Picton Gazette doubles down on smears against Rebel News’ immigration expose
Faced with documented abuse and serious allegations, the publisher of a small-town newspaper dismissed the findings as ‘hate,’ choosing moral grandstanding over journalistic responsibility.
When I uncovered a disturbing case of alleged immigration fraud in rural Ontario, the expectation might be that local media would probe further. Instead, the Picton Gazette doubled down — not on the facts, but on a smear campaign.
At the centre of the controversy is a Tim Hortons franchise in Picton, Ontario, where the store manager allegedly attempted to orchestrate a sham marriage between a vulnerable minor and her Indian brother, to keep him in Canada. The allegations, backed by text messages and supported by clear evidence of the abuse of Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker Program, raise serious concerns about child exploitation and immigration loopholes.
Yet the Picton Gazette dismissed these findings as “hate,” going so far as to compare the report to a 1925 Ku Klux Klan cross-burning. Rather than challenging the claims, Gazette publisher Christopher Fanning responded with evasive language and circular arguments, effectively shielding questionable practices from scrutiny.
When pressed with eight direct questions about his inflammatory coverage, Fanning’s responses revealed more about his ideological bias than any legitimate defence. He offered contradictory statements, doubled down on unfounded claims, and repeatedly deflected from the central issue: the documented abuse of vulnerable individuals through Canada’s immigration channels.
The Gazette instead accused me of fostering racial hatred—despite race being mentioned only in direct quotes from the alleged perpetrators themselves. The publisher also tried to justify a lack of right-of-reply, even though the Gazette’s own co-owner (who happens to be Fanning’s wife) was present during the original interview, took photos, and opted not to ask a single question. This omission violates basic standards of ethical journalism.
Ironically, Fanning claims to focus only on “local” issues, while his 2023 purchase of the publication notes that he aims to editorialize broadly on national and even global topics, from immigration to climate change. This contradiction highlights a deeper issue: that is, legacy media’s selective storytelling that favours political correctness over public interest.
In response to concerns about rising exploitation under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, supported by government audits and Parliamentary reports, the Gazette offered no statistics, no sources, and no independent inquiry. Instead, it resorted to ad hominem attacks and taxpayer-funded pontificating.
Meanwhile, those who question the status quo face public vilification. After the Gazette published its inflammatory pieces, I received real hate mail, including threats against my children, highlighting the real-world impact of reckless rhetoric found in this publication.
This case is emblematic of a wider trend in Canadian media: the suppression of inconvenient facts under the guise of “hate,” and the marginalization of independent journalism that challenges government-sanctioned narratives.
In Picton, the Gazette isn’t necessarily reporting the news — it’s gatekeeping it.
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COMMENTS
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Jennifer Baker commented 2025-10-27 14:42:20 -0400Thanks for reporting on this, Tamara. Very interesting story!!
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matt salenius commented 2025-10-23 19:11:14 -0400“ DO THESE PEOPLE HAVE NO SHAME “………..obviously not.
Great investigative reporting Tamara as usual…some day you will be recognized for your work.
You’d think that the Picton Gazette might take a step back and reflect but that’s too much to ask from a state-funded rag.
Just like the Soviet Union era “ PRAVDA “.
I suspect they don’t even know what PRAVDA means.
If Pravda reporters dared to disagree with the Soviet government policy..
….they disappeared overnight without a trace……to the Gulac.
Picton Gazette are obviously obedient to the Liberal Government policy who pays them millions of our stolen tax dollars.
They do not dare to do otherwise for loosing their Liberal Party “ grants “.
These “ grants “ were originally created by our disgraced former PM Justin Trudeau
(whom even the Liberal Party trashed)
…. and are now continued and even increased by the current PM.
What you uncovered is just the tip of an iceberg.
There are many more such scams going on to uncover and report.
I am surprized and please to note that those police officers involved are doing their job properly……… as all police officers should.
I wish there were more of such police officers.
Any comments from the Tim Horton’s top management and owners….?? ?? -
Don Hrehirchek commented 2025-10-23 16:10:03 -0400Well , Tamara You know Your “enemies” as they are in the wide open . Sad state of affairs this Canada is!
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Bernhard Jatzeck commented 2025-10-21 21:01:21 -0400I’m old enough to remember when such tactics were called mud-slinging.
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Bruce Atchison commented 2025-10-21 18:53:35 -0400What a racist government the Liberals in Ottawa are. We could have service jobs filled with high school and college students from our own country. But the feds are funding businesses to take in these non citizens and pay them less than minimum wage.
