It does here.
Dan Cook writes this morning [no permalinks???];
Yesterday, I reported on Stephen Harper’s candid chat with reporters. You remember – the one where he called Dalton McGuinty untrustworthy? Or most Premiers “hate” Paul Martin.
Turns out the Conservative party is now miffed: Spokesman William Stairs said, “we would have appreciated it if it were off the record.”
When you’re speaking to a journalist, does off the record exist anymore? I don’t think so.
Last word goes to CTV’s Robert Fife: “Nothing is ever off the record,” Fife said. But “anything that someone tells me will be reported in one way or another.”
“I was the one who said I will write about it,” he said, “and I did.”
And I would offer – “off the record” does indeed exist for politicians and officials that journalists are supportive of. Where else do you suppose those “unnamed sources” they love to quote arise?
Good question. If Robert Fife and the Globe are going to set aside the principle of allowing sources to speak “off the record”, I presume that from now on we can look forward to stories in which every party insider, disgruntled member, mischievous organizer and political power broker who is quoted will be duly named and their interests disclosed when offering up these juicy tidbits.
Doubtful though. So, when they get nothing but the canned party line from Conservatives in exchange for the cash they spend to follow these guys around, they might remember who changed the rules before whining about them.
“Where else do you suppose those “unnamed sources” they love to quote arise?”
That’s not off-the-record, that’s on the record and anonymously sourced. That’s why you read about it, Kate; if it were off the record, you’d never read it.
Nothing has changed here: remarks are only off the record if the reporter agrees that they will be in advance. Harper’s staff asked in advance, and the response was that the press would not play. Harper made his remarks anyway.
I look forward to Jane “Giggles” Taber’s naming all the Liberal sources (PMO) she endlessly quotes in her stories.
In one’s dreams.
Mark
Ottawa
wonderdog: Not necessarily–see last sentence below:
‘”Off the record”
Some journalists use the term off the record to mean that nothing in a communication may be publicly disclosed, including the fact that the communication occurred at all, and the source remains anonymous. Other journalists use the term to mean that the information may be used, but the source may not be named (that is, the same as “not for attribution”).’
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Off_the_record
Mark
Ottawa
I would love to hear Don Martin and the Post explain why they held back “Alberta Can Blow Me”. While Don tacitly confirmed the conversation he said, things said in a bar sohould stay in a bar….fair nuff….
Now clearly Bob Fife is a different person.
I agree everything is on the record! Including pictures of journalists at the Press Gallery dinner drunk out of their gourds, groping their young colleagues and snorting coke in the bathroom. Bob I look foreward to your report!
Off Topic: Kate what happened to the Election Roundtable at CBC?? At the moment all the old posts are gone and there are new people.
Well, Wonderdog – all I can say is that I’m tired of some in the journalistic profession wanting to have it both ways – selectively deciding who they will give cover to and who they won’t.
Yet, still expecting to be taken seriously as objective messengers who are conducting themselves in such a manner so as not to inject themselves into the debate, either by commission or ommission.
It’s why the CBS memos were such a scandal – not so much because they were faked, but because of why they were faked – to try to harm Bush in a purely partisan scheme.
That is why it’s imperative that we keep the spotlight on their behavior, their inconsistancies and the double standards. We pay these sons of bitches to do a job, either directly, through the CBC or indirectly, by subscribing to their services.
OFF TOPIC – Does anyone know if the CBC has removed the bloggers forum – I just tried to link it through Kates blog and had no luck – I then went directly to CBC and can find no reference. – Thanks
OPPS – Sorry guess I should have read the above before I exhausted myself
The CBC bloggers forum is up but it has posts in latin and “test” comments, looks like the “CBC webmaster” is fooling around with it, interesting…
The typepad software server is down. It’s affecting the Shotgun as well.
This is great news .
I can’t wait to hear the rest of the story that PhatMike Duffy started at the beginning of the Gomery investigation.
He mentioned on air that politicians wives were chaperoned by ad agency scum bags on shopping trips with free use of agency credit cards.
Who’s wives and which add agency Puffy?
Off the record exists because we the public don’t let public people to show their honest human side. We’d rather have the sanitized version than the straight goods.
Blame yourself not the politician who is forced to have a shock absorber installed between their mouth and their brain.
Ron’s a real Liberal. Prefers lies and subterfuge to honesty and integrity. The Libs are desperate, and a compliant/complacent media will do whatever they can to help the cause, which is to keep this tired regime in power. So, the Tories have been warned, and while it’s unlikely Mr. Harper has anything to hide, he now knows it’s open season on him and he should refrain from giving any more interviews. Let the reporters rely on press releases. They’re not interested in anything but fulfilling their mandate to get the Libs re-elected.
I would love to hear Don Martin and the Post explain why they held back “Alberta Can Blow Me”. While Don tacitly confirmed the conversation he said, things said in a bar sohould stay in a bar….fair nuff….
Bang on Stephen. I wrote every single newspaper, including the Post and directly to Don Martin to ask why this story was not run…not a single response from anyone. That has never happened to me before, usually there is some manner of response from someone even if negative.
At least Fife is honest about it. The reality is that “off the record” conversations with media died years ago, and anyone in business or politics who still believes in them also believes in the Tooth Fairy. One of the first rules they teach you in media training is that NOTHING is off the record.
Even if the reporter agrees to having an off the record conversation, if you give him/her something juicy they will just keep making calls with the info you gave them until they find someone willing to confirm it on the record. The other option is that they decide to simply burn you and run with it anyway, which happens with increasing frequency these days.
