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Leaders' Debates Commission opens media accreditation for the 44th General Election

August 16, 2021 – Ottawa (Ontario)

The Leaders' Debates Commission is inviting media representatives to apply for accreditation for the next leaders' debates.

The two debates will take place at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Québec on Wednesday, September 8 (French) and Thursday, September 9 (English).

All media representatives wishing to have access to one or both of the debates must apply to be accredited by the Commission.

Media representatives will have 10 days to apply for accreditation.

The application deadline is Wednesday, August 25 at 23:59 EDT. All applications along with the supporting documentation and information must be submitted to: mediaaccreditation@debates-debats.ca

Process

Media representatives seeking accreditation for the leaders' debates will have to apply under one of the three options described below.

All media representatives must indicate whether they are wishing to attend the French language debate, English language debate or both debates in their application to the Commission.

They must also indicate whether they are wishing to be on-site or attend virtually.

Please note: On-site capacity may be limited due to COVID-19 public health measures.

Option 1:

Any media representative that is a member of the Canadian Parliamentary Press Gallery will automatically be eligible for accreditation.

Supporting documentation and information
Applicants under Option 1 must provide the following:

  • A statement that they are a member of the Canadian Parliamentary Press Gallery; and
  • A passport size photo (JPEG format).

Option 2:

Any media representative that is a member of one of the following four professional media organizations will automatically be eligible for accreditation:

  • Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) (active (journalist) membership only);
  • National NewsMedia Council (NNC);
  • Conseil de presse du Québec (CPQ); and
  • Fédération professionnelle des journalistes du Québec (FPJQ).

Supporting documentation and information
Applicants under Option 2 must provide the following:

  • A statement that they are a member of one of the four professional media organizations listed above; and
  • A passport size photo (JPEG format).

Option 3:

Any media representative that is not a member of the Canadian Parliamentary Press Gallery or one of the four professional media organizations listed under Option 2, may apply for accreditation under Option 3. This option is also available to foreign media representatives seeking accreditation at the debates.

Supporting documentation and information
Canadian media representatives applying under Option 3 must provide all of the following:

  • A letter of assignment, identifying that the applicant is assigned to the leaders' debates, that is signed and dated by their assignment editor/authorized editor/publisher (PDF format). This letter should include information on reach and audience (print circulation, radio/television audience, digital audience/website traffic/social media/website subscribers); and
  • Media organization website link, identifying that they contribute or belong to a media organization that either produces original news content related to coverage of Canadian/international political news or covers political, social and policy issues, and whose content is updated each week;
  • Six recent news articles/reports within the last six months under their byline, identifying that journalism is their regular activity; and
  • A passport size photo (JPEG format).

Foreign media representatives applying under Option 3 must provide all of the following:

  • A letter of assignment, identifying that the applicant is assigned to the leaders' debates, that is signed and dated by their assignment editor/authorized editor/publisher (PDF format). This letter should include information on reach and audience (print circulation, radio/television audience, digital audience/website traffic/social media/website subscribers); and
  • A scanned copy of a valid international press card provided by a recognized national professional body or a passport size photo (JPEG format).

To view all the information related to the media accreditation for the 44th General Election, click here.

COVID-19

The Leaders' Debates Commission is working collaboratively with the Debate Broadcast Group to produce debates that will be compliant with COVID-19 public health measures in place at the time of the two leaders' debates. These protocols may have an impact on the number of media representatives that the Commission can accredit.

Accredited media will benefit from the same access, whether they are working in a physical or virtual environment.

Applications

The Commission will make every effort to respond as soon as possible to media accreditation applications. All communications, including the decisions on accreditation, will be conducted in writing via email.

For questions related to media accreditation, contact mediaaccreditation@debates-debats.ca

Date modified: August 16, 2021

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