Public broadcaster bungled local-news obligation

Opinion

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This article was published 26/03/2020 (1773 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In the last two weeks, many of us have become increasingly aware of the importance and value of local news and information. The daily media sessions with Premier Brian Pallister and Dr. Brent Roussin, Manitoba’s chief medical officer of health, have provided necessary updates on a situation that is in constant flux.

Mayor Brian Bowman, flanked by Jason Shaw, the city of Winnipeg’s emergency operations centre manager, held a news conference Tuesday afternoon to announce the city is not yet in a state of emergency, but continues to monitor the situation.

Now more than ever, local news matters.

CBC, Canada’s public broadcaster, seemed to forget that important lesson last week and, in a stunningly tone-deaf decision, cut most local supper-hour and late-night newscasts, including CBC Manitoba’s. The decision, according to the broadcaster’s news release, was driven by COVID-19: “A story of this magnitude — one that changes by the hour — places incredible demands on our staff and our infrastructure in order to get the most accurate and up-to-date information to audiences.

“Television is especially resource-intensive, and many jobs are difficult to do at home. Our systems are overtaxed, and we had to make adjustments as a result. So, we made the difficult decision to temporarily lessen that load and consolidate production to ensure we can continue providing an essential service to Canadians.”

What a bunch of nonsense. A publicly funded television network decides to eliminate its local news broadcasts because there’s too much to cover? Meanwhile, other local newsrooms, including the Winnipeg Free Press, Global and CTV, continue to operate, and none of them has the benefit of the extensive government funding on which the CBC can rely.

Reaction was swift.

In Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island, politicians filed complaints with both Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland (as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau remains in self-isolation) and Canadian Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault. Prince Edward Island Premier Dennis King wrote in a statement, “With the health and safety of Islanders at the forefront, it is vital that we continue to share the latest information with Islanders in real time. It is my opinion that now is not the time for the CBC to suspend its local news programming.”

Newfoundland’s opposition leader, Ches Crosbie, also weighed in last week, saying the CBC “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.”

Industry officials also had their say. The former president of CTV news wrote in the Globe and Mail: “Shame on the CBC for closing its local newscasts amid the coronavirus pandemic,” suggesting that now was the time for the beleaguered public broadcaster to “re-establish its local credentials.” Robert Hurst added that COVID-19 isn’t to blame for CBC’s woes; mismanagement is.

This week, CBC relented somewhat and announced that beginning Wednesday, it would start to provide television news “for local audiences with an expanded 30-minute local news segment on CBC News Network. Viewers in all our regions will see their trusted anchors back on air reporting the local news that pertains to their communities. Over the course of this week and next, we will make every effort to have all of the dedicated local shows back up on the main network.”

But CBC’s television side is struggling. In Manitoba, CTV has long dominated local news ratings, with CBC typically competing with Global for distant-second ranking. In most other cities, CBC’s broadcasts are dead last in the market competition with CTV, Global and others. The decision to suspend local newscasts may not have even been noticed in many cities.

Why should we care if no one watches? Having more voices in media means having more opportunities to challenge the status quo. More opportunities for insight. More opportunities for investigation. More opportunities to challenge.

If the CBC does eventually make the decision to cut its losses and rejig its suppertime newscasts, it may not fly with the minister who oversees the public broadcaster’s funding. Guilbeault’s mandate letter is clear: “Strengthen the regional mandate of CBC/Radio-Canada to broadcast more local news and require CBC/Radio-Canada to open up its digital platform.” The Liberals’ re-election campaign included a promise to increase CBC’s base funding by $150 million a year. More money and more local news do not equate to any type of consolidation in the face of falling ratings.

The federal broadcast regulator is in the process of renewing CBC/Radio-Canada’s licence, with public hearings currently scheduled for May (although the proceedings will likely be delayed due to COVID-19). Hopefully, the importance of the public broadcaster as a provider of news, public information and Canadian culture will be reinforced. And perhaps there should be a stern reminder that as a public broadcaster, shutting the doors to local news coverage in the midst of a pandemic is not acceptable. That should also be a memo sent out during budget considerations next year.

Shannon Sampert is a retired political scientist who now works as a media consultant with her company Media Diva.

s.sampert@uwinnipeg.ca

Twitter: @paulysigh