Michelle Shephard
Encyclopedia
Michelle Shephard is an investigative reporter with the Toronto Star
newspaper in Canada. She has been awarded the Michener Award
for public service journalism and twice won Canada's top newspaper prize, the National Newspaper Award. In 2011, she was an associate producer on an Oscar-nominated documentary called Under Fire: Journalists in combat.
She began working at the Star in 1995 as a summer student, when she met her future husband Jim Rankin.
She is the author of Guantanamo's Child, about the ordeal of Omar Khadr
in the Guantanamo Bay detention camps. She was also thanked in the foreword of the 2006 book "Betrayed: The Assassination of Digna Ochoa
" by fellow Star reporter Linda Diebel, as well as Marina Nemat
's 2008 "Prisoner of Tehran".
Her second book, Decade of Fear: Reporting from Terrorism's Grey Zone, was published in September 2011. The book was nominated for one of Canada's most prestigious literary awards, the BC National Award for Canadian Non-Fiction.
In 1999, she came into possession of copies of convicted murderer Karla Homolka
's application to transfer to the Maison Thérèse-Casgrain, run by the Elizabeth Fry Society, and published the story noting the halfway house
's proximity to local schools, hours before the Canadian courts issued a publication ban
on the information.
On September 11, 2001, the day al Qaeda attacked the World Trade Center
and the Pentagon
, Shephard described going to the airport, to fly to New York City
, only to find all flights in North America had been ordered to land and no new flights were being allowed to take off.
So she and two other Toronto Star reporters decided to drive to New York City, arriving at the Ontario/New York State border shortly before it too was shut down.
In 2006 she attended a hostile environment training course in Virginia, in preparation for her overseas reporting.. Her foreign reporting from Africa, the Middle East, and Asia has included Somalia
. Yemen
. Pakistan
, Djibouti
. Kenya
. yria and Dubai].
In 2010, she was banned from Guantanamo along with Miami Herald reporter Carol Rosenberg
, Globe and Mail's Paul Koring and CanWest reporter Steven Edwards for identifying an interrogator who had been convicted in his role in the death of an Afghan detainee in U.S. detention in Bagram. The Pentagon lifted the ban following an outcry by various news outlets including, the New York Times and an appeal by the Pentagon Press Association. http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/07/08/97219/pentagon-allows-banned-reporter.html. The Washington Post condemned the Pentagon for trying to exclude four "veteran" reporters with "a depth of knowledge." http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/10/AR2010061004593.html
She co-hosted a 2006 round table
event with the Canadian Association for Security and Intelligence Studies with other Canadian journalists including Stewart Bell and Colin Freeze entitled "The Media and the Secret World".
In April 2008, she co-hosted a lecture entitled "The Big Idea: The ICC
, American Empire and the Search for the Rule of Law" with Erna Paris
.
Toronto Star
The Toronto Star is Canada's highest-circulation newspaper, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its print edition is distributed almost entirely within the province of Ontario...
newspaper in Canada. She has been awarded the Michener Award
Michener Award
The Michener Award is one of the highest distinctions in Canadian journalism. The award was founded in 1970 by Roland Michener, who was Governor General of Canada at the time, and his wife Norah...
for public service journalism and twice won Canada's top newspaper prize, the National Newspaper Award. In 2011, she was an associate producer on an Oscar-nominated documentary called Under Fire: Journalists in combat.
She began working at the Star in 1995 as a summer student, when she met her future husband Jim Rankin.
She is the author of Guantanamo's Child, about the ordeal of Omar Khadr
Omar Khadr
Omar Ahmed Khadr is a Canadian child soldier and one of the juveniles held at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. He was convicted of five charges under the United States Military Commissions Act of 2009 including murder in violation of the law of war and providing material support for terrorism,...
in the Guantanamo Bay detention camps. She was also thanked in the foreword of the 2006 book "Betrayed: The Assassination of Digna Ochoa
Digna Ochoa
Digna Ochoa was a human rights lawyer in Mexico. She was born in Misantla, in the state of Veracruz.- Biography :...
" by fellow Star reporter Linda Diebel, as well as Marina Nemat
Marina Nemat
Marina Nemat is the author of a memoir about growing up in Iran, serving time in Evin Prison for speaking out against the Iranian government, escaping a death sentence and finally fleeing Iran for a new life in Canada.-Life:...
's 2008 "Prisoner of Tehran".
