I’VE BEEN COVERING this business since 1997 but not until now do I have my first ever actual submission, well co-submission, to the CRTC. It’s not a traditional one but I do hope Cartt.ca readers – and anyone else for that matter – find it interesting.
When we first heard of the Commission’s idea for flash conferences as a way to inform its overhaul of the policies governing television in Canada, I immediately wondered what I could do in Cartt.ca’s hometown of Hamilton, Ont. It’s a neat idea and kudos to whomever came up with it at the Regulator.
Since I’m on the advisory board of Mohawk College’s journalism program, I e-mailed Kurt Muller, the co-ordinator of the school’s j-school and former CTV reporter to see if he was interested in doing something together. Happily he was, and on November 21st, while Kurt ran around Phil Donahue-style with a mic, trailed by two intrepid students with cameras, I asked a class of about 40 first year journalism students the three questions the CRTC has put to Canadians:
What do you think about what’s on television?
What do you think about how you receive television programming?
Do you have enough information to make informed choices and seek solutions if you’re not satisfied?
I found it to be an enlightening 55 or so minutes as the students didn’t hold back about what they don’t like about television, as well as what they like, how they get their TV (to the surprise of no one, I hope, very few of them actually use TV sets…), and what confuses them.
They had some fascinating ideas on Canadian content, TV news, American programming, Canadianized American programming, the costs of television, the CBC, the frustration of copyright (nearly all know how to get around geo-blocking, btw), choice, bundling, and how they believe our system should change.
Some of these kids are future TV reporters, writers, field producers and so on, so their thoughts about the medium they’re training for is important. Please enjoy (and don’t hold back with the criticism, especially of me).
As well, this won’t be the final Cartt.ca co-submission to the TV Policy Review. We recently teamed up with CHCH who allowed me to take mic and cameraman to #talktv with the people of Hamilton and Oakville – and we hope to do something soon with our community channel Cable 14.
We’ll post those as we finish them – and keep you posted, too.
