CBC caves to far-left pressure, issues 'correction' on Israel-Hamas 'genocide' claim

Anti-Israel advocates bombarded CBC after a host did not classify the year-long Israel-Hamas war as a 'genocide.' The broadcaster later posted a 'correction' to its website.

An anti-Israel advocacy group has pressured CBC News into issuing a correction after a reporter suggested the state broadcaster had prohibited its journalists from using the term 'genocide,' reported Blacklock’s.

Advocates were outraged by a January 19th segment on CBC News with host Natasha Fatah, who initially declined to use the term 'genocide' to describe the year-long conflict between Hamas and Israel. The broadcaster later posted the "correction" on its website.

The group Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) commended the admission as “rare” by the state broadcaster.

Fatah, who interviewed a Palestinian woman about the war, told her: “We [CBC] cannot use that word [genocide] to describe what is happening.”

“It is before the International Criminal Court. But the devastation, whatever it is called, is immense, immense in Gaza and certainly everyone recognizes that,” Fatah acknowledged.

The woman’s brother was killed at the start of the war in October of 2023, the host told viewers — following a deadly Hamas terror attack that killed more than 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals. 

“I am very, very sorry about the loss of your brother and the loss of so many brothers and sisters in Gaza,” said Fatah. “I hope there is some resolution for your parents and that you are all reunited very soon.”

CJPME expressed outrage over the exchange, denouncing the host and the broadcaster for their “editorial choices that actively dehumanize and marginalize Palestinian perspectives.”

After the “broad grassroots” pushback, CBC News capitulated to their demands, with CJPME calling the “correction” a “significant step forward in holding media organizations to account for their coverage of Palestinian narratives.” 

Meanwhile, broadcaster spokesperson Chuck Thompson defended the network’s prior language to describe the Israel-Hamas war.

“CBC has adamantly refused to call Hamas terrorists what they are, which is terrorists … leaving Jews feeling isolated and victimized,” wrote Toronto Sun columnist Warren Kinsella. “And, since the atrocities of Oct. 7, the situation is getting worse.”

Hamas, an acronym for Harakat Al-Muqawama Al-Islamiya, was designated a terrorist organization by the Government of Canada in 2002. The terror group killed 1,200 Israeli citizens and foreign nationals on October 7th, 2023, and kidnapped some 240 more people.

According to section 83.01 of the Criminal Code, terrorism is defined as violent lawlessness “for a political, religious or ideological purpose” with the “intention of intimidating the public.”

George Achi, the network’s Director of Journalistic Standards, advised their journalists to use “fact-based language,” such as referring to Hamas terrorists as “militants.” 

“Right now there is a war taking place in Gaza,” Conservative MP Rachael Harder told a committee hearing. “The CBC has determined to cover it from one angle.”

Had the network described the events as acts of terrorism, their initial coverage would have been more accurate, according to then-Network Ombudsman Jack Nagler.

The state broadcaster has faced growing criticism over its anti-Israel bias since then, with 307 complaints submitted to the ombudsman over the network referring to Hamas attackers as “militants” instead of “terrorists.” 

“Canadian Jews [are] feeling like their tax dollars are being used against them by CBC,” wrote Kinsella. “From the river to the sea, CBC will be … discriminatory.”

Despite his comments, Nagler concludes their coverage did not violate the company’s Journalistic Standards And Practices, though he earlier wrote staff “are still expected to provide context” as part of their coverage.


Editor's note: An earlier version of this article identified Jack Nagler as the CBC ombudsman. Maxime Bertrand was named to the position on November 18, 2024.

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Alex Dhaliwal

Calgary Based Journalist

Alex Dhaliwal is a Political Science graduate from the University of Calgary. He has actively written on relevant Canadian issues with several prominent interviews under his belt.

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  • Bruce Atchison
    commented 2025-01-27 17:59:01 -0500
    CBC can’t be defunded soon enough. I look forward to all those blank spots on the AM dial when they’re gone. And since AM is dying anyway, why not allocate it to amateur radio operators with a special segment for AM transmission so people without licenses can listen in? And of course those traveller’s information stations can keep broadcasting.