The whole media world is going down the shitter and what comes next who the hell knows. The internet media is all well and good but that doesn’t pay the bills and most do this as a hobby. Good on Oberfeld for sticking around for us ol’ dinosaurs to still get some balls with our reporting.

I want to cheer when I see Global going down the shitter but I can’t ‘cause I know there are too many people that will end up career less. Not jobless; they will find other jobs but not doing the news. Things that just make you want to say shit……

Resurrecting ,well Harv maybe in 3 days Canwest will pull it off.
It was restructure, I intended to say, my spell check is about a bright as me, 25 watts.

(Response: Your point was still a good one. h.o.)

Maybe at one time we had stronger voices from BC,maybe news divisions closed,but as I remember we have been getting the short end of the stick forever,in fact I would gather that we have been getting our fair share of federal money, we are definately getting more in financial terms today against your era or even before.

I don`t give a rats ass what the media talks about in central Canada,the big crime in BC comes from media here in this province looking a blind eye to the corruption,theft,lies, cronyism…….

But as for BC media coverage, we are the laughing stock of Canada and it`s not the public laughing at us…it`s the mainstream media laughing at our current crop of bootlickers…Baldrey,Smyth,Palmer, Kirk Lapointe,Patricia Graham,Bill Good…Sean Leslie…..

What does it take to get one`s media credentials torn up and shredded, the media should have to pass basic ethical test or some sort of proffesional standard……Until the bought and paid for media are weeded out it will never change.Anything for a steady paycheque eh Harvey?

(Response: You’re partly correct. BC does get a better share of the fiscal federal pie than decades ago… and I know many won’t like this, but that actually began under Paul Martin and his Liberals, continued by Harper and the Tories. But you are wrong when you say we get “our fair share”. No way! From everything I’ve seen Quebec and the Maritimes still get MORE than their fair share. And Quebec gets it a lot faster too! Not to mention power and influence. As far as Canada laughing at our reporters… that’s a figment of your imagination. Name one article or commentary criticising them back East. Sure many here are critical but don’t just make it up that they’re the laughing stock across Canada, because it feels good to say it. And you also miss a big point:it’s not just about money… the lack of BC-attached reporters in Ottawa hurts us in many other ways. For eg. who is pushing the issue down there for our fair seats in the Commons, the Senate? Who has made an issue of a bill now before the Commons that would require ALL Supreme Court judges to be bilingual, expert enough to hear Supreme Court legal arguments in French .. thereby eliminating almost all BC judges .. but supported by ALL three Opposition parties and I hear some Tories too (after those Quebec votes)? When you have no one there in the media constantly raising YOUR issues or YOUR points …. your citizens just wake up one day and find things expanding Quebec or Ontario’s power were passed .. or improving BC’s role were dropped … without much of a peep. h.o.)

(Response: Exactly … and newspaper sales may be dropping, partly because of the weak stories we get from Ottawa on BC issues..but the truth is Global’s ratings are even higher. But a real news organization should fulfills its community obligations … including fighting for BC back East, and not just go after ratings and $$$. Old BCTV was really successful at bringing those two together. h.o.)

Shall we see a book edition of “Western Voice from the East,” a collection of Oberfeld survival stories from the Ottawa Press Gallery? Keeping it Real already provides many great anecdotes and I bet there are plenty more.

(Response: You’re right..it is important, and we’re on the back burner there too often because of it. Thought about a book , but to do real personal history would take a lot of detailed research work .. and if I named names of people and companies …and told everything I know and have heard them say and watched them do, I’d probably get sued. I can neither afford that nor would want to spend so much of my retirement in court. So I just pass some anecdotes along here, when an issue triggers a memory, for my friends and regular readers to hopefully enjoy. h.o. )

The one thing one can say about Quebec, is that it is at great peril that any politician or media outlet defines Quebec interests in terms of the federation. We can learn a thing or two.

It won’t be tomorrow, but maybe in a few generations where the bulk of BC’s population being immigrants, with no connection with the rest of the country, may opt to say “Adiós” to Canada.

The failure of BC’s mainstream media to give BC a presence back East and become lickspittals for politicians may have disastrous consequences in the coming years.

I once had a girl friend in Germany and on a visit in 1983, the thought of German reunification was a taboo subject, was never going to happen. Fast forward to 1990. on my last visit, I still have clear memories of clapped out Trabbies (Trabants) littering the autobahns where newly unified East Germans drove the dreadful things until they died and just left them.

Never say never.

Unfortunately consolidation of ownership of the media in general has created this situation. The conglomerates that now control the media are much more interested in their bottom line than delivering meaningful information to their customers.

The federal government has a responsibility to all of Canada, not just central Canada. One cannot expect reporters that are based and answerable to a portion of our country to deliver pertinent information to the rest of the country. Each province and territory have their own specific issues. Take for instance the missing sockeye salmon this year. Would a reporter based back east and only reporting for all of Canada really care or just consider it an area specific problem and best ignored?

Unfortunately Canada is really two provinces, Ontario and Quebec, and ten satellites. If we allow the MSM to be controlled by these two provinces then we will never really be a nation and nothing but a bit player on the world stage. We, and I include all of Canada, deserve better.

(Response: Amen! h.o.)