A news headline being enthusiastically reported at liberalvision today is about a giant multinational “green” interest group, called “Friends of the Earth”, taking the federal government to court this week, in order to force the Conservative government to abide by the political maneuvering previously exercised in the House of Commons by the far-left; and their crass, purely political demands on the Conservatives with regard to their beloved, albeit asinine Kyoto Accord. Manifestly, they demand that the Conservatives bend over and abide by the wishes of the far-left in Canada. (Here’s the CTV online story).
The CTV Newsnet news anchor, Jacqueline Milczarek, introduces the background of the enviro-politics story, as they always do: complete with stock CTV images of horrible terrible pollution and billowing smoke stacks and such, interspersed with pictures of Prime Minister Harper.
Then their guest expert is introduced by Milczarek as follows:
“Lynda Collins is a professor of the faculty of law at the University of Ottawa where she is an expert on environmental law and the law of government…”
Collins proceeds to explain that this is the type of case which exemplifies the difference between a democracy and a dictatorship, the clear implication being that the Harper Conservatives have the potential to evolve into a “dictatorship” whereas the left-wing political parties which passed the bill in question are all about the democracy. (Sheer crass left-wing politics has no hand in this, no, none).
Well I’m sure she is an expert in law. But it might have been worth it for CTV—and maybe Collins herself—to mention that Collins is actually also an environmental activist , rather than simply, strictly, an “expert” in environmental law. At least that’s how I see her, having looked her up. (I do know that this has the downside for the CTV and Collins of being more open and honest in the way news is delivered, and helping foster an intellectually honest debate, but thats life in fair and balanced land!)
For one thing, Collins has been a staff lawyer for the Sierra Legal Defence Fund, which reflexively opposes nearly everything Conservative, and which has itself worked for and with the said “Friends of the Earth” group before (and I’m not sure if Collins is helping them with this current case or not, but the Sierra Club lists her as legal council for the client “Friends of the Earth” in a previous unrelated matter).
Her legal expertise is not in question in my mind, but her obvious leanings certainly are. If she were the judge in this case, she’d be obligated to recuse herself citing an obvious conflict of interest. But on CTV Newsnet, she’s just dandy!
In the interview, the news anchor carries on with the expert as if they’re both trying to explain to Canadians that the Conservatives are dastardly. Anchor Milczarek goads the expert at one point in the long interview as follows:
CTV Newsnet anchor Jacqueline Milczarek: …ehh ehh let me ask you though, how many times can the government do this sort of thing, you know, in terms of, we know the legislation is what it is, and saying well, you know, we just can’t comply with this legislation for economic reasons; how many times can you do that before there’s public outrage?!!
Lynda Collins: Well I would expect to see public outrage now…. [etc]
[…and later…]
CTV Newsnet anchor Jacqueline Milczarek: So are you saying there’s not enough public outrage—in your opinion you’re surprise that we Canadians aren’t more mobilized to put pressure on the government on this issue?!
Mobilize, Canadians! For this is unjust!
At Collins’ University of Ottawa biography, which CTV producers and Milczarek could never have accessed owing to the fact that it’s on the ever-so secret “World Wide Web”, it informs us:
… Professor Collins practiced with the Sierra Legal Defence Fund until 2003, litigating major environmental cases in tribunals ranging from the Ontario Municipal Board to the Supreme Court of Canada. From 2003 to 2005, Professor Collins practiced toxic tort with a leading San Francisco law firm representing state and local governments in complex multi-district litigation against the oil industry to recover damages for drinking water contamination. … Professor Collins has published on a variety of subjects including freedom of information in environmental advocacy, Aboriginal environmental rights, causation in toxic tort, and the integration of the Precautionary Principle into toxic tort doctrine. Her current areas of interest include the intersection between public and private law in the area of toxic tort, the human right to environment, and the principle of intergenerational equity in international and European Union law.
Here’s a tip for CTV Newsnet: There’s nothing particularly wrong with a private newscaster being totally biased and driving an agenda, as long as you’re totally up front about it. Next time, try introducing a guest as an obvious plant by CTV producers trying to sway Canadians to your way of thinking. Explain that the guest expert is biased because he or she once worked for one of the plaintiffs of the current court case, and is an advocate for one side of the issue in question, rather than simply trying to pass her off as a totally objective expert, which he or she may demonstrably not be.
Then just for fun, see how your audience reacts!
Oh I see. You don’t want to know how this might turn out.
PTBC was founded by Mr. Johannesen in 2000.
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