"Editing this segment would be ideal to attribute the suffering of the family that was “forced to bribe their way out of Gaza” to Israel’s military onslaught, and not an ambiguous “conflict” or “war-torn Gaza.” Otherwise, this segment is incredibly delusive. Since CBC has rarely edited news segments in response to criticism, I will instead request The National team to consider this critique in future coverage."
June 3, 2024
To:
Ian Hanomansing, Journalist, CBC, The National
J.P. Tasker, Senior Reporter, CBC, The National
Dear Ian Hanomansing and J.P. Tasker,
I am emailing you to express concern regarding one of The National’s most recent segments titled “Edmonton Oilers advance to Stanley Cup final,” published on June 2, 2024.
I am particularly concerned with the first half of the segment regarding Israel’s military invasion of Gaza and its horrifying impact on Palestinians in the strip, the occupied West Bank, and all over the world. Within the first three fourths of this segment, from minute 3:21 to 6:15, the word “Israel” was only stated once. Israel– as the perpetrator of the genocide and forced displacement of millions of Palestinians in Gaza– should be named as such. Here are some of the sentences that were particularly out of touch and obfuscating Israel of its responsibility for their genocidal war crimes:
- “…after months of dodging rocketfire.”
- “They’re in Ottawa now, but still haunted by what they went through.”
- “Just weeks after the October 7 attacks on Israel.”
- “One side of the family, safely in Ottawa, the other surrounded by misery.”
- “Mohammad has been forced from the North to the South, and now to the middle of Gaza.”
- “The feds say they are willing to take in more Palestinians fleeing this conflict.”
While CBC has reported on Israel’s military actions in other coverage, it is inexcusable to exclude that context in stories like this where victims are given a face and humanized, rather than expressed as mere statistics.
Editing this segment would be ideal to attribute the suffering of the family that was “forced to bribe their way out of Gaza” to Israel’s military onslaught, and not an ambiguous “conflict” or “war-torn Gaza.” Otherwise, this segment is incredibly delusive. Since CBC has rarely edited news segments in response to criticism, I will instead request The National team to consider this critique in future coverage.
Sincerely,
Rose Mardikian
Media Analyst, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East