2023-07-13 - CTV News Edmonton corrects article following CJPME complaint
On July 12, 2023, CTV News Edmonton corrected an article by Brittany Ekelund entitled “Protesters stand in solidarity with Palestinian people, look to 'change the narrative.'” The article falsely claimed that only 3 Palestinians were killed in Israel’s recent assault on the Jenin refugee camp. In fact, at least 12 Palestinians had been killed, including 4 children.
Following a complaint from CJPME, CTV updated the article and attached a correction notice that reads:
“A previous version of this story stated that three Palestinian people were killed in the raid. There were 12 Palestinian people killed.”
It is unfortunate that this error was made in an otherwise good article about Edmonton’s solidarity rally with Palestinians in Jenin. The demonstration was organized by Moustafa Zarandah, a local organizer working with CJPME. CTV Managing Editor Rob Mcnally reached out and thanked CJPME for identifying the error.
We applaud CTV News Edmonton for covering the rally in Edmonton and for correcting their article.
2023-07-06 - Associated Press cites Israeli apartheid as context
On July 6, 2023, the Toronto Star published a story by Josef Federman of the Associated Press (AP) which included the claim from human rights groups that Israel is practicing apartheid against the Palestinians. Mr. Federman is the News Director in Jerusalem for AP and helps shape their coverage of Israel and Palestine. Although the AP occasionally publishes articles about someone making a claim of apartheid, CJPME and others have been pushing AP for months to include these claims as context in their general reporting on Palestine, which would help readers make sense of the broader issues.
Federman’s July 6 article did exactly this. Here is an excerpt:
Palestinians seek the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, areas Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast war, for their state. The land between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River, made up of pre-1967 Israel and the occupied lands, is populated in roughly equal parts by Palestinians and Israeli Jews. Pollsters predict an eventual Palestinian majority because of higher birth rates.
Proponents of partition say it would create a democratic Israel with a clear Jewish majority in defined borders and enable Palestinians to realize their national aspirations.
Without partition, the default is an apartheid-like reality in which a shrinking Jewish minority controls a growing Arab majority with few political rights. Leading rights groups say an apartheid system is already in place.
2023-07-04 – Canadian Press acknowledges harmful language about Palestinians, pledges more editorial vigilance
On July 4, 2023, CJPME sent a letter to the Canadian Press expressing concern regarding a brief radio segment about Israel’s invasion of the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. The segment stated:
“Hundreds of Israeli troops are pressing ahead with their hunt for Palestinian militants and weapons in a West Bank refugee camp for a second day.”
This language that Israeli forces were “hunting” for Palestinians was used widely in Canadian media during the attack on Jenin, and particularly in articles from the wire service Associated Press (AP). CJPME considers this language alarming and defamatory. It is also misleading, as Israel’s attack led to the deaths of 4 Palestinian children and resulted in the destruction of public infrastructure and private property. There were also reports of ambulances not being able to enter the city. UN experts say Israel’s invasion may constitute a war crime.
In a letter responding to CJPME the same day, the Director of Broadcast News for Canadian Press, Rose Kingdon, wrote:
“I have reminded our newscasters that words matter and we always need to be aware of how a turn of phrase can be hurtful or inflammatory. Yes, it was the AP’s description, but perhaps we could have substituted the words searching or looking instead of ‘hunting’ – which evokes a hunter looking for humans.”
In a subsequent note, she reiterated:
“We understand this is a volatile issue and our goal is to maintain an objective perspective – The wording you objected to was lifted from The AP – and I might add the CBC used that exact same copy. As I said in my previous message, we are going to be extra vigilant regarding wording.”
CJPME considers this a positive outcome and commends the Canadian Press’ response. However, we are committed to monitoring their future coverage and providing critical feedback.
2023-07-03 – CTV National News interviews CJPME about attack on Jenin
On July 3, 2023, CJPME’s Vice President Michael Bueckert was interviewed for a segment on CTV National News about Israel’s attack on Jenin. Earlier that day, Israel launched airstrikes, a military invasion, and a siege on the Jenin refugee camp. By the end of the invasion late on July 5, at least 12 Palestinians were killed, including 4 children, and 140 injured.
Bueckert told CTV National News that Israel was escalating its violence against the Palestinian people, and was quoted: “There are signs that, perhaps, Israel’s government — which is led by a coalition of far-right political parties — is really looking to ratchet things up.”
