Been following Justin on social media for awhile (although I have long left Twitter and it’s toxicity) and been reading his stuff through a free Substack subscription. I finally decided to pull the trigger on a paid subscription because - as I was reading this - I realized how much I was missing good solid writing from a journalist - *any* journalist (Paula Simons excepted). Cheers!
Justin's post contains factual inaccuracies. Here they are:
"The line was re-recorded and added back in after the episode was posted"
This is false. The line was not re-recorded. It was changed substantially from Paris saying "many people are claiming" that Israel is engaged in a genocide to a precise and accurate citation of exactly who is making that claim. These are basic journalistic standards, you can't run allegations like "many people say he's a rapist" or "many people say they are all terrorists" - allegations, especially serious ones (and what's more serious than genocide?) need proper citations, and you need to represent the other side of the story (Israel denies it). I can't imagine why we would make an exception to these standards because it's Israel, as Justin demanded that we do.
"I certainly respect Jesse’s position on the conflict"
I have taken no position on the Israel-Hamas conflict. I have taken a position against antisemitism in Canada. Many people confuse pro-Jewish statements with pro-Israel support. But Jews ≠ Israel, which Justin should recognize and be cautious about in a time when Jews face daily harassment and violence because we are blamed for the actions of Israel .
"Jesse — as publisher and owner — frequently imposes his editorial line on others’ work."
This is false. In my roles as publisher and owner I have nothing to do editorially with others' work, and we have published many podcasts on Israel/Gaza that contain points of view I disagreed with.
I don't think you'll find a wider range of opinions on the Middle East from any other Canadian news company. We've been targeted by Honest Reporting for some of this coverage. So I challenge Justin to name these other instances where I "imposed (my) editorial line on others' work", this claim strikes me as an unfounded and blind swipe at another journalists' reputation.
On this week's Short Cuts, I was not engaged as publisher and owner, I was filling in as Justin's editor. As such I made edits and asked for an accusation to be properly attributed, which is what editors do.
Justin said if I made these changes he'd quit. Our editorial relationship ended with that threat. I won't be blackmailed or bullied into lowering our standards, even by someone who is willing to violate norms about the editorial process.
"Don't edit me or I will slam you on my SubStack" is not a recipe for a healthy newsroom.
I can't imagine it'll be interesting for anyone for us to spar back and forth in the comment section, but I'll just respond briefly:
The editorial line you're drawing here is totally invented. In a recorded conversation, people frequently use shorthand to refer to complex matters — "some people allege COVID-19 escaped from a lab," "plenty argue that the war in Iraq was waged on faulty premises." It is not a matter of laundering spurious claims through vague citations, it's referencing a clear point in the public discourse being made by various and credible sources, of which listeners are well aware. I'm not asking for different editorial standards "because it's Israel," I'm asking for the same standards.
I'm glad Paris opted to re-record the statement to make it even more forceful. But it doesn't change the fact that you cut other comments they made, on equally shaky grounds.
I would note that the fact that you have turned this conversation back to the idea that having a frank conversation about the war in Israel puts Jews in Canada at risk is exactly the kind of editorial judgement that I think makes having these conversations impossible at Canadaland. How can anyone ever discuss this topic when you apply this impossible, subjective test to their statements?
I am not blackmailing or bullying you. As you know, staff at Canadaland have long opposed you wearing all these hats at the same time, as it reduces the editorial independence of the newsroom. It's a concern that you know, full well, has been made by staff consistently for years. It's a type of conflict that you used to criticize when it came to other publishers. I came back to host Short Cuts because I was promised that there would be a division between ownership (you) and the show/newsroom. That didn't happen, you clearly stepped over the line, so I quit.
The disparity between how you initially presented this to your readers and how it actually happened, now that the details are out, reveal a level of dishonesty on your part that should give your audience pause. Your claim is censorship. But what we ultimately published, by your own description, is a more forceful argument against Israel than what Paris initially recorded. So where is the censorship?
And I get that you'd prefer to posture and pose as a swashbuckling crusader for raw and fiery discourse in a world where your Jews neighbours are NOT being demonized, ostracized, menaced and brutalized, but sadly, that's not how things are right now. So yeah, I'm pretty careful about not publishing scattershot claims that turn the heat up on Jews, and you should be too.
You can't have war if there is empathy. My views on war were heavily shaped by Gwynnr Dyer's series on war https://youtu.be/P_G2u1RrLOk?si=CYHzTj3yy7hLzCZQ, in particular, "every mother's son"
I need to sit and watch this. I've read some of Dyer's work, but haven't watched any of his docs. Between you and Roy citing him here, I haven't heard his name mentioned so much in ages. (It's a good thing!)
Trofimova, like many other Russians, likes to play the innocent. I guess that’s how they absolve themselves of the horrific atrocities they commit.
I unsubscribed from Canadaland today. I've been a subscriber for like 8 years.
I am now Bug eyed and shameless.
Well I certainly appreciate it!
Maybe I just haven't found it, but Canadaland doesn't seem to have a Comments section where people can critique its publications.
