“TV makes money and radio costs money. The concept of public broadcasting is lost.”
A CBC Radio National News reporterThe absence of public broadcasting values among CBC senior management is no more evident than in its decisions concerning CBC Radio.
Consistent with its abandonment of classical culture, CBC’s senior management appears determined to make CBC Radio News more superficial, less intelligent and even more dominated by CBC TV News when it comes to internal decision-making and resource allocation.
Why is this happening?
One CBC National Radio News reporter offers this simple and cogent explanation that goes to the heart of the mindset of the current senior management at the CBC:
“TV makes money and radio costs money. The concept of public broadcasting is lost.”
This incisive comment emerges from a recently leaked internal survey of CBC National Radio News reporters, the creative power behind some of CBC Radio’s most innovative and informative programs.
The survey was completed since CBC’s management merged the news assignment process in which the assignment desks for radio, online and television were brought together under the same structure (called the Hub) intended to coordinate and assign the news gathering process.
The survey paints a picture of a creative team demoralized by decisions that have diminished the quality of its work controlled by managers who do not understand radio. Some low lights of the survey:
81% reject the notion (52.4% strongly) that the integration of TV and radio has benefited National Radio News programming.
Reporters offered these additional comments:
“The problem is that radio news has been overwhelmed by TV and no one up there seems to realize it or, more importantly, care.”
“There are no advocates for radio, radio culture, radio ideas or radio reporters anymore. We’re totally on our own.”
“Radio is being treated as TV without pictures. A voiceover from TV played on radio fails to paint any pictures and leaves our audience with less than it deserves.”
“TV on the radio, as we are increasingly becoming, is a terrible waste of our senior service and a disservice to our listeners.”
“In fact integration has lowered the quality of radio news.”
“Radio is being dumbed down by reactionary, follow-the-paper journalism that seems to be the hallmark of TV. These days, it seems we're TV without the pictures. I also think the diversity of stories has narrowed significantly because we do so many TV-friendly stories.”
“It's all about TV.... Radio is a distant after-thought.”
Almost all (90%) think radio has its own culture that is the hallmark of CBC Radio’s success. At the same time, 90% think that culture is in a much worse state today compared to a year ago (before the Hub).
Reporters wrote these additional comments:
“Our culture is dying.”
“We've gone more to entertaining than educating or informing - I think we're losing what Canadians love the most about us and becoming more like the privates all the time. Soon they'll be saying about radio what they've said about TV for years - why fund us if we sound like everyone else? Very, very sad.”
“Again, radio culture is being washed away in this integration. We've gone from a culture that valued strong story-telling, and investigative, original stories to one in which we're pumping out content, feeding the goat. Quality, intelligence, depth no longer seem appreciated. Everything is puddle deep.”
Over 95% think CBC Radio is on the wrong course.
“I don't think radio news has a course. I think it's being swept along in the new corporate focus on ratings and profits. As Richard Stursberg has pointed out in his town-hall charts, TV makes money and radio costs money. The concept of public broadcasting is lost.”
“We are dumbing down...things are more superficial...we are not supposed to even talk with the Current ( the one long-form outlet we have left) if we want to do a story.”
“I worry very much that we are losing what makes us distinct and popular. We are increasingly being made to resemble: from programming decisions, to hosts, producers work flow and more. And this makes no sense to me, because radio has always been much more popular than TV.”
“Why would we make our popular news service resemble our unpopular one?”
Reporters were also asked for their views about changes to the morning national news program World Report.
“The changes to World Report and World at Six are a big disappointment and no one thought to talk to us.”
A CBC Radio National News reporter
“The rationale behind the dramatic changes made to World Report has never been explained to me.”
“At the end of a World Report newscast, I often feel I really don't have a clue about what's going on in the world…. It's bells and whistles, and a sense of urgency in tone, but with little real content.”
“In my opinion, World Report died when the show lost 25% of it's airtime, and hired people who can't even be called junior reporters to guide it.”
“What kind of organization cuts the most popular program on the most popular service? It was one of the worst decisions and should be reversed.”
“The need for shorter stories works against making good radio as elements such as sound and context are sacrificed for the sake of brevity.”
“World Report as a whole is now more superficial, the journalism is less accurate, respect for language and creative writing is diminished and the format is formulaic.”
“WR used to be the place to go for significant, important, original stories. Now it feels like TV-lite, or TV without the pictures.”
