As a result

Written by

Ophelia Benson

in

The CBC is being a little bit bashful in its wording here…

https://twitter.com/CBCNews/status/1712204181069504847

Dead “as a result of the conflict”? Meaning what, dead of a broken heart?

But, I’m grateful to them in a way, because that silly periphrasis introduced me to this guy:

Comments

3 responses to “As a result”

  1. Your Name's not Bruce? Avatar
    Your Name’s not Bruce?

    There’s this too:

    A leaked memo from the CBC tells its journalists to avoid use of the word “terrorist” when referring to Hamas fighters in its coverage of the ongoing war in Israel and the Gaza strip.

    “Do not refer to militants, soldiers, or anyone else as ‘terrorists,’” the memo states, emphasizing “do not” with bold type. “The notion of terrorism remains heavily politicized and is part of the story. Even when quoting/clipping a government or a source referring to fighters as ‘terrorists,’ we should add context to ensure the audience understands this is opinion, not fact. That includes statements from the Canadian government and Canadian politicians.”

    https://nationalpost.com/news/cbc-tells-journalists-to-not-call-hamas-terrorists-in-leaked-memo

  2. twiliter Avatar
    twiliter

    @1 Just as we don’t hear it called a holy war anymore, but rather a conflict. It changes perception by subtly changing semantics. All wars are conflicts, but not all conflicts are wars. The word terrorist depends on context, sure, but I wouldn’t go as far as to call it opinion, it describes something.

    The point could be illustrated by substituting crossdresser in instances transwoman is used. There may be some small definitional differences, but we are told the words mean very different things. Transwoman contains the word woman thereby adding connotation to manipulate perception, and then opinion is affected. This is not an accident.

    Using the word terrorist is every bit as opinionated as avoiding using it.

  3. twiliter Avatar
    twiliter

    This reminded me of the headlines that “Netanyahu Declares War” as if this is somehow momentous, and the subsequent comparisons of the latest attacks (of many over the years) in Israel to the 9/11 attack. This war has been going on in varying intensity for as long as anyone can remember. Sensationalize on the one hand, and downplay with soft language on the other.

    Deciphering all the spin is tedious.

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