TVA and MédiaQMI, which are no longer members of the Council − respectively since 2008 and 2010 −, demanded that the Council no longer deal with complaints from the public concerning them. The Quebecor media also claimed damages of more than $400,000 for damage to their reputation, following complaints against them.
In a 40-page judgment, Judge Bernard Jolin of the Superior Court of Quebec dismissed their action, stating that nothing compels MédiaQMI and TVA to join the Council. Its complaints process does not violate their right to freedom of association […] and more particularly their right not to associate.
According to Judge Jolin, MédiaQMI and TVA are asking the court to order the Conseil to refrain from dealing with complaints against them in order to prevent a hypothetical wrongful attack on their reputation. However, not all violations are necessarily faulty, although they may give rise to a negative perception. Moreover, one can easily imagine that a decision which is favorable to them would have no such consequence.
That is why […] imposing a preventive gag order on the Council would be arbitrary and would violate its freedom of expression
considers the magistrate in his judgment.
He concludes : Like any natural or legal person, the Board enjoys freedom of expression […] and the decisions rendered at the end of its complaint handling process are the result of the exercise of this freedom.
« By handling complaints […] and in disseminating the resulting decisions, the Council did not commit a fault in that it did not deviate from the behavior that a reasonable person in the same circumstances would have adopted. »
The court further states that According to the evidence adduced, in dealing with complaints against MédiaQMI and TVA, the Conseil seeks only to fulfill its mission, which consists of protecting freedom of the press and defending the public’s right to quality information.
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Judge Jolin also recalls that the evidence reveals that a significant majority of the complaints against MédiaQMI and TVA handled by the Board […] have been declared inadmissible or rejected
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The Council deals with all complaints against all journalists and all news media distributed or broadcast in Quebec, whether or not they are members of the Council, including MédiaQMI and TVA, can be read in the judgment. This global and uniform approach is difficult to reconcile with a determined desire to harm them specifically to the exclusion of all the others.
The Press Council satisfied with the judgment
In an interview with Radio-Canada, the President of the Press Council, Pierre-Paul Noreau, welcomed the judgment, saying that what was at stake was the Council’s ability and right to rule on non-member media when a complaint is received about them
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« For us, this is a totally favorable judgment. It completely legitimizes the fact, for the Quebec Press Council, to examine everything that is published in the media in Quebec, whether they are members or not. »
In the current context, when there is distrust of the media and journalists on the part of part of the population, it is important for the Council to ensure that the information that is disseminated in Quebec meets the expectations of Quebecers
added Mr. Noreau, specifying that his organization receives about 250 complaints a year.
Established in 1973, the Quebec Press Council, a non-profit organization whose mission is to protect freedom of the press in the province and to ensure the public’s right to information, is mainly financed by member press companies. (43%) and by the Quebec government (46%).
According to Mr. Noreau, the Council’s budget is approximately $700,000. The damages of $400,000 claimed by the plaintiffs would have had rather dramatic consequences
he added.
Quebecor had not yet responded to a request for a reaction by email on Friday evening.