Talk Truth 09.25.26 – Rodney Palmer Testimony | Former CBC journalist and foreign correspondent Rodney Palmer gives his testimony at the Allison Inquiry, laying out why he believes CBC’s approach to journalism fundamentally changed during COVID. Drawing on his experience working at CBC and reporting internationally, Palmer examines specific CBC broadcasts, COVID origins coverage, messaging to children about vaccines, the handling of reported vaccine injuries and what he describes as the suppression of a veteran CBC reporter’s story. He also discusses Science Up First, the use of labels like “anti-vaxxer,” “conspiracy theorist” and “misinformation,” and the 2023 protest that covered CBC’s Toronto headquarters with the stories of people reporting vaccine injuries and deaths. Palmer argues that what he witnessed was no longer public broadcasting, but what he describes as “state broadcasting.”
00:00 – Introduction
01:47 – Rodney Palmer’s testimony begins
02:42 – Public broadcaster vs. state broadcaster
04:35 – Palmer examines CBC’s early COVID coverage
08:33 – CBC Kids and vaccine messaging
11:29 – The vaccine injury story Palmer says CBC suppressed
13:10 – “The collapse of journalism”
13:49 – Science Up First and CBC experts
15:39 – Palmer alleges conflicts weren’t disclosed
17:05 – Vaccine injuries and the stories Canadians didn’t hear
19:41 – Carole Pearce’s story
20:29 – “Anti-vaxxer,” “conspiracy theorist” and “misinformation”
21:32 – Palmer calls the language a form of censorship
22:34 – Vaccine injury stories posted across CBC headquarters
24:52 – Public broadcaster or state broadcaster?
25:43 – Allan and Corri react