Today, it is our turn in Québec to speak up and defend the CBC in our communities and to politicians of all stripes.
Public funding for Radio-Canada has been declining (in constant dollars) for years. Each year, the French network’s budget shrinks a bit more, and with it so too does the impact of a network that has been a driving force in the development of Canadian television, radio and other media; so too does diversity in news coverage; so too does the role of a key institution in Canada’s cultural life.
Reduced local coverage of the French fact and of Québec news on the English network also does a disservice to viewers in English Canada. And the English network has fewer and fewer resources to serve Québec Anglophones.
With decreasing coverage of local news in Québec and in Francophone communities, an important window on Québec’s regions and on Francophones outside Québec is closing. No private media outlet will take its place.
While funding for the CBC is decided by Parliament in Ottawa, the public does have a say. The future of the CBC is really in the hands of radio listeners, television viewers and Internet users.
It is up to us to speak up in our communities to defend the CBC/Radio-Canada to politicians of all stripes. It is up to the public to get involved and tell the politicians that enough is enough.
We are launching a campaign to get the federal government (regardless of governing party) to sign a new contract with the CBC providing for increased and stable funding, performance requirements and arm’s length, transparent management.
We want the federal government to make sure Canadians have a public broadcasting service that meets high standards of news coverage, media production and governance.
We are calling on people who care about the CBC/Radio-Canada to create support groups in all localities to pressure elected officials to keep quality public broadcasting alive. We will promote any local or national initiative of this kind on this site.
A variety of Québec-wide actions will also be organized in the coming weeks and months. Watch this site for more information.
I am, we are is a campaign organized by
Our partners and sponsors
Association des libraires du Québec
Distribution Dimédia
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