Evidence of meeting #19 for Canadian Heritage in the 39th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was broadcasters.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:50 p.m.
Conservative
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NDP
Bill Siksay NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
Thank you, Chair.
Thank you for being with us, Mr. von Finckenstein. We appreciate you and your colleagues taking the time.
I wonder if you could tell us when the existing standards were established and if there's been any review of them since that time.
4:50 p.m.
Chair, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
My colleague, Scott Hutton, will answer that.
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Scott Hutton Associate Executive Director, Broadcasting, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
I think they were initially established in 1993, and there was a review in 1997. There has not been a formal review of them since that time.
4:50 p.m.
NDP
Bill Siksay NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
Were there any changes made in 1997, at the time of that review?
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Associate Executive Director, Broadcasting, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
There were some adjustments.
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NDP
Bill Siksay NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
Okay.
I would be interested in knowing the number of complaints related to violence that have been dealt with. Can you give us some of those statistics?
4:50 p.m.
Associate Executive Director, Broadcasting, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
Yes.
According to our statistics—and these are both complaints that come to the CRTC and those that are referred to the CBSC—for the last full year that we have a formal report published, we have about 125 complaints on the issue of violence, and our statistics for this year are tracking about the same.
4:50 p.m.
NDP
Bill Siksay NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
Can you tell us how those were resolved? What was the final outcome of those complaints? Was any action taken against broadcasters in light of those complaints?
4:50 p.m.
Associate Executive Director, Broadcasting, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
Approximately 50% of them are resolved upon first discussion. The first step is always to ask the broadcaster to respond, and to respond both to the body that's reviewing the entity and to the complainant. Approximately 50% of them are resolved at that level. Then it goes beyond to a question of interpretation, and you end up with a situation in which you have a small minority of all of those that come to the CRTC. There are about three to five a year for which we end up finding an issue with the occurrence.
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NDP
Bill Siksay NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
Are those three to five the ones for which the broadcaster would be disciplined in some way?
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Associate Executive Director, Broadcasting, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
Yes.
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NDP
Bill Siksay NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
Can you tell us what kinds of discipline have happened recently, maybe in the most recent years?
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Associate Executive Director, Broadcasting, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
Basically, most of the discipline that has occurred before the CRTC has been regarding the issuance of a public decision outlining the failing, and a discussion at the renewal period.
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NDP
Bill Siksay NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
Has there ever been a restriction placed on a licence renewal or a shortening of a licence, or even the outright refusal of a licence, related to a complaint related to violence?
4:50 p.m.
Associate Executive Director, Broadcasting, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
We have not had such cases in television and not with respect to violence.
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NDP
Bill Siksay NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
Okay.
In the opening statement it was mentioned that there was a process directly to the CRTC for broadcasters who weren't part of the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council.
Are there any broadcasters that aren't members of that, other than the CBC and educational broadcasters?
4:50 p.m.
Associate Executive Director, Broadcasting, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
Yes. The majority of private broadcasters are members of the CBSC, but there are a minority that are not. The complaints for those broadcasters come directly to the CRTC, and we follow through in applying the CAB's code with those broadcasters.
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NDP
Bill Siksay NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
Can you characterize that group in some way? Are they independent broadcasters? Is it a particular network? How would you characterize that group?
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Associate Executive Director, Broadcasting, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
I would say the major broadcasters are all members, with the exception of the public broadcasters, and then there would be more smaller entities.
4:50 p.m.
NDP
Bill Siksay NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
Okay.
When I was poking around doing some research, I found a letter from Mr. Spicer, I guess a predecessor of Mr. von Finckenstein's. He talked about the children's agenda of the CRTC and a formula of 80-10-10, which was 80% public education programs, 10% technological solutions, like the V-chip, and 10% voluntary code. Is that still a direction of the CRTC? Do you still put efforts into public education around the issue of violence, particularly with regard to children? Can you talk a bit about whether that initiative is still in place?
4:55 p.m.
Chair, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
I must say that the question is totally a surprise. There were three predecessors before me. I am not aware of this policy. Our policy right now is very clear, and I'll enunciate it. Basically, we feel that the code and the way it has been administered through the CBSC, which has been exemplary, addresses the issue.
4:55 p.m.
NDP
Bill Siksay NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
That would seem to be a fairly significant change, if that is the case, because Mr. Spicer said that only 10% of the CRTC's effort was going to voluntary codes and 90% was in other directions. I'm just wondering if you could maybe say why that kind of significant change might have happened.
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Associate Executive Director, Broadcasting, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
I think the broadcasters continue. There are a few efforts that have been put in place. I think the 80-10-10 may be a little bit beyond our memory.
What is occurring right now is certainly through the voluntary system. It's one of the great things about the voluntary system. Broadcasters, which are in the business of getting messages out, do publicize the various efforts that are put in place, be it the existence of the CBSC or the existence of a complaint mechanism. They broadcast also when they fail. That is one of the recourses the CBSC relates to. So the message does get out through the broadcasting side.
It is the same thing with the advisories before programming, during commercial breaks. You have the ratings that are announced and published for every program. So there is a continuing effort, and it's through the broadcasters. It's not an ongoing effort by the CRTC.
4:55 p.m.
Chair, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
You're talking about a totally different time period. This was long before we had the Internet and all sorts of new media and other....
