CHPC Committee Report

COMMITTEE MANDATE

"That this committee undertake a full investigation of the role for a public broadcaster in the 21^st century, an examination of the various services including the adequacy of regional programming and an examination of the issues posed by new media; the study will gather public input from stakeholders and deliver a report to the Minister advising her of our findings; this undertaking shall commence upon the return of the House in January 2007."^([319])

SUGGESTED STUDY THEMES

A. The Role of the CBC/Radio-Canada as a Public Broadcaster in the 21st Century

The overall mandate of CBC/Radio as Canada's public broadcaster is set out as follows in section 3(1)(m) of the Broadcasting Act, 1991:

Mandate of the CBC/Radio-Canada as set out in the Broadcasting Act
(1991, c. 11, B-9.01, [Assented to on 1 February 1991)

1. be predominantly and distinctively Canadian,
2. reflect Canada and its regions to national and regional audiences, while serving the special needs of those regions,
3. actively contribute to the flow and exchange of cultural expression,
4. be in English and in French, reflecting the different needs and circumstances of each official language community, including the particular needs and circumstances of English and French linguistic minorities,
5. strive to be of equivalent quality in English and in French,
6. contribute to shared national consciousness and identity,
7. be made available throughout Canada by the most appropriate and efficient means and resources become available for the purpose, and
8. reflect the multicultural and multiracial nature of Canada

• Explain how, since 1991, and to what degree CBC/Radio-Canada has carried out each part of its statutory mandate as stated above.
• List the principal changes that have occurred in the broadcasting sector in Canada and the impact these changes have had on each component of CBC/Radio-Canada's statutory mandate.
• Explain, where applicable, how the wording of each component of the CBC/Radio-Canada mandate should be modified.
• Does the governance structure of CBC/Radio-Canada continue to satisfy the needs of the Corporation and to address the new realities of the broadcasting sector in Canada? If not, what changes would need to be made?
• Would the Corporation be better able to carry out its mandate if stronger partnerships were forged between it and private broadcasters? If so, explain how.

B. Financial Portrait of CBC/Radio-Canada: Issues and Challenges

• Is CBC/Radio-Canada able to carry out its statutory mandate with the parliamentary appropriations and funding it currently receives?
• Which services offered by the Corporation have represented a greater financial burden in recent years?
• How can CBC/Radio-Canada diversify its revenue sources and increase its earnings?

C. Services Provided by CBC/Radio-Canada

• List the challenges facing the various CBC/Radio-Canada services, specifically:

- English- and French-language radio, including broadcasting in Northern Canada and Radio Canada International;

- English- and French-language satellite radio services;

- English- and French-language television, including continuous news channels (RDI, Newsworld) and partnerships with private broadcasters;

- Internet services;

- new communications and information platforms.

• How and to what extent should CBC/Radio-Canada programming be re-examined, in particular:

- news and current affairs programming;

- sports programming;

- arts and cultural programming;

- children's and youth programming.

• Does the programming provided by the various CBC/Radio-Canada services adequately account for and reflect Canada's regional and linguistic diversity?

D. The Emergence of New Media and the Future of CBC/Radio-Canada

• How and to what extent does the emergence of new media affect the way in which CBC/Radio-Canada carries out its mandate as Canada's national public broadcaster?
• Which technological changes pose a special challenge to CBC/Radio-Canada? Conversely, which changes have made the Corporation better able to carry out its mandate?
• Will the growing number of new communications and information platforms prompt the Corporation to re-evaluate some of the services it provides to Canadians?
• How and to what extent has the emergence of new media had financial implications for CBC/Radio-Canada's overall budget?
• Would it be to the advantage of CBC/Radio-Canada if the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) were to regulate the new media sector? If so, what approach should the CRTC take?
• Explain how new media help CBC/Radio-Canada better reflect the country's regional diversity, while meeting the special needs of the regions.
• How have public broadcasters in other countries been affected by new media?