Particle.news
Get it on Google Play
Download on the App Store
20 ARTICLES
·
4h ago

CBC Memo Instructs Staff Not to Call 9/11 ‘Terrorist Attacks’

The directive reiterates CBC’s long‑standing practice of using charged labels only with attribution.

Image
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 30: New York City Police Officer Robert McArdle stands with his rescue dog T.C. during a tribute at the 9/11 Memorial for recovery workers and first responders on the10-year anniversary of the formal end of cleanup operations at Ground Zero on May 30, 2012 in New York City. Thousands of men and women came to Ground Zero following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks to help with the recovery effort. Numerous first responders, including police and fire fighters, have subsequently been plagued with health issues many believe are related to the air they breathed in the weeks and months following the attacks. The nine-month recovery effort at the site ended May 30, 2002. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 11: The Tribute to Light rises over lower Manhattan as people gather on the Brooklyn promenade on September 11, 2021 in New York City. The nation is marking the 20th anniversary of the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, when the terrorist group al-Qaeda flew hijacked airplanes into the World Trade Center, Shanksville, PA and the Pentagon, killing nearly 3,000 people. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
FILE - In this Sept. 11, 2001, file photo, firefighters work beneath the destroyed mullions, the vertical struts that once faced the outer walls of the World Trade Center towers, after a terrorist attack on the twin towers in New York. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

Overview

  • A leaked internal memo that surfaced on Aug. 27, 2026 and was attributed to Basem Boshra told CBC reporters not to refer to the Sept. 11 attacks as “terrorist attacks” and instead to describe the hijackings and resulting jet crashes.
  • CBC defended the guidance as a reminder of an editorial policy that prefers attributing words like “terrorist” to governments, experts, or sources rather than using them as the broadcaster’s own description.
  • The memo revived political backlash in Canada and the United States, with Conservative MP Rachael Thomas and other public figures saying the wording dishonours victims and rewrites the record.
  • The guidance contrasts with the Government of Canada’s official listing of al‑Qaida as a terrorist entity and with past criticism of CBC for similar language instructions after the Oct. 7, 2023 coverage of the Israel‑Hamas attacks.
  • As of Aug. 28, 2026 CBC has defended the memo and cited continuity with past practice, there is no public sign the broadcaster has reversed the guidance but the leak has intensified scrutiny of its editorial standards and public trust.