Speech

Innovation, Diversity, Creativity: Enhancing 
the Distinctiveness of the Canadian Broadcasting System

Notes for an address

by Charles Dalfen

Chairperson, Canadian Radio-television
and Telecommunications Commission

to the Canadian Association of Broadcasters'annual Conference

Vancouver, British Columbia
October 22^nd, 2002

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Introduction

Good morning. Thank you for that generous introduction.

I'm very glad to be here to address this Association for the first time as Chairman of the CRTC.

Since my arrival in Vancouver, I've already met with many of you to discuss issues that are important to you and to us at the Commission.

We met yesterday with the CAB-DTH Piracy Task Force.

The Supreme Court has spoken very clearly, and it's now up to us - in government and industry - to ensure that our healthy broadcasting industry doesn't get bled to death by illegal signal theft.

I was also pleased to meet many of the small market broadcasters at yesterday's session.

We heard you loud and clear about the special challenges you face as the Commission moves ahead on policy and licensing.

And we salute the valuable leadership role that small-market operators have played in communities across Canada.

I'm proud to be accompanied at the Conference by a strong delegation of colleagues from the Commission.

Andrée Wylie, our Vice-Chair, Broadcasting, was a panelist at yesterday's Digital TV session.

Later today Commissioner Andrew Cardozo will join the Cultural Diversity panel, and Jean-Pierre Blais, Executive Director, Broadcasting, the Digital Licensing panel.

My congratulations to those who have just received their Gold Ribbon awards, and to those who will receive them later today.

I know that these awards honour a very high level of excellence.

Public service

My congratulations, too, to the CAB and the Conference organizers for choosing this year's theme: "Leadership through public service."

I've often been asked what it was that brought me back to the CRTC after 20 years in private practice.

Ultimately, it was the opportunity to serve with dedicated colleagues in that very cause: Leadership through public service.

So I feel right at home here today.

I have a few announcements to make this morning. I'll start right in with the first one.

Interactivity

Part of the Commission's public service leadership role is to keep on top of technological innovation.

I am pleased to announce the release today of our report on Interactive Television Services, or ITV.

This is the outcome of the fact-finding inquiry which we launched last November.

The submissions we received show clearly that we are still in the early stages of the development of interactivity.

Consumer demand, business models and revenue splits are at present largely unknown.

An even greater unknown is the impact that ITV may have on our broadcasting system and our society.

Among the many questions raised are these:

• What does the use of content from a variety of sources mean for our traditional concepts of ownership and copyright?
• With information flowing both ways, how can we protect the privacy interests of Canadians?
• How accessible will these services be to disabled Canadians?
• And who will have control of the ITV services that actually reach the consumer?
• Will a broadcaster's enhanced programming be assured of carriage into the home?

We know that this is of particular concern to you.

One fundamental question being asked that has important regulatory implications is this:

Are interactive services broadcasting?

The answer to that question may depend on the answer to another question:

Is an interactive service program-related or not?

We would like to explore this issue as a starting point for the next phase of public dialogue about ITV.

Accordingly, we are issuing a Public Notice today asking for comments on what specific tests could be applied to determine what ITV content is program-related.

Now let's assume that with the help of that input we determine that some forms of ITV content are to be considered broadcasting.

What then should be our aims in evolving policy on ITV?

We would propose to adapt the four objectives that guided us for the transition from analog to digital over-the-air broadcasting, and would therefore be seeking the following:

1. A policy approach that provides clear guidance to broadcasters, distributors and producers in developing ITV services.
2. Maintenance of the strength of the Canadian broadcasting system, along with its cultural objectives.
3. Maximum viewer benefit from the new technologies. And,
4. A process of development for ITV that would not be impeded by unnecessary regulation.

As other countries are advancing in this area, we must do so too.

We look forward to continuing input from all interested parties as we move into this new interactive world, with its exciting possibilities for the industry and for all Canadians.

Cultural diversity

As I said at the beginning of my talk, I was very gratified to be invited to speak to you here at a conference built around the theme of "Leadership through public service."

An important part of the Commission's leadership role is to make sure that broadcasting reflects, and is enriched by, the cultural diversity of our country.

Diversity, of course, is a theme that resonates for all Canadians.

It was very clearly addressed in the recent Speech from the Throne:

"Canada has a unique model of citizenship, based simultaneously on diversity and mutual responsibility. This model requires deliberate efforts to connect Canadians across their differences, to link them to their history and to enable their diverse voices to participate in choosing the Canada we want."

Those words are particularly applicable to those of us who are involved in broadcasting.

The diversity policies of the Commission are directed towards three achievable goals that will reflect our Canadian reality:

The presence on the screen of performers, hosts and commentators, from a wide range of ethnic and cultural groups.

The fair and honest portrayal of minorities and Aboriginal Peoples, free of any kind of stereotyping.

The meaningful participation of individuals from minority groups and Aboriginal Peoples as writers, directors, producers, technicians and designers, and in all the other creative and administrative aspects of production.

We've been pleased to see broadcasters building up an infrastructure for diversity: ethnic stations, ethnic programming by mainstream broadcasters, and Aboriginal broadcasting.

But I believe there is still much more to be done to ensure that Canada's diversity is reflected in all programming.

The population of Canada continues to become more and more diverse.

And these are particularly sensitive times, when it's all the more important that we relate to each other with understanding and mutual respect.

