Blog Posts by Marc Weisblott

School administrators have seemingly found the quickest way to get students in line with their thinking.

Based on two recent controversies in Ontario, all it takes is to prevent them from attending the prom. The fact a good portion of those about to graduate already turned 18 doesn't deter this from happening, either.

Grade 12 students in London who printed up T-shirts to celebrate their post-prom party were forced by the principal of John Paul II Catholic High School to either turn them in or be suspended from the official celebration.

"Drink Triple. See Double. Act Single," was deemed an inappropriate slogan for students who have basically begun their adulthood. More than 70 of them found it funny enough to pay $12 for such a shirt. And parents apparently laughed along with it, too.

But female students who already spent hundreds of dollars on their hair and wardrobes don't want to be turned away at the door. The possible few who don't give up their shirts will get a refund for the

The trend of U.S. retailers moving into Canada has continued to pick up steam with the 142-year-old department store best-recognized from the movie "Miracle on 34th Street" seeking business north of the border, even if it's just by long-distance orders for now.

Macy's announced last week it will offer shipping to Canada through third-party management service FiftyOne, although its online catalogue has been configured to fluctuate with the exchange rate. For now, that could result in cheaper items than usual.

The delivery costs, however, reportedly offset any particular bargain. A comment left at the shopping site Smart Canucks noted a $35 dress came with delivery charges of $42 along with $12 duty.

"I guess that's why their name is FiftyOne," joked another commenter whose desired item had a price tag under $10, "it is an average price of shipping to Canada."

The discovery was met with particular frustration because other U.S. retailers like L.L. Bean have courted the Canadian market

• Betty Fox is now battling cancer at a hospice in Chilliwack, B.C., 30 years after her son Terry succumbed to the disease after being forced to curb his Marathon of Hope, although a family friend explained that she doesn't want to draw any public attention to her ordeal. (Sun Media)

• Neil Peart is scheduled to make an appearance on the June 9 episode of "Late Show with David Letterman" as part of "Drum Solo Week"; the generally reclusive Rush member will be part of a lineup that will include Sheila E., Roy Haynes and house drummer Anton Fig. (TVLine)

• Stephen Elop, the Canadian executive tapped to improve the fortunes of Nokia, has been profiled by Bloomberg Businessweek, in a cover story whose frown-faced cellphone contrasts with last week's less critical treatment from The Globe and Mail's business magazine. (Bloomberg Businessweek)

Montreal might as well define everything that goes on there by goofy-looking mascots.

After all, one of the most familiar names in the city is Youppi, the hairy orange Montreal Expos creature who outlived the baseball team to take on a new job with the Canadiens.

Meanwhile, the Just For Laughs comedy festival, which takes place each summer, is symbolized by a little green monster named Victor, who has somehow escaped the wrath of cynical stand-ups.

The effort to promote Montreal as a summer weekend getaway spot has leaned on the appeal of creatures not found in nature.

A recent promotional launch in New York City introduced a dozen different animal mash-ups, designed to accentuate the city as "a new breed of culture," whose 106 annual festivals remain an enigma to many Americans.

Research has found potential visitors, including those who live within a reasonable driving distance, are unaware of what the city is like beyond associations with "a French flair" and "a European vibe."

The

It took 114 years for the media company founded by William Randolph Hearst to establish a foothold north of the 49th parallel.

Speculation about its future plans mostly surround the new form which the popular magazines published by the Hearst Corporation have already started to take.

Elle Canada, and its equivalent in Quebec, were part of an international deal this week that gave the U.S. company a 49 per cent share of a division of Toronto-based Transcontinental Media.

Yet, with a shrinking share of attention for print media, Hearst's focus has increasingly shifted to digital, along with a growing international expansion for its most popular titles.

Cosmopolitan, for example, recently introduced editions in Azerbaijan, Armenia, Dubai and Mongolia.

The billion-dollar acquisition of the French publisher Lagardère Group, which exported its popular women's magazine Elle to other countries, has resulted in a Canadian presence for Hearst.

What remains to be seen is whether other magazines

Burger King is revamping its menu to meet demands by women and families who have somewhat deserted its restaurants in recent years.

Changes to the food lineup, reported by the Miami Herald, will aim to make salads and smoothies as much of a fixture as the flame-broiled Whopper.

A new homestyle burger on a brioche bun, with thick-cut bacon, romaine lettuce and spicy pepper grill sauce, is among the items currently being tested.

The locations will also get a makeover, following in the footsteps of cheap eateries that have taken pages from the Starbucks playbook, from McDonald's to A&W to Subway.

So, like many others, Burger King is planning to reinvent itself. Clever promotions aren't enough for owners 3G Capital.

"Hold the pickles, hold the lettuce," began the memorable Burger King commercial jingle written by Barry Manilow in 1973. "Special orders don't upset us. All we ask is that you let us serve it your way."

The human Burger King mascot, introduced in 1955 at the first

Welcome to Morning Brew, our daily roundup of early-bird news:

• U2's concert at Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium, which had been postponed for a year closed with a dedication of their recent ballad "Moment of Surrender" to the survivors of the Slave Lake fire, as many of the 65,000 fans held lit-up cellphones in salute. (Edmonton Journal)

• Canadians want their drinking water to be protected from private corporate interests, according to an Environics poll conducted by the Canadian Union of Public Employees, which found that 74 per cent of the country trust their members to keep faucets flowing. (Marketwire)

• Papyrus, the retro retail stationery, custom printing and gift shop with roots that date back to an Oakland, Calif. kitchen table in 1950, has announced two locations in Toronto after the success of its first Canadian store in Calgary, which opened last September. (CNW)

The celebrity status of a veteran columnist was reaffirmed Wednesday as news leaked Christie Blatchford had quit The Globe and Mail after eight years for a new role with the Postmedia chain.

Like some of her contemporaries, though, the 60-year-old Blatchford has expressed some dismay over how professional journalism has been rattled by the ability for anyone to share information online.

When news first broke of her departure from the Globe on Twitter, some journalists questioned whether the information was true, as Blatchford herself was tight-lipped about details until they were announced by her new employer.

Postmedia defined the new position, which will officially start June 13, as a Toronto-based writer for newspapers across the country.

Blatchford was previously a marquee writer at the National Post, which recruited her from the Toronto Sun for its 1998 launch. She stuck around until just after the departure of its first editor-in-chief, Kenneth Whyte.

"I'm glad to be back in