Controversial freelance journalist to speak in Hamilton
A controversial Canadian journalist is coming to Hamilton to share her views about Syria — including her support for the regime of President Bashar Assad.
Eva Bartlett, a blogger and freelancer from Fergus will deliver two lectures this week about her experiences in Syria. Bartlett’s lecture, entitled The war on Syria: debunking lies and fake news ... and finding a path to peace, is being presented by the Hamilton Coalition to Stop the War.
Bartlett maintains a blog for the state-funded media outlet Russia Today and writes openly about her support for the Assad government. Bartlett, who has travelled to Syria six times, said most journalists have wilfully misled the public about the regime’s role in the conflict.
“Whether it’s the editors of the corporate media or the journalists themselves censoring or choosing to lie or obfuscate truths — they have an agenda to tell a different narrative than what’s happening in Syria,” she said, adding that the agenda is to “continually vilify the Syrian government.”
“I wouldn’t lie and obfuscate like they are doing, but some might be doing it for career, for money, because they know it’s expected of them,” she said.
Governments and media outlets around the world — including the New York Times, the BBC, and the CBC have credited the Assad regime with committing violence against the Syrian people.
The Canadian government has opposed the Assad regime. Canada has imposed 11 rounds of economic sanctions against the regime and its supporters since May 24, 2011.
Bartlett has faced criticism for her reporting. In a speech to the United Nations in December, Bartlett stated that the White Helmets, a Syrian volunteer aid group, had “recycled” children in their footage of rescue efforts in war-torn Aleppo. British public service broadcaster Channel 4 recently debunked this claim, stating the clothing and facial features of the children were markedly different.
However, Ken Stone, spokesperson for the Hamilton Coalition to Stop the War, says Bartlett’s reporting is “more accurate than what we get in the western mainstream media every day.”
“Eva’s visit gives Canadians a chance to have another look about what’s really happening in Syria,” said Stone. “Eva is part of a paradigm, a world view of Syria, that’s different than what we get fed in the west. She’s part of a group of people that has a different narrative.”
Bartlett’s lectures on “fake news” are especially timely this week in light of the role it played in the election of U.S. President Donald Trump, said James Compton, an associate professor of journalism at Western University.
“The term has become meaningless, in a way. It’s part of rhetorical warfare. You can label any story you don’t like as ‘fake news,’” he said. “If facts really don’t matter anymore, then it’s hard to see democracy continuing in some way. The story that gets the most clicks and followers wins, and the truth doesn’t seem to matter. That’s troubling to me.”
Compton says it’s up to consumers of media to discern how to seek reliable news. He points to Channel 4’s fact check of Bartlett as an example of good reporting, arguing they show context, evidence, and background that show the unlikelihood of children being “recycled” in rescue footage.
“When you rigorously assess the evidence in a rational way — how could that be possible?” he said.
He said many consumers of news are drawn to the idea that traditional media outlets aren’t trustworthy.
“The conspiracy narrative is very seductive. For example, ‘Yes, there are all these lies, but I have the truth — and I will let you in on it.’ There’s a narrative of reveal,” Compton said. “There’s a claim to truth within the falsity. And it’s the same dynamic with Bartlett. She’s claiming that she has the real truth.”
Bartlett’s lectures are on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at New Vision United Church, 24 Main St. W., and Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. at McMaster University’s Student Centre, Room 313. Both events are free.