Nirmala Naidoo to the Annual Conference of the British Columbia Association of Broadcasters

Richmond, British Columbia
May 7, 2024

Nirmala Naidoo, Regional Commissioner for Alberta and the Northwest Territories
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC)

Check against delivery

Introduction

Thank you for the kind introduction.

Before I begin, I would like to acknowledge that we are meeting on the traditional unceded territory of the Musqueam First Nation. I acknowledge the many Indigenous communities located in Western Canada, and pay respect to these Nations and their Elders.

I’m delighted to participate in your annual conference. Even though she couldn’t be here today, my fellow Commissioner, Claire Anderson, extends a warm greeting to you.

As I was preparing my remarks for today, I saw the welcome message that Rob [Brimacombe, BCAB President] drafted for this event. In it, he referenced the headwinds that media companies face today, many of which are too much to manage for any single station group or market. He went on to say that there is much to be gained, and change to be made, when broadcasters work as a single entity.

I couldn’t agree more. I want to use my time today to go through some of the challenges we at the CRTC are seeing in the broadcasting sector. And I’ll tell you about the progress we’re making – with the input and assistance of many of you – to lessen the impact of those headwinds and make your sailing smoother.

That’s something that matters to me personally. I am passionate about broadcasting and journalism. Before I joined the Commission, I worked as a television journalist and anchor in Canada and around the world. I’ve seen firsthand how broadcasting connects people and can lift them higher. Access to a fair and equitable communications system that allows dissemination of crucial information, no matter who you are or where you are, is the cornerstone of democracy. Conversely, as someone of colour who was born in apartheid South Africa, I’ve seen how unfair and inequitable access to communications systems, and specifically broadcasting and news, can do the opposite.

It’s with these experiences in mind, and a desire to give back and serve the greater good, that I joined the CRTC. My fellow Commissioners and I, and the staff at the CRTC, are moving quickly to modernize Canada’s broadcasting framework.

Key to that process is ensuring that Canadians have access to regional news and local information, and that Canada maintains a vibrant and diverse broadcasting landscape.

Online Streaming Act implementation

Much of our work in that regard concerns the implementation of the changes made to the Broadcasting Act by the Online Streaming Act. At the time of your conference last year, we had just published our regulatory plan setting out an approach in three phases. We had also launched our initial consultations.

A year later, I can say that we are making progress on our goal of building a regulatory framework that is flexible and can adapt to disruption. That is in large part thanks to all those who have participated in our consultations over the last year.

We updated our regulatory plan yesterday. It provides details on the consultations we have planned on several key matters as we transition into the second phase.

Let me explain.

Later this year, we are moving forward with a consultation on public interest participation that will explore new ways to fund participation of groups that represent the public interest in our processes. We want to ensure the public records we build are reflective of all of Canada.

This is key for us. The public records we build through our consultations must be as robust and diverse as possible if it is to lead us to decisions that are in the public interest. We’re aware that our public records are not always as comprehensive as they could be. That’s in part because access to CRTC processes is not easy for some groups. Many don’t even know they can participate in our processes, let alone how to do so.

That consultation on public interest participation will be followed by a series of other activities during the winter and spring of next year. Among these is a consultation on structural relationships in the broadcasting sector.  We intend to examine the relationships among small, medium and large players, in traditional broadcasting and online streaming services. The CRTC will look at the tools we currently have in place, and what tools we might use in the future. A public hearing is planned as part of this proceeding.

That brings us to three other consultations, all of which will also be supported by public hearings.

One will study all aspects of radio and audio streaming services in Canada. We will examine issues including how to support the industry, support Canadian music, how to define audio content, and what regulatory obligations should exist.  

Another will examine possible changes to the definition of Canadian content for television and online programming.

The third will study how to ensure everyone has access to strong, high-quality and diverse local and national news programming on TV, radio, and online.

As I mentioned earlier, news is a subject very close to my heart. Make no mistake: journalism is what maintains democracy. It shines a light on truth, allows people to witness history unfold, and holds those in power accountable. It is the heartbeat of democracy. But at this point in the 21^st century, news and journalism are under threat on a variety of fronts, including budget cuts.

Those challenges say nothing of the erosion of news at a local level. We care deeply about the ongoing health and viability of local content, news, and information. They are often the only linkages providing communities with critical information on events that directly affect their lives.

A public hearing will follow the consultation on news programming.

Another series of consultations will look at how the broadcasting system can better reflect the experiences of all people in Canada and foster access to diverse voices and perspectives.

I know this sounds like a lot and, to be frank, it is.  But we firmly believe that these processes are the important next steps to setting up the broadcasting, production and creative sectors for longer-term success. These processes are critical to our goals and they will be followed by the other processes to finalize overall contributions framework that all players will work under in the future.

All of these consultations are how we build the public records upon which we base our decisions. It’s how we create a broadcasting framework that makes sense for everyone—for businesses, for creators, and for Canadians at large.

Co-developing the Indigenous Broadcasting Policy

Absent from this list, you may have noted, is the Indigenous broadcasting policy. I wanted to call particular attention to our work on this front.

