The Self-Destruction of the CBC

The Self-Destruction of the CBC

Ira Wagman

The new programming policy makes the CBC look like an old person in a FUBU sweatsuit

The federal government recently announced it is reviewing the CBC’s mandate. This review is the latest chapter in a long story of questioning the value of the CBC since its inception seventy years ago. Clearly there are politics involved here; the CBC is an easy target for attack by parties of all stripes. What’s different this time around is that the CBC’s pain has been self-inflicted. Through an obsession with youth demographics and a propensity for derivative programming, the CBC has rewritten the rules for public broadcasting. It has provided ammunition to its critics, and it is in the process of writing its own death warrant.