Community TV Review Backgrounder
Submitted by Cathy Edwards on Tue, 2009-12-15 03:42.CRTC Public Notice of Consultation 2009-661 (available at: http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/archive/2009/2009-661-1.htm in English or http://www.crtc.gc.ca/fra/archive/2009/2009-661-1.htm en francais) invited the public to comment on the performance of Canadian community television channels for the first time in eight years.
Under the Canadian Broadcasting Act, the broadcasting system consists of three elements: public (the CBC and provincial broadasters), private (over-the-air channels like Global as well as specialty channels like Discovery), and community. The community element is meant to enable the public that owns the broadcast system the opportunity to participate directly as program producers.
The dead-line for public comment was February 1st.
For comparison, a report written by TimeScape Productions about community television in other countries is available here.
There is very little information provided in the public notice about the performance of community TV channels in Canada, however. CACTUS is concerned about this absence and requested under Access to Information legislation for information that all cable companies are required to keep: logs of hours of "community-access" programming, the titles of such programs, and the names of parties provided access. We received a letter back from the CRTC saying that while it is true that cable companies must collect and keep such information for one year, since the CRTC itself has never requested such information, it cannot provide us with this information. We had asked for information going back to 1990. So, the CRTC's reply is in effect an admission that it has not monitored the cable industry's spending of more than $100,000,000 annually on "community programming" in almost 20 years.
CACTUS Gets Press in MediaCaster and TechMedia Reports
The CRTC public notice has been posted for the community television review. You can read it at:
http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/archive/2009/2009-661.htm
As with most policy reviews, the Commission poses specific questions. We will be posting an analysis of what the questions mean this week and next, as it's not always obvious, even if you are familiar with previous hearings and the minutiae of CRTC policy.
In the mean time, the press for the hearings has begun. CACTUS was quoted in both MediaCaster last week at:
http://www.mediacastermagazine.com/issues/ISarticle.asp?aid=1000345465&PC=
and (incorrectly) by TechMedia Report at:
http://www.techmediareports.ca/reports/content/10001-municipalities_should_have_a_bigger_say_in_how_community_channels_are_managed_cactus
(CACTUS spokesperson, Cathy Edwards, did not in fact propose that boards of independent community TV channels should be appointed by municipalities or locally elected officials, although municipality representation and support will be important.)
If you have press contacts that could give exposure to CACTUS' proposals for a revitalized independent community television sector, please contact us (see the About page). We need to encourage as many individual Canadians and community organizations that have used community channels to publicize their activities and events to intervene with their views at the hearings.
Thanks!
Chetwynd Community TV (CHET TV)
Combined radio and TV service serving Chetwynd and Dawson Creek
Hay River TV
Access Communications (33 channels)
A cable co-operative with six access studios serving 33 communities in Saskatchewan. See http://www.access7.ca/contact.php for contact info.
Fédération des télévisions communautaires autonomes du Québec (44 members)
A mix of community television corporations that run a community channel on behalf of a cable operator, or which provide programming for part of the programming week of a cable operator. For the full list see: http://www.fedetvc.qc.ca/
Westman Cable Group (19 channels)
Nineteen cable co-op owned access channels in Manitoba. For the full list, see: https://myaccount.westmancom.com/aboutUs/psa.php
CFTV Leamington Community Television
To bring to the community a locally owned and operated low power television broadcasting facility designed to service the information needs of the local population. Our schools, businesses, town councils, and special events deserve an in-depth local voice and exposure. Provide a local news source covering local activities.
ICTV Independent Community Television Cooperative
offer training and equipment for the production of television that reflects the local community. ICTV offers a place for voices and ideas that are excluded from the commercial and public broadcast systems. ICTV programming airs on Shaw Cable 4 in the Lower Mainland.
Ash-Creek Television Society
Contact: David Durksen Distributes OTA as well as giving their feed to Copper Valley cable. Airs a community bulletin text service, local business sponsorship messages, council meetings, election coverage, and special events such as car rallies, parades. No paid staff.
