(Ottawa) Federal Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge has named seven media experts who will advise her on the renewal of CBC/Radio-Canada.
Posted at 12:43 p.m.
Updated at 3:48 p.m.
Mickey Djuric
The Canadian Press
This advisory committee will provide strategic advice on “governance, financing and mandate” of the public broadcaster, indicates the Department of Canadian Heritage in a press release.
The ministry emphasizes that consultations on the mandate of CBC/Radio-Canada have already been carried out with the general public. The seven members of the newly formed advisory committee, with their knowledge in different fields, will now help the minister chart the path forward towards this modernization.
Minister St-Onge said the committee members, with their diverse experiences and varied points of view, will help her modernize CBC/Radio-Canada.
“The population needs an independent public broadcaster that is solid, innovative and ready to meet the challenges posed by this period of transformation and upheaval in news and content creation,” indicates the minister in the Canadian Heritage press release. .
“In doing so [CBC/Radio-Canada], will be able to further promote our culture, stories and languages, as well as artists and creators, while adapting to the rapidly evolving digital and broadcasting landscape. »
Sustainable financing
CBC/Radio-Canada President Catherine Tait calls for a long-term, predictable financial structure for the public broadcaster, such as a multi-year funding agreement through a charter, similar to that of the BBC in the United Kingdom .
In Minister St-Onge’s office, we have already declared ourselves “open to all ideas” as part of the modernization process. During a recent appearance before the Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, Mr.me Tait said she looked forward to speaking with members of the advisory committee.
“Long-term sustainable funding is one of the solutions” to combat the “crisis” facing the media, Ms.me Was on May 7th. It highlighted challenges such as competition from foreign technology giants, which are not subject to the same regulations as Canadian broadcasters, and declining revenues from traditional advertising.
CBC/Radio-Canada projects a deficit of $20 million for the 2024-2025 fiscal year, despite the recent layoff of 141 employees and the elimination of 205 vacant positions since December, said Ms.me Tait.
“I have worked in this sector for 40 years and I have never seen such strong pressure on our national industry, and it is very worrying”, maintained Mme Was before the Commons committee. “We see people leaving, businesses disappearing, production houses closing their doors. »
The public broadcaster relies on an annual parliamentary appropriation of around 1.2 billion and additional revenues from advertising, subscriptions and other commercial activities.
“In the past, CBC/Radio-Canada had around 10,000 employees; today we have 7,500, said Mme Tait. However, 90% of our budget is devoted to our workforce, so if something hits us, an economic or financial difficulty, the only lever we have is workforce adjustment. »
What would the conservatives do?
Ottawa has said it wants to redefine the role of CBC/Radio-Canada before the next federal election, as the Liberals guard against a possible change of government.
The Conservatives have promised to defund the CBC and turn its Toronto headquarters into “affordable housing.” Chief Pierre Poilievre, however, promises to protect Radio-Canada’s French services, and particularly those intended for the country’s French-speaking minorities. Mr. Poilievre assures that he can separate CBC and Radio-Canada.
The public broadcaster is also studying possibilities of “bringing together” between the two networks, but assures that it will protect the independence of their respective content. Since this initiative was made public, Minister St-Onge has repeated that “in no way” will a restructuring of the state corporation affect services to Francophones, both in Quebec and elsewhere in the country.
A CBC/Radio-Canada spokeswoman welcomed news of the advisory committee’s creation Monday, saying the Crown corporation would help in any way possible.
“We are open to any discussion on the future of public broadcasting,” assured Emma Iannetta, “and we appreciate the Minister’s strong support for the important role that CBC/Radio-Canada plays in the lives of all Canadians “.
The advisory committee
- Marie-Philippe Bouchard, CEO, TV5 Québec Canada;
- Jesse Wente, president of the Canada Council for the Arts and founding executive director of the Indigenous Screen Office;
- Jennifer McGuire, executive director of Pink Triangle Press;
- David Skok, CEO and editor-in-chief of The Logic (independent media startup);
- Mike Ananny, associate professor of communications and journalism, University of Southern California Annenberg;
- Loc Dao, executive director of DigiBC;
- Catalina Briceno, professor, University of Quebec in Montreal.
