Talk:Ezra Levant: Difference between revisions

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Archives

1

March 2010

I've just edited the article in several places. I probably made some mistakes, so please feel free to improve my work. Here's a few points for discussion:

I improved some of the refs to use {{cite news}} etc. There are a lot more left to fix. CWC 15:34, 29 March 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Re the Coulter-at-UOttawa kerfuffle:

Now that we cite Kady O'Malley's blog post, we probably should drop the Associated Press news item. CWC 15:34, 29 March 2010 (UTC)[reply]
I said the speech "was canceled at the last minute, apparently by its organizers, ...". AFAICT, it was Levant and other organizers who canceled it, based on what the police and Coulter's bodyguards told them; I think Kady O'Malley makes that fairly clear. So maybe we should drop the word "apparently". Comments? CWC 15:34, 29 March 2010 (UTC)[reply]

I wish the article did not use so many sources to newspaper items with no URLs. CWC 15:34, 29 March 2010 (UTC)[reply]

While searching for one of those link-less newspaper sources, I found an item by Jonathan Kay on Ezra Levant and the demise of the Western Standard which is probably worth adding to the article. CWC 15:34, 29 March 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Is the Fast Forward Weekly a Reliable Source? CWC 15:34, 29 March 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Culture Warrior?

Until recently, the "Recent activities" section of the article said that:

Levant is currently one of the main figures of the Canadian culture war, and writes frequently on the subject, while also appearing on CBC to discuss the topic.

User 99.232.22.101 (talk · contribs) deleted it with no explanation (which is perfectly OK, since it was that account's first edit). I mention it here in case anyone thinks we should say something about Mr Levant and the Canadian culture war. Any comments? Cheers, CWC 17:11, 11 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Wow this guy got screwed left and right by everyone. Glad he's still fighting.24.42.89.106 (talk) 19:10, 30 January 2011 (UTC)[reply]

lol = culture warrior. There is a reason this guys is getting screwed, and that's because he lies, and doesn't do proper research, pretends to be a journalist, and is a joke. The culture war likely fits into the hate crime section. perhaps "culture war" is how levant justifies his racism. — Preceding unsigned comment added by AnieHall (talk • contribs) 01:47, 2 February 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Zionist

why nothing about his support of Israel and zionist views? I guess the Israel lovers scrubbed any info of that —Preceding unsigned comment added by 96.56.96.179 (talk) 23:53, 18 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Relationship to Stephen Harper

Regarding claims of "original research" and "POV" w.r.t. the links between Harper and Levant, see this [1]

It clearly refers to Levant's projects as "Tory-linked" and provides the analysis that is referred to as "original". Modify the language if required, but bald reverts with false claims that this research is "original" or "POV" are clearly biased. There are sufficient research links in this article to justify all of the claims made.

"Ethical landmines"

The Brian Topp mockery of Levant's position is clearly documented by the Globe and Mail as originating with a Sun media source. Topp is a major NDP figure and may be the Leader of the Opposition in Canada soon, so his position is notable. [2]

what does this have to do with ethical landmines? also, your link was fruitless. and who doesn't mock levant. by spouting of racist banter, misinformation, and telling any company to f. his mother is like begging for mockery.AnieHall (talk) 01:57, 2 February 2013 (UTC)[reply]

"Ethical oil" abroad

The fact that the "ethical oil" terminology/propaganda has been ignored or refuted outside Canada is also extremely significant and notable. Removing the link to The Globe article referencing the Guardian is unwarranted. [3]

I've read this article. It states that several British media sources do not agree with the term "ethical oil." Using this to reach the conclusion that ""the "ethical oil" terminology/propaganda has been ignored or refuted outside Canada" (in particular, your use of the term propaganda) is ridiculous.(Hyperionsteel (talk) 03:50, 7 January 2012 (UTC))[reply]

Relationship to Harper (removed statements)

Removed the following statements for now, pending some neutral sources that explore the link between Harper and Levant.

