June 23, 2003
The Governors of the BBC plan to request quarterly reports from the government network on impartiality. These reports are to indicate whether, and to what extent, viewers and listeners believe the BBC to be biased.
This effort to better track bias comes on the heels of specific complaints against the public broadcaster. Last month, the BBC admitted that it presented a biased radio interview involving a pedophile priest and a Cardinal. The Church’s representative was constantly challenged on statements he made about the Cardinal, while a contributor with an opposing viewpoint was allowed to say anything that she wanted, including statements that were not true, without any challenge whatsoever.
The Conservative Party made several complaints about the BBC’s coverage of England’s local May 1 elections. In spite of the fact that the Tories gained 565 seats on local councils, the BBC described the outcome as a "marginal victory." Accusations were also leveled at the corporation for allegedly switching its description of the election results from the number of seats won, to the percentage of the vote that each party got. The percentage of votes that the Conservatives got put the party in a poorer light than was reflected in the number of seats won.
It would be nice if the CBC took the same approach to bias complaints as the BBC has done, instead of sending out the troops to deny that there is bias. The National Post however, has embarked on tracking bias on the peoples’ network. Comments concerning CBC bias can be sent to www.cbc-watch@nationalpost.com.
HonestReporting.com .
HonestReporting.com is a U.S. based website that was started in October 2000, a month after the current intifada began, and whose purpose is to report on anti-Israel bias in the mainstream media. In addition to that function, HonestReporting advises its members on how to structure letters of complaint to editors and producers, conducts seminars, and has undertaken studies of the treatment of Israel by some of the major news sources in the United States as well as the BBC.
On its current site, under the heading of All Wet in Toronto, HonestReporting analyzes a column by Eric Margolis that recently appeared in the Toronto Sun. Not only does All Wet in Toronto point out factual errors that Margolis made, but it provides links to information to show that Margolis is wrong. In addition, the piece provides links to the original article, as well as a link to the Toronto Sun editor
It is stated on the website that HonestReporting.com that Canada is "coming soon," as they realize that there is a lot of anti-Israel bias in Toronto, as well as other major Canadian cities. Canadian viewers of the website are invited to become members of HonestReporting.com to receive email updates of bias found in the Canadian media.
Between the National Post and HonestReporting.com, it appears that bias in the Canadian media is being taken more seriously than in the past. While it is too much to expect the CBC to acknowledge and correct its blatant left wing and anti-Israel bias, at least attempts to hold the public broadcaster accountable are taking place.
And speaking of the Toronto Sun
In an article appearing in the Sun on June 19, reporter Tom Godfrey wrote about the stepped up security of Greek passport holders at major Canadian airports. This intense scrutiny is to attempt to confiscate false and altered Greek passports. Canadian citizens and landed immigrants of Greek origin will not be affected.
Godfrey uses the term "racial profiling" to define the process of singling out Greek passport holders for special scrutiny. It has nothing to do with "race," and the use of the term, "racial profiling" is misleading and makes the process seem sinister because racial profiling came into use to describe different treatment of people by authorities according to their colour. Does the fact that citizens of certain countries require visas to visit Canada while citizens in other countries do not, constitute racial profiling as well?
Godfrey’s description of racial profiling when race is not at issue is not unique in the media.