A political economist and communications theory pioneer, University of Toronto professor Harold Innis stands as one of Canada’s most respected scholars. His first major work, The Fur Trade  in Canada  (1930), established his reputation. His work on the impact of communication media on the nature and duration of civilizations, though little understood, had profound implications. Marshall McLuhan said all his work was merely a footnote to Innis. Innis published Empire and Communication  in 1950.