“The bottom line is we're giving people less. You can pretend it's more by giving people more bites, but there isn't as much food on the plate. I didn't know we needed to go on a news diet.”
Three-quarters believe CBC no longer has a strong commitment to original journalism.
“There is no commitment to original journalism. Partly because there's no time for it. And partly because the TV news culture is more about agenda journalism and not wanting to miss something the Globe and Mail or CTV has.”
“I think CBC has fallen down completely in its longstanding commitment to depth journalism.”
95.2% believe that “compared to a year ago, morale in the national news service is lower than ever during my career.”
The full survey report – a damning endictment of CBC’s current senior management – is available here.
Anonymous — Jul 01, 2010 - 05:40 pm MT
CBC proudly promotes its "in-depth" interviews and coverage, yet the only in-depth interviews I usually hear are those with right wing guests who are given the privilege of unfair air time to promote their propagandist corporate agendas (i.e. Peter Mansbridge, Sunday Morning radio). Why is it that intellectually qualified and credible PROGRESSIVE guests tend to be given short shrift? Week after week, for example, Cross Country Check-up gives the soapbox to small-c conservative guests while cutting short Canadians who oppose Rex Murphy's slanted right wing views. One has to ask if this new breed of CBC employees even understand what an "enquiring, journalistic" mind is. Do these employees read history? What school of journalism has taught these reporters and producers that airing 2 opposing sides of a story is "balanced journalism" when truly balanced journalism actually means investigating multiple facets of the FACTS and not "opinion"? There's a huge difference. Since my days as a CBC employee in the 1980's and 90's, I believe that content has been incredibly dumbed down, and I couldn't agree with Ken McCreath more. The current CBC crew doesn't seem to understand what PUBLIC broadcasting is supposed to be: a defense of the PUBLIC COMMONWEALTH against the private (usually corporate) onslaught - not a "balanced," free-for-all" air space for those who can already buy ample air time on bigger, private stations. For shame, CBC.
Anonymous — Jun 12, 2010 - 12:27 am MT
When the Harper gov't slashed the CBC subsidy by half, the decision will be to abandon CBC Radio in favour of TV. However, that may not be enough, and the CBC New Network may have to be terminated also, because it is too lavish and costly. All that may remain of the CBC is regular TV programming and several daily newscasts with an occasional news special on the weekends.
Doug — May 31, 2010 - 04:10 pm MT
CBC Radio 1 and 2 are so bad since Sept 2008 that I now tune to Radio Canada. Better listening to what I cannot understand (I do not speak French) than what I cannot stand. There is no reason for Canadian taxpayers to support continuation of current english programing in Vancouver.
Ken McCreath — May 20, 2010 - 07:49 pm MT
I hearily concur with the comments of my former colleagues about the dramatic decline in the quality of CBC Radio News. I was a proud employee of CBC National Radio News for nearly 30 years. I am disgusted by the changes that have been made to the on-air sound and to the quality of the so-called reporting. I can no longer listen to Wrold Report and local news is becoming more difficult to stomach. When the change was brought in we were told the new host was "coming out of the field and into the studio", whatever that was intended to imply. Now its time to send him back to some remote" so we will not have to listen to him. I rather doubt that he would be hired by a 3rd rate rock station. Why do I say that? He reads with no comprehenision or understanding of the words he delivers. If he did comprehend the meaning he would not emphasize every 3rd word, whether emphasis was needed or not. And he is not alone. Just listen to the number of reporters on the air who do the same thing. Whatever happened to the theory that CBC Radio Reporters understood the stories they read...and in understanding place the emphasis on the right words. As for the content of the newscast, with its stupid use of some weird sound effect that has no relvance at all, I can only ask what content. In the past reporters wrote and reported their stories, they were only interviewed when there was no other option. Now we get a shortened newscast...and long and mostly meaningless interviews, conducted by a host who feels compelled to force the news down our throats, as opposed to having an intelligent conversation with the listener. One can only assume that these changes were brought about after paying some American consultant a bundle of money that could have been better spent on training staff in what appears to be the lost art of meaningful writing, accurate reporting, and reasoned on-air presentation. Thank you for giving me an outlet to vent my growing frustratioin at a once proud news service.
