The first woman to hold the presidency of the Quebec Press Council, Paule Beaugrand-Champagne will step down on May 19. For this pioneer with an impressive professional career, defending quality information will always remain a priority.
Published on 1er may
The first time I interviewed Paule Beaugrand-Champagne was in 2010. Recently retired, she had received the Judith-Jasmin tribute award from the Professional Federation of Journalists of Quebec (FPJQ). The one who worked in almost all the newsrooms in Quebec, and who would probably have enough anecdotes to write six new seasons of the series Scoop, did not remain inactive for long. I saw her again in 2014 when she was appointed head of the Quebec Press Council, succeeding John Gomery. She was the first woman to hold this position, as she was the first female information officer of The Pressin the 1960s.
Paule Beaugrand-Champagne has held positions everywhere, from Montreal Journal to Radio-Canada via The duty, News and Télé-Québec, which she directed for three and a half years in the early 2000s. She also marked the history of Quebec journalism by founding the sovereignist daily The day alongside René Lévesque, Jacques Parizeau and Yves Michaud, in the mid-1970s.
Eight years have passed since we last met. We come full circle, in a way, since she is preparing to leave her post at the head of the Press Council which will celebrate its 50and birthday next year.
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
Paule Beaugrand-Champagne
For those who do not know the Press Council, and who are wondering “what does it eat in winter”, let’s say that it is an organization that could be compared to the Consumer Protection Office, but for news media.
It is a “tribunal of honor” which receives complaints from the public, studies them and distributes blame if necessary. It also defends freedom of the press and the public’s right to information. Composed of owners of press companies, journalists and citizens, the complaints committee judges whether a complaint is admissible. If necessary, the arrested journalist must come and explain his approach. Let’s face it, for a journalist, receiving a reprimand from the Press Council is quite painful. It’s a blemish on his record, which explains why the Council’s decisions are sometimes challenged.
Despite the difficult nature of her job (it is never pleasant to face the wrath of a press boss angry at a decision), Paule Beaugrand-Champagne enjoyed her experience. “I discovered passionate people,” she says. They were really interested in the exercise. »
According to her, the organization’s mandate is becoming better understood. As proof, the 684 complaints last year, compared to 111 in 2010, by way of comparison.
In this era of fake news and misinformation, the President of the Press Council observes that what motivates the majority of public actions is the quest for the truth. “People want to know what’s true…”
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
Nathalie Collard meets Paule Beaugrand-Champagne
The Rioux wave
Among the highlights of her mandate, Paule Beaugrand-Champagne quotes me “The Elisabeth Rioux affair”.
When a relative of the influencer files a complaint against hosts and Quebecor columnists who commented on the physical appearance of Mme Rioux when she publicly denounced the domestic violence of which she was the victim, the machine is racing.
The complainant circulated a model complaint form on social media. Result: the Press Council receives 1391 complaints! “The office was overwhelmed, our e-mail box paralyzed,” says Paule Beaugrand-Champagne, who recalls that the Council had never faced such a storm. “At 25 or 50 emails, we were tearing our hair out, but at 1400, it was completely crazy. They all had to be checked and therefore read. This cut-and-paste movement has forced us to revise our rules. Now, when there are a very large number of complaints, 10 are retained and the others are considered in support only. »
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
Nathalie Collard and Paule Beaugrand-Champagne
The wrath of the bosses
This is not the only crisis that Paule Beaugrand-Champagne has managed during her mandate.
She remembers the outraged reaction of Radio-Canada when its star journalist Alain Gravel was blamed for the choice of certain sources for a report. “Radio-Canada threatened to withdraw from the Press Council, Alain Gravel spoke about us to Everybody talks about it… »
After being challenged, the complaint was studied by a second examination committee and the journalist was cleared. The blame has been removed.
Mme Beaugrand-Champagne also faced the wrath of Éric Trottier, former deputy editor of The Press today at the head of Sun, in Quebec. He too was unhappy with a decision regarding his newspaper.
“He represented the association of daily newspapers on the board of directors, he was very angry. In a few months, he became the most passionate representative of the Press Council. He gave of his time as it is not possible. I even asked him to chair our fundraising committee. He toured Quebec to seek support and solicit new members while being assistant editor of The Pressand after yelling at us… [elle sourit] This is the kind of passion that the Council arouses in journalists…”
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
Nathalie Collard and Paule Beaugrand-Champagne
Chests are empty
That said, it would be wrong to say that ALL journalists in Quebec want to become members of the Press Council. No. A small group of irreducible resists. When she was appointed, Paule Beaugrand-Champagne told me that her first objective as president was to bring back The Journal of Montreal and TVA Nouvelles in the bosom of the Conseil, which they had left at the end of the 2000s. “I really tried everything,” she says. I had meetings with them, but at one point, it was radio silence…”
Not only did it fail, but the Council must now defend itself in court because the Quebecor media claim that by dealing with complaints concerning them, the Press Council is infringing on their fundamental right of association, as intended in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, a right that includes “the freedom not to associate”.
“They are probably doing this to throw us to the ground, launches Paule Beaugrand-Champagne, but so far they have not succeeded. »
The fact remains that the Press Council, despite its resilience, has modest resources. Before bowing out, its president sounds the alarm.
“If our government subsidy had been indexed, we would receive $50,000 more per year for our operations. Today, our reserves are limited. If this continues, in three years we won’t have any more money. »
The ball is therefore in the government’s court. Because our democracy certainly does not have the luxury of doing without the essential work accomplished by the Quebec Press Council.
Questionnaire without filter
coffee and me : I love strong coffee. If I’m not offered an espresso, I prefer not to drink it. At one time, I drank three or four a day. Now I drink less.
People I’d like to bring together for dinner, dead or alive: I would make a table of journalists. We would find René Lévesque there, whom I knew, a man who had humor, charisma and talent. I would also invite the French journalist and biographer Jean Lacouture, who inspired me as a young journalist, the great journalist Judith Jasmin and Katherine Graham, the editor of washington post whose journey has been extraordinary, and Albert Londres, an investigative journalist from the beginning of the XXand century.
Books on my bedside table: hunting dogs, by Jorn Lier Horst (Gallimard 2018). An amusing novel because journalists carry out their own investigation in parallel with the star policeman. And The art of losing, by Alice Zeniter (I read, 2017). For its history of colonialism and its complex links with France.
Who is Paule Beaugrand-Champagne?
- 1974: Editor-in-chief of the independentist daily The day
- 1976: Founded The thirtymagazine of the Professional Federation of Journalists of Quebec (FPJQ)
- She has held various positions at The Pressto To have to and at Montreal Journal.
- 2002: CEO of Télé-Québec
- 2005: Editor of News
- 2014: Appointed President of the Quebec Press Council