CTV directed journalists not to use the word “Palestine” and has cultivated a “culture of fear” that is suppressing critical coverage of Israel’s war on Gaza, according to internal emails obtained by The Breach and interviews with several employees.
The journalists said senior producers and senior editors across the platforms of CTV’s parent company Bell Media have disparaged Palestinian guests, told employees that protests calling for a ceasefire should not be reported on, and blocked or delayed stories that included too much contextual information about Israel’s military occupation and regime of apartheid in Palestine.
The journalists, who are not being identified for fear of retribution, described a widespread bias at the media conglomerate against Palestinians that’s resulted in one-sided, incomplete coverage of the violence in Gaza that does “a huge disservice” to Canadians.
Bell Media is the multi-billion-dollar conglomerate that operates CTV News Channel, CTV’s national broadcasts and national website, local CTV affiliate stations, BNN Bloomberg and CP24 in Toronto.
These revelations follow The Breach’s analysis that found coverage on CTV National News has featured far more Israeli than Palestinian voices.
In directive, Bell denies Palestinian nation exists
In an Oct. 10 directive telling employees how to write about the violence, CTV told them not to use the word “Palestine” and made the politically-charged assertion that “Palestine…does not currently exist.”
The email, sent to journalists across the media conglomerate, stated that all Bell Media platforms should use the same language.
“Given radically conflicting viewpoints and the sensitive nature of the current situation in the Middle East, this note is not to be circulated externally,” the email from CTV News assignment editor Mark Khouzam stated.
“While Palestine has observer status at the United Nations, Palestine as a nation does not currently exist. Please use Gaza or the Israeli Occupied West Bank for a geographic locator.”
In fact, the vast majority of countries in the world do recognize Palestine and it has the status of an “observer state” at the United Nations. Canada is in a small minority of countries that do not recognize Palestine’s statehood.
The nation of Palestine can also refer to the people who identify as Palestinian, even though the West Bank and Gaza have been under military occupation by Israel since 1967.
The Breach verified the directive’s authenticity with several employees at Bell Media.
One journalist at Bell Media told The Breach they found the guidance biased.
“The neutral thing to say would have been: ‘We don’t use Palestine in our copy because Canada does not recognize Palestine as a state.’ That’s a fact,” the journalist said. “‘Palestine does not exist,’ is a strong opinion.”
In an email, The Breach asked Bell Media and CTV why the media conglomerate takes a stance on Palestinian statehood and how they would respond to critics who believe the guidance erases the history and identity of a people.
The company did not respond to specific questions but provided a statement.
“Our news organization always ensures coverage is balanced, factual, accurate, and fair,” Bell Media said in an email.
In 2021, CBC News was criticized for sending out a similar directive. CBC News Toronto told staff the broadcaster doesn’t use the word “Palestine” because “there is no modern country of Palestine,” and told them to not use the word in rough drafts or “colloquially in our own exchanges.”
At least one headline this month on CTV News that initially used the word “Palestine” was later edited to remove it.
Last week, CTV’s Montreal station published a story with the headline: “Demonstration for Palestine closes Jacques Cartier Bridge in both directions.”
Later that day, the headline was changed to: “Montreal’s Jacques Cartier Bridge reopens after Pro-Palestinian demonstration.”
Palestinians only welcome if they’re ‘crying’
The journalists also said there is a clear bias in how Bell Media treats Palestinian guests and in the editing of stories about Israel.
Bell Media platforms have regularly invited Israeli government and military officials to appear but rarely—if ever—invite sources who could talk about the state’s occupation and apartheid from organizations like Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International or B’Tselem, one employee said.
“If it was the Ukrainian war, these types of guests would be asked to come on all the time.”
Senior editorial staff have also openly disparaged Palestinian guests and questioned whether their perspectives are newsworthy, the journalist said.
Palestinian guests, according to the journalist, are expected to express grief but not political opinions or context about their experiences.
“When it comes to Palestinian guests…they’re essentially brought on to cry,” the journalist said. “That’s all they’re good for.”
Palestinians who are highly critical of Israel are not invited back and clips of their interviews aren’t published on the network’s news websites, the journalist also said.
Bell Media journalists listed multiple examples that The Breach verified but chose not to cite because it would make the employees identifiable and risk retribution.
Stories that provide context about Israel’s occupation or information about pro-Palestine rallies are subjected to days-long, sometimes nonsensical edits, one of the other journalists told The Breach. In some cases, those types of stories have been finished but never published, defying the network’s normal practices.
