"Unlike the descriptive copy at the top of the “Israel-Hamas War” topic page, a news article is expected to reflect a situation at a specific time. Leaving the Palestinian death toll obscured serves no purpose, as the number is not expected to be edited as more Palestinians are killed by Israel."
April 3, 2024
To:
Alanna Smith, Journalist, The Globe and Mail
Sandra E. Martin, Standards Editor, The Globe and Mail
Dear Alanna Smith,
I am writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East to express concern regarding a recent article titled “Open letter to Canada’s political leaders calls for greater civility in public discourse,” published on April 3 in The Globe and Mail.
On March 22nd, I emailed the editors at the Globe and Mail to ask about the nonspecific Palestinian death toll written in the descriptive copy at the top of the Israel-Hamas War topic page. The former description read that 1,200 Israelis were killed, and the subsequent ground campaign in the Gaza Strip has “killed thousands.” After a quick exchange with Sandra E. Martin, the description was edited to “tens of thousands.” Accompanied by this admission, she wrote that these descriptions must be “written in such a way to allow it to remain static” because topic pages cannot be updated frequently.
As I read a recent article about the open letter to Canada’s political leaders, I was perplexed by how the death tolls were written:
Many Jewish and Muslim Canadians have expressed heightened fear since the Oct. 7 surprise attack by Hamas that left about 1,200 Israelis dead and Israel’s subsequent bombardment of Gaza that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians.
Unlike the descriptive copy at the top of the “Israel-Hamas War” topic page, a news article is expected to reflect a situation at a specific time. Leaving the Palestinian death toll obscured serves no purpose, as the number is not expected to be edited as more Palestinians are killed by Israel. For example, an article published by The Globe and Mail on October 24, 2023, recites a death toll of 5,790 Palestinians. This number has not been updated because it is reporting on the state of Israel’s assault on Gaza as of October 24. To consistently omit a precise number of Palestinians while prioritizing a precise one for those killed in Israel on Oct. 7 is unfair. As of April 2nd, the number of Palestinians killed by Israel reached 32,900. Please adjust your wording accordingly.
I urge The Globe to make these edits promptly, as it is a matter of maintaining the accuracy, fairness, and balance to which The Globe and Mail claims to be committed.
Sincerely,
Rose Mardikian,
Media Analyst, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East