Vancouver crime reporter speaks out about journalist harassment

Chad Pawson · CBC News

· Posted: May 06, 2025 8:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

A Vancouver transgression newsman is speaking retired astir harassment related to his enactment — thing that started arsenic a tiny communicative — but grew into a large occupation for his cognition of his wellness and safety.

Jeremy Hainsworth, a Glacier Media reporter, has been moving successful quality for much than 30 years with a absorption connected transgression and courts and says he's endured maltreatment on the way.

"I've faced a batch of harassment, a batch of vile comments, emails, threats, being spat on, having my tires slashed, but I person ne'er had what I perceived to beryllium decease threats," said Hainsworth from B.C. provincial tribunal successful Vancouver successful precocious April.

'Left maine terrified'

That each changed 2 years ago when Hainsworth wrote a communicative astir a Vancouver antheral successful his 40s who was convicted of causing a disturbance astatine Burger King successful downtown Vancouver and resisting police.

When the taxable of the communicative work it, helium wasn't blessed according to Hainsworth and showed up astatine his office.

"He was aggressive, a threatening stance," said Hainsworth. "I did not engage. I went backmost inside. Then the emails started … I received an email that said helium hoped we each died terrifying deaths and that helium wanted to watch. That near maine terrified."

In Hainsworth's case, helium called police, which led to officers asking the antheral to halt contacting Hainsworth.

When that didn't work, the newsman turned to the precise happening helium covers — the courts — and was palmy aft a three-day proceedings successful winning a bid bond, a 12-month reprieve from 42-year-old Christopher Seres from contacting him.

Hainsworth's saga is reflective of an ongoing occupation for journalists crossed Canada —  unwanted and astatine times pervasive harassment.

"I honestly anticipation … this antheral accepts the assistance that helium intelligibly needs," Hainsworth said. "You know, I've made mistakes successful my beingness and I tin person compassion for radical who request immoderate help."

Seres represented himself successful tribunal and argued his emails and phonecalls to Hainsworth weren't threatening. He promised the tribunal helium would abide by the restraining bid for its 12-month duration.

WATCH | Jody Vance speaks retired astir enduring harassment for years:

Hainsworth's ordeal is simply a acquainted communicative for broadcaster Jody Vance who faced harassment successful the signifier of emails from a azygous idiosyncratic for 7 years.

"I thought it was portion of the job. And I've since learned it's not portion of the occupation and it shouldn't beryllium portion of the job," she said.

Vance besides turned to the courts successful her case, which ended successful a blameworthy plea for transgression harassment successful 2023 from 53-year-old Richard Oliver.

He received a conditional discharge, with 12 months of probation.

Vance is inactive successful tribunal implicit the lawsuit with a civilian suit seeking damages. She hopes her ineligible enactment volition yet assistance amended moving conditions for different journalists.

"I privation to support those who privation to beryllium a portion of a escaped property successful this country," she said. "We cognize however important that is. We spot harassment increasing by the day, against the media, against journalism. It has to stop."

Trying to rise the illustration of this occupation are organizations similar the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ), which reminds the nationalist that the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects the close of the property and different media to talk out.

"You tin beryllium captious of people's work, of course, but it doesn't mean you person the close to harass them oregon to marque their beingness miserable," said CAJ President Brent Jolly.

He says journalists having to crook to the courts for alleviation is an imperfect solution due to the fact that though it tin beryllium a deterrent, it is not needfully a semipermanent one.

"It doesn't needfully halt the idiosyncratic from doing it adjacent aft the fact," helium said.

The CAJ and different organizations are trying to enactment journalists with grooming successful integer literacy and security, on with support, immoderate of it peer-to-peeer and adjacent a money to assistance with the costs of dealing with harassment.

"We've got to marque definite we person the enactment systems and the infrastructure determination for radical to proceed to beryllium capable to bash their jobs and enactment safe," helium said.

Meanwhile Hainsworth hopes to determination connected with his enactment and has a connection to radical who would onslaught it.

"If you don't similar the facts of the situation, past spell to the root of the facts," helium said. "Don't spell aft the journalist. We're quality beings. We hurt, we bleed, we person emotions and things similar this are highly achy and horrible to spell through."