CBC News is facing renewed criticism after journalists were reminded not to independently describe the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks as terrorist attacks during coverage marking the tragedy’s 25th anniversary.

The internal guidance instructed reporters and editors to refer to the events as the Sept. 11 attacks or describe the hijackings and resulting plane crashes in New York, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania. The memo was reportedly issued by Basem Boshra, CBC News senior director of journalistic standards and public trust.

CBC has confirmed the guidance and says it is not a new policy or a denial that the attacks involved terrorism.

The public broadcaster’s longstanding practice is to use the words “terrorist” and “terrorism” with attribution. Its journalists may report that a government, police agency, official or expert has described an organization or incident that way, but CBC generally does not use the designation in its own reporting voice.

CBC Public Affairs Director Kerry Kelly said the memo reminded journalists to exercise caution with the terms and favour attributed language.

The policy became public as news organizations prepared to mark 25 years since the Sept. 11 attacks, which killed nearly 3,000 people.

On Sept. 11, 2001, 19 Al Qaida members hijacked four passenger aircraft. Two were flown into the World Trade Center towers in New York, one struck the Pentagon and another crashed in Pennsylvania after passengers fought back.

The Government of Canada lists Al Qaida as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code. Public Safety Canada says the organization carried out the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.

CBC’s wording policy has drawn objections from Conservative MP Rachael Thomas and others who say avoiding a direct terrorism designation minimizes the nature of the attacks and disrespects victims, survivors and first responders.

The broadcaster maintains that its approach is intended to preserve consistency and impartiality when covering violent incidents around the world.

CBC explained the policy publicly in 2023 following complaints about its coverage of the Hamas-led attacks in Israel on Oct. 7 of that year. Then-editor-in-chief Brodie Fenlon said the broadcaster focuses on describing what happened in clear detail while attributing disputed or politically charged labels to governments, authorities and other sources.

Fenlon said the same approach had been applied to the Sept. 11 attacks, the 2005 London bombings, the 2004 Madrid train bombings and a 2011 bombing at a Moscow airport.

The 2026 memo has nevertheless renewed debate over whether a general policy designed for disputed conflicts should apply to an event that Canadian and American authorities officially recognize as terrorism.

It has also placed CBC’s editorial standards under greater public attention as the publicly funded broadcaster prepares extensive anniversary coverage of one of the deadliest attacks in North American history.