The CBC claimed it is tightening editorial controls after it published a website commentary depicting white pensioners and Conservative Party voters as bigots..“It was not okay to publish a headline that declared political parties and by inference their voters as ‘hating’ people,” wrote network Ombudsman Jack Nagler. The story “was neither fair nor precise enough to be considered accurate” and breached the CBC Journalistic Standards And Practices guide, he added..According to Blacklock's Reporter, CBC News on its website last October 25 published a “first person” story by an Elections Canada poll worker, Zeehaa Rehman. The story stated: “On Election Day I greeted people who voted for parties that hate people like me. Elections provide numerical evidence of the rise of right-wing politics and that should worry us all.”.“During the first hour of my shift an elderly white woman came in with a walker,” wrote Rehman, adding: “After she left I couldn’t help but wonder whether, despite our pleasant interaction, she was one of the people who hate people like me.”.“It was jarring to realize that many of the people who had seemingly been nice to me throughout the day had chosen to vote for the Conservative Party,” wrote Rehman..“I am a visibly Muslim, South Asian woman and also well aware of the rising number of police-reported hate crimes throughout Canada, like the mass murder of a Muslim family in London, Ont. this summer, and the rhetoric that enables it,” wrote Rehman..“Elections, like the recent results of the 2021 Canadian federal election, give us numerical evidence of the rise of right-wing politics and hateful rhetoric throughout Canada,” wrote Rehman..CBC management said numerous complaints prompted the network to “change some of its processes to add more editorial oversight” before stories are published. “This piece was not up to our usual standards,” said Andree Lau, managing director of CBC digital news..“We took corrective action right away,” said Lau. Records showed the offending item remained on the CBC website until November 22 when it was republished with numerous revisions..A previous version of the column incorrectly identified Arpan Khanna was a former MP with the Conservative Party, when she was a candidate for the party. The column also incorrectly described Quebec's Bill 21 as banning people from wearing religious symbols at work, when the law covers only public employees..Ombudsman Nagler acknowledged the story was inaccurate and unfair in concluding Caucasian pensioners are Conservative voters and that Conservatives are bigots. “Declaring a politician to be hateful should be based on their policies and their actions, not just the colour of their lawn signs,” wrote Nagler.
