The people of Alberta elected a provincial government in the highest of hopes, and more and more it is beginning to appear they may have been let down. Supporters can live with disappointments caused by the plunge in oil revenue. But the Alberta NDP’s latest debacle involving the right-wing website The Rebel by denying it access to some press briefings, is simply an insult of their own making.
You have to ask what they were thinking. When headlines spread across the nation that our government is somehow trying to control the press, they have in fact made us all to appear – once again – like a bunch of cowboys and bumpkins. We will spare you the details, but suffice to say we’ve been there before folks, and here we are again.
In the wake of this massive lack of judgment, the province appointed a seasoned, well-respected journalist to examine the government’s media policy. With any luck and good sense, all Heather Boyd, a retired Canadian Press bureau chief and former city editor of the Edmonton Journal, can do is buy Premier Rachel Notley the time for this ugly affair to disappear from the news cycle.
All journalists must live with the fact that some politicians are going to like them, and others won’t. Generally the dislike is not personal, so much as a matter of utility. Politicians on all levels, from school boards to the federal government, more often than not appear to prefer journalists who present their point of view. Journalists who tend to agree with the product a politician is selling, are likely to be less of a challenge.
And try as they might, no writer for newspapers, magazines, radio, TV or the Internet can ever be completely objective. At best, everyone sees the world through the lens of their own experiences. And that is a good thing. A healthy media landscape depends on questions from so-called friends and foes alike. Some questions may appear preposterous, and others so soft as to be lame, but all are important to someone. Reporters, columnists and commentators all have their constituencies as well. And like it or hate it, that includes The Rebel.
A savvy politician understands this, and can even use it to his or her own advantage. If a perceived foe asks a tough question – from either the left or right sides of the political spectrum – it can be easier to brush it aside, or worse, laugh it off by patronizing the reporter. We’ve seen it again and again.
The only qualification any reporter really needs is a questioning mind and some ability to communicate. That any government body tries to control this or create a policy around it is nothing short of galling. It is also extremely shortsighted. The next time a member of the government scans the faces at a press conference, it would not be surprising that fewer appear as friendly.
