CBC rejected an op-ed pitch from a Jew about her experiences living in Canada. “Here are the two types of Jewish writers that CBC is looking for right now,” tweeted Quillette associate editor Jonathan Kay on Wednesday..A CBC employee said he had been discussing with his team and would “like to find pitches that are a bit more directly connected to the situation in the Middle East.” “Specifically, I’d like to hear from someone who wants a ceasefire/is finding it hard to be pro-Israel right now OR someone who supports the war despite the high cost of civilian life — and how their personal lived experiences inform those views,” said the employee. “Please let me know if you might want to write something along those lines, and if so, what would be your take.” CBC Head of Public Affairs Chuck Thompson responded by saying it is false the employee encouraged the journalist to be opposed to Israel. "A freelancer pitched a piece as a Jewish writer commenting on the events in Israel and Gaza to the producer of CBC's First Person; this is a feature of our website for personal stories and experiences of Canadians, written in their own words," said Thompson. "As can some times happen, the freelancer's piece was not what the producer was looking for — most notably because First Person has already commissioned a column by a Jewish Canadian that reflects the diaspora experience." Thompson said this column will be published on Friday and come out at the same time as one from a Palestinian Canadian. The producer suggested possible angles to sharpen the focus for a future op-ed not resembling the one coming out. CBC executive George Achi directed the organization’s journalists to not refer to Hamas as terrorists and cautioned them to not say Israel ended its occupation of Gaza in 2005 after it pulled out on October 8. READ MORE: CBC urges journalists to not call Hamas terrorists“That CBC prefers to sanitize and whitewash Palestinian terrorism into broad and utterly meaningless terms like ‘militants’ and ‘fighters’ is not surprising, but appalling to see, nonetheless,” said HonestReporting Canada. “As a result, CBC readers, listeners and viewers will continue to be misled as a result of this CBC directive.”
