Keeping it Real…

Even those who aren’t impressed with the Global or CTV networks should be pulling very hard for them to emerge successfully from their  current financial woes.

But a financial bailout or loosening of the foreign ownership rules by the federal government to accomodate the networks will make things worse not better in the long run: they will totally lose their political independence  and credibility in the eyes of most viewers.

Any readers of the blog will know I have often criticized the current quality of a lot of television programming and especially the local news content: but I believe each of the stations and the national private networks still serve a crucial role in keeping Canadians in various-sized communities informed (even if poorly) of what is going on their city, region, province and country.

But a federal bailout is  not needed … and it would make the quality of their news coverage even more questionnable.

I believe under the current corporate setup, he who pays the piper at the private stations now calls the tune much more than ever before at most Canadian television stations today. 

And I don’t feel the editorial independence of newsrooms even comes close to what it used to be. Government bucks or a regulatory bailout would make things even worse.

Does anyone remember the days of the Dirty Tricks scandal in B.C.?  The relentless pursuit of politicians and their aides by BCTV in the early 1970s ended up almost bringing the provincial government down … and the investigative work we did ended up with at least 8 government officials losing their jobs and the revelation of secret bank accounts to fund Social Credit election activities.

I understand the pressure at the time behind the scenes on BCTV’s  top executives to stop it all was relentless from “friends” of the government … powerful people with direct and  indirect access to advertisers.

But to their credit, the top station brass allowed the newsroom soldier on, ferreting out the truth: the only admonition I recall to newsroom management was that “we’d better be right”!

And we were.

It was a glorious reporting experience for me as a fairly new part of the BCTV team, but frankly,  I don’t think those stories would ever be pursued with such depth today. (Take a look at the quality … or lack …  of the BC Rail coverage!)

I don’t have faith that today’s private television’s top brass would devote the time, the effort, the resources, the money or possess the journalistic principles or independence to pursue stories that would so offend the top political establishment or their business and advertising allies.

And that’s BEFORE getting any financial aid from any party in power.

Today’s political coverage, in my opinion on private television stations and networks,  is already too “Hansardian” at best, absolutely lazy at its worst … almost totally devoid of any on-going investigative efforts and reported by “journalists” who too often seem to me to be  too cosy with the politicians they cover.

All of it supervised by managers who I also  feel are so beaten down by “doing more with less” they lack the motivation, the top brass’ backing or the budgets to make major changes.  So we get what we get.

And just  imagine what could happen if the Conservative government (even with Liberal or NDP support) gave financial support (directly or through imposed cable carriage fees) or changed the ownership rules to allow foreign companies to take over and/or control Canadian television stations!!!

It would be a total sellout of broadcast integrity of national proportions: the stations and the network would be beholding to the government and/or the political parties that bailed them out … and I firmly believe the parties, when it suits them, would indirectly remind the private network brass of their “I.O.U”s .. make no mistake about it.

I have not forgotten that Global and CTV already brought disgrace on themselves, two weeks before last fall’s provincial by-elections, when they both allowed Premier Gordon Campbell 12 full minutes of uninterupted broadcast time on their major 6 p.m. newscasts.

I felt they were clearly taking sides when they denied NDP leader Carole James the same availability.  And that all occurred without any financial or regulatory indebtedness  behind it.

With federal funds flowing  to the private networks or special legislation easing up on foreign owenership rules, thus allowing an easier financial bailout, I worry  it wouldn’t take long for a new policy to be well understood by the different levels of news management at all the private stations … don’t bite the hand that fed us!!!

So what is the financial solution?

Let the ailing private television networks get rid of all those other encumberances and expansions they pursued and acquired during their Golden Age of Greed.

I don’t believe the television operations themselves are the problem.

In fact, Global CEO Leonard Asper reportedly told employees last November that the network’s television operations had recorded a $500 MILLION OPERATING PROFIT in the previous year.

And with that … they need a bailout???

CBC gets and deserves federal funding because it serves a much wider public role than CTV or Global.  From what I’ve observed, private television spends only a small fraction of what the CBC does on news stories in remote parts of the country, foreign news bureaus,  political coverage (especially federal),  Canadian drama production, public event broadcasts (like Rememberance Day), community sports,  the North, televising town forums or other unique Canadian original programming, like comedy shows or specials like The Next Great Prime Minister, aired just last week.

You don’t have to like it all … but  the CBC does more than just rebroadcast American shlock and rake in the revenues from all the simulcast shows.

Global and CTV’s Canadian programming  doesn’t come close  to what the CBC does, in both official languages. And there has been no indication that, with federal aid, CTV or Global would do anything to increase any of that coverage.  To the contrary …  both have applications before the CRTC to CUT their local stations, scope and even local news programming.

The private networks’ push for carriage fees from cable companies should also be rejected.

Unlike other second and third tier channels that do receive carriage fees, CTV and Global are carried on BASIC cable … you can’t choose whether or  not to receive them.  They take in BILLIONS extra  from advertising revenues, thanks to their viewers’ “captive”  position on basic cable.

Sure, time are tough right now … but what about the HUGE profits they were pulling in before the recession and will return to after it ends. They don’t need or deserve carriage fees or public assistance.    

If they get carriage fees, the consumer should also be given the choice of whether or not to sign up for the stations. And if the CRTC allows us to be bilked ..I mean billed … for an extra fee for CTV and Global, what about NBC, CBS, ABC etc…shouldn’t they get fees as well! 

The solution for CTV and Global lies in divesting themselves of the non-television anchors they placed around their own necks.  And political handouts will do them … and Canadian television …  more harm than good: destroying whatever crediblity they still have with their viewers.

Harv Oberfeld

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