Published 2 days ago • loading... • Updated 12 hours ago

Wildfires show why CBC needs public safety mandate: researcher

Wildfires forced thousands in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta to evacuate this spring and summer, also causing widespread smoke and air-quality warnings.
A McGill University report released July 16, 2025, recommends expanding CBC/Radio-Canada's mandate to include responsibilities related to public safety, citing rising climate crises and the threat of misinformation.
The report highlights misinformation online that labels evacuations as hoaxes, noting CBC's unique role in some regions and suggesting partnerships with local journalists as in Britain.
Jessica Johnson highlighted the dangers of false claims circulating online that dismiss emergency warnings as fake, stressing that such misinformation can endanger lives by discouraging necessary evacuations and underscoring the critical responsibility of public media to communicate accurately.
The report's recommendations and a CRTC consultation on improving public alerts suggest Canada's emergency information system and CBC's mandate may need restructuring for better crisis response.

Insights by Ground AI

Does this summary seem wrong?

45 Articles

The Globe & Mail

Center

Wildfires among reasons CBC needs a public safety mandate, McGill research centre says

Report argues other countries’ public media already have added national emergency preparedness and crisis response to their role

2 days ago·Canada

Read Full Article

CBC News

Lean Left

Wildfires show why CBC needs public safety mandate, McGill research centre says

The wildfires that are flaring up across Canada again are one of the reasons public safety should be added to CBC/Radio-Canada's mandate, a new report from a research centre at McGill University argues.

2 days ago·Canada

Read Full Article

La Presse

Lean Left

Mcgill University Report on Public Safety Should Be Part of the Mandate of Radio-Canada

Forest fires across Canada are one reason why public safety should be added to CBC/Radio-Canada's mandate, according to a new report published by a research centre at McGill University.

2 days ago·Montreal, Canada

Read Full Article

National Observer

Lean Left

Wildfires show why the CBC needs public safety mandate: researcher

The wildfires that are flaring up across Canada again are one of the reasons public safety should be added to CBC/Radio-Canada’s mandate, a new report from a research centre at McGill University argues.

2 days ago·Canada

Read Full Article