Radio-Canada Ombudsman's Review is highly flawed

Montreal - Radio-Canada issued a Review in late 2008 which is highly flawed, both in its conclusions and its discussion. Issued by the Ombudsman of Radio-Canada on Dec. 8th regarding the documentary Paix, propagande et Terre-promise, aired on October 23 2008, the Review concludes - on faulty grounds - that the documentary should not have been broadcast. The Review was issued in response to complaints by at least two organizations, Honest Reporting Canada and The Quebec Israel Committee. Curiously, this conclusion is drawn based on arguments unrelated to the core thesis of the documentary: U.S. media coverage of Israel-Palestine conflict. Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) has asked for Radio-Canada to re-issue an Ombudsman Review originally released on Dec. 8th, 2008. CJPME's detailed analysis of the Review can be found on CJPME's Website.

The documentary, aired on the show Les grands reportages, examines how events in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories have been recounted in US media vs. media in other countries. It cites events that occurred over the years during the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; it contrasts news reports about them presented in U.S. and other media, showing, as examples, video clips from different television networks; it also presents interviews and discussions with various academic and media pundits.

CJPME found the Ombudsman's Review to be an example of shoddy journalism. It lacked objectivity and professionalism, and sided with the complainants' allegations without any investigation or analysis as to their veracity. It contained serious factual errors and overstepped the boundaries of the Ombudsman's mandate by making unfounded judgments on various points relating to the conflict, but not relevant in the context of the documentary. Moreover, as asserted by CJPME president Thomas Woodley, "The Ombudsman seems to have adopted wholesale the pet arguments of the two complainant organizations cited in the Review."

CJPME holds that the Ombudsman's review is deeply flawed and must be re-issued. In a letter to the Ombudsman and the CBC's CEO, (available at the CJPME Website) CJPME has in great detail pointed out the Review's numerous factual errors, and how it oversteps its mandate. More importantly, CJPME wants to ensure that all perspectives on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will continue to be aired and discussed, and that honest reporting and freedom of speech will not be stifled or censored.