The interview between Philippe Cantin and Valérie Plante on 98.5 FM will go down in history for all the wrong reasons.
While the mayor of Montreal, criticized from all sides for her disastrous management of the city, appeared at Cantin’s microphone, the latter delivered a performance which oscillated between the most embarrassing complacency and the total abandonment of his duty journalistic.
Cantin was as gentle as a lamb.
Valérie Plante, known for her controversial decisions – from the catastrophic management of cycle paths to the explosion of orange construction sites which paralyze Montreal – has found an unsuspected ally in Philippe Cantin.
Rather than asking difficult questions, as he is supposed to do as host of the flagship show Le Québec denow, Cantin rolled out a real red carpet for the mayor.
Not a single strong question. Not a single question about the fiasco of the Grand Prix terraces. Nothing about the dramatic increase in homelessness. Absolutely nothing on the disastrous management of the city’s cleanliness.
Instead, Cantin let Plante recite her prefabricated speech, giving her plenty of room to paint herself as a dedicated and visionary heroine.
The most ironic thing about this affair is that Philippe Cantin, the man who did not hesitate to sacrifice Jeremy Filosa, one of the best sports journalists in Quebec, had no qualms about kneeling in front of Valérie Plante.
Let us remember that it is this same Cantin which:
Sent Filosa under the bus live during the controversial October 17, 2024 episode.
Refused to reach out to Filosa to get his job back after months of public humiliation.
Actively contributed to destroying the career of one of the most respected journalists in Quebec.
And yet, faced with a mayor whose management is unanimously criticized, Cantin has chosen complacency.
That same energy he used to destroy Filosa, he completely abandoned when it came to confronting Plante.
Why did Valérie Plante choose Philippe Cantin for this exclusive interview? The answer is obvious: she knew she would have nothing to fear from him.
Plante, who refused to speak to journalists after his public speech, visibly saw in Cantin an opportunity to improve his image without risking the slightest confrontation. And she was right.
Cantin allowed the mayor to utter platitudes without ever pushing her to her limits. Among the empty statements, we note:
“I want to give everything, to finish in style…”
“Fighting homelessness, building new housing and improving security and cleanliness will be my priorities. »
These comments, as empty as the city’s budget, provoked no critical reaction from Cantin.
Not a single mention of Montreal’s monstrous deficit. Nothing about the numerous scandals which marked his mandate.
What is most shocking is the blatant double standard in the management of guests by Philippe Cantin. Jeremy Filosa, a man who devoted 25 years of his life to sports journalism, was treated like common trash for a simple error of judgment on a subject that was not even his responsibility. (the fact that man had indeed walked on the moon).
Meanwhile, Valérie Plante, whose decisions had very real and catastrophic consequences for Montreal, was treated like a gala guest.
Where is the journalistic rigor? Where is the respect for the listeners who deserve answers and explanations?
Cogeco, owner of 98.5 FM, cannot be found not guilty of blame in this matter.
It is this same company that allowed Cantin to continue to humiliate Filosa, while offering a ‘soft’ platform to a mayor who has failed on almost all fronts.
You can’t ask a sports reporter to venture into crazy topics, but you also have to ask a host like Cantin to do his job when it comes to interviewing political figures.
This interview with Valérie Plante is a shame for journalism.
2024 will be remembered as the year Philippe Cantin abandoned journalism for complacency.
By sacrificing Jeremy Filosa, he proved that he was willing to do anything to preserve his own comfort.
By sparing Valérie Plante, he confirmed that he had neither the backbone nor the integrity necessary to face the real issues.
Montrealers are not naive. They see through this double standard and this lack of courage.
And as 2025 begins, one thing is crystal clear: Philippe Cantin may have lost more than just an audience.
He lost the respect of a public who expected much more from him.
Now let’s return to Valérie Plante’s speech from the throne…or rather the speech of the king’s jester.
On Wednesday, the mayor of Montreal presented what her team describes as a “speech from the throne”.
A speech where she rolled out a list of priorities for the last 300 days of her mandate. Cleanliness, security, housing, eastern development, homelessness: crucial themes which should have been at the heart of his concerns from the start of his administration.
However, what is striking about this presentation is not so much the promises, but the void that surrounds them, the seven years of lack of action and the refusal to answer journalists’ questions.
