Thank you very much, Madam Chair.
Thank you, all, for agreeing to hear me today and for the opportunity to address the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security.
While I wholeheartedly endorse the study this committee is undertaking to look into Russian disinformation and interference campaigns in Canada, that's not exclusively the reason I am here today.
I'm joining you here today as the president of the Canadian Association of Journalists, which is an organization that has existed since 1978—so, more than 45 years—to represent the interests of journalists, to undertake advocacy and to support the public's right to know.
I'm here because of the allegations that were levied against Mr. Pugliese in the October 24 meeting by Mr. Alexander. As David has noted, Mr. Alexander declared, under the guise of parliamentary privilege, I might add, that David has been a paid agent of the KGB since the 1980s. It is absolutely astonishing to me that no member of this committee posed questions about or challenged these patently absurd claims when they were tabled.
On the evening of October 24, the Canadian Association of Journalists issued a public statement to our more than 22,000 Twitter followers, and we also represent the interests of more than 1,000 journalists across the country. The CAJ statement read:
The CAJ wholeheartedly denounces the ridiculous accusations made against @davidpugliese today.
It's a sad irony these comments were made in a meeting examining disinformation campaigns. These claims are dangerous & designed to undermine the credibility of journalists. Period.
I'm happy to be here today sitting shoulder to shoulder with David to call out these accusations and allegations that are nothing more, in my view, than a McCarthyesque smear job. For over 40 years, David has built a reputation as a reporter who has exposed untold levels of corruption in Canada. He has won multiple awards, not just from the Canadian Association of Journalists but also from the National Newspaper Awards, where I also sit as a governor, and for his coverage on issues as diverse as defence issues and looking into and investigating the government and security agencies that are attempting to stifle free speech and legitimate protests.
The function of journalists is to make sure that taxpayers know how public dollars are being spent. Frankly, our Constitution upholds the role that journalists play in serving our democracy. However, Mr. Pugliese has been tarnished unnecessarily and is guilty of nothing more than being a journalist. He is a habitual thorn in the side of those in power, but that's just him doing his job.
The accusations you have heard from Mr. Alexander in this committee are dumbfounding and dangerous. They are, regrettably, becoming the new normal. Weaponized disinformation campaigns put journalists in the veritable crosshairs. Rather than question, for example, the accuracy of facts reported in a story, domestic and transnational interests now attack a journalist's credibility. That's because if you can't refute the truth, then the next best action is to attack the messenger.
These kinds of attacks are isolating and psychologically taxing. In a time when newsrooms have thinner and thinner resources or, worse, when you're a freelancer who doesn't have an affiliation to a newsroom, these kinds of statements and ridiculous allegations send a collective chill across the free expression landscape. I think our foreign adversaries, including Russia, will cheer in collective celebration when we begin to suspect each other.
Disinformation attacks the very foundations of our democracy and the individuals who serve in it, and that includes journalists. I hope that members of this committee will carefully reflect on how this close-to-home example of a disinformation campaign can strike.
Disinformation changes lives and damages reputations, all in the stroke of a pen. It's for that reason that I hope the mindless maligning of Mr. Pugliese will not go unnoticed in the final draft of this committee's report. We'll be watching, and we look forward to reading it in the near future.
Thank you.