CBC refuses to publish Charlie Hebdo cartoons, says they are provocative

The Canadian Broadcasting Centre (CBC) has announced that they will not be broadcasting or publishing Charlie Hebdo cartoons depicting degrading images of the Prophet Muhammad as they offend a religious community.

"We are a responsible news organization; part of our job is to promote tolerance and respect" said David Studer, CBC's director of journalistic standards and practices while announcing the reasons behind the channel's decision in a televised interview. He noted that different religions respect different things and if Islam forbids the depiction of the prophet, then they are obliged to respect this decision.

"For us to reproduce the image, it is reproducing something that is offensive to people who are members of a mainstream religion, most of whom aren't like the gunmen who went into Charlie Hebdo but are living their lives and entitled to their beliefs" Studer said, highlighting that Charlie Hebdo's cartoons were provocative. He noted that it is not necessary to see the images to be able to make an evaluation and added that everyone who wants to see the cartoons could access them online but the CBC would not publish them.

The Globe and Mail, a major Canadian daily has stated in an editorial that they, along with The New York Times, the CBC and many other media outlets decided not to reprint Charlie Hebdo's cartoons. "We made the same decision in 2006 after a Danish magazine was threatened by extremists for publishing cartoons depicting Mohammed as a terrorist. Both decisions were made in accordance with the newspaper's beliefs and values. Charlie Hebdo's editors lived by their values, and died for them. If there is a better way to honor them than by doing the same thing, we don't know what it is." the editorial stated, criticizing those who claim not reprinting the cartoons are 'cowardly' and stated: "What doesn't require courage or intelligence is demanding proof of one's solidarity with the victims of the Paris massacre by reprinting their most offensive material."

Ici Radio-Canada Télé, CBC's French language television network, has announced that they will be publishing the cartoons while it was reported that 1500 copies of Charlie Hebdo's latest edition was sent to Canada to be published in major Canadian cities including Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal and Halifax.

Freedom of religion is one of the fundamental freedoms protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which is entrenched in the country's constitution.