Report recommends CBC/Radio-Canada gradually eliminates advertising

OTTAWA — A new report on modernizing Canada’s communications laws is recommending the CBC/Radio-Canada gradually eliminate advertising on all platforms over the next five years.

The Broadcasting and Telecommunications Legislative Review Panel report released today recommends transforming the “public broadcaster into a public media institution with a singular focus on serving a public rather than a commercial purpose.” It suggests getting rid of advertising should start with news content.

The report is the final one from a six-member panel created in June 2018 by the ministers of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, and Canadian Heritage.

The panel reviewed Canada’s decades-old Broadcasting, Telecommunications and Radiocommunication Acts.

The report says CBC/Radio-Canada should be “prepared to experiment and increase the diversity of its content while remaining committed to high-quality standards.”

Sally Catto, general manager of programming for CBC English Television, has said the CBC is “a hybrid public broadcaster” that not only relies on government funding but on advertising revenue.

With that, the CBC has recently focused on programming that appeals to advertisers and sponsors, including “Family Feud Canada” and “Battle of the Blades.”

The new report also recommends “that CBC/Radio-Canada should reflect national, regional and local communities to national, regional and local audiences, and reflect Indigenous Peoples and promote Indigenous cultures and languages.

“In this way, Canadians would have access to content from different parts of the country that reflects their values, cultures and perspectives.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 29, 2020.

The Canadian Press