Overheard in Parliament: How the media handled Justin Trudeau swearing at Peter Kent
In covering Justin Trudeau swearing at Environment Minister Peter Kent this afternoon, one news organization decided to cover it a little differently.
Today, Justin Trudeau called Environment Minister and former journalist Peter Kent a “piece of s–t.”
The media was all over this, of course, with stories quickly appearing online from the major players such as CBC, CTV, Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail, Canadian Press and the National Post. Newstalk 1010 even has the audio.
The coverage was similar across all outlets, with one exception: The National Post originally failed to provide the context behind Trudeau’s outburst.
According to CTV.ca, NDP environment critic Megan Leslie questioned Kent on Canada’s decision to abandon Kyoto at the recent climate-change talks in Durban, South Africa. She criticized the decision, making suggestions about why Canada was backing out of the agreement.
The Star reports that Kent suggested Leslie didn’t know what she was talking about because she did not attend the conference.
Cue Trudeau’s s-bomb.
[node:ad]Trudeau wrote in an email to The Globe — while still in question period — that for the first time ever, the Government had refused to accredit any members of the opposition to attend the conference. “So when Minister Kent got up and dared say ‘if the member opposite had been in Durban…’ I lost my cool,” Trudeau told The Globe.
Trudeau apologized to the House for his language shortly after. Then, Peter Kent asked him to apologize. Yes, you read that correctly.
The Post has since updated their story to reflect part of this context, but still omits the government’s refusal to issue accreditation.
The National Post could not be reached for comment.
Update, Dec. 15 3:45 p.m.
Though the Post never responded to J-Source's request for comment, they have since updated the story to include all the details."Trudeau became incensed after Kent suggested that Leslie should have been in Durban for the UN meeting, despite the minister banning all non-government MPs from Canada’s official delegation," the Post writes.