I would like to commend the CAB for taking action in the spirit of "leadership through public service" by establishing the Cultural Diversity Task Force.

It has the potential to be a significant contributor to an industry-wide and community-wide effort to reflect Canada's diversity.

The Commission will be working with the Task Force to ensure that effective research is conducted to identify strengths and pinpoint areas needing work.

We will also be working closely with individual licensees to ensure meaningful progress in developing corporate plans for cultural diversity.

Canadian television drama

Our industry has demonstrated great leadership in developing the different genres of Canadian programming.

But I believe there's one form that has not yet fulfilled its great potential: television drama.

Drama is storytelling - and storytelling is close to the heart of human culture.

The Honourable Sheila Copps recently remarked: "A country that does not have access to its own stories is a country that has no soul."

In particular, I believe we need to tell our stories, in all their diversity, through strong Canadian dramatic series.

A series provides the best environment for developing our creative and production teams.

With a continuing supply of programs to be delivered, a structure is built that allows talents to emerge and skills to grow through mentoring and experience.

If our stories can't be told in that familiar and powerful weekly rhythm -- which draws the viewers back again and again -- then the stories that Canadians watch will be, more and more, the stories told by others.

Now the fact is that Canadians are great storytellers.

In just a few hours, we will learn who the winner is of the Booker Prize -- one of the most prestigious literary awards in the English-speaking world.

A hundred and thirty novels were entered.

Six made it to the short list.

Of those six, three were written by Canadians: Yann Martel, Rohinton Mistry, and Carol Shields.

Three out of six.

Now I will ask you to consider another Canadian statistic:

Zero out of ten.

Of the ten top-rated dramatic series on English Canadian television, none were created by Canadians and about Canadians.

Germany, France, Australia and French Canada -- they all have high proportions of home-grown drama in their top ten shows.

In English Canada we don't.

Poll after poll suggests that Canadians wish to remain a distinctive and independent people.

But in television we don't occupy our own prime time.

As a Canadian, I ask myself: Is this the mark of a cultural colony?

We have some anglophone audience numbers for prime time in the fall of 2001.

Out of program types that include news, information, education, sports and variety, Canadians overwhelmingly choose drama and comedy.

Within that category, 91% of the programming watched is of foreign origin and only 9% Canadian.

And those figures have been virtually unchanged for years.

So in terms of hours, our drama programming is basically a footnote to what we import.

Does that reflect the spirit of the Broadcasting Act?

It is tough to get our own dramas on the air.

As you know very well, the economics make it much more favorable for a broadcaster to present an American show rather than a Canadian show.

But are we as a broadcasting community prepared to accept the shrinking-away of our Canadian presence on the screen over the long term?

Some months ago, I invited broadcasters and other participants in the system to enter into a dialogue about these questions, and a number of you have responded.

I would now like to continue with the process of gathering your thoughts and views.

And I have asked for the help of a distinguished Canadian broadcaster, one of the new members of the Broadcast Hall of Fame - Trina McQueen.

With her talent, energy and enterprise, she has made a tremendous personal contribution to this industry.

As a top programming executive for both CBC and CTV, and as a former and current board member of the CTF, she is well aware of the issues involved in bringing drama to the television screen.

I'm happy to announce that Trina has agreed to develop a proposal on how we can bring more Canadian drama to our television screens.

She will consult with a number of you and with other stakeholders in the industry. She will also be coordinating her efforts in cooperation with the CTF, including both the licence fee programme and the equity investment programme, administered by Telefilm Canada.

She'll pull those ideas together and share her own thoughts with us.

She will develop options and proposals to create new incentives and a fresh environment for popular Canadian drama.

I thank you, Trina, for accepting this challenging assignment.

The challenge for all of us is not a small one.

A key part of the solution is to create an environment that provides opportunities for creativity, along with a climate of confidence for investment.

I invite you to work with Trina with that aim in mind.

Can we enable investment and creativity to work together?

If we can, we can give Canadians more and more access to great Canadian storytelling.

Our novelists have shown that they can get our stories onto the page.

Can we, together, find a way to get them onto the screen?

Conclusion

Before I conclude, I'd like to read you one more quotation from the Speech from the Throne:

"We need regulation to achieve the public good, and we need to regulate in a way that enhances the climate for investment and trust in the markets."

This expresses our own philosophy at the CRTC.

Without a stable, confident and economically healthy industry, our social and cultural goals for broadcasting cannot be achieved.

But without a commitment to these social and cultural goals, the long-term viability of an independent Canadian broadcasting industry may be at risk.

In the late 90's we brought in many new regulatory frameworks and we are monitoring their success.

We are updating and refining them as we go.

Our Broadcasting Policy Monitoring Report for 2002 will be released shortly; we have added sections on social issues and on the diversity of services and voices available in our broadcasting system.

We're watching with interest what broadcasters are doing in these and other areas.

Like us, you have to do a balancing act with conflicting goals and constraints.

We would like you to have the flexibility you need.

At the same time we count on you to join us in building a broadcasting system that truly reflects who we are as Canadians.

As broadcasters and regulators, we can succeed only if we recognize that we're all in this together.

In the dialogue we've had so far, my impression is that you are indeed strongly committed to moving ahead together.

That gives me confidence that we can achieve the objective we share: to build a strong and distinctively Canadian broadcasting system.

Thank you.

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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

Date Modified: 2002-10-22

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