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Sackings at the Canadian Medical Association Journal and editorial independence

Martin B Van Der Weyden
Med J Aust 2006; 184 (11): . || doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2006.tb00376.x
Published online: 5 June 2006

A clash of purpose between a journal’s editors and its owner

20 February 2006 may well be the day that marked the beginning of the decline of the CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) as a widely respected national and international journal. On that day John Hoey, Editor-in-Chief of the CMAJ for 10 years, and his Deputy Editor Anne Marie Todkill were summarily dismissed by Graham Morris, the president of CMA Media Inc which publishes the CMAJ.1 As to the reasons for the firings, Morris said, “I felt that after 10 years it was time for a fresh approach.”2 His rationale was greeted with disbelief and derision from leaders in the publishing field. Frank Davidoff, Editor Emeritus of the Annals of Internal Medicine was reported as saying, “Oh, come on! A summary firing without a cause? I mean, how naïve do they think people are?”, adding, “I think it could be the death knell of this Journal”.3


  • The Medical Journal of Australia, Sydney, NSW.


Correspondence: medjaust@ampco.com.au

  • 1. News CBC. Canadian Medical Association Journal sacks two editors. http://www.cbc.ca/story/science/national/2006/02/21/cmaj06022.html (accessed Feb 2006, no longer available).
  • 2. Spurgeon D. CMAJ draws criticism for sacking editors [news]. BMJ 2006; 332: 503.
  • 3. Branswell H. Editorial board fights to get medical journal editor, deputy reinstated. 22 Feb 2006. http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/MediaNews/2006/02/22/1457147-cp.html (accessed May 2006, no longer available. Try http://mediresource.sympatico.ca/health_news_detail.asp?channel_id=1000&menu_item_id=&news_id=9353).
  • 4. Sacking of CMAJ editors is deeply troubling [editorial]. Lancet 2006; 367: 704.
  • 5. Godlee F. A big mistake [editor’s choice]. BMJ 2006; 332: 4 March.
  • 6. Suchman M, Reidelmeier DA. Politics and independence — the collapse of the Canadian Medical Association Journal. N Engl J Med 2006; 354: 1337-1339.
  • 7. Webster P. Canadian researchers respond to CMAJ crisis. Lancet 2006; 367: 1133-1134.
  • 8. Devereaux PJ, Armstrong P, Ghali W, et al. Petition for editorial independence at CMAJ. Available at: http://www.chaps.ucalgary.ca/cmaj.htm (accessed May 2006).
  • 9. MacDonald N, Squires B. Why we agreed to step into the breach. CMAJ 2006; 174: 1063. Epub 2006 Mar 16.
  • 10. CMAJ editorial governance principles. Ottawa: Canadian Medical Association, 7 March 2006; revised 8 March 2006. Available at: http://www.cmaj.ca/ (see Messages from CMAJ Editor; accessed May 2006).
  • 11. CMAJ governance review panel members announced. Ottawa: Canadian Medical Association, 29 March 2006. Available at: http://www.cmaj.ca/ (see Messages from CMAJ Editor; accessed May 2006).
  • 12. Kassiser JP, Davidoff F, O’Hara K, Redelmeier DA. Editorial autonomy of CMAJ. CMAJ 2006; 174: 945-950.
  • 13. The editorial autonomy of CMAJ [editorial]. CMAJ 2006; 174: 9. http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/full/174/1/9
  • 14. Branswell H. CMA president says CMJA editors fired over “irreconcilable differences”. 3 April 2006. Available at: http://money.canoe.ca/News/Other/2006/04/13/1533681-cp.html (accessed May 2006).
  • 15. Van Der Weyden MB. Editorial independence is built on trust and communication [editorial]. Aust J Physiother 2002; 48: 167-168.

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