by SAMER ELATRASH

The bustle of production night at Siafu grinds to a halt when it’s time to put headlines to the stories. “It’s the hardest part,” says editor Tim McSorley, a Concordia university journalism graduate who co-founded the free bimonthly magazine.

On Thursday, Jan. 11, Siafu will celebrate its first anniversary and hold another launch party, but tonight the editors of the increasingly popular magazine (its monthly returns have been steadily decreasing) agonize over the headline for a story on the Conservative government. “Ringing in the New Year With Harper?” Perhaps “The Harper Year That Was?” The night wears on.

Most editors and contributors for Siafu (the name comes from a species of African ant that marches in formidable columns) are left-wing, a tendency reflected in the overall content of the magazine, but they are just as concerned with presentation as they are with the politics. “The reporting puts human rights and social rights above everything else,” McSorley says, “but we want to make sure it’s done in a way so people want to read it. Lefty publications can often be cemented in presenting ideology.”

Brendan K. Edwards, a Concordia journalism student and Siafu contributor, agrees. “Sometimes activists tend to immerse themselves by just speaking to other activists and relying on activist sources,” he says. “Journalists tend to come at it from a different perspective. The combination of journalists and activists at Siafu brings in a good balance.”

The balance seems to be working for Siafu, which distributed 5,000 copies of their last issue in Montreal. The typical issue runs a range of stories, from features on homelessness and a Cuban hip hop duo to skateboarders and a female break-dancer troupe, much of it written in an engaging style that sets it apart from some other earnest lefty publications. For editor Danielle Holyk, a McGill International Development graduate, the accessible style and presentation are crucial. “I wanted to put my research and writing skills from university to good use,” she says. “I hate the inaccessibility of academia and the fact that so many important, interesting and possibly empowering things get written, but only for a few from a select community to read.”

“We recognized we didn’t know everything when we started,” says McSorley, “and that made us more open on the stories we publish, so long as they’re accurate.” The magazine now draws from a large, eclectic group of contributors.

Publishing a magazine, and having one’s work published, is a draw for many of the contributors, says Edwards. “I could get a job with a magazine but the act of creating one is more rewarding.” Edwards adds that, despite the costs of publishing, a print magazine has its advantages over a Web magazine. “There’s a lot of interesting stuff online, but the way to cater to communities is to create a physical publication people can pick up in the neighbourhood,” he says.

The costs might yet become a problem for the magazine, once their government grant, which has allowed it to pay for staff and some contributors, dries up. “It’ll be advertising then,” says McSorley. “But not for Wal-Mart.”

The launch party takes place at la Sala Rosa (4848 St-Laurent, 9 p.m., $8), with performances by Tune Yards, Typecast, Lou Piensa, Vox Sambou, Jai Guru and DJs Furious and Tashish. See www.siafu.ca for more info.