I think they invite comments via email
Been following Justin on social media for awhile (although I have long left Twitter and it’s toxicity) and been reading his stuff through a free Substack subscription. I finally decided to pull the trigger on a paid subscription because - as I was reading this - I realized how much I was missing good solid writing from a journalist - *any* journalist (Paula Simons excepted). Cheers!
Justin's post contains factual inaccuracies. Here they are:
"The line was re-recorded and added back in after the episode was posted"
This is false. The line was not re-recorded. It was changed substantially from Paris saying "many people are claiming" that Israel is engaged in a genocide to a precise and accurate citation of exactly who is making that claim. These are basic journalistic standards, you can't run allegations like "many people say he's a rapist" or "many people say they are all terrorists" - allegations, especially serious ones (and what's more serious than genocide?) need proper citations, and you need to represent the other side of the story (Israel denies it). I can't imagine why we would make an exception to these standards because it's Israel, as Justin demanded that we do.
"I certainly respect Jesse’s position on the conflict"
I have taken no position on the Israel-Hamas conflict. I have taken a position against antisemitism in Canada. Many people confuse pro-Jewish statements with pro-Israel support. But Jews ≠ Israel, which Justin should recognize and be cautious about in a time when Jews face daily harassment and violence because we are blamed for the actions of Israel .
"Jesse — as publisher and owner — frequently imposes his editorial line on others’ work."
This is false. In my roles as publisher and owner I have nothing to do editorially with others' work, and we have published many podcasts on Israel/Gaza that contain points of view I disagreed with.
Examples:
https://www.canadaland.com/podcast/37306-2/
https://www.canadaland.com/podcast/929-stumbling-through-the-fog-of-war/
https://www.canadaland.com/podcast/82-could-canada-be-complicit-in-a-plausible-genocide/
I don't think you'll find a wider range of opinions on the Middle East from any other Canadian news company. We've been targeted by Honest Reporting for some of this coverage. So I challenge Justin to name these other instances where I "imposed (my) editorial line on others' work", this claim strikes me as an unfounded and blind swipe at another journalists' reputation.
On this week's Short Cuts, I was not engaged as publisher and owner, I was filling in as Justin's editor. As such I made edits and asked for an accusation to be properly attributed, which is what editors do.
Justin said if I made these changes he'd quit. Our editorial relationship ended with that threat. I won't be blackmailed or bullied into lowering our standards, even by someone who is willing to violate norms about the editorial process.
"Don't edit me or I will slam you on my SubStack" is not a recipe for a healthy newsroom.
I can't imagine it'll be interesting for anyone for us to spar back and forth in the comment section, but I'll just respond briefly:
The editorial line you're drawing here is totally invented. In a recorded conversation, people frequently use shorthand to refer to complex matters — "some people allege COVID-19 escaped from a lab," "plenty argue that the war in Iraq was waged on faulty premises." It is not a matter of laundering spurious claims through vague citations, it's referencing a clear point in the public discourse being made by various and credible sources, of which listeners are well aware. I'm not asking for different editorial standards "because it's Israel," I'm asking for the same standards.
I'm glad Paris opted to re-record the statement to make it even more forceful. But it doesn't change the fact that you cut other comments they made, on equally shaky grounds.
I would note that the fact that you have turned this conversation back to the idea that having a frank conversation about the war in Israel puts Jews in Canada at risk is exactly the kind of editorial judgement that I think makes having these conversations impossible at Canadaland. How can anyone ever discuss this topic when you apply this impossible, subjective test to their statements?
I am not blackmailing or bullying you. As you know, staff at Canadaland have long opposed you wearing all these hats at the same time, as it reduces the editorial independence of the newsroom. It's a concern that you know, full well, has been made by staff consistently for years. It's a type of conflict that you used to criticize when it came to other publishers. I came back to host Short Cuts because I was promised that there would be a division between ownership (you) and the show/newsroom. That didn't happen, you clearly stepped over the line, so I quit.
The disparity between how you initially presented this to your readers and how it actually happened, now that the details are out, reveal a level of dishonesty on your part that should give your audience pause. Your claim is censorship. But what we ultimately published, by your own description, is a more forceful argument against Israel than what Paris initially recorded. So where is the censorship?
And I get that you'd prefer to posture and pose as a swashbuckling crusader for raw and fiery discourse in a world where your Jews neighbours are NOT being demonized, ostracized, menaced and brutalized, but sadly, that's not how things are right now. So yeah, I'm pretty careful about not publishing scattershot claims that turn the heat up on Jews, and you should be too.
You can't have war if there is empathy. My views on war were heavily shaped by Gwynnr Dyer's series on war https://youtu.be/P_G2u1RrLOk?si=CYHzTj3yy7hLzCZQ, in particular, "every mother's son"
I need to sit and watch this. I've read some of Dyer's work, but haven't watched any of his docs. Between you and Roy citing him here, I haven't heard his name mentioned so much in ages. (It's a good thing!)
Worth a read if you haven't and a reread if you have https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/44382/war-by-gwynne-dyer/9780345812247
Yeah, he dropped off my radar after that series