Pie Palace

I had the misfortune of listening to Ontario Today… umm… today. I say misfortune because (a) I’m home sick, and (b) because they were covering the school funding issue in the Ontario election.

The segment was an hour-long phone in show. Of the 10ish callers, all but two supported the Green Party position: the province should not pay for religious schools. During the call in show, the Ontario Greens were mentioned only a few time in an off-handed manner, even though a vast majority of the callers agreed with the Green position. Their guest was worse, pushing her own view: that all religious schools must be funded.

In a moment of potent middle-crass rage I wrote a strongly worded letter to Ontario Today producers:

Dear Sir/Madam,

I was disappointed with your phone-in segment about the proposed changes in Ontario’s funding of religious schools. The coverage all but ignored the Green Party’s stance: that the provincial government should not fund religious schools.

During the opener, when clips from each party were played, the Green Party leader Frank de Jong was not included. Although most callers stated that they wanted to remove provincial funding from religious education, Ms. Celli did not mention that this was the Green Party position. I believe that she did mention the Conservatives by name when asking one of the callers about their position. When your guest repeatedly stated that removing funding for the Catholic system was not possible, she was not challenged.

Ms. Celli did mention the Green Party occasionally, but the Greens were not given the same prominence as the other major parties. Part of your role as media is to report news fairly. By giving the Green Party short shrift, you are making it harder for Ontario’s voters to make an informed decision on October 10.