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Spring 2004 • Volume 10, Number 3 • $3.95 L’Association Canadienne Des Journalistes–

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Spring 2004 • Volume 10, Number 3 • $3.95 L’Association Canadienne Des Journalistes– Plus: We take you on a tour of Iraq that you won’t forget. HANDCUFFED! Investigative journalists in Canada fight to remain free of interference from politicians, the police and the courts THE CANADIAN ASSOCIATION OF JOURNALISTS SPRING 2004 • VOLUME 10, NUMBER 3 • $3.95 L’ASSOCIATION CANADIENNE DES JOURNALISTES– Spring 2004 Volume 10, Number 3 Publisher Nick Russell INSIDE Editor David McKie Books Editor DEPARTMENTS Gillian Steward 4 First Word Read all about it! Media magazine will resume its edition that celebrates the work of the country’s top investigative journalists. Legal Advisor Peter Jacobsen By David McKie (Paterson McDougall) 5 JournalismNet Toolbars make surfing the Web faster and easier. By Julian Sher Designer Bonanza Printing & Copying 6 Point of View Investigative reporter Andrew Mitrovica weighs in with his surprising assessment of the Centre RCMP raid on the house of Ottawa Citizen reporter Juliet O’Neill. Printer 8 Fine Print The recent victory of the National Post’s Andrew McIntosh to protect his sources from the Bonanza Printing & Copying RCMP is good news for journalists — despite the government’s decision to appeal the ruling. Centre By Dean Jobb Editorial Board 10 Profile When the Mounties searched the home of Ottawa Citizen reporter Juliet O’Neill, she was Chris Cobb, angry.Now the veteran reporter is channelling that anger into a new book about her Wendy McLellan, experience. Sean Moore, By Daniel Smith Catherine Ford, Michelle MacAfee, 12 Profile Three Canadian journalists have made their mark at the BBC. Linda Goyette, By Doug Alexander John Gushue, Carolyn Ryan, 14 Writer’s Toolbox It’s time for reporters to lose their fear of numbers. Rob Cribb By Don Gibb Advertising Sales 16 Access to Information Crown corporations are at the heart of the sponsorship scandal, yet they aren’t even covered John Dickins by the federal Access-to-Information Act. They should be. By Anne P.Kothawala Administrative Director John Dickins 18 Foreign Affairs In the face of bombings, censorship and intimidation, a Zimbabwean newspaper continues (613)526-8061 Fax: (613)521-3904 in its attempts to expose government waste and corruption. So why did media outlets show E-mail: [email protected] little interest when the Daily News’ publisher and the Sunday editor recently visited Canada to solicit support for their struggle? MEDIA is published three times By Carrie Buchanan a year by: Canadian Association of 20 Diary When Rym Tina Ghazal entered into a wager about going to Iraq, little did she know what Journalists St. Patrick's Building, she was in for. Now the journalism student, who is about to graduate from Carleton 316B Carleton University 1125 University, looks back on her adventures and marvels at how she avoided disaster. Colonel By Drive Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1S 5B6 32 Computer-assisted reporting An Ontario case involving a collection agency and the province’s keeper of the assessment rolls could have significance for reporters across the country. Reproduction without the written By Fred Vallance-Jones permission of the publisher is strictly forbidden 33 Ethics It’s time for journalists to advocate for national security laws that don’t infringe upon their rights. Media is a publication of the By Stephen J.A.Ward Canadian Association of Journalists. It is managed and edited 34 The Last Word CBC Television reporter Glen Deir recalls the time he went to interview the family of a independently from the CAJ and its Canadian soldier killed in Afghanistan earlier this year. It was a day he’ll never forget. contents do not necessarily reflect the views of the Association. FEATURES Subscriptions: $14.98 (GST incl.) per year, 25 Atlantic Canada’sCanada Montreal-based Transcontinental Inc.is buying up more newspapers in Eastern Canada, payable in advance new powerhouse making it the country’s second-largest community newspaper owner, behind Sun Media. But what are the perils of increased concentration of ownership? Indexed in the Canadian By Kim Kierans Periodical Index. Canada Post Publications Canadian 28 Exposing the quacks Too many media outlets run uncritical stories about miracle cures. Mail Sales Product Agreement No. By Paul Benedetti 182796 ISSN 1198-2209 30 Fighting for freedom of Three of the country’s top investigative journalists have an emotional encounter with expressione journalism students in Halifax. Cover Photo By Mike and Linda Whitehouse Herald Photo/Peter Parsons FIRST WORD BY DAVID MCKIE Read all about it Media magazine will resume doing its part to support investigative journalism t is my usual practice to use this space to bureaucrats and politicians in their wake, and a peaceful nation is turning into a police state. discuss stories that are appearing in public yearning for more revealing exposés. There are three reporters at the centre of the Isubsequent pages of Media magazine.While I Media organizations created