By Steve Faguy
TORONTO – In what it describes as “unprecedented times,” CBC has decided to cancel local English TV newscasts in all markets except CBC North, replacing them with broadcasts from CBC News Network.
In a memo to staff sent Wednesday signed by CBC executives Susan Marjetti (general manager of news, current affairs and local), Brodie Fenlon (editor-in-chief of CBC News) and Cathy Perry (executive director of current affairs, investigative and long-form journalism), CBC cites “fewer staff in the Toronto Broadcast Centre and much stricter newsgathering protocols” as the reason for the change, which will be temporary.
CBC North newscasts are being maintained because the broadcaster wants to keep news available in Inuktitut.
UPDATE: CBC/Radio-Canada’s executive vice-president of French services says there are no plans to suspend local TV newscasts on Radio-Canada’s 13 stations, according to a tweet from journalist Sébastien Desrosiers.
“As Canadians turn to us for the latest developments during these unprecedented times, we are temporarily pooling our resources into one core news offering to ensure the very best of our local and national journalism,” Marjetti said in a statement released by CBC. “We are needed now more than ever, and will work together across the organization to serve Canadians night and day with the trusted news and critical information they need for the duration of the pandemic, while keeping our teams safe. Simply stated, extraordinary times require extraordinary measures.”
As part of the change, CBC News Network will “evolve into a core live breaking news service that incorporates the very best of CBC NN, The National and local journalism from our stations across the country.”
The daily Power and Politics show has been put on hiatus “so the Ottawa production team can be redeployed to make this change possible.”
CBC News will also no longer be bringing guests into its studios, instead using Skype, telephone or designated areas outside newsrooms, including the atrium of the Toronto Broadcast Centre.
Most of CBC’s 14 local stations operate in large markets that have private competitors. But CBC is the only broadcaster with a station exclusively covering Prince Edward Island. CTV and Global cover PEI through CTV Atlantic and Global New Brunswick, respectively.
PEI premier Dennis King quickly issued a statement demanding the federal government overturn the decision.
“Many Island seniors do not use the internet, have social media or pay attention to digital news platforms.” – PEI premier Dennis King
“With the health and safety of islanders at the forefront, it is vital that we continue to share the latest information with islanders in real time,” King posted on Twitter.
“Many Island seniors do not use the internet, have social media or pay attention to digital news platforms,” he notes. “They are our most vulnerable islanders and need the most up-to-date information to properly protect themselves from COVID-19.”
King said he is requesting Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault intervene to reverse the decision.
“If we are going to get through this pandemic situation, we need to do so together and by leveraging all of the resources we have. Now is not the time to scale back.”
CBC staff are also upset with the announcement about ending local newscasts, in part because much of the public health information being announced on a daily basis comes at the provincial level. CBC Radio and local online operations will continue, and CBC News Network will direct audiences to get local news from those sources.
UPDATE: “This decision flies in the face of past experience which has proven time and again that in times of significant events, Canadians trust and rely on CBC news coverage, particularly for its widespread coverage of regional and local impact, something no other Canadian network can match,” said Kim Trynacity president, CBC Branch for the Canadian Media Guild, the union which represents CBC employees. “We urge CBC to reconsider this decision and seek the resources necessary to provide local television news in both official languages in every province and territory, as it is mandated to do.”
The Guild says CBC workers are ready to use technology and the tools recommended by public health officials to do their work remotely.
“We hope and expect that no company would use a public health crisis to downsize or cut news services permanently, especially outside of large centers, where the need is greater,” added Carme Smyth, National President of the Canadian Media Guild.
UPDATE: CBC CEO Catherine Tait explained the change to staff at a town hall on Wednesday. A source within CBC says it was explained that the large number of live news events nationwide was too much for the staff-depleted Toronto Broadcasting Centre to manage, leading to the need to consolidate resources.
That explanation led to a statement from Friends of Canadian Broadcasting that “Tait made it clear that it’s all about the money — or lack thereof. For years, local news services have been stripped of talent and infrastructure to the point that they cannot effectively serve local audiences in this rapidly changing crisis.”
FCB demanded that the federal government provide more funding to CBC to allow it to restart the newscasts.
But CBC says it’s not a question of funding. “To be clear, this decision was not made because of any financial considerations and Catherine said as much during the town hall,” said Chuck Thompson, CBC’s head of public affairs.
Fenlon explained in a blog post Wednesday, “television is especially resource-intensive, and many jobs are difficult to do at home. Our systems are overtaxed, and we had to make adjustments as a result.”
The conditions of the CBC’s CRTC licences require it to broadcast seven or 14 hours a week of local programming from each of those stations, depending on market size. There has been no authorization for temporary suspension of those conditions (except for the Olympics in July and August, which was coincidentally approved on Monday).
UPDATE: Asked to comment, the Commission issued a statement saying it was monitoring the situation.
“The CRTC recognizes the efforts all Canadian broadcasters are making to provide up-to-date news and information to Canadians about the COVID-19 pandemic,” the statement reads. “We believe local news are an important and valuable source of information for Canadians. The CRTC recognizes that the current crisis may make it difficult for regular broadcasts to be carried out. The Commission is monitoring the situation and the effects on Canadians. In the case of CBC, we would urge that people needing local information use their radio and digital services as needed.”
Radio-Canada also confirmed it has no plans to cut TV newscasts for its 13 local stations. “In this time of crisis, Radio-Canada favours programming that is close to the public to promote social solidarity,” Radio-Canada public relations director Marc Pichette told Cartt.ca.
CTV also issued a statement saying it will remain committed to local and national news. “Contingency plans responding to many different scenarios are in place that will allow us to continue providing news and information to Canadians without compromising the health of our employees,” said a statement sent to Cartt.ca by Scott Henderson, vice-president of communications for Bell Media.
UPDATE: Wednesday evening’s broadcasts on CBC Television were essentially just rebroadcasts of CBC News Network, with the host acknowledging viewers from each time zone and checking in with local anchors. The late newscasts were simply rebroadcasts of The National. But they came with on-screen graphics showing local news headlines, weather and traffic cameras, similar to CBC TV’s noon-hour rebroadcasts of CBC NN.
