Richard Gizbert is a Canadian broadcast
journalist
A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...
. He is the presenter of the
''Listening Post'' on
Al Jazeera English
Al Jazeera English (AJE; ar, الجزيرة, translit=al-jazīrah, , literally "The Peninsula", referring to the Qatar Peninsula) is an international 24-hour English-language news channel owned by the Al Jazeera Media Network, which is own ...
.
Gizbert was formerly employed by
ABC News
ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast '' ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include morning news-talk show ''Good Morning America'', ''Ni ...
but was sacked for refusing to travel to
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...
to cover the
2003 U.S. invasion. He later won a case for
unfair dismissal In labour law, unfair dismissal is an act of employment termination made without good reason or contrary to the country's specific legislation.
Situation per country
Australia
(See: '' unfair dismissal in Australia'')
Australia has long-standing ...
against the network.
He is one of six children of transport economist Konrad Studnicki-Gizbert and the grandson of
Wladyslaw Studnicki, a Polish politician and publicist with roots in the Polish nobility, the
szlachta.
His half-brother, Christopher, is an MIT-trained geologist currently living and working in Calgary, Alberta. Another half-brother, Daviken, is an associate professor of history, specializing in Latin America, at McGill University in Montreal.
Career
Early career
Prior to joining ABC News, Gizbert worked as a correspondent-producer for
CJOH-TV
CJOH-DT (channel 13) is a television station in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, part of the CTV Television Network. It is owned and operated by network parent Bell Media alongside Pembroke-licensed CTV 2 outlet CHRO-TV (channel 5). Both stations share ...
in
Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
, where he produced in-depth features for ''
Sunday Edition'', the national current affairs programme. Prior to that, Gizbert was CJOH's parliamentary correspondent for five years, responsible for national political coverage. For his reporting of a hostage situation on Parliament Hill, Gizbert received the National Award for Breaking News Coverage.
From 1983 to 1985, Gizbert was a correspondent and political editor for
CFTO-TV
CFTO-DT (channel 9) is a television station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, serving as the flagship station of the CTV Television Network. It is owned and operated by network parent Bell Media alongside Barrie-based CTV 2 outlet CKVR-DT, channel ...
in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anchor ...
, covering federal politics and co-presenting special events coverage.
Early articles include a review for
Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
-based radio station
CKCU on
Elvis Costello
Declan Patrick MacManus OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in 2020, and has twice been nomi ...
's performance at the
Heatwave Festival in 1980.
ABC News
After being fired by ABC News in 2004, Gizbert fought and won a
wrongful dismissal
In law, wrongful dismissal, also called wrongful termination or wrongful discharge, is a situation in which an employee's contract of employment has been terminated by the employer, where the termination breaches one or more terms of the contr ...
case against the network,
in which an employment tribunal awarded him $100,000 in compensation. In his legal claim, Gizbert argued that his refusal to accept assignments in Iraq led to his firing. The tribunal agreed, ruling Gizbert's stand on assignments in Iraq was a "primary" reason for his dismissal.
Prior to the case, Gizbert had done extensive work in war zones for ABC.
Starting in 1993,
he covered the former Yugoslavia, Chechnya, Rwanda and Somalia. In 1999, he says, he told ABC that, as a parent of young children he felt he could no longer accept assignments in war zones. Gizbert told the tribunal that he offered to accept a domestic assignment in the US, if ABC wished him to do so. He said the network decided to keep him in London.
Five years later he was fired by ABC and replaced by a correspondent willing to report from war zones.
According to the UK's ''
Guardian
Guardian usually refers to:
* Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another
* ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper
(The) Guardian(s) may also refer to:
Places
* Guardian, West Virginia, Unite ...
'' newspaper, Gizbert's legal victory "could have far-reaching effects for war-zone journalism".
, General Secretary of the
National Union of Journalists
The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) is a trade union for journalists in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was founded in 1907 and has 38,000 members. It is a member of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ).
Structure
There is ...
in Britain, said the victory was "hugely important" for journalists and their families.
Martin Bell
Martin Bell, (born 31 August 1938) is a British UNICEF ( UNICEF UK) Ambassador, a former broadcast war reporter and former independent politician who became the Member of Parliament (MP) for Tatton from 1997 to 2001. He is sometimes known as ...
, former
BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
correspondent and former member of UK parliament, testified on Gizbert's behalf at the tribunal. After the verdict he said "Richard has been very brave, beyond war-zone valour, taking on ABC News. He's taken a stand for young journalists."
Al Jazeera English
Gizbert joined
Al Jazeera English
Al Jazeera English (AJE; ar, الجزيرة, translit=al-jazīrah, , literally "The Peninsula", referring to the Qatar Peninsula) is an international 24-hour English-language news channel owned by the Al Jazeera Media Network, which is own ...
after spending 11 years as a London correspondent for ABC News (U.S.), and has been the host of the media-analysis show ''
The Listening Post'' since the station's launch in 2006.
Aaron Barnhart, TV writer for the ''
Kansas City Star
''The Kansas City Star'' is a newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Star'' is most notable for its influence on the career of President Harry S. Truman and as ...
'', wrote that ''Listening Post'' "might be the best media-critique program in English anywhere."
Stewart Purvis, former editor-in-chief and CEO of Britain's
ITN
Independent Television News (ITN) is a UK-based television production company. It is made up of two divisions: Broadcast News and ITN Productions. ITN is based in London, with bureaux and offices in Beijing, Brussels, Jerusalem, Johannesburg ...
, said "''The Listening Post'' has delivered," and that its real value "is the breadth of its monitoring beyond the mainstream".
In 2008, Gizbert also created and hosted ''Playlist'', a show dedicated to "musical fusion, music from the global melting pot".
References
General references
War and pleas
Today's media stories from the papers
In brief
Today's media stories from the papers
TV in the dock at Edinburgh
Today's media stories from the papers
ABC News denies unfair dismissal claim
9/11 a turning point for journalists, court told
ABC reporter fights sacking
Sacked ABC man was a 'pretty average' reporter
ABC News defends itself against unfair dismissal claim
ABC London chief denies Iraq link
Bell calls for end to 'macho' reporting
Reporter's commitments 'at odds' with demands of job
Time to end macho journalism, Martin Bell tells tribunal
Former ABC man appealed to Jennings
Today's media stories from the papers
An end to macho war reporting
War reporters face 'serious danger', tribunal told
Tribunal rules against ABC News
Reporter who refused Iraq job wins sacking case
ABC to appeal Gizbert ruling
Today's media stories from the papers
Monday's media stories from the papers
Dispatches
Gizbert eyes media on al-Jazeera
Al-Jazeera International hires Gizbert
Accent hindered job search, says sacked reporter
ABC execs defend Gizbert sacking
Gizbert compensation decision delayed
Bell warns on risks for Iraq reporters
Appeal questions Iraq threat to Gizbert
Gizbert awarded £99,000 compensation
ABC wins Gizbert appeal
External links
''The Listening Post''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gizbert, Richard
Living people
Al Jazeera people
Canadian television journalists
Year of birth missing (living people)