CBC Memo Advises Staff Against Using 'Terrorist Attack' for 9/11

<p>In preparation for the twenty-fifth anniversary of 9/11, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) sent a memo to its staff with instructions on how to refer to the 2001 attacks. The memo specifically advised against calling the events terrorist attacks.</p><p>“Do not refer to September 11 attacks as terrorist attacks,” the memo stated. “The hijackings led to passenger jet crashes in Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, and Manhattan. The World Trade Center (WTC in second reference) was destroyed.”</p><p>The memo was attributed to “BB,” identified by the Toronto Sun as Basem Boshra, the senior director of journalistic standards and public trust at CBC News.</p><p>Rachael Thomas, a conservative member of Canada’s Parliament, criticized the outlet’s memo, arguing it was an attempt to alter historical facts. “Refusing to call it an act of terrorism dishonours the victims, their families, the survivors, and the first responders who witnessed the horrors of that day,” she wrote on X. “Trying to sanitize or rewrite that history is deeply offensive and does a disservice to everyone who was affected by the attacks.”</p><p>Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) reacted on X, commenting, “Maybe we shouldn’t call Canada a ‘friendly country.’”</p><p>Rep. Lisa McClain (R-MI) echoed similar sentiments, stating, “Wow, The Canadian Broadcast Center told staff NOT to call 9/11 a terrorist attack. 9/11 is one of the darkest days in our history — nearly 3,000 Americans were murdered by terrorists. Say the word terrorism.”</p><p>In defense of the outlet, CBC director of public affairs Kerry Kelly referenced a 2023 editor's blog that argues using labels like “terrorist attacks” would compromise the outlet's impartiality. “Our focus is to report the facts of such atrocities with accuracy, clarity, and detail; to convey the scale and scope of violent acts wherever they occur; to quote the people affected, and to convey the views of officials and experts on these events. We bear witness,” CBC Editor-in-Chief Brodie Fenlon wrote in the blog. “But CBC News does not itself designate specific groups as terrorists, or specific acts as terrorism, regardless of the region or the events, because these words are so loaded with meaning, politics, and emotion that they can end up being impediments to our journalism.”</p><p>CBC published an article on August 27, 2026, titled, “Khalid Sheik Mohammed, accused of masterminding 9/11 attacks, set for military tribunal trial in 2028.” The word “terrorist” appeared only once in the article — in a description of Al-Qaeda that stated, “Al-Qaeda, which the U.S. designated a terrorist entity in 1999, claimed responsibility for the attacks.”</p>