After two contributors to a popular right-wing website were banned from attending media events put on by the provincial government, officials from the Premier’s office said a mistake was made, and a review has been launched on policy.
Earlier in February, The Rebel Alberta Bureau Chief Sheila Gunn Reid said she and another contributor were removed from a government media briefing, and an official told them they weren’t accredited media.
Then, Gunn Reid said she tried to enter the legislature to cover the meeting between Premier Rachel Notley and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, but was stopped by security.
When The Rebel reached out to the province to find out why Gunn Reid and others had been banned, they received a letter from a lawyer that said the contributors were not considered journalists.
The series of events prompted negative backlash aimed at Premier Rachel Notley and the NDP government.
On Tuesday, CTV News learned that the province had appointed former Western Canadian Bureau Chief for the Canadian Press, Heather Boyd, to consult and provide recommendations on the province’s media policies.
The next day, the province – in a statement from the premier’s spokesperson Cheryl Oates – admitted an error had been made:
“We’ve heard a lot of feedback from Albertans and media over the course of the last two days, and it’s clear we made a mistake. The government has appointed former Western Canadian Bureau Chief for Canadian Press, Heather Boyd to consult and give us recommendation son what the government’s media policies should be. In the meantime, no one will be excluded from government media events.”
On Tuesday, the province said recommendations are expected in two to three weeks.
