A Window Into October: Examining the Framing of the October Crisis of 1970 in Canada’S English-Language Newspapers
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A Window into October: Examining the Framing of the October Crisis of 1970 in Canada’s English-Language Newspapers by Corah Lynn Victoria Hodgson A thesis presented to the University of Waterloo in fulfilment of the thesis requirement for the degree of Master of Arts in History Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, 2019 © Corah Lynn Victoria Hodgson 2019 AUTHOR’S DECLARATION I hereby declare that I am the sole author of this thesis. This is a true copy of the thesis, including any required final revisions, as accepted by my examiners. I understand that my thesis may be made electronically available to the public. ii ABSTRACT Much of the historiography on the October Crisis has centred around whether the War Measures Act (WMA) represented a necessary deployment of available legislation to crush a threat to national order and security, or an unjustified assault upon civil liberties. Explorations of the media’s presentation of the crisis have produced divergent conclusions, are largely quantitative rather than qualitative in nature, and do not account for regional differences in the media interpretations of the events. This study deploys a content analysis of the editorials in Canada’s most widely circulated English-language newspapers in October 1970 to interrogate how they framed the crisis, evaluated how the government handled developments, and compared to other regional interpretations. Careful attention was accorded to whether the civil libertarian discourse that dominates the historiography was present in contemporary evaluations of the crisis or is a post facto academic construction. This study concluded that a national discourse existed about the crisis in some respects. English- Canadian newspaper editors unanimously framed the FLQ as terrorists, fanatics, and a criminal “cancer” who threatened Canada’s societal and democratic order and whose villainy was clear in their targeting of such innocent and virtuous victims. Descriptions appeared frequently of a populace fearful of the group’s potential to escalate further and united in support of the government’s measures. Newspapers in each region, particularly Atlantic Canada, initially framed the government as facing a dilemma in its decision of whether to capitulate to terror. The papers from Western Canada, Eastern Canada, and Montreal soon shifted to advocate firmly for a hard-line and law-and-order response to terrorism, and pledged their support for the WMA. Although these papers demonstrated some concern about civil liberties, the WMA’s effectiveness, and the government’s secrecy (particularly towards the end of October), they continued to endorse the emergency measures as defensible and necessary. By contrast, the Toronto Daily Star and Globe and Mail recommended the government negotiate for the victims’ release and critically approached the WMA with civil liberties concerns, elucidations of the measures’ dangers, and doubts which outweighed their support. An “alien conspiracy” framing was more prominent in Western and Eastern Canada than in Central Canada, where editors concentrated their attention on identifying the crisis’ internal roots and offering recommendations on how they should be remedied. While anti-FLQ sentiments pervaded the nation, and pro-government and “alien conspiracy” framings formed a dominant discourse throughout much of Canada, it is clear that the historiographical debate on the WMA bore its roots in October 1970. Revealing a more complex discourse than that noted in previous studies, this finding is also significant given the media’s capacity, through framing, agenda-setting, and priming, to influence popular opinion and the public’s comprehension of issues and events. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS There are numerable individuals without whose guidance and support this thesis would have never have come to fruition. To them, I offer my most sincere and heartfelt gratitude. To my supervisor, Dr. P. Whitney Lackenbauer, a mere thank you would simply not suffice. I am so immeasurably grateful for your copious patience, tolerance of my tendency to overthink (and overwrite, in excessive detail and characteristically long sentences), and unfailing guidance, assistance, inspiration, and mentorship. I thank you for your recommendation and encouragement that I expand upon my undergraduate analysis of the October Crisis’ depiction in the Toronto Daily Star and Globe and Mail in this thesis, and for providing me with opportunities the likes of which I could never have dreamt. It has been − and continues to be − an absolute honour, and I am excited to continue working with you in the coming months. To my committee members, Dr. Geoffrey Hayes and Dr. Ryan