Speech
DIVERSITY IN BROADCASTING:
IT MATTERS WHO MAKES IT
Notes for an address
by Joan Pennefather
Commissioner,
Canadian Radio-television and
Telecommunications Commission
to the 33rd annual Conference of the International Institute of
Communications - Plenary II: Regulation for Diversity - content
Johannesburg, South Africa
October 1st, 2002
(CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY)
Good afternoon. It is a great pleasure for me to be back with the IIC again.
I was especially pleased to attend this year's Regulators' Forum. This
important meeting offers a unique opportunity for informal dialogue and for
detailed discussion, on today's and tomorrow's broadcasting and
telecommunications issues.
Mr Charles Dalfen, Chairman of the CRTC, asked me to convey to you his best
wishes for a successful Conference. And he regrets that he couldn't be here in
person. I am sure that I speak for him in congratulating the organizers of this
Conference for their tireless efforts in bringing together such an excellent
programme.
And what a privilege to be here in this beautiful country, at this particular
time, discussing our challenges, and, yes, our successes, in addressing the very
fundamental goal of assuring diversity of content in our broadcasting systems. As
we heard earlier this morning, the cultural diversity and vibrancy of this
country is indeed breathtaking.
In my talk today, I plan to give you an overview of how the Canadian
Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission addresses cultural diversity.
As the Minister so wisely noted in her excellent address last evening, there will
be different approaches for different countries. Permit me to focus on some of
the steps we consider to be particularly important in the Canadian context.
I've entitled my talk "Diversity in Broadcasting: It Matters Who Makes It."
Admittedly, "It Matters Who Makes It" is not a new title : it is in fact the
result of some recycling!
Ten years ago, the 23rd Conference of the IIC was held in Montreal.
At that time, as Chair of the National Film Board of Canada, it was my pleasure
to host a pre-conference involving more than 50 women from 17 countries. We
shared strategies to improve the status of women in the media, on and off the
screen. We reported back to the IIC Conference. The title of our meeting and
report was, "It Matters Who Makes It."
Well, it still matters who makes it. Who makes the programs. Who makes the
decisions about making the programs. Who makes the choice about who to make the
programs for.
These are central issues for the CRTC, as I am sure they are for all of you.
As an independent regulator, our mandate on the broadcasting side is laid out in
the Broadcasting Act. And the Act is very clear on the subject of
diversity:
The whole Canadian broadcasting system is to serve the needs of all Canadians.
It's to reflect:
- their circumstances and their aspirations, including equal rights,
- the linguistic duality of Canada: English and French,
- the multicultural and multiracial nature of Canadian society,
- and the special place of the Aboriginal peoples within that society.
The Commission defines cultural diversity as the presence (who we see) and the
portrayal (how we see) of the cultural, ethnic, racial and Aboriginal diversity
of Canada.
When we turn on that TV set, who do we see? Do we see the presence of cultural
and racial minorities, and of the Aboriginal peoples?
And how do we see them? Are they shown to us accurately, fairly, and without
stereotyping?
And who is bringing us what we see? Producers, writers, technicians and
artists from different cultural and social perspectives should have the
opportunity to create a variety of programming, and to develop their skills.
We address these issues with three main groups of broadcasters:
- The ethnic broadcasters.
- The Aboriginal broadcasters.
- and the mainstream networks and station groups.
First, the ethnic broadcasters.
We've had an ethnic presence on the air for some time. But in 1985 we
established an Ethnic Broadcasting Policy, and we've been guided ever since by
its core objectives:
- One, to develop broadcasting services that reflect the cultural and
linguistic plurality that is such an fundamental part of the social structure
of our country.
- Two, to ensure access to ethnic programming for as many Canadians as
possible, given the limitations of resources;
- and Three, to foster opportunities for greater understanding among people
with different cultural backgrounds.
When we streamlined and updated our policy in 1999, we undertook a broad
consultation across Canada and broadened the definition of an ethnic program. In
addition to third language programming, it now includes broadcasting directed at
ethnic groups in our two official languages, English and French. We believe that
this new policy now better reflects the growing importance of ethnic programming
in English and French which then can act as a bridge between non-ethnic and
ethnic members of Canadian society, and between different generations of
Canadians.
