In January, the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Legislative Review Panel released its report ‘Canada’s Communications Future: Time to Act’. The recommendations are sprawling; some are wise and timely, others are invasive and unnecessary, advocating a highly regulated internet and an interventionist communications regulator in service of, among other things, the future of Canadian content and culture on the internet, in the broadcast sphere, and beyond.
But what the panel and its defenders take for granted cannot simply be asserted. We must ask: Does Canadian content need saving?
On episode 12 of Open to Debate, David Moscrop talks about the BTLR review, Canadian content and culture, the future of the CBC, and more with Daniel Bernhard, Executive Director of the advocacy organization Friends of Canadian Broadcasting.