Coalition of civil society groups boycotts Ben Mulroney programs over journalistic ethics
Sid Shniad
Montreal, February 13, 2026 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) and a coalition of Muslim, Palestinian, and Jewish organizations are announcing a collective boycott of all programming featuring Ben Mulroney, until he is removed from hosting The West Block, a flagship political affairs program on Global News. The boycott follows a pattern of Mulroney's genocide denial, promotion of Islamophobic conspiracy theories, and conflicts of interest, both on the The West Block and The Ben Mulroney Show, that compromise the integrity of public discourse in Canada. CJPME has demanded accountability from Global News for months over these violations of journalistic ethics, to no avail.
Read the full boycott statement here.
CJPME argues that Mulroney currently holds roles that are incompatible with Global News’ journalistic standards. In addition to his hosting duties, he simultaneously serves as an “Ambassador” for B'nai Brith Canada, a pro-Israel lobby group, and works for Aurora Strategy Global, a PR firm that employs registered lobbyists. Furthermore, Mulroney has a history of partisan activity, including hosting events and fundraisers for the Conservative Party. These overlapping roles present clear conflicts of interest and create an insurmountable appearance of bias for the host of a flagship political affairs program.
The coalition points to Mulroney’s recent mocking of the well-founded claim that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, dismissively comparing it to "flat earth theory.” His statement directly contradicts a 2025 United Nations report which concluded that Israel is committing genocide, among other authoritative sources. Additionally, Mulroney has been accused of amplifying Islamophobic misinformation, recently calling a false, racist conspiracy theory from an Islamophobic X account “insightful” during his talk show.
Concerns over Mulroney’s journalistic ethics have intensified following his recent "government relations mission" to Israel alongside politicians, other journalists, and the President of Aurora Strategy. While other participants confirmed the trip was funded by the Israeli government, Global News has failed to respond to CJPME’s inquiries regarding whether Mulroney accepted gifts or payments.
“Journalistic independence is a requirement for those who want to moderate our national political conversations,” said Jason Toney, Director of Media Advocacy for CJPME. “When a host compares the genocide in Gaza to ‘flat earth theory,’ works for a lobbying and PR firm, and serves as an Ambassador for a pro-Israel advocacy group, they forfeit any claim to credibility. We are calling for the accountability that Global News has so far failed to provide the public.”
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East, www.cjpme.org. The whole or parts of this press release can be reproduced without permission.