By Connie Thiessen
CBC NEWS HAS announced the closure of the public broadcaster’s China bureau, citing its inability to secure visas for its journalists from the Chinese government to work as permanent correspondents.
Brodie Fenlon, CBC News’ editor-in-chief and executive director of programs and standards, outlined the broadcaster’s ongoing efforts to facilitate coverage abroad in a blog post published Wednesday.
CBC has had a China bureau for 40 years, however its last Beijing correspondent, Saša Petricic, returned to Canada as the pandemic took hold. Its journalists have only returned for the 2022 Winter Olympics, under heavily restricted conditions.
While efforts have been made since 2020…
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OTTAWA – During another meeting of the heritage committee yesterday on Bill C-18, the Online News Act, witnesses indicated there are better ways to address the country’s journalism crisis and argued the bill will not help small news organizations.
Philip Palmer, president of the Internet Society Canada chapter told the committee a broader levy applied to social media platforms and search engines and an independent body to allocate funding would be a better approach to the problems facing Canadian news organizations than Bill C-18, which he said, “threatens the efficiency of news retrieval on the Internet and the ability of…
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VANCOUVER – Telus International today announced it is acquiring full-service digital product provider WillowTree for a total enterprise value of US$1.23 billion, inclusive of US$210 million of assumed debt.
WillowTree, which focuses on end-user experience, was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia. It operates 13 global studios.
“The company’s more than 1,000 digital strategists, designers, engineers and project managers partner with iconic brands on mission critical, large-scale initiatives, delivering world-class digital products that bridge the highest quality customer experiences with measurable performance,” a press release says.
“WillowTree’s client roster includes Fortune 500 companies across key verticals including telecommunications and…
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Internet, cable/TV subscriptions are lesser priorities
TORONTO — More than 80% of newcomers sign up for a wireless account within a month of arriving in Canada, according to consumer research firm Solutions Research Group’s (SRG) Newcomers to Canada 2022 study, released today.
Getting a wireless account is as much of a priority for newcomers as opening a bank account and finding a place to live, according to the study, which was based on interviews conducted in late spring/early summer 2022 with 970 newcomers and 531 Canadian “general population” respondents.
In comparison, 65% of newcomers to Canada signed up with an Internet provider…
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Are we getting closer?
By Denis Carmel
OTTAWA – This morning the Standing Committee on Transport and Communications (TRCM) heard from Abacus Data, Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN), David Bussières, a singer and producer, Documentary Organization of Canada (DOC) and the Canada Media Fund (CMF).
Abacus
David Coletto, CEO of the polling firm Abacus, was taken to task by some when Abacus published a survey done for Google on Bill C-18 but was left alone when it appeared he would not talk about the results, which are proprietary.
SOCAN and David Bussières
They were clear: this bill has…
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By Connie Thiessen
LEGENDAY BROADCASTER DAVID SUZUKI has announced he’ll retire from CBC’s The Nature of Things next spring after 43 years as host of the longest-running television science program.
Suzuki, 86, announced his pending retirement Sunday night during an interview with Ian Hanomansing on The National.
“I have been fortunate to have been endowed with good health which has enabled me to remain the host of the series long after my ‘best before date’,” said Suzuki. “Aging is a natural biological process that creates opportunity for fresher, more imaginative input from younger people and for years, I have warned that to ensure the continuation of The Nature of…
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Uncertainty around whether Senate will meet Nov. 18 deadline
By Denis Carmel
OTTAWA – The Transportation and Communications Senate Committee (TRCM) continued its pre-study of Bill C-11 yesterday and the committee staff should be commended for very effective casting.
The first hour featured two visions of intervenors and their approach to the bill. Peter Menzies, previously vice-chair of the CRTC, outlined some (he only had five minutes) of his objections.
“Bill C-11 seems to be inspired by a desire to assist those whose business models are having difficulty adjusting to the Internet age. That’s an understandable desire. But to the extent this overly broad…
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TORONTO – Lopii Productions, a Canadian kids’ production company founded by twins Georgina and Rennata López, announced today they have partnered with CBC Kids on the new series Bestest Day Ever With My Best Friend!.
Bestest Day Ever (20 x 7-minute) is a “live-action order set to launch in 2023” and Lopii Productions’ sixth original series, a press release says.
Made for preschoolers, the series “celebrates the cherished relationships children have with their pets and gives them the opportunity to say thank you to that fuzzy, furry, scaly, slithering or feathered friend in an extra big way,” the release explains.
“In each…
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OTTAWA – CBC’s Media Technology Monitor (MTM) today released a new MTM Junior infographic detailing the rate at which Canadian youth ages 2-17 are consuming content in the other official language.
The infographic explains 8% of anglophone youth watch television and movies in French daily, while 22% watch weekly and 28% watch at least once per month. Meanwhile, 20% of francophone youth are watching television and movies in English daily, 51% are watching weekly and 69% are watching at least once per month.
“Younger anglophones (2-11) are most likely to be consuming French content, while francophone teens (12-17) are most likely…
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By Connie Thiessen
TORONTO – Canadian Music Week (CMW) and Radiodays Europe have announced Radiodays North America, a joint event set to take place in Toronto, June 8-9.
Radiodays North America will take place over two days during the weeklong Canadian Music Week Festival, bringing keynote speakers and panelists from around the globe to Toronto to discuss all facets of over-the-air and digital broadcasting and podcasting from executive leadership and workplace diversity to innovation, technology, talent, programming, marketing and revenue growth.
“We are thrilled to be able to bring the Radiodays Europe brand and it’s expert international content to North America,” said Peter Niegel, general manager for…
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