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The Council

Structure

Constitution

  • One board of directors made up of 22 members— 8 public members, including the President, 7 members from media organizations, and 7 journalist members.
  • One administrative office, made up of 6 members of the Board of Directors.

The 22 members sit on the Board of Directors in an individual capacity. They each serve for a two-year term and may be reappointed for up to two further terms.

Appointment of members

The public representatives and the President are appointed by the Board of Directors, following a public call for nomination published in the written press and a recommendation from a tripartite selection committee.

The journalist representatives are appointed at the general assembly of the Fédération professionnelle des journalistes du Québec.

The representatives from media organizations are appointed by:

  • L’Association des quotidiens du Québec
    • Les Coops de l’information
      • Le Droit
      • Le Nouvelliste
      • Le Quotidien
      • Le Soleil
      • La Tribune
      • La Voix de l’Est
    • Le Devoir
    • La Presse
    • The Gazette
  • Private broadcasters
    • Bell Media
    • Cogeco Media
    • TV5 Québec Canada
  • Hebdos Québec
  • Société Radio-Canada
  • Télé-Québec
  • Periodicals and news agencies
    • Les Affaires (Groupe Contex)
    • L’actualité
    • La Presse Canadienne
    • Urbania
    • Québec Science (Vélo Québec)

How the Council operates

Admissibility Committee

This committee rules on the admissibility of complaints.
It consists of three members of the Board of Directors: one journalist, one media organization representative and one member of the public, who chairs the committee.

Mediation

Mediation is a voluntary commitment made by the two parties to resolve a complaint amicably, in keeping with the spirit of the Ethics Guide and the public interest. If either of the parties refuses to engage in mediation or decides during the process to withdraw from it, consideration of the complaint resumes its normal course.

The mediators are:

  • Carole BEAULIEU
  • Martyne BOURDEAU

Complaints Committee

The Complaints Committee is a tripartite committee, consisting of six rotating administrators drawn from each sector represented on the Council, that reviews every complaint and renders a decision.

Appeals Committee

Any decision of the Complaints Committee may be appealed before the Appeals Committee. The Appeals Committee may uphold or overrule, in whole or in part, the Complaints Committee’s decision. It cannot, however, substitute its own appraisal of the facts for that of the Complaints Committee, unless a substantial error has been made.

The Appeals Committee consists of six former members of the Council:

  • Renel BOUCHARD, President, icimédias inc., former media organizations representative
  • Jacques GAUTHIER, Executive Director and Secretary, Ordre des hygiénistes dentaires du Québec, former representative from the public
  • Lisa-Marie GERVAIS, journalist, Le Devoir, former journalist representative
  • Audrey MURRAY, President and Chief Executive Officer, Commission de la construction du Québec, former representative from the public
  • Madeleine ROY, retired journalist, former journalist representative
  • Éric TROTTIER, Director of Information, Sports and Radio-Circulation at Cogeco Média, Director of Digital Content at 98.5 FM, former media organizations representative

See Rule 2 for more details.

Funding

The Council is funded by the constituent media organizations (43%), the Fédération professionnelle des journalistes du Québec (2.5%), the Government of Quebec via the Ministère de la Culture et des Communications (46%, non-recurring), the investment fund (8%) and special projects (0.5%). (Data from 2020.)

Secretariat

The Council Secretariat, located in Montreal, provides the organization with the assistance it requires to fulfill its mandate. The Secretariat is headed by the Council’s Secretary General, Caroline Locher.