Another voice, another bridge? Al Jazeera English and Canada's news spectrum

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) is considering an application to distribute Al Jazeera English (AJE), the Qatar-based, 24-hour international news network, in Canada. As reporting on international news raises increasingly complex political and ethical challenges, what would the presence of AJE mean for the diversity and quality of the news available to Canadians?

On April 28, Media@McGill will host a panel discussion that will tackle this question. The panelists are:

Josh Rushing, author and international correspondent for AJE, is a former United States Marine Captain who was a press officer for U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He was thrust into the international spotlight following an appearance in the documentary Control Room that featured his conversation with a correspondent from Al Jazeera (Arabic). He left the Marines a year later and was one of the first journalists hired to work for the new AJE.

Catherine Cano is the Deputy News Director at AJE. A native of Canada, Ms. Cano is the former Head of Réseau de l’Information (RDI) and former Senior News Director for Société Radio-Canada (SRC). She has been in journalism for the last 20 years where she has worked as a media consultant, editor, reporter, producer and freelance writer.  

Marc Raboy, Beaverbrook Chair in Ethics, Media and Communications and Chair of Media@McGill. His current research examines media and communication governance issues in light of increasing globalization and the role of new international policy venues such as the World Summit on the Information Society and the UN-sponsored Internet Governance Forum.

Lorna Roth, is an Associate Professor of Communication Studies at Concordia University. Prof. Roth’s research focuses on the media and minorities, neo-colonial theory and development, race, representation, technologies, international communication and indigenous television and media history.

The event will take place at 7 p.m. in the Ballroom at McGill’s Faculty Club, 3450 McTavish St. It is free and open to the public.

For more information, please visit: http://www.media.mcgill.ca

To set-up interviews with any of the panelists, please contact:

Allison Flynn
Media Relations Office
McGill University
514-398-7698
allison.j.flynn [at] mcgill.ca