On November 8, 2021, a French court sentenced Lebanese priest Mansour Labaky to 15 years in prison in absentia. Labaky’s name has been added to the list of registered sex offenders. The court also announced that the arrest warrant issued against him in 2016 shall remain in force.

The priest was charged with rape and sexual assault of three underage girls during his time running an orphanage, between 1990 and 1998, in the French town of Douvres-la-D livrande. Back in 2012, he was also convicted by the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith after he was found guilty of sexually assaulting the three minors. The verdict was upheld on appeal in 2013.

This study aims to analyse the media coverage of Labaky’s case, in particular from Monday, November 8, 2021 – date of the court’s verdict – to the end of the same month. It is based on the content of 14 Lebanese media platforms, including television stations, newspapers, and websites, as well as the public’s reaction to their coverage on social media, particularly Twitter. Five TV stations were monitored: LBCI, Al-Manar, Al-Jadeed, MTV, and OTV. Furthermore, three newspapers (An-Nahar, Al-Akhbar, and Nida’ Al-Watan) and six online media outlets (Daraj, Megaphone, Janoubia, Bint Jbeil, Lebanon Debate, and Lebanon Files) were also monitored. The report identified 50 written or filmed news items that were published on the official platforms of the abovementioned TV channels, newspapers, and websites, including 32 written articles, 14 videos, and four news items combining text and video. These items include what was published after the verdict, but also content they had previously published starting in 2013.

This report is part of the Samir Kassir Foundation's involvement in ENQUIRE (Enhancing Quality Information on Religious Freedoms), a regional program that aims to promote a culture of respect for religious diversity in MENA countries where religious freedom is facing challenges. ENQUIRE focuses on strengthening the capacity of journalists to securely produce and disseminate high-quality, conflict-sensitive, and inclusive content on key religious freedom issues.