Let me bring you up to speed.

The current Indigenous broadcasting policy was adopted in 1990. Much has changed in the media landscape and in Canadian society since, and so we are working to modernize the policy. How can we ensure that Indigenous stories and voices are represented, easily found and shared across all platforms?

The answer is not ours alone to find. From the outset, this process has been defined by co-development. We know any updates to this policy requires Indigenous participation and solutions.

There’s no use in creating another policy for Indigenous broadcasting that doesn’t place the ideas and interests of Indigenous creators, audiences and broadcasters front and centre. Our co-development process seeks to ensure that the voices and perspectives of Indigenous peoples are reflected in the broadcasting system.

We launched phase one of the process in 2019 where we engaged with Indigenous radio and television broadcasters; film, television and music content creators; and experts within the Indigenous broadcasting sector to identify key themes and challenges relating to the broadcasting system.

While we lost some momentum during the pandemic, those engagement sessions informed the second phase of the process, which launched in March of this year. We issued a notice of consultation that asked questions and invited views on how we can co-develop a new policy that meets the needs and interests of Indigenous audiences, broadcasters, and content creators.

To facilitate participation, we developed a summary of the notice for those who are less familiar with CRTC processes and who prefer to focus on just a handful of key issues rather than all the nuances outlined in the full notice. We published that summary notice in seven Indigenous languages, as well as English and French.

All that said, the comment period is now very much open, and will remain so until July 22. Anyone who is interested can participate through our usual channels or through the CRTC Conversations platform. As another option, those who are interested can hold a community-led engagement session and submit a summary of the discussions. We are accepting all submissions in Indigenous languages, as well as in English and French.

During the first phase of the co-development process, and in other recent proceedings, we heard that our processes could be more accessible for Indigenous peoples and that we need to improve our engagement.

In response to this, we have created an Indigenous Relations Team within the CRTC. Announced this past March and launching in June, its role is to support Indigenous participation in CRTC proceedings and ensure the distinct nature and lived experiences of Indigenous peoples are considered across our work.

The team is assisting in the creation of the Indigenous broadcasting policy, so I encourage anyone interested in contributing to the process to reach out the team.

They will also work with our colleagues inside the CRTC to develop and share best practices for creating and maintaining meaningful relationships with Indigenous groups, communities and partners.

This won’t end with the launch of the Indigenous broadcasting policy. The team will continue to be a key player in our broadcasting and telecom proceedings that the CRTC holds long after this process concludes, ensuring Indigenous perspectives are represented and considered across all of our work. I encourage you to check out our website to learn more.

Updates on forthcoming decisions

In the time I have left, I want to give you quick updates on two other processes that are before the CRTC, and which I’m sure are of interest.

The first is our upcoming decision on initial base contributions by online streaming services. As I expect you know, the CRTC wants to build a contribution framework that is flexible enough to account for different business models. We are examining if online streaming services should make initial base contributions to support the Canadian broadcasting system and, if so, where those funds should be directed.

We held a public hearing on the issue last fall, and we’re expecting to publish our decision soon.

The other is on the Online News Act. Our consultation on the regulatory framework for the Act closed last month, and we have been hard at work developing a framework that will support fair commercial agreements between news organizations in Canada and major online platforms that distribute their news content.

In December, the Department of Canadian Heritage announced an agreement under which Google would contribute $100 million to Canadian news organizations that wish to receive compensation under the Act. The company recently completed an open call for applications and will provide the list of applicants to the CRTC for publication soon.

Meanwhile, online platforms have until June 16 to notify the CRTC whether the Online News Act applies to them. We expect some may ask for an exemption from bargaining. We will examine any such requests thoroughly to understand the rationale and implications.

Finally, later this year, we will issue a call for proposals for an independent auditor, who will prepare an annual report on the impact of the Act on Canada’s digital news marketplace.

We expect to start publishing the decisions that set out this important regulatory framework later this year. Stay tuned.

Conclusion

I’ll wrap up my remarks by coming back to where I began: to Rob’s message introducing this conference, and specifically the headwinds faced by broadcasters today.

I sympathize. Continuing to deliver high-quality services to your audiences in the face of these pressures – and others – is not easy.

Yet, as Rob went on to say, there’s much to be gained and many changes to be made when people work together.

The CRTC shares this view.

We absolutely understand and appreciate the vital role you all play within your communities – the information you provide, the fundraising your support and the linkages you create – that cannot be found elsewhere.

We’re building a broadcasting framework that supports our shared goals and allows you to continue to provide Canadians with the news and content they need.

All the work that I’ve detailed today, the work that is ongoing now, and the work that is to come, supports this ambitious goal. But this work needs to be supported by public records that are as complete as possible.

That’s where you come in. Participate in our processes. Talk to us.

If you have questions about our processes, or about our work, please reach out. We have a call line dedicated to broadcasters. You can call us any time at 866-893-0932 on any issue. We are here to help. I can’t say that often enough.

Our doors are always open, and we understand the challenges you face.

Thank you.