The good, the bad and the ugly exposed as Elon Musk's "citizen" journalism tangles with troubled legacy media Plus! CTV gets sneaky with its fixes, fake news goes viral and why the CBC's At Issue panel is just terrible TV

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Peter Menzies: Canadian pride will swell during the Olympics, but then the Games will end The cultural institutions we've created to protect us from American imperialism have failed

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Media obsess on possibility one province may leave Canada while failing to notice another has already left "Whichever lie it is, it’s a lie that sharp reporters everywhere should be asking Prime Minister Carney about in the wake of his Davos speech"

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Fear and loathing at the Conservative convention after most media take the bait on dated news Plus! Journos have to rely on Fox News to learn about PM's chat with Trump and Canada's new strategic partner and media mate - China - leads the world in arrested newshounds. Let's gooooo!

“The Dinger, as Bell is known by those of us old enough to remember our more rambunctious days, is the last of the blue collar journalists. “ open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

Slavish swooning over Carney's Davos speech switched to ill-informed defence of Quebec's bumbling and elite separatists Media gobbled up unnecessary provocations of the USA, then turned on the Prime Minister's accurate and sensible praise of a country built on the Plains of Abraham

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The media mistrust that fuelled the Freedom Convoy and the growing public appetite for misinformation remains dangerously unresolved Plus! The Logic editor slams unnamed sources, Ombudsman says CBC wrong to ID Jewish MPs and woo boy journos continue to self-harm on social media

“This is about a media ecosystem that has stopped pushing back. When we play along, we erode our own trust.” open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

The Truth is out there, but when it comes to pipelines and first nations, most journalists are refusing to dig into it Plus! The CRTC reveals its dinosaur instincts, another study points to CBC bias, columnists on the take and the fight to reveal Kamloops secrets

“It might also be worth letting the public know what the other 192-plus first nations in B.C. think about pipelines but, near as I can tell, no one has asked them.”

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Mr. Carney goes to Beijing and lands a triple kowtow Canadian delegation appears to have taken its cues from editorial provided by Chinese state media while our PM's history with the Middle Kingdom overlooked

“China’s political warfare arm, the united front, is believed to be supported, in part, by proceeds from a variety of criminal enterprises and receive guidance and direction through the Chinese Embassy and consulates in Canada.” open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

If the goose and the gander don't get equal treatment, there's no place for media to hide Plus! Radio-Canada praises Maduro, CBC/CTV minimize Iran protests and good heavens why are our media letting Freeland walk away with her secrets?

The internet never forgets open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

Hell freezes over, CTV’s fabrication of fake news and our 2026 forecast is still searching for sunshine Plus! Politico warns that the far right’s stealing Christmas, a CBC content analysis ruffles feathers and more! Happy New Year

“it was bad enough that CTV posted a barefaced falsehood. What was worse ….” open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

Pride, prejudice and the pillorying of an editor just trying to do the job so many in her position lack the courage to do Bari Weiss shows all the sense and sensibility required and paid the price for trying to make a story better

“The late December skewering of CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss simply for carrying out those duties demonstrated how dysfunctional that vital aspect of journalism has become.” open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

The year Mephistopheles brought an end (almost) to trust in a free press 2025 signalled the conclusion of hope for media in a nation that prefers subsidies to innovation and independence

“the federal government’s smorgasbord of subsidies for news organizations has “suspended these (news) entities in stasis.” open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

Religion on trial: what could happen if Canada passes its new hate speech legislation Just in time for Christmas, the Liberals make a deal with the Bloc that will suppress religious expressions of belief

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“CBC never acknowledged that the Convoy was a development of a political movement that deserved proper, unbiased coverage” Thirty years developing Ideas has produced a compelling book crying out for the Mother Corp to get it right

“Though Cayley notes that Seven Days in no way invented “crusading journalism” it did introduce to the CBC the notion that journalists and producers were “agents of justice.” open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

Reporters determined to drive their industry and its reputation into the abyss one Tweet at a time Plus! Door opens to put sacred texts on trial. Sorry journos, AI says you’re surplus to its needs, the PMO's monkeys are flying and look out - Lilley’s crashing the boards!

