OPINION: Behind the headlines in the television war: Is truth the first casualty?

By Michael Janigan, PIACTHE CURRENT SPECTACLE of Canada’s television networks engaged in a pie-throwing contest with the cable and satellite industry seems as confusing to the viewer as an episode of “Lost”.For one thing, the mantle of “consumer champion” sits uneasily on the shoulders of the distributors – the cable and satellite companies, whose own offerings are crammed with services owned by them that hoover up ever-increasing subscriber fees. In turn, some Canadians are startled to learn that there still is significant local broadcasting, after over two decades of damaging cuts to such programming. The facts are that the dynamics...