"This reflects the close personal link between Harper and Levant, probably dating back to Levant's standing down in Calgary."

"Harper uses Levant's front groups for astroturfing support for extremely controversial private sector projects such as Keystone XL and Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipelines, while publicly denying that he or the "Harper government" takes any position on these projects, which is clearly false."

One link on this relationship is already included [4] but evidently pro-Harper pro-Levant commentators are determined to keep that link out. Suggests a clear pro-Harper bias.

The Vancouver observer is hardly a neutral source. Please keep in mind that this is a BLP article, meaning that allegations such as this have a high standard of proof required.(Hyperionsteel (talk) 04:04, 7 January 2012 (UTC))[reply]

Are you disputing the fact that Kathryn Marshall speaks for ethicaloil.org, and has clear ties to the PMO? I don't know what you think "neutral" means, but it certainly does not mean that you must agree with the editorial stance of an article before you accept its FACTUAL basis. If only the facts are relied upon in the Wikipedia text, then the source can be biased as hell. The question is whether the source is reliable not whether it is neutral. It's Wikipedia's language that must be neutral, and it's the source's facts that must be reliable. Don't confuse the two.

I haven't removed the statement that Kathryn Marshall speaks for ethicaloil.org. However, the allegation that because her husband, pollster Hamish Marshall was previously manager of strategic planning for the Prime Minister’s office is somehow conclusive evidence that she has secret ties to the PMO is a conspiracy theory, not a fact.(Hyperionsteel (talk) 04:48, 7 January 2012 (UTC))[reply]

Recent POV editing

Very simple : Wikipedia is not a soapbox to push an agenda. It's fairly clear that 142.177.46.232 (talk · contribs · WHOIS) is not here to build an encyclopedia but to push their specific viewpoint, possibly with an undeclared conflict of interest, therefore they are urged to stay away from this article which they obviously feel strongly about. While additions may certainly be factual, they may also be undue. For example, "Kathryn Marshall has ties to the PMO" has nothing to do on the encyclopedic biography of Ezra Levant, nor does her husband's alleged activities. If you want to prove a point and/or "shame" a living person, please do so elsewhere than on Wikipedia. CharlieEchoTango (contact) 05:12, 7 January 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Agreed. Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, not a platform for investigative journalism, commentary or the promotion of conspiracy theories.(Hyperionsteel (talk) 00:22, 8 January 2012 (UTC))[reply]

Conservative or conservative activist?

While Levant definitely has a history as a Reform and Canadian Alliance activist I don't see any sourcing for his being active on behalf of the Conservative Party of Canada. I don't doubt he's a member and a supporter but I think at this point he's more of a small "c" conservative ideologue than a big C Conservative Party activist ie he doesn't work for the Conservative Party or any MPs, he isn't a Conservative Party volunteer (at least not visibly) and doesn't represent the Conservative Party formally or informally in the media and occasionally he takes issue with the Conservatives for allegedly not being conservative enough. I think the lede might be more accurate to refer to him as a "conservative" activist. Vale of Glamorgan (talk) 22:31, 14 January 2012 (UTC)[reply]

2013 Macleans profile

Macleans published Ezra Levant: Love him or hate him, he keeps winning, a "profile of the right-wing gadfly who loves to offend" by Jonathon Gatehouse on 12 January 2013. It probably would be a good source for the article, as long as we note the author's obvious and predictable hostility to the subject. CWC 06:54, 25 February 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Roma Section

In the interest of open dialogue, here are the rationale behind my recently reverted changes: 1) The huffington post source does not contain the direct quotation it is being used to support, unlike the journalism project source 2) The title of the section is POV, and not at all neutral 3) The section is already over-long, and needs to be reduced in length per WP:UNDUE. The fact that there was a protest against him which said insulting things about him isn't all that relevant to the main facts of the case which are already detailed at length. If you insist on including it, we should then cut the length of the rest. Peregrine981 (talk) 08:31, 10 September 2013 (UTC)[reply]

