Office of the Official Opposition
For Immediate Release

 
St. John’s, NL (March 19, 2020) – PC Opposition Leader Ches Crosbie says, “The CBC was established by an Act of Parliament and receives enormous sums of public money to fulfil a mandate that includes ‘[reflecting] Canada and its regions to national and regional audiences, while serving the special needs of those regions’ – and it is therefore wrong of CBC Canada to cancel Newfoundland and Labrador’s local supper-hour newscast precisely at a time of crisis when those needs most need to be served.”

Regarding the CBC, Canada’s Broadcasting Act states:

46(1): “The Corporation is established for the purpose of providing the programming contemplated by paragraphs 3(1)(l) and (m), in accordance with the conditions of any licence or licences issued to it by the Commission and subject to any applicable regulations of the Commission….” https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/b-9.01/page-7.html#docCont

3(1): “It is hereby declared as the broadcasting policy for Canada that
(l) the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, as the national public broadcaster, should provide radio and television services incorporating a wide range of programming that informs, enlightens and entertains;
(m) the programming provided by the Corporation should … (ii) reflect Canada and its regions to national and regional audiences, while serving the special needs of those regions, … (vi) contribute to shared national consciousness and identity….” https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/b-9.01/page-1.html#h-34144

Crosbie said, “CBC Canada has picked an especially tough time to make this mistake, with Newfoundlanders and Labradorians seeking solid information to answer the questions about the impact of this crisis on their local communities and regions. The national newscast cannot do this the way a local newscast can because, more often than not, we are just a tiny speck on the national radar.”

“CBC Canada has made an error in judgment. As the province’s Leader of the Official Opposition, I call on them to correct that error, and I call on the province’s federal parliamentarians to follow through in ensuring that happens.”
 

Contacts:

Bradley Russell

Director of Policy and Research

(p) 1.709.729.3668

BradleyRussell@gov.nl.ca

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