Her second book, Decade of Fear: Reporting from Terrorism's Grey Zone, was published in September 2011. The book was nominated for one of Canada's most prestigious literary awards, the BC National Award for Canadian Non-Fiction.
In 1999, she came into possession of copies of convicted murderer Karla Homolka
Karla Homolka
Karla Leanne Homolka, also known as Karla Leanne Teale , is a Canadian serial killer. She attracted worldwide media attention when she was convicted of manslaughter following a plea bargain in the 1991 and 1992 rape-murders of two Ontario teenage girls, Leslie Mahaffy and Kristen French, as well as...
's application to transfer to the Maison Thérèse-Casgrain, run by the Elizabeth Fry Society, and published the story noting the halfway house
Halfway house
The purpose of a halfway house, also called a recovery house or sober house, is generally to allow people to begin the process of reintegration with society, while still providing monitoring and support; this is generally believed to reduce the risk of recidivism or relapse when compared to a...
's proximity to local schools, hours before the Canadian courts issued a publication ban
Publication ban
A publication ban is a court order which prohibits the public or media from disseminating certain details of an otherwise public judicial procedure. In Canada, publication bans are most commonly issued when the safety or reputation of a victim or witness may be hindered by having their identity...
on the information.
On September 11, 2001, the day al Qaeda attacked the World Trade Center
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
and the Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
, Shephard described going to the airport, to fly to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, only to find all flights in North America had been ordered to land and no new flights were being allowed to take off.
So she and two other Toronto Star reporters decided to drive to New York City, arriving at the Ontario/New York State border shortly before it too was shut down.
In 2006 she attended a hostile environment training course in Virginia, in preparation for her overseas reporting.. Her foreign reporting from Africa, the Middle East, and Asia has included Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
. Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
. Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Djibouti
Djibouti
Djibouti , officially the Republic of Djibouti , is a country in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Eritrea in the north, Ethiopia in the west and south, and Somalia in the southeast. The remainder of the border is formed by the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden at the east...
. Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
. yria and Dubai].
In 2010, she was banned from Guantanamo along with Miami Herald reporter Carol Rosenberg
Carol Rosenberg
Carol Rosenberg is a senior journalist, currently with the McClatchy News Service.Rosenberg works at the Miami Herald, which has provided extensive coverage of the operation of the Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba.-Biography:...
, Globe and Mail's Paul Koring and CanWest reporter Steven Edwards for identifying an interrogator who had been convicted in his role in the death of an Afghan detainee in U.S. detention in Bagram. The Pentagon lifted the ban following an outcry by various news outlets including, the New York Times and an appeal by the Pentagon Press Association. http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/07/08/97219/pentagon-allows-banned-reporter.html. The Washington Post condemned the Pentagon for trying to exclude four "veteran" reporters with "a depth of knowledge." http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/10/AR2010061004593.html
Panels
In 2004 she co-hosted a Centre of Excellence for Research on Immigration and Settlement panel following up on the Star's series on racial bias in the police force, subtitled "Stagnation, Progress or a Turn in the Wrong Direction?" along with her husband and Scott Simmie.She co-hosted a 2006 round table
Round table
A round table is a table which has no "head" and no "sides", and therefore no one person sitting at it is given a privileged position and all are treated as equals. The idea stems from the Arthurian legend about the Knights of the Round Table in Camelot....
event with the Canadian Association for Security and Intelligence Studies with other Canadian journalists including Stewart Bell and Colin Freeze entitled "The Media and the Secret World".
In April 2008, she co-hosted a lecture entitled "The Big Idea: The ICC
International Criminal Court
The International Criminal Court is a permanent tribunal to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression .It came into being on 1 July 2002—the date its founding treaty, the Rome Statute of the...
, American Empire and the Search for the Rule of Law" with Erna Paris
Erna Paris
Erna Paris is a Canadian non-fiction author born in Toronto, Ontario.After earing a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto in Honours Philosophy and English, Paris moved to France for several years, where she continued her studies at the Sorbonne...
.
External links
- Pentagon bans 4 journalists from Guantanamo court ReutersReutersReuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
May 6, 2010 - Pentagon Bars Four Reporters from Guantánamo - video report by Democracy Now!Democracy Now!Democracy Now! and its staff have received several journalism awards, including the Gracie Award from American Women in Radio & Television; the George Polk Award for its 1998 radio documentary Drilling and Killing: Chevron and Nigeria's Oil Dictatorship, on the Chevron Corporation and the deaths of...