
organization and management studies
city and regional planning research (i.e. Studies of plans, neighborhoods or public agencies and
the conduct of large proportions of dissertations and theses in the social sciences.

For this particular project, Russel worked on the research questions, history, value, leadership and worth of the company. Marian provided information on executive summary, leadership control, profile of stockholders, current value of the stock, and the mission and vision of Asianadian. Tina contributed the data she collected on product line/operations, marketing analysis and strategies, research and development, management organization and competitors of the company. Julie worked on an analysis of the content in the magazines, government relations and methodology. Each week, the group set up a meeting time to discuss research developments on the project, keep on track, and to observe the progress of individual and team goals.

Due to the fact that Asianadian is no longer in print, the case study our group used was entirely based on historical information. Of the six sources of evidence: documentation, interviews, archival records, direct observation, participant-observation, and physical artifacts, we relied solely on documentation and interviews in order to collect evidence. The only documentation available to us was the collection of Asianadian magazines. By utilizing our limited resources, we read through specific magazines to gather content information and to observe the direction and aims of the company. The other source of evidence utilized was interviews. Each group member emailed former Asianadian founders, writers and contributors in an open-ended nature, asking for them to recall facts and any information relevant to the subjects being researched.

Implementing the first principle of data collection was rather difficult for the group because the Asianadian is no longer an existing publication, therefore, multiple sources of evidence could not be used. As mentioned earlier, the only sources used were that of documentation and interviews. In creating a case study data base, each member relied on his or her individual case study notes and research findings. These were notes obtained by emailing those that worked on the Asianadian including the ideas they shared about the company. Our group maintained a chain of evidence as we sought out the information from the people who knew the company first hand and had personal history in the establishment of the magazine.

The Five Disciplines (Group)

Systems Thinking

Systems thinking is the ability to grasp the entire framework from its conception to its completion. Russel wants to keep an open mind and not be biased by his own cultural views so that he can gain a fuller perspective on how Asian cultures relate to one another. Julie wants to understand how the Chinese World View exists in today’s Asian culture. Marian hopes to have a broader understanding of the social issues of marginalized Asian groups. Tina hopes to have a full learning experience about the Chinese World View as it applies to the past and present, and not allow her learning to be hindered by project deadlines.

Personal Mastery

Each member of the group has different goals they wish to achieve. Julie hopes to improve her skills at analyzing new cultures. This is especially useful in her future career as an officer in the Air Force because she will be immersed in a diverse environment. Tina wants to hone her interviewing skills in hopes she can better prepare herself for a career in broadcasting. Marian wants to learn how to produce a quality case study as well as improve her research skills because she has found the skill useful throughout her college career. Russel, being in the American Ethnic Studies and Communication departments, hopes to apply course concepts to better understand different cultures he encounters.

Mental Models

               Senge states that “mental models are deeply ingrained assumptions, generalizations, or even pictures or images that influence how we understand the world” (Senge 8).  The group’s mental models of Asianadian varied slightly.  Julie's first assumption of Asianadian was that it was going to be solely devoted to Asian pop culture.  She also believed that the publication would still be in circulation.  Russel centered his mental models around other Asian popular culture themed magazines that he had previously viewed (e.g. Giant Robot, Yolk).  Thus his expectation was for Asianadian to also deal with Asian popular culture.  Tina’s mental model of Asianadian was that it would discuss popular Canadian tourist attractions for Asians to visit (e.g. Toronto and Vancouver, B.C.).  Marian assumed that Asianadian would only deal with issues of the dominant Asian racial groups (e.g. Chinese, Japanese, Koreans).  She also thought the magazine would utilize color and be printed with modern-day technology.

Shared Vision

Shared vision is the “capacity to hold a shared picture of the future we seek to create.” A shared vision is useful because it gives everyone in the group a common goal to achieve. The goal of this team is to examine the magazine, Asianadian, and create a corporate profile of an intended takeover of a corporation in order to convince shareholders that the Chinese media entity under siege would be profitable. Since Asianadian stopped circulation in 1985, this case study will apply the methods of a historical corporate profile. Tina’s vision for this project is to bring the past social issues that were explored in Asianadian and introduce them to a current audience. Julie hopes to gain a broader perspective of other Asian cultures as well as gain a better understanding of the subject matters addressed in Asianadian. Marian hopes to create a project that will highlight Asianadian’s mission statement and see how this revolutionary magazine gave a voice to Canada’s Asian population. Russel’s vision is to apply the Chinese World View to an overseas media and determine if facets of the World View apply to other Asian ethnic groups.

Team Learning

Team learning is integral to a group’s success. First, the group separated the twenty tasks of this project evenly so that each member does an equal part. Julie wants to learn how to work cooperatively in a group and allow each member to contribute their talents to this project. Russel wants to use his previous case study experience to guide the rest of the group in producing a quality case study. Tina wants to be able to voice opinions openly and clearly while avoiding conflict with headstrong group members. Marian hopes to learn how to work effectively in a group setting, as it is a valuable skill to have in the business world. These ambitions will be put to the test over the course of the following weeks, as the team will meet on a weekly basis to work on this project as well as interact with one another in class.