--Added a a better quote from the National post, where they mentioned: it is a full quote. now for the point of neutral point of view (Idle no more) natives. I though I was doing that (PLEASE read the lines where I wrote, that the natives were all in his face, SURPRESSING him before he had a chance to ask them for what racist statements they were accusing him of), I wrote that he was actually supporting them. But then they began chanting that he was racist, (it's all in the video you know the part there they go "hey hey ezra you can't hide. We can see your racist side", and at the end the native was saying to the negro protestor something Jewish media conspiracy. They kept on chanting illrelevantly about Palastine-Isreal... And that again Ezra hadn't the chance to explain himself.

And I though I was just extending the Roma section, to now include Levant's controversial statements as the ongoing saga of his "journalism", so I was just upgrading the section with the extension of these rent a cop protestors. The That's my rationale, that I was moving up the "roma" section to include crazy shit that people think he said. And that in this case defending him.

The "Idle no More' Protest seems to be quite unconnected to the comments about the Roma, so I'm going to go ahead and split it off. However, there are major sourcing problems now. ie. it says "Levant stated he supports abolishing the Indian act as outdated and apartheid." but htis does not appear in the article. It says "Levant was suppressed with chanting and rapid accusations invoking the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, holocaust," but this is not mentioned. We are also using the "Sun" newspapers as a source about a protest against the Sun. That seems like a somewhat dubious choice. Also, you have changed the source for the earlier quote for no apparent reason, without bothering to format it properly. Why? And lastly, why do you want to call it "Alleged Controversial remarks"? That is a super-ambiguous and banal title, which simultaneously manages to bias the reader against Levant right off the bat, while not actually imparting any useful information. See WP:CRITS. Peregrine981 (talk) 19:31, 10 September 2013 (UTC)[reply]

>>> Odd I though he did. But thanks for spliting it off like that. I'll scrutinize other sources. But in the video, the protestors were saying that though.

Connections to the Conservative Party

Some strong allegations in this article on CBC and Greenpeace press release. ...Greenpeace Canada is asking Elections Canada to investigate whether the Ethical Oil Institute is colluding with the Conservative Party in order to get around rules that limit donations to political parties. Keith Stewart, the climate and energy campaigner for Greenpeace, has written a letter to the commissioner of Canada Elections complaining that Ethical Oil is using money raised from individuals and companies to attack government critics. As well, the letter alleges, "mirrored messaging" is going on between Ethical Oil spokespeople and Conservative cabinet ministers. The complaint also alleges "multiple crossovers" between Ethical Oil spokespeople and Ottawa ministerial staff. Stewart repeated the complaints at a press conference in Ottawa... http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/greenpeace-calls-for-elections-canada-probe-of-ethical-oil-1.2602284 — Preceding unsigned comment added by Kurt Dundy (talk • contribs) 17:05, 8 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Remembrance Day 2014

Since this has hit the fan, I think that it should be included in the main article. However, I can't find a place in the existing sections to slip it in.

Summary: on the eve of Remembrance Day, Levant wrote a column and did a monologue claiming that the Greater Essex County District School Board had notified its schools to grant exemptions to Muslims from Remembrance Day ceremonies. He then launches into a rant that Muslims are traitors, bigots, terrorists, etc. Sources: http://www.torontosun.com/2014/11/10/lest-only-some-of-us-forget & http://www.sunnewsnetwork.ca/video/featured/prime-time/867432237001/objecting-to-remembrance-day/3884869891001

He further started a petition site: http://www.loveitorleave.ca

Of course, Ezra totally made this up: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/ezra-levant-wrongly-accuses-ontario-school-board-of-allowing-exemptions-for-muslim-students-on-remembrance-day/article21537390/ , http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/ontario-students-exempt-from-remembrance-day-ceremonies-1.2831167 & http://windsor.ctvnews.ca/windsor-essex-school-board-responds-to-toronto-sun-s-remembrance-day-commentary-1.2097307