Valérie Plante promised a “great chore” and an awareness campaign to resolve the cleanliness crisis in Montreal.
An announcement that sounds like an admission of failure. For seven years, Montrealers have complained about streets filled with waste and parks transformed into dumpsites.
Aref Salem, leader of the official opposition, did not mince his words:
“We’ve been in a dump for seven years. We did not see any money in the budget for cleanliness brigades. I’m perplexed. »
Despite the urgency of the situation, no structured cleanliness brigade has been set up, and the promises remain at the stage of words.
How can we believe that in 300 days, this “great chore” will be able to transform the city when seven years were not enough?
Limiting speed to 30 or 40 km/h around schools is a measure that should have been adopted in the first years of his mandate.
Pedestrians in Montreal, especially children, continue to be victims of serious accidents.
The mayor took refuge behind excuses, citing the lack of control over the financing of public transport or the lack of photo radars.
However, these issues were already known before his election. Why act now, a few months before the end of his mandate?
Valérie Plante also promised new neighborhoods capable of accommodating thousands of people, particularly in the Namur-Hippodrome and Bridge-Bonaventure areas.
But once again, these projects remain pure illusions.
Aref Salem rightly underlines:
“There is no land that has been sold, no condo that has been built. I don’t know how she’s going to do them. »
These projects, which require years of planning, are not credible within a 300-day horizon. These are symbolic announcements, without basis or concrete strategy.
The structuring tramway project for the East of Montreal is undoubtedly the most ambitious – and least realistic – promise of this speech.
Valued at $18 billion, it is still being studied in Quebec. There is no indication that the provincial government will give the green light soon.
Valérie Plante may declare: “It has to move forward”, this sentence sums up her mandate well: a useless wish without concrete action.
As homelessness explodes in Montreal, Valérie Plante promises much greater mobilization and more housing to accommodate the homeless.
But here again, past actions contradict his new promises.
In seven years, she has often blamed the provincial and federal governments.
The 60 modular units announced last year have still not been built.
As Aref Salem points out:
“All of a sudden she wakes up. »
One of the most disturbing aspects of this event is that journalists were not allowed to ask questions at the end of the speech.
This controlled strategy clearly shows that Valérie Plante did not want to be confronted with her record or her unrealizable promises.
The mayor chose to grant an exclusive interview to Philippe Cantin on 98.5 FM, knowing that she would find there a nice space to promote her speech without being put in the hot seat.
Cantin, true to form, knelt in front of Plante, avoiding any disturbing questions.
2024 will be remembered as the year when Valérie Plante tried to hide her catastrophic results behind a falsely ambitious speech.
Pedestrians are always in danger.
The new neighborhoods are just a mirage.
The tram is an impossible project that only exists on paper.
Homelessness continues to increase alarmingly.
And faced with all this, Philippe Cantin, instead of asking the real questions, offered the mayor a platform without opposition, contributing to a media charade unworthy of journalism.
As Montreal sinks into insecurity, filth and political inaction, citizens have the right to feel betrayed.
Valérie Plante had seven years to act, but she left behind only administrative chaos and empty promises.
And what about Philippe Cantin, whose role is to represent Montrealers by asking the difficult questions?
By offering a platform to a mayor at the end of her mandate, he betrayed not only his profession, but also the listeners who count on him to defend their interests.
2024 marks the end of a disappointing mandate and media complicity which has only accentuated the unease of a city in free fall.
Montreal deserves better.
2024 will be remembered as the year journalism betrayed Montrealers.
Between the inhumane treatment reserved for Jeremy Filosa and this shameful interview with Valérie Plante, 98.5 FM seems to have abandoned any ambition for journalistic rigor.
Philippe Cantin’s interview with Valérie Plante symbolizes everything that is wrong in the Quebec media landscape at the moment.
While citizens demand transparency, rigor and truth, they instead receive a simulation of journalism where politicians are protected and real issues avoided.
Philippe Cantin may have wanted to spare Valérie Plante, but above all he betrayed Montrealers, who deserved frank and honest answers.
This discomfort, beyond the interview itself, proves a loss of confidence in a once respected station.
98.5 FM will have to work very hard to repair this divide, but the damage is done.
What Cantin offered was a capitulation, and Montrealers will not forget it.
