Thank you, and welcome to the committee.
Mr. Casgrain, you must have an opinion about....
First of all, I'd like to go to the distinction between radio and television. We've heard from many witnesses during the ongoing study this committee is doing on the mandate of the CBC, and we've heard a lot of them wish that CBC television were like CBC radio. They seem to apply the radio model to television and suggest there should be no advertising on television--if CBC radio can do it and be distinctive, then why can't CBC television do it and be distinctive? I'd like your opinion on that, because there are many people who suggest we should take advertising off television. I'm not sure the two models are comparable, and I'm not sure we're comparing apples and apples.
Just last night on TV, I believe, Lorna Jackson was retiring, and she made a statement that gave voice to what I felt but couldn't put words to: that radio is different, that the relationship between the listener and the medium is more intimate. She said it was like a friend. I'm not sure television has the same rapport with the viewer, and I'm not sure you can apply one model to the other. I would like your thoughts on that generally, but also and more specifically on whether you think the CBC should push to become totally advertising-free over the medium term.