However, the segment inaccurately said that CJPME was calling for “calm.” In the interview, Bueckert explained that this was not a situation in which both sides were equally to blame for the violence. Rather, CJPME was calling for Israel as the occupying power to deescalate its illegal and unprovoked assault on refugees in Jenin. This point did not make it into the broadcast.
2023-06-30 – Canadian Mennonite publishes CJPME letter defending article on Palestine
On June 30, 2023, The Canadian Mennonite published a letter by CJPME Director Media Advocacy Jason Toney in defence of a June 15 article entitled “Not talking politics in the Holy Land.” Columnist Randy Haluza-DeLay faced an avalanche of blowback from a pro-Israel lobby group for describing his experiences during an organized tour of Israel and Palestine and drawing comparisons to the oppression of Indigenous peoples in Canada. Toney wrote:
I’m aware that the article has come under attack by HonestReporting Canada. Our organization firmly disagrees with, and contests, their characterization of the article.
I believe Haluza-DeLay’s piece is an honest, fair assessment of his experience and I applaud his courage in speaking openly about it.
I was particularly struck by the conclusion of the article, which compares Canada’s settler-colonial history with Israel’s: “We Canadians are familiar with our own history claiming terra nullius (empty land), and the Doctrine of Discovery, that legitimized oppression of Indigenous residents.” Perhaps, in a similar vein, Canadian Mennonite would be interested in covering CJPME’s recent report “Heartbreaking Disparity: Child Detainees in Canada vs. Israel.”
The erasure of Palestinian narratives should be challenged. We applaud this effort, which succeeds in raising the Palestinian perspective in a critical context.
2023-06-26 - Toronto Star publishes letter by a CJPME volunteer Media Responder
On June 16, CJPME sent out an MAP Action Alert to our volunteer Media Responders asking them to respond to a mediocre article in the Toronto Star written by Isabel Debre of the Associated Press.
One of our responders, Elizabeth Block, heeded the call and wrote a letter to the Editor which would later be published in print and online. Her letter, entitled “Reporters should talk to actual Palestinians,” reads:
"It’s nice that the Star did not ignore the death of 78-year-old Omar Assad after he was gagged and bound by Israeli soldiers. And it’s good that you said that Israeli soldiers are almost never punished for killing Palestinians, and that the American government doesn’t seem to care when those Palestinians are American citizens. (The Americans are refusing to declassify the report into the killing of Palestinian-American reporter Shireen Abu Akleh.)
But it would have been even nicer if you had talked to actual Palestinians. They might have something to say about the frequency of these abuses, and the fear that they live in every day. Canadians need to know these things, even — especially — my fellow Jewish Canadians."
CJPME applauds the efforts of all of our Media Responders and is proud to highlight their efforts. You can read Ms. Block’s letter in a print copy of the June 26th edition of Toronto Star or read it online. You can sign up to be a MAP Media Responder here.
2023-06-21 - Bell Media apologizes for false claim about Roger Waters concert, following CBSC complaint
On June 21, 2023, CJPME received a letter of apology from the Director of News & Information Programming at Bell Media. The letter acknowledged that CJAD 800, a Montreal-based radio station, made false claims about Roger Waters during a news broadcast. The false claims were part of a media smear campaign that unfairly characterized Waters as a Nazi-sympathizer in ways that demeaned his advocacy for Palestinian human rights. Following the broadcast, a CJPME media analyst launched a complaint with The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC), a national voluntary self-regulatory organization created by Canadian television and radio broadcasters to adjudicate viewer or listener complaints. The letter of apology CJPME received is a result of this process. Here is an excerpt from the letter from Bell Media:
“After reviewing articles published in the days following the initial story, it appears that the Star of David image was not used at the 2023 concert but at another Waters concert at least 10-years ago. We apologize for the error and any resulting confusion. We appreciate that you took the time to write to the CBSC. We note that the false information, about the Star of David, came to us from reputable international news agencies, and would have been quite difficult to verify locally, but we will, nonetheless, endeavor to be more thorough in the future.”
To read CJPME’s original letter of complaint, click here.