“I’m old-fashioned enough to think reporters shouldn’t be blatantly stating biases. Not a great way to retain public trust.” open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

They know they are lying, we know they are lying and they know we know but the lies continue A couple of journos wade through their industry’s moral and professional fatigue. Plus! BBC under fire, sources burn politicos and the Dinger delivers a zinger

“too many titles continue to mask government sources feeding them strategic information and excuse the practice by claiming the sources are “not authorized.” open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

Media bound to pay the price for selling their freedom to (selectively) offend Plus! Justin Ling signs on with the Star, trans stories censored and what was the CBC thinking when it comes to safe supply?

“taxpayers in the West - the most likely to take offense from the cartoon - pay to subsidize the Toronto Star.”
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Tens of thousands are dying on waiting lists following decades of media reluctance to debate healthcare Plus! More unnecessary online smartassery taints the craft and “sources say” stories continue to be all the rage

“We have known for 40 years that once Baby Boomers like your faithful servant turned bald and grey that the system would be unsustainable. But that single, terrifying “American-style” slur has halted reform at every turn.” open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

Breaking News: the public actually expects journalists to determine the truth of statements they report before they report them Who knew? Plus! Online smartassery by reporters continues to curse the industry, Vancouver loves Harry Potter (shhhh!), layoffs continue and newspaper revenue now in uncontrolled descent

“The pattern of behaviour indicates to the public that news organizations do not take their obligation to the truth seriously.” open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

“Editor in Chief Brodie Fenlon confirmed that the CBC’s newsrooms are the least biased he’s ever worked in.”https://open.substack.com/pub/petermenzies/p/cbc-cashes-in-on-carney-as-the-news?r=885ov&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false

BONUS EPISODE: Podcast Episode · Cascade of History · 2025-11-04 · 47m

This isn’t the first time the America craved western Canada podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/b...

“an object lesson for why trust in legacy media has plummeted, and alt right media audiences have grown.”https://open.substack.com/pub/petermenzies/p/how-one-major-media-torqued-its-coverage?

The Rewrite | Peter Menzies | Substack Seeking and destroying journalism doing harm to journalism. Click to read The Rewrite, a Substack publication with thousands of subscribers.

“Missing in media coverage were the voices of those who find repulsive the idea that Vancouverites should be denied the right to choose for themselves what events they find morally acceptable.” open.substack.com/pub/Petermen...

PM's speech shows how easily newsrooms are played by politicians announcing the same things over and over again Plus! Global’s oops on Trump in the crosshairs and assuming what Stephen Harper thinks may not be the best idea!

Journalists should not be easy prey for politicians open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

Masterfully manipulated media succumb to the PMO's seductive charms Press Gallery members denied access to Carney's Egypt photo opportunity dutifully repeat anonymous, unverified claims elevating the Prime Minister's importance

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Response to Carney’s deficit shell game will determine who media have decided to serve Plus! CBC’s “Intifada Evan” shows the Ombudsman who’s boss and Rebel News puts another tick in the debates win column

“The test for media will be to see whether - as so far appears to be the case - they will comply and comfortably go along with the language shell game the government prefers or the language that best serves their readers” open.substack.com/pub/petermen...

PODCAST: Alberta's ballooning deficit, Ottawa bullish on LNG to Europe, Clarifying self-defence law, Overhauling arts & media funding In this episode, updates on Alberta's budget and Ottawa's interest in LNG; plus interviews with law professor Peter Sankoff and MLI's Peter Menzies

NEW PODCAST:
• @petersankoff.bsky.social on Canadian self-defence law
• @pagmenzies.bsky.social on overhauling Canada's arts & media funding system
• Plus, updates on Alberta's ballooning deficit and Ottawa's newfound bullishness on Canadian LNG exports
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Peter Menzies: Canada’s last remaining independent media outlets are dropping like flies

“it’s unlikely the Liberals will lose an election anytime in the foreseeable future. The overwhelming majority of media depends on them financially. Their appointees control the Senate, the courts, most public institutions, and decide which journalists you can trust.”
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The “ the soft, silent takeover of the nation’s press” rolls on relentlessly Plus! CBC gives the latest church arson a pass, The Rewrite asks why and you get to decide if the explanation is satisfactory

“Strings requiring compliance and promotion of “acceptable” views will eventually be attached to the funding. Almost every media will comply.” open.substack.com/pub/petermen...