Senators refuse to allow reporter on charter: Newspaper

The Ottawa Citizen said Friday that hockey reporter Ken Warren was denied access to the Ottawa Senators’ team charter to Tampa Bay for a weekend game against the Lightning. The development came two days after the newspaper said it would not take down a secretly recorded video of several Senators players from an Uber vehicle in Arizona despite a legal notice from the NHL team insisting that leaving it online violates provincial privacy laws.

Warren, a Senators’ beat writer, had been given a travel itinerary but was told at the airport he could not board the flight, Ottawa Citizen editorin-chief Michelle Richardson said.

“I can confirm it happened this morning,” Richardson said. “For us, it doesn’t really change our fundamentals. We’re still committed to covering the Senators, both the good and the bad. Our coverage is important to our readers and to their fans and that’s not going to change.” Depending on the market, reporters, broadcasters, photojournalists and other travelling media members sometimes fly on team charters, which can be more timely and convenient than commercial flights. The Citizen, like most outlets, pays employee transportation costs when charters are used.

The Senators didn’t immediately comment when asked about the story.