"Given the vague and ambiguous coverage of this specific story, with many media outlets using the passive voice "two Canadians killed" without assigning responsibility to Israel, let CBC lead the way in responsible journalism by explicitly naming Israel as the responsible party in the headline."
September 26, 2024
To:
Nancy Waugh, Managing Editor, CBC News
Brodie Fenlon, Editor-in-Chief, CBC News
Dear Ms. Waugh and Mr. Fenlon,
I am writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) to express both gratitude and concern regarding the article titled “They were amazing people: Canadian man remembers parents killed in Lebanon” published by CBC News on September 25, 2024.
First, I want to acknowledge that CBC News, unlike other outlets such as Toronto Star and Canadian Press, accurately attributed the tragic deaths of Hussein and Daad Tabaja to an Israeli airstrike. Unfortunately, Canadian media frequently highlight Israeli casualties while remaining disturbingly ambiguous about Palestinian and Lebanese fatalities, often resorting to the use of passive voice like “(x) number of Palestinians/Lebanese died” without naming Israel as the perpetrator. Your commitment to clarity in this instance is praiseworthy, and I sincerely thank you for due diligence.
However, I must also express concern about the headline. While the body of the article rightfully points out that the couple was killed by an Israeli airstrike, the headline “'They were amazing people': Canadian man remembers parents killed in Lebanon” fails to mention Israel’s responsibility for the tragic killings of Hussein and Daad Tabaja.
These killings were not the result of anonymous warfare; they were a direct consequence of Israel’s deliberate airstrike on a village called Ghaziye in southern Lebanon, as you mention later in your article. Omitting Israel’s culpability in the headline misleads readers into believing these deaths occurred in a vacuum. I, therefore, urge you to revise the headline to accurately reflect both the victims (“the two Canadians”) and the aggressor (“Israel”).
A more appropriate headline would be: “They were amazing people: Canadian man remembers parents killed in Lebanon by Israeli Airstrike.”
Given the vague and ambiguous coverage of this specific story, with many media outlets using the passive voice "two Canadians killed" without assigning responsibility to Israel, let CBC lead the way in responsible journalism by explicitly naming Israel as the responsible party in the headline.
Thank you for your attention to this critical matter. I look forward to your prompt action in addressing the headline.
Sincerely,
Lynn Naji
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East