The Media Accountability Project  

Lack of precision in whether Canadian MPs visited East or West Jerusalem

"Using the word Jerusalem without specifying if it is East or West Jerusalem adds fuel to the situation. While we still don’t know where the MPs went, it is highly probable that they went to East Jerusalem, as Marco Mendicino tweeted a picture of him in front of the Old City in East Jerusalem."

November 20, 2023

To:

Katie Simpson, Foreign correspondent, CBC News  

Brodie Fenlon, News Editor-in-Chief, CBC News

Nancy Waugh, Sr. Manager, CBC

Dear Katie Simpson, Brodie Fenlon, and Nancy Waugh,

I am writing to express my concern about your article: “Canadian MPs arrive in Israel for solidarity trip as tensions between Trudeau and Netanyahu remain high,” published on November 20 in CBC News.

I want to highlight two main issues that make your article inaccurate.

First, the article describes the trip as a solidarity trip, which tends to weaken the reality of it and undermine Israel’s actions. It makes it seem like going to Jerusalem was not provocative with everything that has been going on in the occupied Palestinian territories of Gaza and the West Bank. Describing it as a way to show support to Israel in the ongoing actions it wages against Gaza and the West Bank would be more accurate.

I, therefore, suggest changing solidarity to show support for Israel’s ongoing actions in Gaza and the West Bank.

Second, along with my first point, using the word Jerusalem without specifying if it is East or West Jerusalem adds fuel to the situation. While we still don’t know where the MPs went, it is highly probable that they went to East Jerusalem, as Marco Mendicino tweeted a picture of him in front of the Old City in East Jerusalem. East Jerusalem has been recognized as an occupied Palestinian territory since 1967. Simply writing Jerusalem reinforces Israel’s claim to all the city while only West Jerusalem is under its jurisdiction. The International Press Institute even suggests specifying East or West Jerusalem (p.41).

To respect your journalistic obligations, I, therefore, suggest changing Jerusalem to East Jerusalem, occupied Palestinian territory since 1967. “”

I hope CBC will make these corrections and accurately cover events in Palestine-Israel.

Sincerely,

Fatima Haidar,

Media Analyst, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East

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