OTTAWA – The CBSC has ruled that comments made by CJAB-FM’s morning show hosts regarding the appearance of a female candidate on a singing competition reality show were improper under the Canadian Association of Broadcasters’ (CAB) Code of Ethics.
On March 5, 2012, the hosts of the morning show, 94.5 Le Matin, in Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean, Québec, discussed the previous night’s episode of Star Académie and mentioned one particular competitor who was a tall black woman. Host Richard Courchesne referred to her as “Chewbacca,” “Big Mama,” “Fiona” and “Elle s’appelait Serge” (“She Was Called Serge” — a reference to a song about a transgendered person).
The CBSC received numerous complaints about the broadcast, but only one complainant filed a ruling request. The complainant was concerned that the comments were racist, insulting, and demonstrated a lack of respect towards the woman. The CBSC’s Quebec Regional Panel found that the hosts’ comments focussed on the woman’s general appearance rather than her race, so the comments were not discriminatory on that basis under the Human Rights clauses of the CAB Code of Ethics and Equitable Portrayal Code. The panel did, however, find that the comments were insulting, and unfairly ridiculed the woman, resulting in a breach of Clause 6 of the CAB Code of Ethics, which requires the “proper presentation” of all opinion, editorial and commentary.
The CBSC did not require CJAB-FM to announce its findings on air because Courchesne had read a lengthy and sincere apology on air two days following the broadcast.