The interview starts when you see the reporter come around the corner, and it ends when you see their tail lights disappear. In between, it’s all on the record.
“Blame yourself not the politician who is forced t”o have a shock absorber installed between their mouth and their brain.”
Ron, would that shock absorber be made of beer & popcorn ??
If you are going to troll at least get some decent lines/slams/smears.
Yours are tres lame, but then you are a Lieberal, so we really can’t expect much
Yes. Scott Reid’s “Alberta can blow me” comments were not reported by the mainstream media presumably because they were “off the record”. Conservative remarks are NEVER off the record.
Agreed Kate…there is a media double standard to the “off the record” rule….it’s hard enough to get them to report on the disasters the Martinites make “on the record” let alone the crap they hear “off the record”…probability is that the liberal cartel is so corrupt any “off the record” info these media termites get makes them complicit accessories to a crime.
“Blame yourself not the politician”
Sorry that would be breaking a fundamental observance I remain loyal to.
That’s blame the f#@$cking culprit you backwards thinking lieberal dumbass .
Dumbass Lieberal…I really didn’t expect anything more creative than that. Hmmmm do 2 negatives make a positive?
It seems to me, if you ask to speak off the record, and the answer is “no you can’t speak off the record… and furthermore, I’m going to write about whatever you say to me” and then you speak to the reporter anyway, well, it’s pretty disengenuous to complain about it afterward.
Are you really suggesting that the mere REQUEST that something be off the record MAKES it off the record??? Because journalists explicitly informed Harper’s staff that he wasn’t off the record, and they would write about what he said, and then he spoke anyway. And now the conservatives are shocked about it being printed? They say “We would have prefered that the comments be off the record”. Well, then you should have asked that they be off the record BEFORE he spoke. Oh wait, you DID… and the answer was NO.
You can’t just say “those damn reporters will never talk to us off the record”. If you know that (because in this case THEY EXPLICITLY TOLD YOU THEY WOULDN’T), then stop saying idiotic things in front of them when you’re on the record.
It’s not rocket science.
I’m obviously no fan of Harper, but even I thought that was low. The guy is having a candid chat to kill time on a flight and they sandbag him like that. No wonder he reportedly loathes reporters. For me it isn’t a Liberal/Conservative issue, it’s a “How would I feel if that happened to my leader.” issue. And there’s no need of it.
On that one issue I feel bad for Harper.
Dumbass Lieberal…I really didn’t expect anything more creative than that.
It was “lieberal dumbass” not “Dumbass Lieberal”
I’ll leave creative writing to the liberal apologists er uh lieberal dumbass’s.
We have actual journalists in this country?
It is now on the record, Robert Fife, CTV’s Ottawa Bureau chief, has no journalistic integrity.
“Yes. Scott Reid’s “Alberta can blow me” comments were not reported by the mainstream media presumably because they were “off the record”.”
What are you talking about? They were held back and then released by the media after the writ was dropped so they could the most damage possible. FFS, you clownservatives need to climb down off the cross and rejoin the real world.
As an aside to Kate. The comments in this thread prove I was right when I said the conbloggers need to join the rest of us.
It is now on the record, Robert Fife, CTV’s Ottawa Bureau chief, has no journalistic integrity.
Agan, what the Hell are you talking about??? He told them they were on the record. He told them he was going to write about whatever they said. He made it very clear. What was unethical about that? What lack of integrity?
I’m sorry, but if you tell someone they’re on the record, and tell them you’re going to write about what they say, and then they keep talking, I don’t see why you have some sort of “obligation” to go back on your word and NOT write about what they said after explicitly telling them you were going to. That’s idiotic.
Robert Fife is a shameless Liberal Party carpetbagger. Why don’t CTV just hire a Liberal Party spokesperson as a reporter? Oh yeah, they don’t have to. They have Fife.
bloggers cannot complain about traditional media bias if they themselves are not objective.
Last week, for example, this blog alleged that a national association smeared and misquoted Wornout Kinsella, when in fact Kinsella changed his blog entry… see Kinsella entry and compare to actual entry as recorded in commentsplease.com.
Yet SDA has yet to correct or withdraw its unfair allegation against a national senior’s organization.
Really, fair is fair.
Correct your record, Kate.
I agree with consistency. This is all the more relevant given that eFrank has revealed that Kinsella was is in fact a registered lobbyist for CARP. The issue is how did Kinsella come across the knowledge about CARP and its communications with Finance? And why was he posting about a seniors group on his private blog. Then he edits his blog after the fact to cover his tracks. This is a questionable act whatever one’s political affiliations.
I believe that was a post made while I was away. No one contacted me for any correction or retraction.
Oh, dear, Robert! Conservatives can point to corruption, scandal, lies, thievery, deception, and a myriad of other rotten apple things and the most you can do is point to the cross.
Good on ya!!
Now, if only the election had been postponed until Easter as the libbers wanted, it would have been even more appropriate.
When you can’t find anything bad to say about someone, say something nice – and, unwittingly, you did.
The drive for accuracy does not deminish when one is away.
The facts are the facts, and generally the obligation resides with the journalist to exercise due diligence before making claims.
Reasonably, I believe the onus is on you as the publisher of the site to correct or retract false allegations, regardless if CARP has contacted you or not.
Bloggers can’t complain about the traditional media and un-named sources, when they also use the practice.
You are aware of the facts now. Respectfully, correct the record.
a reader of SDA
Facts are fact, cakes are cakes, and bees like honey. No wait, they make honey. But still, you can’t deny the facts.