A deep dive into the rise and reach of Rebel News, tracing its roots from fringe commentary to a disruptive force backstage at the federal leaders' debate
The recent cancellation of the post-leaders’ debate media scrum garnered Canada’s cabal of far-right activists masquerading as journalists the most attention they’ve had in years. Though not quite household names, they have nonetheless managed to punch far above their weight in recent years — albeit not in terms of hard hitting investigative journalism.
(A review by a federal court judge found only two per cent of content produced by Rebel News and reviewed by the court contained original reporting.)
In this case, they disrupted the work of real journalists, and prevented independent journalists in particular from taking advantage of one of the few occasions they have to ask the federal leaders specific policy questions.
The outsized presence of these individuals was felt in the media scrum after the French debate. There, representatives of far-right outlets like Rebel News, True North, and Juno News, were together accorded six out of 17 questions.
At the English debate, conservative activist and Rebel CEO Ezra Levant attempted to hijack a live CBC broadcast, before getting into shouting matches with journalists. This led debate commissioner Michel Cormier to cancel the post-debate press scrum at the English debate, out of what he described as a concern that organizers could not provide a “proper environment.” Outside, Levant and his Rebel News associates predictably massaged the narrative to fit their own ends, insinuating that the scrum was cancelled to protect Liberal leader Mark Carney from the Rebel’s “tough questions.”
What happened at the English leaders’ debate played to the Canadian conservative movement’s advantage in two ways: first, by disrupting the work of the legitimate press, for which the Conservative Party shows near total disdain; and second, in causing a disruption that cancelled the scrum, Levant et al can in turn claim either to be the victim of an elitist media that won’t recognize him, or to have valiantly confronted them on their own turf. It should therefore come as no surprise that Ezra Levant was reportedly a mentor to Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, the leader who has banned journalists from travelling with him on his campaign, insulted reporters, threatened to defund the CBC, and exercises control over media trying to cover him. (more...)
The propaganda machine: how far-right media has warped Canada’s political discourse
For years people have suggested that Pierre Poilievre never worked a real job before getting elected as MP over 20 years ago.
— Adam van Koeverden (@vankayak) April 19, 2025
Well, they were wrong.
He was Ezra Levant’s communications director. pic.twitter.com/WSe8KKIMEK
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