We're proud of what our broadcasting system has achieved so far in the ethnic
area.
In television, both Montreal and Toronto have local over-the-air ethnic TV
stations, and a second one is coming for Toronto.
In Vancouver, there was keen competition for a licence this year. One
excellent application was backed by a strong national broadcast organization. But
we licensed instead another excellent proposal. It brought in some new faces,
local ethnic ownership, and community-based enthusiasm. This, I think, shows
something of our priorities.
There are five analog Canadian ethnic specialty channels serving Chinese,
Italian, Hispanic, South Asian and Greek audiences.
In the new digital arena, we've licensed 42 ethnic specialty TV services and a
number of them are already up and running.
As for radio - Canadians now enjoy 14 ethnic stations, with two more to come.
One of them will serve a number of French-speaking ethnic communities in
Montreal, and it's owned by a Haitian-Canadian.
Ethnic communities in our larger cities are also served by a number of FM
sideband, or SCMO, radio services. Some of them are operating in Korean, Persian,
Indo-Pakistani, Hebrew, Greek, Chinese, Tamil, German and East Indian languages.
As I leave the subject of ethnic broadcasting, I'd like to tell you about a
new radio station in Toronto. It grows out of a minority community in its style
and ownership. But it won its place as a mainstream commercial radio station in
competition with other mainstream applicants. It's majority owned and operated by
black Canadians. It broadcasts urban music and supports talent development in
that musical genre. I think its arrival is a very encouraging sign - because it
shows that the mainstream itself is becoming more and more diverse.
I would now like to look at the special place of Aboriginal broadcasting and
programming in the Canadian system.
The primary role of Aboriginal broadcasters is to address the specific
cultural and linguistic needs of their audiences, while creating an environment
in which Aboriginal artists, musicians, writers and producers can develop and
flourish.
Today, there are roughly 120 community-based native radio stations, mainly in
remote areas. There are also a number of native community-based television
services. And we have licensed four new radio stations in Vancouver, Calgary,
Toronto and Ottawa, as well as a network. It is called Aboriginal Voices Radio
and it brings aboriginal stories, talent and languages to Canadians across
Canada, particularly in our large urban centres.
In 1999, the Commission licensed the Aboriginal Peoples' Television Network.
APTN is the world's first national indigenous television network, and it's now on
the air. It provides programming by and about Aboriginal peoples from all regions
of Canada, in English, French and up to 15 Aboriginal languages.
To ensure that APTN would reach a wide audience and have reasonable resources
to develop, the Commission took the unusual step of requiring the carriage of
APTN on larger cable systems for a fee levied on all subscribers. APTN, along
with the newly licensed aboriginal radio stations in major centres, brings
programming by and about aboriginal peoples to both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal
audiences.
So the Aboriginal and ethnic services meet the information and entertainment
needs of many Canadians.
But the responsibility to portray Canada to Canadians is not restricted to
these specialized services. In our view, mainstream public and private
broadcasters should also portray an image of our country that fits its diverse
reality.
All Canadians - whatever their colour or racial or cultural heritage - want,
and are entitled, to be seen and heard in the media. And they want to be
portrayed with fairness and respect.
They want that whether it's in a newscast, a drama, a documentary or a game
show. And it matters who makes it. The programming of mainstream broadcasters too
needs to be written, created, acted and produced by Canadians from a diversity of
cultures.
We also need to assure a diversity of perspectives in decision-making: On
boards, on selection committees, in program choices - so that what we call
mainstream television will draw on all the different streams that make up the
people of Canada.
The three aspects of diversity - presence, portrayal and participation - are
at the heart of our new television policy.
The Commission now requires all conventional television licensees to make
specific commitments towards the achievement of these goals, including the
solicitation of effective feedback from viewers.
The three largest Canadian private broadcaster groups submitted diversity
plans to us in the course of their recent licence renewals.
These plans outline the concrete actions they would take to better reflect the
presence of cultural and racial minorities and the Aboriginal peoples in the
communities they serve.
