Good morning, and thank you for the invitation to appear.
My name is Barry Rooke. I've been the executive director of the National Campus and Community Radio Association since 2015. I started my broadcasting career at the age of 15, volunteering at one of our member stations located in Guelph. Working in the community radio sector has had a profound impact on how I see the world and how I act within it.
The NCRA represents over 120 English campus, community and indigenous not-for-profit radio stations serving more than 100 communities across Canada, broadcasting in over 55 languages. Our entire sector is powered by approximately 900 staff, with more than 23,000 volunteers contributing the equivalent of over $40 million annually in volunteer labour—and much more through advertising and music.
We are a national system of local media deeply embedded in the communities we serve. Our member stations are often the only source of local information, whether in a rural town, on a campus or on an indigenous reserve.
Community radio is not a legacy system in decline. It's a system that has adapted. Our stations have expanded into digital streaming, podcasting and social platforms while maintaining accessible over-the-air broadcasting that provides local journalism, cultural programming and emergency broadcasting—often in areas in which commercial broadcasters have reduced service or exited entirely. In fact, I receive inquiries to start a station at least once a month, and we currently have a dozen or so stations that intend to apply for CRTC licences this year.
Despite this, the policy and funding environment has not kept pace with the role we now play. There is a structural gap in support for local journalism delivered through community broadcasters. Programs designed to support journalism under Bill C-18, the Online News Act, from 2022, have not been built with our model in mind. As a result, many of our stations, despite producing news and spoken word content under CRTC requirements, have been excluded from funding and had their social media platforms blocked—not just their ability to share news.
While the CRTC has recognized the need for sector support through the Online Streaming Act, implementation of those efforts has faced ongoing legal and structural challenges and has not resulted in any funding becoming available.
At the same time, we're seeing a continued contraction of commercial broadcasters and local journalism, as well as the closures of broadcasting and journalism schools across the country.
Finally, the economics of media have shifted dramatically. Advertising revenues have moved away from local markets. Community broadcasters who reinvest directly in local services are left out, without sustainable funding models to match the public service role. By not advertising on our stations, governments are missing out on reaching millions of people who don't have access to other local media.
Our proposed solution follows the model in Australia, which uses a small amount of core stable funding that allows the sector to do what it does best: serve the community. In Australia, the government has allocated $20 million to community broadcasters and $20 million to aboriginal broadcasters over the past 15 years. This means that a country with two-thirds of our population has close to double the number of non-profit stations and has a thriving local media sector.
Our solution is the community radio initiative. We are seeking an annual investment of $30 million—which would result in about $95,000 per station—and additional top-up funding for special projects, as well as an annual sector survey and report to ensure that the money invested is providing the expected value to the Canadian public. In practical terms, the level of funding proposed by this initiative is modest. It would support a mix of staffing and operations that would keep stations on the air and maintain their ability to provide consistent local news, emergency information and essential connections to community services, local business and public programs.
We respectfully ask that this committee include a clear recommendation in its report to fund the community radio initiative and to transmit that recommendation to the Minister of Finance and the Standing Committee on Finance as part of the upcoming budget process.
I can say for certain that many of your colleagues in this room and within your parties have found their paths to becoming an MP through one of our stations. I'm asking you for your support to ensure that the media sector remains stable so that it can do its part in Canada's democratic processes.
Thank you.