War in Ukraine, access to abortion in the United States, revolt of Iranian women: this international news has repeatedly found itself in the headlines of the media here. But they especially affected Quebecers personally, who rank them among the most significant events of the year 2022, according to a recent survey.
“It really surprised me. It is often said that Quebecers are not very interested in international news, but this shows that, on the contrary, it affects them a lot, even when these are events far from us,” says Philippe Léger, project manager at the firm of Léger poll and collaborator on the show In the media of Tele-Quebec.
The show unveiled Wednesday evening the results of an exclusive survey, conducted in collaboration with the firm Léger, on the significant events of the past year. Result: Quebecers are more than ever connected to the world.
Almost half of respondents rated the war in Ukraine as a highlight of their year, pushing the news to second place in the rankings, just behind inflation and rising prices. In third place is the decision of the United States Supreme Court to invalidate the protection of the right to abortion. Queen Elizabeth II’s death ranks seventh, while women’s protests in Iran rank ninth.
Whether it’s access to abortion in the United States or women’s protests in Iran, these are issues that affect women’s rights and freedoms, very important topics for us.
For this analysis, the firm Léger conducted an online survey between November 11 and 13 among 1,007 Quebecers aged 18 or over. They had to choose, among the 37 events proposed – selected upstream according to their marked presence in the media coverage -, from one to three events that most “marked them personally”.
“It’s really impressive to see so many international subjects at the top of the charts,” said Jean-Frédéric Légaré-Tremblay, a former journalist at To have to and now advisor to CERIUM. However, he is not so surprised. There is a trend, he says, to pay more attention to international news in recent years. “With the decline of democracy, the rise of authoritarianism or the loss of leadership in the United States, this creates uncertainty, instability that leads to disruptive and unusual events, such as the war in Ukraine. »
He also notices a social and human dimension in the four international news subjects that have slipped to the top of the list. “Whether it’s access to abortion in the United States or women’s protests in Iran, these are issues that affect women’s rights and freedoms, very important topics for us. It catches our attention, we are very sensitive to these issues,” continues Mr. Légaré-Tremblay.
We are also concerned about certain international events because they end up having a direct impact on us. The war in Ukraine, for example, is partly responsible for inflation in Canada.
Increased coverage
And if international news makes such an impression, it may also be because the media here have covered it extensively, says the former journalist.
Even before the official invasion of Ukraine by Russia on February 24, several mainstream media had sent journalists on the ground to tell how the citizens were preparing for the worst. In the following months, many of them stayed around or in neighboring countries to tell the war from a Quebec perspective.
Same scenario this spring, when the American Supreme Court decided to invalidate the right to abortion. Journalists flocked to the other side of the border to give women a voice, cover protests or visit the last abortion clinics still open in some states.
“It is normal to take an interest in foreign affairs through the prism of our national interest. Having pens, voices, faces from here makes it possible to better explain the issues and to reach Quebecers by interesting them in this news,” maintains Mr. Légaré-Tremblay.
The one who has been pleading for years for broader media coverage internationally – and who co-founded the Fonds québécois en journalisme international in 2018 – hopes that this habit will continue. “In an ideal world,” he says, mainstream media should have full-time foreign correspondents or a team of dedicated international news reporters ready to go at all times. “We’re not there yet. »
“Media-media” subjects
Moreover, the Léger-In the media demonstrates that some news that hit the headlines has not caught the attention of Quebecers. This is what Philippe Léger calls “media-media topics”, which are controversial and feed the debates without making an impression.
For example: Guillaume Lemay-Thivierge’s speech to Gemini (37e and last place), the release of the film Arlette with Maripier Morin (36e), the visit of Pope Francis to Canada (34e), the expulsion of candidates fromDouble occupation (32e) or the slap of Will Smith at the Oscar gala (29e).
“Did the media cover these subjects too much, compared to the real interest of Quebecers? The question is launched.