OTTAWA – Calling Canadians’ local television needs “fundamentally important objectives of Canada’s broadcasting policy”, the Canadian Association of Community Television Users and Stations (CACTUS) said that the upcoming analog-digital transition could breathe new life in to community television.
In a statement issued prior to its appearance at Monday’s CRTC hearing, CACTUS said that independent community TV organizations, such as those in Valemont and Ash Creek, BC, could help remote private and public signals remain available over the air to all communities, regardless of size.
The group also contrasted the amount of original, local TV programming produced by independent community TV channel NACTV in Neepawa, MB with Shaw. It calculated that NACTV produced 2,200 hours with a budget of about $80,000 this year, while Shaw cablecast 5832 hours of locally produced programming per week (including repeats) throughout its 54 systems for $64 million.
"It’s shocking that Shaw and other big BDUs are promoting the community access TV they are required to provide as a competitor for private broadcasting, when they are actually doing fewer original hours than community-run services such as NACTV", said spokesperson Cathy Edwards, in the statement.
