Date: Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:01:19 -0600
From: “Welch, Christine (Global BC)”
Subject: Your complaint concerning the Liberal Party Premier’s speech (CBSC File 08/09-0335)
To: rrachul@my.bcit.ca
Cc: “Haysom, Ian (Global BC)” , “Clout, Karen (CMW)” , “McLean, Ace (Canwest Broadcasting)” , “complaints@cbsc.ca”

Hello Mr. Rachul,

Below is Mr Ian Haysom, News Director of Global BC, response to the above referenced CBSC complaint.

Regards,
Christine Welch
Executive Assistant, Global BC
Telephone: (604) 422-6448
Fax: (604) 422-6651
Email: cmwelch@globaltv.com
7850 Enterprise Street
Burnaby, BC
V5A 1V7
Telephone: (604) 420-2288

November 19, 2008

Dear Mr. Rachul,
Re: Your complaint concerning the Liberal Party Premier’s speech (CBSC File C08/09-0335)

Your letter to the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council – regarding Global TV news coverage – has been passed to me for response.

First, let me inform you that as responsible broadcasters, our entire news team strives to uphold the highest level of journalistic integrity and ethics at all times. Our staff members are educated to make programming decisions thoughtfully and with sensitivity and to produce, purchase and schedule material in accordance with community standards and with the Canadian Association of Broadcasters’ (CAB) Code of Ethics, Equitable Portrayal Code for Television and Radio Programming, and the CAB Violence Code. Global News also adheres to the Radio Television News Directors Association of Canada (RTNDA) Code of Ethics.

Broadcasters are given the task of providing a broad spectrum of entertainment and information for a wide variety of audiences. What one viewer may consider to be an interesting and exciting program may lead another to change the channel. Each viewer will have his or her own interpretation based on personal background, experience and values.

As to your specific complaint, regarding our coverage of the premier’s economic address, I think it would be helpful to give you important background.

The premier informed television stations that his address would be at 6.15. This gave us serious concerns since it would be during our 6 pm. newscast and we were loathe to commit unspecified time to the speech, but decided – because of its importance to British Columbians – that we would carry its pertinent points live and then break away. We also assembled a panel to respond to the speech, including Carole James, the NDP Leader of the Opposition, and other interested parties – who mostly criticized the premier’s actions.

The following week, Ms. James also scheduled an economic statement during the 6 p.m. newscast, to which we devoted significant time also in the interests of fairness.

It should be noted that on subsequent newscasts we put the premier’s economic address under a careful microscope, with some observers applauding its contents and many others criticizing.

I have spoken with representatives from both parties and informed them of our displeasure of timing news conferences during our 6 p.m. news slot, thereby restricting flexibility on our top news shows. In future, I expect both parties to time those news conferences earlier in the day so we have time to immediately gather reaction. We did, I believe, a first-rate job of ensuring the premier’s original address was given instant and credible scrutiny.

I hope this is clear from the above that the Liberal Party did not pay for this coverage. It was a news conference event.

Thank you.
Yours truly,
Global BC
Ian Haysom
News Director
Dictated for delivery via email.
Christine Welch
Executive Assistant, Global BC
Telephone: (604) 422-6448
Fax: (604) 422-6651
Email: cmwelch@globaltv.com

Sure the small print on the e-mails didn’t say you had to go to Nigeria to collect your winnings ?