There has been a significant increase of criticism — some of it violent — towards the media industry for nearly two years. And there’s a growing indication that people are not trusting the media as much anymore.
The 2022 Canadian Edelman Trust Barometer reports only 52 per cent of Canadians have trust in the media, a drop of two percentage points from 2021.
And one Canadian newspaper, Prince George Citizen, has decided to forego, at least temporarily, covering any local anti-vaccine protests. CTV Edmonton has removed the station’s decals from its vehicles.
Prince George’s Citizen Editor Neil Godbout told Humber News that its reporters are trained and have to take risks in working in dangerous zones.
Embed from Getty Images“Journalists have a job to do and that is to go out there and cover the latest news and be there on the scene,” Godbout said. “There was a journalist from our company working out in the Middle East and he was murdered.”
He said Citizen reporters covered anti-mask rallies locally and in Vancouver, and the newspaper’s writers were harassed and verbally assaulted.
“In this scenario of journalists being mobbed by people at anti-mandate rallies, I’ve seen tons of journalists be verbally harassed and assaulted at rallies like these in the Greater Vancouver Area over the past two years,” Godbout said.
He said the paper made the decision to keep its reporters safe.
“This is why our company had taken a decision to not cover any further protests like these and the freedom convoy protests,” Godbout said. “In Prince George, it is a small town but we still see large crowds at anti-mandate protests and residents behave more intrusively violently.”
Canadians are now more apt to show they’re upset with how news networks and their journalists are covering the COVID-19 pandemic. Since March 2020, angry, hateful, and profane comments have been sent to reporters on the internet accusing them of over-reporting the virus, spreading “fake news,” and inciting fear.
Since the “Freedom Convoy” trucker protest in Ottawa began Jan. 29, numerous reporters covering the event have been verbally abused and even physically assaulted.
CTV News Channel reporter Evan Soloman, who is also the host of the network’s Powerplay show, was assaulted on the first day of the protests.
“Seconds, before I was doing my hit for CTV News Channel, a guy in the crowd, drilled a full beer can at me and just missed but hit our camera gear. The guy then took off. So things are getting angrier, I could use a drink…but not like this,” said Soloman in a Jan. 29 tweet.
In a separate tweet, he said he understood the reasons why the media industry is being hated.
“There are lots of reasons for some of the anger out there and much aimed at the media, which I hear today, but we still have to get out in the crowds and listen and talk and report what we see and hear. Two old rules still apply: follow the money. And listen to people,” Soloman said in a tweet.
There are lots reasons for some of the anger out there and much aimed at the media, which I hear today, but we still have to get out in the crowds and listen and talk and report what we see and hear. Two old rules still apply: follow the money. And listen to people. pic.twitter.com/kBODnVeRnQ
— Evan Solomon (@EvanLSolomon) January 30, 2022
But Godbout said their newspaper company, Glacier Media, is open to covering future protests that have to do with other ethical issues not related to the pandemic.
Former CTV News Toronto crime reporter Tamara Cherry says journalists shouldn’t change their reporting techniques or be afraid to report out in public.
“A journalist’s job is to report facts, and they should be carrying on with reporting,” Cherry said.
“The people who need to change their habits are the idiots who are harassing, threatening and assaulting journalists,” she said. “It’s completely unacceptable as to what is going on, and I would like to see more police investigations into these incidents.”
Cherry said if journalists want to get into these intense situations and report them, they should go undercover and film footage with their cell phones. But she said if they want to take the risk by interviewing people, they should identify themselves as part of the media.