The Narwhal was nominated for an “excellence award” for its story on the 2021.Wet’suwet’en First Nation protests, despite a federal memo disputing certain elements of it..The Canadian Journalism Foundation (CJF), which nominated photojournalist Amber Bracken for the award, did not respond to questions on the story..“Bracken has considerable experience covering protests and demonstrations at natural resources project sites,” said Natalie Turvey, CJF president. “The awards committee has confidence in the quality of her journalism.”.The Narwhal was nominated for an award to “recognize news organizations that embrace ideals of journalistic excellence, originality, courage, independence, accuracy, social responsibility, accountability and diversity.”.According to Blacklock’s Reporter, last November 19.Bracken was detained after joining Wet’suwet’en First Nation protesters opposed to the construction of a Coastal GasLink pipeline in northwest British Columbia. The CJF said her stories, “connected her arrest while covering an indigenous anti-pipeline protest with broader police violations of journalists’ rights.”.However, Bracken’s accounts of the arrest are contradicted by a November 25 Department of Public Safety memo Coastal GasLink Pipeline Protests. Editors at The Narwhal did not comment on the memo and the CJF would not say if it was aware of the document..In Bracken’s version of the story, she told the RCMP she was a journalist. “Police put me in handcuffs when I should have been doing my job,” she wrote. “No one in Canada should tolerate police efforts to intimidate journalists or limit news coverage. My arrest actually makes me a big part of a national reckoning with press freedoms.”.However, the federal memo contradicts Bracken’s version. It said RCMP were in contact with protesters for several minutes without anyone identifying themselves as a journalist. “It was not until RCMP members entered the structures and arrested the individuals that they identified themselves as journalists.”.Bracken wrote, “all at once RCMP officers came out of their hiding spots,” surrounded the building, cut all communications and broke down the door.” But the memo states police stood outside the cabin for “more than an hour” and asked protesters to leave..Bracken also wrote that the protesters were “peaceful individuals” who did “not resist” arrest, while the memo states police “made several calls over the course of more than an hour for occupants to exit the structure,” with the only responses being, “derogatory in nature and refusals.”.Bracken’s editors did not comment on contradictions. .Matthew Horwood is the Parliamentary Bureau Chief of the Western Standard
The Narwhal was nominated for an “excellence award” for its story on the 2021.Wet’suwet’en First Nation protests, despite a federal memo disputing certain elements of it..The Canadian Journalism Foundation (CJF), which nominated photojournalist Amber Bracken for the award, did not respond to questions on the story..“Bracken has considerable experience covering protests and demonstrations at natural resources project sites,” said Natalie Turvey, CJF president. “The awards committee has confidence in the quality of her journalism.”.The Narwhal was nominated for an award to “recognize news organizations that embrace ideals of journalistic excellence, originality, courage, independence, accuracy, social responsibility, accountability and diversity.”.According to Blacklock’s Reporter, last November 19.Bracken was detained after joining Wet’suwet’en First Nation protesters opposed to the construction of a Coastal GasLink pipeline in northwest British Columbia. The CJF said her stories, “connected her arrest while covering an indigenous anti-pipeline protest with broader police violations of journalists’ rights.”.However, Bracken’s accounts of the arrest are contradicted by a November 25 Department of Public Safety memo Coastal GasLink Pipeline Protests. Editors at The Narwhal did not comment on the memo and the CJF would not say if it was aware of the document..In Bracken’s version of the story, she told the RCMP she was a journalist. “Police put me in handcuffs when I should have been doing my job,” she wrote. “No one in Canada should tolerate police efforts to intimidate journalists or limit news coverage. My arrest actually makes me a big part of a national reckoning with press freedoms.”.However, the federal memo contradicts Bracken’s version. It said RCMP were in contact with protesters for several minutes without anyone identifying themselves as a journalist. “It was not until RCMP members entered the structures and arrested the individuals that they identified themselves as journalists.”.Bracken wrote, “all at once RCMP officers came out of their hiding spots,” surrounded the building, cut all communications and broke down the door.” But the memo states police stood outside the cabin for “more than an hour” and asked protesters to leave..Bracken also wrote that the protesters were “peaceful individuals” who did “not resist” arrest, while the memo states police “made several calls over the course of more than an hour for occupants to exit the structure,” with the only responses being, “derogatory in nature and refusals.”.Bracken’s editors did not comment on contradictions. .Matthew Horwood is the Parliamentary Bureau Chief of the Western Standard