Given that this hasn't made it to the CRTC or CBSC, it can't be added to those sections (yet) — Preceding comment added by BordenRhodes whose signature was swallowed by HTML gremlins (talk • contribs) 18:33, 11 November 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I think we should not include this, per WP:DENY, unless a lot more sources make a big deal about it. We don't need to be a signal booster for Levant's nonsense. Ivanvector (talk) 23:49, 11 November 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Fair enough. FYI, there's a CBSC investigation being conducted into this, so see if anything comes of it. BordenRhodes (talk) 22:46, 19 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

External links modified

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Eurabia

People keep reverting my changes to this article. Here's what I did.

It said that Ezra believed in the "Eurabia conspiracy theory". I removed that because there are were NO sources to suggest/confirm that he believes in a "conspiracy theory" of an organised group of people trying to Islamise the West. The source that was given only showed that Ezra had used the WORD "Eurabia" - and as the Wikipedia page for "Eurabia" describes, the word is merely a neologism which refers to the area of Europe and Arabia. Using the word does not necessarily imply, or confirm, belief in an organised conspiracy of people trying to Islamise the West.

He clearly used the term to draw attention to the fact of increasing immigration from the Arabic world to Europe. Does this imply/confirm that he believes a CONSPIRACY is at work to achieve this? No it doesn't. If you want to claim that he believes in such a conspiracy then you must provide SOURCES to substantiate your claim.

Please, therefore, do not put anymore unsubstantiated, un-cited claims that he believes in a conspiracy theory. — Preceding unsigned comment added by ThebeOkonma (talk • contribs) 14:56, 11 November 2016 (UTC)[reply]

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Law Society of Alberta

I removed a paragraph about the Law Society of Alberta in section "Libel cases". It depended on a cite to National Post February 7, 2010, which I couldn't find at nationalpost.com, or on mementoweb, or on the internet archive ("This URL has been excluded from the Wayback Machine.") and I couldn't find it in a search of ProQuest, a database that includes National Post articles. The nearest two mentions in the National Post, both reports by Joseph Brean, were: on February 6, 2010, where Levant said there was a finding of a "minor violation"; on March 11, 2010, where Levant complained that a blogger had improperly referenced a letter from the law society with "scandalizing" result, and filed another Law Society letter saying the discipline matter was "dismissed". So: it seems something trivial happened, but it's poorly sourced. Peter Gulutzan (talk) 16:33, 1 January 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Forced to resgin for the Bar association

Please add this portion : Force to resign in disgrace

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/ezra-levant-applies-to-resign-from-alberta-law-society/article28861945/ — Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.222.147.184 (talk) 16:08, 11 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]

@@ Line 183: / Line 183: @@
 Please add this portion : Force to resign in disgrace
-http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/ezra-levant-applies-to-resign-from-alberta-law-society/article28861945/  <!-- Template:Unsigned IP --><small class="autosigned">—&nbsp;Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/192.222.147.184|192.222.147.184]] ([[User talk:192.222.147.184#top|talk]]) 16:08, 11 May 2017 (UTC)</small> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->
+http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/ezra-levant-applies-to-resign-from-alberta-law-society/article28861945/  <!-- Template:Unsigned IP --><small class="autosigned">—&nbsp;Preceding [[Wikipedia:Signatures|unsigned]] comment added by [[Special:Contributions/192.222.147.184|192.222.147.184]] ([[User talk:192.222.147.184#top|talk]]) 16:08, 11 May 2017 (UTC)</small>
-:Levant has applied to resign. Saying he was "forced to resign in disgrace" is a gross mischaracterization of the situation, and we will not include it here. Please see [[WP:BLP]]. [[User:Ivanvector|Ivanvector]] (<sup>[[User talk:Ivanvector|Talk]]</sup>/<sub>[[Special:Contributions/Ivanvector|Edits]]</sub>) 16:39, 11 May 2017 (UTC)