As part of the licence renewal decisions, the Commission was detailed on what
these plans should contain in terms of corporate accountability, reflection of
diversity in programming, and community involvement.
They must also submit progress reports every year detailing their success.
Other private TV broadcasters have also been asked to submit their commitments
to diversity, and we have been hearing from them.
The national public broadcaster, the CBC, is also mandated by the
Broadcasting Act to reflect the multi-cultural and multi-racial nature of
Canada, and the Corporation reports annually on this issue.
We're discussing all these diversity plans with the broadcasters to ensure
that they are comprehensive and results-oriented.
We also called on the Canadian Association of Broadcasters to create a task
force on increasing cultural diversity in television. The major private
broadcasters have agreed to take part in this initiative and support it
financially.
The task force consists of broadcasters of all stripes, the production
community and community groups. They will conduct a landmark study on where we
are today, so that we can assess where we should be and how to get there.
They will study best practices underway across Canada, and develop guiding
principles and practical solutions for the industry.
So that is a brief overview of where we are today.
We have taken important steps, working with aboriginal and multicultural
communities and with all the players in the industry.
And now, where are we going?
Here's a simple but important fact: Canada has a relatively low birth rate.
That means that the greater part of our population growth is going to come from
immigration.
Our people will become more and more diverse ethnically and culturally. And
minority groups will make up a larger and larger segment of the population.
In its 12th Annual Report on the Operation of the Canadian
Multiculturalism Act, the Department of Canadian Heritage notes: "But everywhere
in Canada, visible minorities are the fastest growing sub-group in Canadian
society. By 2006, they will represent between 14.7% and 20% of the population,
and nearly one in six persons living in Canada are expected to be members of a
visible minority group."
It's a great challenge for our broadcasting system to reflect these changing
realities and to become more and more diverse in programming and in
participation.
We also see this challenge as an opportunity, an opportunity because being
responsive to one's audiences is good business, an opportunity because the
Canadian broadcasting system can then stand as a model for dialogue, diversity
and affordability.
But we must not be complacent.
As we see it, the regulator's role is to open doors and to monitor the
opportunities that come in through those open doors.
Our role must also be to make policies and decisions which assure that those
doors are, in reality, open to everyone.
Ours is a balancing act, one which requires constant discussion with the
public and joint action with broadcasters, producers and distributors.
And our efforts only succeed if there is direct involvement of the creators of
Canadian content, and creative partnerships.
In this overview, I have not touched on other policy tools we have in place
which are designed to, among others, assure Canadian content overall, assure
access to the system by independent producers, look for regional and local
content, encourage talent development, and support Community radio and
television. These and other policies can also be used to bring about greater
diversity in broadcasting.
Indeed, in face of other pressures which are brought to bear, we must be
vigilant and assure that all our policies and decisions consider, and are used to
increase cultural diversity. Policies on cultural diversity per se are not that
extra component at the end of the decision; they must be at the centre of what we
do.
As I noted at the beginning of my remarks, the bottom line here is the
Broadcasting Act: Diversity in broadcasting is fundamental. How you achieve it
involves many different steps. In our view, these steps include the understanding
that, indeed, it matters who makes it. All creative voices should be heard and
seen; the tools of the broadcasting system must indeed be available to all.
Perhaps we all share as well an understanding that public dialogue, patience
and perseverance are also keys to success.
As our distinguished panelists, and everyone here today, address the issue of
diversity in broadcasting, we look forward to hearing what your own experiences
have been. How are you dealing with challenges like ours? Or, are these
challenges similar or different? Who is responsible for assuring this diversity,
and how? How does the technology of the digital age help, or hinder, our goals?
We expect to learn a lot today, and to see things from some new points of
view. We expect that those points of view will be, above all, diverse.
Thank you.
- 30 -
Contact: Denis Carmel, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0N2
Tel.: (819)
997-9403, TDD: (819) 994-0423, Fax: (819) 997-4245
e-Mail:
denis.carmel@crtc.gc.ca
Toll-free # 1-877-249-CRTC (2782)
TDD -
Toll-free # 1-877-909-2782
This document is available in alternative format upon request.
Date Modified: 2002-10-01 |
