Judging that the documentary blow the ball breached its journalistic standards and practices by making several factual errors, Radio-Canada recently removed it from its digital platforms. Journalist Hugo Meunier deplores the situation, considering that his investigation remains in the public interest and did not deserve to disappear from the public space.
“I find it hard to understand this withdrawal when the things complained of in no way distort the essence of the documentary and could have been corrected. […] It seems to me that it should be the role of Radio-Canada to go to the bat to defend public interest documentaries of this type, ”dropped Hugo Meunier in an interview with the Duty Tuesday.
In blow the ball, broadcast on ICI Télé last December, the journalist wondered about the consequences of alcohol consumption on our health and the role played by the Société des alcools du Québec (SAQ) in the equation. The documentary made the rounds in the media and was hailed by both the public and health experts.
However, in recent weeks, the documentary has disappeared from Radio-Canada’s digital platforms. Receiving many messages from citizens surprised by the situation, Hugo Meunier wanted to speak publicly on Tuesday. In a Facebook post, he explained that the broadcaster had taken him down on the sly following a complaint to the ombudsman.
In an interview, Radio-Canada’s news department confirmed that it had “withdrawn the documentary with regret”. It was in fact following a complaint filed on March 3 by the former general manager of Éduc’Alcool Hubert Sacy – who appears in the documentary – that the public broadcaster made this decision. Of the many grievances, management upheld three and withdrew the documentary on April 6.
“The issue addressed in the documentary is of public interest and extremely important. THE storytelling is interesting, and that’s why we bought it from Blimp Media. On the other hand, we found journalistic errors that do not correspond to our journalistic standards and practices, we could not leave it online, ”says the director of information, Luce Julien.
At his side, the first director of investigations, news and original content, Dominique Poirier, evokes errors of fact, but also errors in the journalistic approach. Among the reproaches retained: an error on the person and therefore a confusion in the presentation of the profession of a member of the board of Éduc’Alcool, an error in the presentation of the mandate of Éduc’Alcool, but also a quote from Mr. Sacy taken out of context.
For his part, Hugo Meunier assures that the work he carried out with director Gabriel Allard Gagnon and the Blimp Media team was in no way shoddy. “Of these three [affirmations] retained, none tainted the overall veracity of the documentary, nor its public interest, he insists. I don’t understand why it wasn’t possible to just fix these technical errors after the fact. Why didn’t Radio-Canada do the checks before broadcasting it even at prime time? »
Management pleads that it is not its job, as a broadcaster, to redo the verification of productions coming from outside production houses. Moreover, to correct the documentary, Blimp Media would have had to reopen the project and take up several elements, notes Ms. Poirier.
An avenue that has not been considered by Blimp Media, which works regularly with the public broadcaster. “I am disappointed, but I am behind Radio-Canada in this decision. We made errors of facts and we assume it. Honestly, I’m not a journalist, I don’t do news, so I preferred to rely on the judgment of Radio-Canada, which has expertise in this area,” said company president Mylène Ferron.
That takes nothing away from “the excellence of the documentary,” she says, or the hard work of her team. “I understand the disappointment. Especially since I can’t turn around and send the documentary to others, since Radio-Canada has a broadcast license for five years, ”she adds.
“I find it frustrating, confides for his part Hugo Meunier. It is a pity to draw a line definitively on a documentary which has already contributed to changing our perception of our alcohol consumption and could become a reference, in the interest of individual and public health”.