Most soldiers distrusted civilian newspapers, which were usually hyper-patriotic and overly optimistic that the war would soon be over. Soldiers turned instead to one another for their news, and some units published their own newspapers.<\/p>\n
Trench newspapers were a venue for common soldiers to give public expression to their thoughts. Popular Canadian soldier-produced papers including\u00a0The Listening Post<\/i>\u00a0and\u00a0The Dead Horse Corner Gazette<\/i>\u00a0satirized and ridiculed the hardships of war through articles, poetry, jokes, and cartoons. While military censors prohibited the publication of some information, trench newspapers could be surprisingly frank. They were a “safe” environment for soldiers to reveal their anger and antipathy to their hard life, although these messages were often couched in humourous jokes and puns.<\/p>\n
There were over 30 different Canadian trench newspapers during the war. Few copies remain.<\/p>\n