Touhey, I offer my deepest thanks for your input, insight, and criticism. I thank Dr. Shannon Nash for offering me advice and encouragement as I sought to tackle the role of the media in terrorism, and all the staff at the University of Waterloo and St. Jerome’s University libraries for not merely tolerating but assisting me as I installed myself as a permanent fixture for months on end before the microfilm readers. My gratitude, too, goes to all the professors from whom I have had the privilege to learn throughout my undergraduate and graduate careers at St. Jerome’s University and the University of Waterloo, for aiding me in developing improved communicative and argumentative skills, as well as a deeper appreciation for our nation’s history. I also thank the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada for their generous financial support for my master’s studies. And finally, to the people without whom I would not have made it to graduate studies: thank you. To Mr. Neil Orford, thank you for exposing me to Canadian history in such a way as to awaken a passion and interest within me, and for seeing in me a potential to which I hope someday to be able to live up. To my dearest friends, I thank you for being unceasing in your encouragement and support, and for always lending an ear. To my family, thank you for always showing interest in my academic career, for asking questions and always offering an encouraging word. And, most of all, thank you to my parents, Lynn and Bruce Hodgson, and my Nanny, Barbara Squirrell. Thank you for your countless hours of proofreading over the years and listening to my rants, whether on this subject or the numerable others, and thank you for always pushing and supporting me. I cannot express in words what it means to me. To you, I dedicate this thesis. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Abbreviations vii Introduction 1 Chapter I: Establishing the Foundations 4 Historiographical renderings of the October Crisis 4 The functions of the news media 12 The media in October 1970 17 The current study and its methodology 22 Chapter II: Atlantic Canada Observes the October Crisis 29 Framing the FLQ - The descriptors used 30 Framing the FLQ as an affront and challenge to Canadian society and democracy 32 Framing the victims as innocent martyrs 33 Framing the government as facing a dilemma 33 Framing a nation in fear of further escalation 35 Framing the government’s hard-line response as the most appropriate course of action 36 Framing the governmental response as ineffectual and inappropriate 45 Framing Canadians as shocked, yet supportive of the government’s stance 46 Framing the nation’s need for unity 47 Framing terrorism as a construct and phenomenon foreign and alien to Canada 48 Framing the October Crisis as the result of internal systemic factors 50 Framing the FLQ as not reflective of Quebeckers more broadly 51 Framing the nation’s next steps beyond the shock and grief of October 1970 52 In summary 52 Chapter III: Western Canadian Framings of the October Crisis 55 Framing the FLQ - The descriptors used 56 Framing the FLQ as an affront and challenge to Canadian society and democracy 59 Framing the victims as innocent martyrs 60 Framing the government as facing a dilemma 61 Framing a nation in fear of further escalation 61 Framing the government’s hard-line response as the most appropriate course of action 62 Framing the governmental response as inciting concern and potentially inappropriate 70 Framing Canadians as shocked, yet supportive of the government’s stance 77 Framing the nation’s need for unity 78 Framing terrorism as a construct and phenomenon foreign and alien to Canada 80 Framing the October Crisis as the result of internal systemic factors 82 Framing the FLQ as not reflective of Quebeckers more broadly 84 Framing the nation’s next steps beyond the shock and grief of October 1970 86 In summary 86 Chapter IV: Observing the October Crisis in Central Canada 89 Framing the FLQ - The descriptors used 89 Framing the FLQ as an affront and challenge to Canadian society and democracy 92 Framing the victims as innocent martyrs 93 Framing a nation in fear of further escalation 94 Framing the government as facing a dilemma 96 Framing negotiations as a necessity 97 v Framing the government’s hard-line response as the most appropriate course of action 98 Framing the governmental response as ineffectual and inappropriate 105 Framing Canadians as supportive of the government’s stance 111 Framing the nation’s need for unity 112 Framing the October Crisis as the result of internal systemic factors 113 Framing the October Crisis as expected and of no surprise 114 Framing terrorism as a construct and phenomenon foreign and alien to Canada 115 Framing the FLQ as not reflective of Quebeckers more broadly 116 Framing the nation’s next steps beyond the shock and grief of October 1970 118 In summary