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yesterday

CBC Carves Out Exception to Let 9/11 Be Called Terrorism After Leaked Memo

The change followed intense U.S. and Canadian criticism of a leaked internal reminder that staff should generally avoid using the words 'terrorist' or 'terrorism' without attribution.

Confusion has been swirling about how CBC News journalists use the words 'terrorist' and 'terrorism,' particularly in connection with the al-Qaeda attacks on New York, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania on Sept. 11, 2001.
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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)

Overview

  • Late in August a leaked internal memo attributed to Basem Boshra instructed CBC reporters not to refer to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks as "terrorist attacks," a directive first published by the Toronto Sun and shared widely online.
  • CBC initially defended the note as a restatement of a long‑standing editorial practice that prefers the words "terrorist" and "terrorism" be used only with attribution to officials or experts and pointed to a 2023 editor’s blog explaining that approach.
  • The memo prompted sharp criticism from Canadian MPs, the U.S. ambassador to Canada, the FBI director and Republican members of Congress who said the guidance dishonored victims and muddied the historical record.
  • On Friday Basem Boshra and CBC published a clarification saying the leak lacked context and that CBC would make a specific exception allowing 9/11 to be described as terrorism while keeping its general attribution policy for other incidents.
  • The episode recalls a similar 2023 guidance controversy over Oct. 7 coverage and has raised broader questions about how a taxpayer‑funded broadcaster balances impartial language rules with public expectations and diplomatic fallout.