investigative storm, who also happen to be top-notch intend talk about some of the pieces that you'll be teams, and gave them the time and money to go investigative journalists: Andrew McIntosh from reading, I want to take a moment to discuss for it. But this support structure for investigative the National Post; Juliet O'Neill from the Ottawa stories that you haven't seen in this magazine for journalists has wobbled at times, with media Citizen; and author and freelance journalist, a while: Award-winners describing how they put outlets ostensibly cutting back to save money. Stevie Cameron. Their stories are covered from a together their exposés, which for the most part, This country saw a re-awakening of sorts when number of different angles in this publication can be described as investigative initiatives. In Conrad Black's National Post burst onto the because in one way or another, the stories raise these accounts, the authors articulated the scene, forcing competitors such as the Globe and important questions that cut to the essence of challenges they encountered both inside and Mail to beef up their commitment to digging investigative journalism in this country. Should outside their respective media organizations, and beneath the surface. This practice of exposing reporters share information with police? Should offered tips to other reporters who might want to liars, cheaters, corrupt practices and shortfalls in police have the right to demand that reporters tackle similar topics but lack the gumption, public policy has also been inelegantly referred to hand over information that could lead to the know-how or supportive bosses. in another era as muckraking. identification of sources? And how far should Traditionally, we have run these stories in the In his book Discovering the News,American reporters go to protect those sources? What edition after the Canadian Association of media historian Michael Schudson points out personal price do journalists pay for the dogged Journalists' annual spring convention, an event that unlike columnists, who have become well- pursuit of that elusive truth? These questions and that culminates in the naming and celebration of paid and celebrated fixtures in newspapers, many more receive much attention this edition. investigative stories judged to be the best in the investigative journalists haven't always enjoyed If recent incidents, such as Ottawa's never- country. We had even added accounts of the same kind of consistent recognition. Unlike ending sponsorship scandal, have taught us Michener award winners to our esteemed list. the Christie Blatchfords of the world, whose anything, it is that investigative journalism does Unfortunately,last summer we broke with pictures appear above their columns, they have have an impact. In this case, the Globe and Mail, tradition for reasons that should come as no not developed a cult following. Instead, which won a CAJ award last year for its coverage surprise to journalists: lack of money. So last investigative journalists tend to toil in relative of the scandal, rightly takes credit for exposing year's convention came and went, with no record obscurity,with their best efforts frequently forced many of the messy details that have turned the of tell-tale accounts of how the stories were put to play second fiddle to more mundane offerings notion of ministerial and bureaucratic together. Well, this year we want to remedy that that dominate the headlines all too frequently. accountability on its head. If investigative situation.Money is still tight,as it is for all but the To be sure, organizations, such as the journalism isn't given the proper support richest of publications. (Vanity Fair,can we Missouri-based Investigative Reporters and structure, which includes favorable court rulings please have some of your ad revenue?) However, Editors organization and the Canadian that allow reporters to protect sources, and the we have come up with one of those proverbial Association of Journalists,have done their best to courage of media outlets to stray from the pack win-win solutions. We have decided to produce support the craft by handing out awards and and pursue topics of public interest, then the post-convention edition of the magazine speaking up to support the right of these institutions such as governments will continue to exclusively online, thus once again making it journalists to do their work free from be unaccountable to the people they're supposed available to everyone. interference. And the advent of computer- to serve. Whether the sponsorship scandal With this initiative, we have re-established an assisted reporting has also helped to give becomes Canada's Watergate is beside the point. important, albeit minor, support structure for investigative journalism a boost in both What matters is that journalists recognize and investigative journalism, whose popularity has countries. CAR stories in Canada and the United support the work of those who comb through ebbed and flowed over the years in Canada and States have earned the Michener and the Pulitzer documents, nurture sources, battle with the United States.
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