2023-06-19 - The Hill Times Publishes CJPME Letter Urging MPs to Avoid All-Expenses-Paid Tours with Pro-Israel Organizations
On June 19, 2023, The Hill Times published a letter by CJPME Vice-President Michael Bueckert in response to a June 12 article in which a pro-Israel lobby group denied its “fact-finding missions” are “not a lobbying exercise.” Buecker compared the all-expenses-paid trips to Israel for Canadian MPS with those that took place during South Africa’s late apartheid years. He writes:
“Then, as now, it is impossible to ignore the ethical implications of touring an apartheid state on behalf of its supporters. Such tours cannot help MPs see the “whole view, ”but only reinforce the power dynamics that already exist on the ground. Regardless of what ultimately happens to these trips because of changes to the Lobbyists’ Code of Conduct, MPs should seriously reconsider whether it is possible to understand the realities of military occupation from the perspective of the occupier.”
You can also read the original letter here.
2023-06-06 - CBC Midday Café interviews CJPME about IHRA’s threats to free speech on Palestine
On June 6, 2023, CBC Midday Café interviewed CJPME Vice-President Michael Bueckert about the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism, and the threats that it poses to free speech and activism related to Israel’s human rights violations against Palestinians. CJPME had previously sent a letter of concern following the show’s one-sided May 31 interview with pro-Israel group B’nai Brith Canada that celebrated Yukon’s proposal to adopt the definition but omitted any mention of the international controversy surrounding it.
During the interview, Bueckert argued:
Governments should not be undermining our ability to talk about the human rights violations of any country or taking away our ability to protest racism and injustice anywhere .
CJPME applauds CBC for making an effort to restore balance to their coverage on this matter. You can also read the original letter to Midday Cafe that led to the interview here.
2023-06-04 - Prince George Citizen Publishes CJPME Letter Rebutting False History from Pro-Israel Group
On June 4, 2023, the Prince George Citizen published a letter to the editor from CJPME rebutting the false claims and reductive history in a letter from Robert Walker of the pro-Israel group Honest Reporting Canada, which had mislead readers about Palestine before the Nakba. Here is an excerpt from the letter:
The target of Walker’s attack – Chidiac – made the uncontroversial point that “before European colonization,” modern-day Palestine and its surrounding territories under the Ottoman Empire were generally defined by the peaceful coexistence of many religions including Christians, Muslims, and Jews. This is especially true in comparison to other empires in the world at that time, especially those in Europe. It’s by no means a fringe point and represents a mainstream conclusion among historians today.
Walker attempts to dismiss these historical facts in an effort to justify Israel’s brutal occupation. He points only to tragic events that occurred after European colonization in the lead up to the Nakba (Arabic for ‘catastrophe,’ the term refers to the violent expulsion and forced displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their land in 1948). Though it goes beyond my basic point, it should be noted that the events Walker references took place when violent Zionist paramilitary groups committed various atrocities. Such manipulative and revisionist arguments have no place in our public discourse.
2023-06-02 - Associated Press updates article to include Palestinian sources, following CJPME action alert
On June 2, 2023, CJPME launched an alert in response to an Associated Press article published by Toronto Star. The article, “Palestinian toddler critically wounded in West Bank, Israeli military says shooting unintentional,” failed to cite Palestinian sources but relied heavily on Israeli military accounts. At the time of publication, other media outlets were already casting reasonable doubt on the veracity of the Israeli military narrative.
Associated Press is an international wire service responsible for a significant amount of Canada’s media coverage on Israel and Palestine.
Following a barrage of complaints from our media responders, the article was updated to provide more context and a quote was provided from Haitham Aal-Tamimi, the father of Mohammad Aal-Tamimi, a 2-year-old Palestinian boy who was shot in the head by Israeli troops and died days later from his wound.
A subsequent article on the same attack, “Palestinian toddler shot by Israeli troops in West Bank dies of wounds,” was written by AP on June 5 and included more comments from Palestinians and the perspectives of human rights groups.
At the time of writing, 27 Palestinian children have been killed in 2023 according to Defense for Children International – Palestine. Read their statement on Mohammad Aal-Tamimi’s murder here.
2023-05-25 - Toronto Star updates article to mention Israeli minister’s anti-Palestinian remarks
On May 25, 2023, the Toronto Star published an article on a forthcoming visit to Canada by Israel’s Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli. The article touched on Chikli’s far-right positions and associations but did not include any context about his racist and dangerous views against Palestinians. Chikli has called for the elimination of the Palestinian national identity, called Palestinian society “barbaric,” repeatedly compared Palestinians to Nazis, and says that annexing the occupied West Bank is “excellent." CJPME wrote to the Toronto Star on May 26 to request the inclusion of this information, noting that "Chikli and his far-right government present serious harms to many different groups of people, and Palestinians cannot be left out of this conversation.”
