CBC Needs Renewal

Mark Sutcliffe, in his Ottawa Citizen article of Dec. 6^th, has succinctly pointed out why it should no longer be business as usual at the CBC. Section 3.(1)(b) of the Broadcasting Act states in part that the broadcasting system provides “a public service essential to the maintenance and enhancement of national identity and cultural sovereignty”. What happened to the interpretation and application of that mandate?

While the CBC has fulfilled their core obligations extremely well, their programming content has evolved far beyond what is stated in the section noted above. Rather than competing with private sector broadcasting systems, the CBC must adjust its future direction and the loss of hockey has provided the catalyst for that needed change. Real change however, one that is beneficial to those that contribute financially, all Canadians, may only be achieved if the debate about the CBC’s future is void of partisan politics. That’s the first challenge for those elected to advance our collective best interests.