On February 28, CBC News published an article titled “Ayatollah Ali Khamenei dead at 86, ending his iron grip on Iran,” reporting on the historic joint operation by Israel and the United States in which Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed during a surprise daytime strike on Iranian officials.

In the article, CBC covered the developing conflict involving Iran, its regional proxies, Israel, and the United States, and included a map intended to provide geographic context. However, while the map labeled other key actors in the region, the State of Israel was conspicuously absent and the Jewish state was wiped off the map.

HonestReporting Canada and its allies wrote to CBC executives, asking for clarification, and demanding that CBC immediately correct this mistake by properly identifying Israel on the map.

We are pleased to note that following our concerns, CBC News updated the map to include Israel, published an editor’s note, and sent the following email explaining the corrective action our public broadcaster undertook:

“As a Senior Adviser in the Journalistic Standards and Practices Office, CBC News General Manager and Editor-in-Chief Brodie Fenlon has asked me to reply to you directly. You were one of a number of people to write with similar concerns, so my response to you will echo what I have told others.

The map that you referenced was generated using a program that automatically assigns location labels based on its designated scale. We have now updated the map with additional location labels, including Israel, and put a correction note at the bottom of the story.”

While HonestReporting Canada appreciates CBC News’ prompt response and correction, the omission of Israel from a map of the Middle East is a serious error that should never have occurred.