Media Beat: Canadian Media Warns Australia of Meta News Ban (Column)

Radiodays North America honouring its own

Scott Tucker and Maura Grierson, the morning drive duo from The Edge 102.1, host a June 3 cocktail reception that is part of the CMW-affiliated Radiodays North America events running the 2^nd through the 5th at the Westin Harbour Castle in Toronto. Sponsored by Slaight Music with associated country singer Ryan Langdon performing, two high-profile trophies will be handed out, including the first annual Pat Grierson Sales Person Awardrecipient, to Cheryl Foster from Toronto’s 93.5 Today FM; and the Allan Waters Young Broadcaster of the Year Award, to Luke Rodriguez from Virgin Radio Edmonton.

At a luncheon on Tuesday, June 4, Virgin Radio’s Myles Galloway will MC a show honouring three recipients. Dave Charles will be inducted into the Allan Waters Broadcast Hall of Fame, longstanding CFMB AM 1280 Montreal radio host Ivana Bombardieri is to receive the Rosalie Award, and David Farrell will earn a Lifetime Achievement Award for his longstanding career as a journalist covering the music and broadcast industry for more than fifty years.

Canada's media industry warns Australia on Meta news ban

Jennifer Hollett, Executive Director at The Walrus, tells Ad News that the online news act has left people feeling frustrated and confused, wondering why they can't read or share news on some social media platforms, but they find mis or disinformation, or other content that isn't fact-checked.

“Regular people in Canada who turn to their phones and computers for news and information have lost the most here,” Hollett tells AdNews. She goes on to explain that Bill C-18, as it is officially known, has caused a Canadian news blackout on Facebook.

The consequence of the controversial law is that less Canadian news is available to people who use online social platforms to keep them abreast of news at home. Open Media’s Matt Hatfield argued forcibly on the eve of the legislation’s enforcement that Bill C-18 misdiagnoses why news advertising revenue has collapsed, and who is at fault for it. “As a result, Bill C-18 ‘fixes’ the problem through a convoluted system that makes news producers increasingly dependent on and subservient to both online platforms and government, threatening their critical role in holding these powerful bodies accountable. It does nothing to bring back the local news coverage Canada has lost, and will actually encourage the spread of more low-quality news content on Canada’s Internet.”

Further inhibiting the general availability of credible news is the increasing number of news sites locked behind paywalls and the minimal tax deduction Canadians can claim for these subscriptions. For example, if you paid $500 for your digital news subscriptions, you can only claim a $75 tax credit–an amount that is a financial hindrance to many Canadians who want to be better informed.

CBC Radio boosts its online news presence

The pubcaster has two new local news streaming channels and plans to launch another 12 free local streams within a year.

Also, 19 live local CBC Radio One audio streams are available under the "local" tab in the CBC News App “so users can effectively turn their mobile device into a radio” and allow users to hear programs live from across the country while browsing articles in the app, using other apps.

This new app feature follows the recent launch of seven hyper-local podcasts in Victoria, Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Ottawa, Montreal and Charlottetown.