UPDATES:
- Analysis of this case by Elder of Ziyon: Obscene editorial in U. of Calgary newspaper (Jan 17, 2014)
- Gauntlet issues apology and correction regarding misstatement about CUWI (Jan 30, 2014)
- Case covered by Israel National News: "Jewish Students Fight Back on Canadian Campus" (Jan 24, 2014)
- Gauntlet publishes additional defamatory piece about CUWI (Jan 30, 2014)
| Last week's University of Calgary campus newspaper The Gauntlet, devoted over 1600 words to heroizing a Palestinian student who wrote poetry about child martyrdom, demonizing Israel and defaming Calgary United with Israel (CUWI). The paper also devoted the front page image to lauding the "poet" who wrote about "spilling blood" and praised her as a martyr of free speech. The claims were unsubstantiated and included clear false information, some of which the paper finally acknowledged. You can read the original articles here and here When CUWI asked to submit a 350 word rebuttal, entitled "The New Face of Antisemitism", the Editor in Chief, Susan Anderson refused to print our accounts of the anti-semitism students have experienced on campus. One cannot ignore the irony of The Gauntlet accusing CUWI of trying to limit freespeech just the week before. Read the full correspondence below with the editor which reveals the paper's clear bias and utter lack of journalistic or moral integrity. |  |
Susan (Editor in Chief of The Gauntlet) -
Pursuant to our phone conversation several minutes ago, it is on record that you have said:
1. You will not publish our piece in its entirety because the claims are not substantiated. You said you would only print the first paragraph which is apx. 150 words. We told you all our claims can be substantiated with witnesses who will put their name behind it and/or written proof. You insisted that you will not print that we have been told by an SPHR member: "too bad the Nazis didn't finish off your family"? Why not? It happened. We have the name of this person, date, time and approximately 5 witnesses. This is the paragraph you insisted you will not print:
"Amongst the anti-Semitic propaganda that we have endured, are calls for child martyrdom against Jews, libel that Israel puts feces in the Palestinians' drinking water, yelling “racist” and “terrorist” at Jewish students for their support of Israel, propagation of conspiracy theories referring to Jews running the world, statements that CEOs of companies are “Zionists” and that Jews control the media (“Jew York Times”), declarations to our group members that “it’s too bad the Nazis didn’t finish off your family”, and propagation of demonizing lies and misinformation about Israel and historical facts. "
Susan, even when I told you ALL our claims are substantiated, you still insisted you will not print. So is it because the claims can't be substantiated, or some other reason, that you will not print the above section?
2. It is on record that SPHR made claims that were printed in The Gauntlet last week that were unsubstantiated, and you printed them. There was approximately 1600 words devoted to defamation of Israel and of CUWI last week. These claims include that CUWI "heckled" SPHR and are a security threat. These claims are slanderous, defamation of character and unsubstantiated. You printed them. Last week the unsubstantiated claims printed by the Gauntlet include:
-“We constantly get harassed by [CUWI]....They heckle at our events,”
-“At one point it got so bad that we had to ban a couple of [CUWI] members from one of our events.”
-“When it comes to people from outside [the U of C] coming to disrupt a club because they disagree with them" - we are UofC students and Alum - we are all primary stakeholders.
-SU has never received a complaint regarding SPHR
-CUWI asked for SPHR to be disbanded
-SPHR has a friendly relationship with Hillel
-Israel colonizes [the Palestinians] violently
-Zionism began after WWII as a result of the Holocaust
-Palestinians are second-class citizens
On the phone right now you closed this conversation with saying: "We stand by what we printed…I don't really feel that we need to debate this right now…K?".
3. I have asked you to NOT print our submission unless it is printed in its entirety. You verified that you will not print it now, according to our request.
Your decision is lacking in moral and journalistic integrity: all statements were made, there are witnesses and there is written proof. Why aren't you printing it? I urge you to change your mind and print the short 350 word piece. I am attaching our article here again for you to consider.
Ben Cannon stated in The Gauntlet last week: “University is about sharing ideas, not cutting them off because we don’t like them.”. Do you not like our substantiated claims? They happened and they are happening.
Pursuant to our phone conversation several minutes ago, it is on record that you have said:
1. You will not publish our piece in its entirety because the claims are not substantiated. You said you would only print the first paragraph which is apx. 150 words. We told you all our claims can be substantiated with witnesses who will put their name behind it and/or written proof. You insisted that you will not print that we have been told by an SPHR member: "too bad the Nazis didn't finish off your family"? Why not? It happened. We have the name of this person, date, time and approximately 5 witnesses. This is the paragraph you insisted you will not print:
"Amongst the anti-Semitic propaganda that we have endured, are calls for child martyrdom against Jews, libel that Israel puts feces in the Palestinians' drinking water, yelling “racist” and “terrorist” at Jewish students for their support of Israel, propagation of conspiracy theories referring to Jews running the world, statements that CEOs of companies are “Zionists” and that Jews control the media (“Jew York Times”), declarations to our group members that “it’s too bad the Nazis didn’t finish off your family”, and propagation of demonizing lies and misinformation about Israel and historical facts. "
Susan, even when I told you ALL our claims are substantiated, you still insisted you will not print. So is it because the claims can't be substantiated, or some other reason, that you will not print the above section?
2. It is on record that SPHR made claims that were printed in The Gauntlet last week that were unsubstantiated, and you printed them. There was approximately 1600 words devoted to defamation of Israel and of CUWI last week. These claims include that CUWI "heckled" SPHR and are a security threat. These claims are slanderous, defamation of character and unsubstantiated. You printed them. Last week the unsubstantiated claims printed by the Gauntlet include:
-“We constantly get harassed by [CUWI]....They heckle at our events,”
-“At one point it got so bad that we had to ban a couple of [CUWI] members from one of our events.”
-“When it comes to people from outside [the U of C] coming to disrupt a club because they disagree with them" - we are UofC students and Alum - we are all primary stakeholders.
-SU has never received a complaint regarding SPHR
-CUWI asked for SPHR to be disbanded
-SPHR has a friendly relationship with Hillel
-Israel colonizes [the Palestinians] violently
-Zionism began after WWII as a result of the Holocaust
-Palestinians are second-class citizens
On the phone right now you closed this conversation with saying: "We stand by what we printed…I don't really feel that we need to debate this right now…K?".
3. I have asked you to NOT print our submission unless it is printed in its entirety. You verified that you will not print it now, according to our request.
Your decision is lacking in moral and journalistic integrity: all statements were made, there are witnesses and there is written proof. Why aren't you printing it? I urge you to change your mind and print the short 350 word piece. I am attaching our article here again for you to consider.
Ben Cannon stated in The Gauntlet last week: “University is about sharing ideas, not cutting them off because we don’t like them.”. Do you not like our substantiated claims? They happened and they are happening.
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