CBC Archives

Matthew Halton was a foreign-news reporter and war correspondent for the CBC. He brought the drama and energy of Canada’s contribution to the war effort to the attention of Canadians. He appeared to be in the right place at the right time. His colourful way with words created pictures of great events for the Canadian public and kept them grounded in the events of the world. Halton did much to put CBC on the map, both in Canada and throughout the world.

Students will look for similarities and differences between the reports of Matthew Halton during the Second World War and the reports from the 2003 war in Iraq. Students will look at the kinds of stories reported, the points of view, the probable influences on the reporter, and the purpose of the reports. Students should be aware of and consider the input of reporters into the type of content presented.

Students will write a position paper responding to the questions below:

1. To what extent do you feel that the media controls, and should control, the kinds of content reported during wartime?
2. To what extent do you feel that the government controls, and should control, the kinds of content reported during wartime?
3. At what point and to what extent does the reporter become part of the news?

At the end of their position paper, students should include a summary to present to the class.

Students will share their summary with the class. They should be prepared to ask and answer questions and to defend their views with facts and sources. You may conclude this activity with a class discussion on objectivity and bias in news reporting.