Canada: CFWIJ condemns the organized troll campaign against women journalists and journalists of color

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September 30, 2021, Toronto - At least eight women journalists received vile emails after right-wing politician Maxime Bernier tweeted a provocative message to his followers. Displeased by their coverage of his work, and their line of inquiry, Bernier encouraged his supporters to “play dirty”, thus initiating a violent targeted harassment campaign. He even went so far as to publish the email addresses of some of the journalists online, making them vulnerable to online abuse. Although later taken down by Twitter, the journalists faced hostile digital attacks as a result of his tweets.

CFWIJ earlier reported on the cases of Christy Somos and Saba Eitizaz who received racist and deeply gendered emails after Bernier’s tweets. Since then, however, multiple journalists have come out and tweeted about messages of a similar nature that they received in their inboxes. It does not go unnoticed that Bernier’s since deleted tweet exclusively mentioned women journalists and journalists of color, and it is precisely these two groups that have been disproportionately targeted. 

At least eight women journalists have since come forward, sharing screenshots of the abuse they received as a result of Bernier unjustifiably instigating his support base against the press. The journalists work for different organizations and cover different beats, and have been solely targeted with vile racist and sexist rhetoric.

The Canadian Association of Journalists has since issued a comprehensive statement and demanded investigations into the matter. The widespread bullying and abuse towards journalists is not only unethical but also criminal. Especially when those messages are based on hateful rhetoric targeting the race, gender, and sexual orientation of the journalists. Not only is it an attack on democratic principles and the free press but also puts at risk the multiculturalism that the country boasts of.

CFWIJ spoke to journalist Elisha Dacey about what occurred. "This is a symptom of a larger issue and that is misogyny and toxic masculinity on the internet," she said. 

Upon asking what kind of response she would like to see, Elisha said, "This is the result of 'fake news' mentality. We need the RCMP to take it seriously, we need the police to understand how inherently threatening it is. And I don't think they do."

On the impact of instances like these, she added, "Media groups are finally paying attention to the mental health of their journalists. And now it is time for the police and politicians to stand up."

"All Canadians who value what journalists do need to stand up and say it. I am so grateful for the support we have gotten as a response to this hate campaign," she added.

The Coalition For Women In Journalism extends its complete support to the journalists being targeted and joins the call for a thorough investigation into the issue. The attacks appear to be coordinated and planned and the law enforcement authorities need to hold accountable whoever is responsible for it. We condemn the actions of Maxime Bernier whose reckless and insensitive tweets led to the entire press community feeling vulnerable to hate and threats.