This journalist said they are already self-censoring, leaving out historical context and the fact that 6,417 Palestinians were killed by Israel in the 15 years leading up to Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7.
“I just know that they’re not going to let me put that in a story.”
The media conglomerate did not respond to specific questions about why the company would not want to provide its audience with history and context about Israel’s military occupation.
‘Cowardly and one-sided’
Journalists said these directives are examples of a wider culture at Bell Media, describing extremely tense workplaces and a “culture of fear.”
Editors have told journalists not to cover rallies supporting Palestinian freedom and calling for a ceasefire unless they cause significant disruption to the public. That move was “cowardly and one-sided,” one of the journalists said.
Multiple journalists who spoke to The Breach said there are plenty of employees who want to do truthful, informative work about Gaza, but they’re afraid of repercussions from management if they push back internally.
They also said that editors and producers have said they’re scared of the backlash from higher-ups if their work draws criticism from right-wing pro-Israel groups like Honest Reporting Canada.
“They say, ‘Well, both sides reach out and criticize our coverage.’ Like, yes, but there’s one side you actually listen to,” one of the journalists said.
One of the other journalists said editors have indicated on several occasions that they are wary of considering story pitches about Gaza because they’re too afraid of the blowback from more senior leaders.
Bell Media told The Breach that its journalists are encouraged to share their thoughts on coverage.
“We are committed to a respectful and inclusive work environment where CTV News journalists are encouraged to discuss and raise concerns regarding coverage of any story.”
Pre-approved text downplayed Palestinian casualties
Another email obtained by The Breach demonstrates how senior management has provided one-sided guidance about how to cover the violence, although it appears journalists did not follow it.
On Nov. 16, Bell Media sent out pre-approved text that could be copied and pasted into online stories as context on the violence in Gaza.
The copy sent by Mary Nersessian, a digital news director who leads CTV News, CP24 and BNN Bloomberg, included the death toll of 1,200 Israelis killed by Hamas but summarized the number of Palestinians killed as “thousands.” The email also said the death toll could be updated.
One of the Bell Media journalists who corresponded with The Breach said they were concerned that the copy didn’t specify that stories should state the exact number of Palestinians killed.
By the date of the email, Israel’s military had killed at least 11,000 Palestinians in Gaza.
The Breach only found one story that used the copy and the writer swapped out “thousands” for a more specific death toll.
Bell Media’s statement did not answer questions about why it would be appropriate for journalists to report the number of Israelis killed but not the number of Palestinians killed, especially when the Palestinian death toll is significantly higher.
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11 comments
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thanks for info
Thank you for sharing that. It’s outrageous! What can we do ?
Bell media, you will no longer be relevant.
Excellent piece. Thank you so much for exposing the culture of fear, corruption, and Israel-first attitude that is prevalent at CTV and Bell Media. One day those shameless editors and managers will be exposed and held accountable for their actions.
I’m a paid supporter of The Breach. Thank you for your efforts to present a factual and accurate assessment of the Geopolitics of these conflict areas. The Propaganda/Hasbara of the Israeli side is so persistent and overwhelming in most of our MSM. Criticism of Israel and Zionism is not anti-Semitic.
I find all the stifling of free speech regarding one’s position on this conflict extremely frustrating and unfair. This supports right wing conspiracy theories about media and leaves us all in the dark unless one digs into the history and context for themselves. Sad commentary.
Thank you got this hidden and very important information. I will be sharing it.
Would you provide a mailing address to send a check as a token of appreciation.
Your article does not make sense.
There is no apartheid in Israel. Any article claiming there is one should be suppressed as it would be fake news.
No one is down playing the number of casualties in Gaza. The health ministry is ran by Hamas. Hamas is a terrorist organization motivated by making people like you read big numbers and freak out. It is the same organization that blamed Israel for bombing a hospital and killing 500. The same organization that is holding 250 civilians hostage. The same organization that uses human shields and hid in hospitals, schools and mosques. Same organization that intentionally mixes between combatants to civilians. Their numbers are not accurate. Therefore, your numbers are not accurate and you are in no position to declare whether someone is downplaying it or not. No one knows exact number so therefore, not giving an exact number is proper journalism . Unlike your piece, fueled by a one sided narrative. The same narrative you are criticizing others for having
Will no longer watch any Bell media or subscribe to their services
Was literally just about to sign up for Bell. Rogers it is!