Following CJPME’s complaint, the article was updated later that day to note that “Chikli has also been called out by his critics for making anti-Palestinian remarks.” An editor’s note was added to say that “This story has been updated to provide more background on Amichai Chikli.”
CJPME had also taken issue with the Toronto Star’s description of Jerusalem Day, which was only described from Israel’s perspective as the “unification” of Jerusalem. CJPME requested an update to note that “unification” refers to the occupation and illegal annexation of East Jerusalem, but this change has not yet been made.
2023-05-17 - Canadian Press updates story to include the Nakba
On May 17, 2023, journalist Dylan Robertson of the Canadian Press published a developing story about lawmakers at an event for the 75th anniversary of the creation of Israel. CJPME reached out to Robertson to request that they incorporate additional information on the Palestinian narrative, including recent statements by politicians on the 75th anniversary of the Nakba. Later that day, the story was updated to include significant additional information, including the following excerpt:
Earlier this week, Canada followed many western countries in not attending a Monday event at the United Nations commemorating what it characterized as the forced displacement of Palestinians at the founding of Israel, called the Nakba, which is Arabic for “catastrophe.” Global Affairs Canada has not responded to questions about why its delegation did not attend.
Some 700,000 Palestinians were expelled from or fled what is now called Israel during the wars that followed the UN’s partition of what was then British-controlled Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states in 1947. Israel declared independence on May 14, 1948, while neighbouring Arab countries launched a war in opposition to the partition plan. […]
In the House of Commons earlier this month, Liberal MP Ruby Sahota and NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice had both called on Ottawa to mark the Nakba.
The new updates reflected developments that CJPME has been vocal about, including Canada’s decision to boycott the UN’s Nakba event and the Nakba Day statements by MP Boulerice and MP Sahota.
2023-05-02 - CBC makes on-air clarification about death of Palestinian hunger striker
On May 2, 2023, CBC’s The World This Hour aired a segment on the death of Palestinian hunger striker Khader Adnan in which journalist Irris Makler said that he had “refuse[d] medical treatment.” In doing so, Makler was repeating a claim by Israeli authorities without attribution, which has been contradicted by human rights groups and UN officials who say that Adnan was denied adequate medical care by Israeli authorities. CJPME wrote to the CBC requesting a clarification.
On May 8, 2023, CBC’s The World This Hour broadcast the following clarification:
We have a clarification to make. Last Tuesday, we reported about the death of Palestinian hunger striker Khader Adnan in Israeli custody. We said he refused medical help until the end, but did not attribute that statement to the Israeli authorities. Adnan’s supporters dispute that version of events.
CJPME is pleased that the CBC has corrected this factual problem with the segment, but additional issues remain. Notably, CBC has only said that “supporters dispute” Israel’s claims, without identifying them as key human rights experts. CJPME also requested that the CBC provide additional context on Adnan’s long history of imprisonment within Israel’s military court system, and the use of “administrative detention” in which Israel arbitrarily detains large numbers of Palestinians without charge or trial. In the segment, this was referred to only and inadequately as being “jailed by Israel.” Unfortunately, this and other issues were not addressed in the CBC’s coverage of the story.
2023-04-28 - Thompson Citizen publishes CJPME letter rebutting attack on MP who criticized Israeli apartheid
On April 28, 2023, the Thompson Citizen published a letter from CJPME’s Ghida Mawlawi. The letter was a response to a Canadian Press article on B’nai Brith’s “Annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents,” which as CJPME has noted conflates criticism of Israel with antisemitism. B’nai Brith’s report had attacked MP Niki Ashton, who represents the region which includes Thompson, Manitoba, for her support for Palestinian rights. The letter reads in part:
In perusing the report, I was surprised to find that B’nai Brith seems to deliberately conflate incidents of anti-Semitic speech and violence with pro-Palestinian activism and criticism of Israeli policies. For instance, Churchhill-Keewatinook Aski NDP MP Niki Ashton was flagged down for anti-Semitic speech for a tweet in which she employs the terms “apartheid” and “settler-colonialism.” In the same vein, a bus advertisement in St. John’s, sponsored by Independent Jewish Voices Canada, which cites Amnesty International’s claims that Israel is practicing apartheid, was also featured in their report as anti-Semitic speech.
B’nai Brith’s tendency to lump all anti-Israel actions with actual incidents of anti-Semitism seriously undermines the reliability and validity of their data. Moreover, I find that it comes at a great disservice to the fight against anti-Semitism.