Quebec Press Council rules debate moderator Shachi Kurl was biased in question on Bills 21 & 96

It says the use of the word "racism" in a question put to Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet constituted an opinion, not a fact.

The Quebec Press Council has upheld a complaint against Shachi Kurl, the moderator of an English-language federal leaders debate during the 2021 general election campaign.

During the debate, Kurl, speaking to Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet, said: “You deny that Quebec has problems with racism yet you defend legislation such as Bills 96 and 21, which marginalize religious minorities, anglophones and allophones.”

A complaint was lodged against Kurl and the CBC, one of the networks broadcasting the debate. The complainant, Julie Lapierre, said the question exhibited bias and discrimination.

At the time, Bill 21 — which bans some Quebec civil servants, including teachers, from wearing religious symbols at work — had already been adopted into law. Bill 96, a revision of Quebec’s French-language charter, had yet to be voted on by the National Assembly.

In its decision, the press council found that use of the word “racism” in the statement constituted an opinion and not an established fact, contrary to what Kurl seemed to suggest.

The council said the public has a right to expect that moderators of leaders debates treat all invited participants in an impartial manner. It said it considers moderators to be practising fact-based journalism. The council noted that Kurl, a former journalist, headed the Angus Reid Institute at the time of the debate.

The news organizations that broadcast the debate said the questions posed to the leaders had been approved in advance.

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