OTTAWA – The use of a racial term used on an American radio program that was heard on a Calgary radio station breached Canadian broadcast codes, the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) has determined.
The CBSC examined an episode of Tom Kent that aired February 10, 2012 on CFXL-FM (XL 103 FM, Calgary). Kent spoke with a caller about a man who was planning a world record parachute jump. The caller made the comment “when he splats on [the] ground, [people will] say ‘Well, it definitely wasn’t Superman’”. Kent then replied, “They’ll say it was that famous chinaman, Sum Dum Guy.”
A listener complained that the word “chinaman” is racist, offensive and unacceptable in the present day. The radio station explained that the program originates in the United States, but agreed that the word is unacceptable on Canadian airwaves and gave assurances that it would be more careful in the future.
The CBSC’s Prairie Regional Panel examined the complaint under the Human Rights clauses of the CAB Code of Ethics and Equitable Portrayal Code, which prohibits abusive or unduly discriminatory comment on the basis of race, national or ethnic origin. It also examined the complaint under Clause 9(b) regarding Language and Terminology of the Equitable Portrayal Code, which requires broadcasters to avoid the use of derogatory language in references to individuals or groups based on race, national or ethnic origin.
The Panel concluded that the segment did not violate the Human Rights clauses because Kent did not actually make any negative comments about Chinese people. The segment did, however, violate the Language and Terminology clause because “chinaman” has evolved to become an offensive and pejorative term. Canadian stations are responsible for all material that they air, regardless of its source.