Anonymous — May 20, 2010 - 06:48 pm MT
Onesided, one item overblown, and certainly not a balanced world report were the news this morning. One gets the impression that the Harper Government plans it this way by appointing incompetent officials who are bound to produce untenable results so that the CBC as a whole does appear not to justify being supported because of its lack of quality and expertise, rather than as the result of Government prejudice and malice.
Didi Miesen — May 18, 2010 - 01:49 pm MT
I don't know what nonsense CBC President, Hubert Lacroix and his cronies are trying to sell the public - re: budgets etc... What I do know - is that Mr. Lacroix seems to be doing all he can to totally Erase (Cleanse) ALL English Local Broadcasting in Montreal and Quebec - whilst spending the MAJORITY of CBC's past and future budget on - growing multiple French Stations - both TV and Radio - in Quebec!! And trust me - Quebec has MORE than Enough TV and Radio Stations already - and it is NOT in the mandate of CBC - to Protect the Majority French Language Presence. The mandate is very, very clear - it is to Protect and build - Minority Local Broadcasting TV/Radio stations and presence. Instead of respecting its mandate - CBC President Hubert Lacroix - has done quite the opposite!! The 100’s of millions ?? MONIES spent – notwithstanding the majority of its Future $56 million budget - devoted to building even MORE French stations IN Quebec - that already has an overabundance of French media outlets- is not only highly questionable - but in my opinion - highly suspect - as to Mr. Lacroix's leadership abilities. When the Head of our ‘public owned’ Major Corporation - is unable to understand something as simple as, Minority and Majority - and CBC's Mandate that he supposedly wrote himself - only to IGNORE and Dismiss that mandate and responsibility - and blithley spend the Major Portion of those monies - in an Area that does NOT need or warrant it- whilst Erasing the locations (English ones in Montreal and Quebec that DESPERATELY need it): then – WE must question he and his management ‘teams’ - ability to manage - and/or question the their mind numbing 'motives' and ‘decisions’ that lead and continue to result in this absolute 'WASTE' and Misuse of OUR money!! Mr. Lacroix - to date - has refused to respond to ANY questions regarding these questions - nor has our Heritage and Language Minister Mr. Moore who hired Mr. Lacroix on behalf of the Canadian People. Another question: How on earth has the CRTC allowed this to happen? What are they doing to EARN their VERY substantial salaries???? I think it's high time - WE CLEAN HOUSE at the CBC executive level - and at the ‘sleeping on the job’ CRTC - and Hire Qualified Staff - whose interests are to Save and Grow CBC Radio and TV - and more importantly - executives who understand - they are accountable to the Canadian Public - and NOT their Political Bias!
Margaret — May 18, 2010 - 10:00 am MT
CBC radio has been my default radio station for over 50 years. It has been the heart of the nation - intellectually stimulating about issues that really matter and keeps us connected with one another and with the rest of the world. The recent dumbing down of its programming and focus on fluff is more than disappointing - it's heart-breaking. Barbara Budd's firing was senseless. If senior management doesn't get it, fire them, not the wonderful journalists and hosts who have become our virtual friends. Wake up and smell the coffee before it's too late. CBC radio should not become part of the carnival culture that surrounds us incessantly.
CR — Jul 09, 2010 - 09:37 pm MT
Margaret, your statement that CBC has been your default station for years caught my attention. The same is true for me. But I would like to bring a regional perspective to this conversation. Unfortunately I find myself turning the dial to another station more and more during the morning show in NE Ont. I live in the Soo and our morning CBC radio offering is Morning North. We are fed a daily diet of "Sudbury" news, public interest and entertainment. This includes exciting stories about the potholes in Sudbury, the removal of garbage from the Union Hall construction site, an almost daily story about the Sudbury Regional Hospital, etc. This isn't a Soo vs Sudbury regional feud thing. If you live anywhere outside Sudbury, you feel the same way. The mandate of CBC is to reflect Canada to Canadians, hence not Sudbury to the rest of NE Ont. I actually met the host of Morning North in Sudbury . He blew me away when he admitted that they were in fact emphasizing Sudbury in their programming because they were told to do so by regional management in Toronto in order to boost "ratings". Broadcasting to the ears of the more populous regional centre of Sudbury maximizes ratings according to their formula. This truly bothers me. I believe passionately in the idea of CBC, but fear that this warped policy is driving away core listeners. Also, quite simply, I am a taxpayer and feel I deserve my share of the benefits of my contributions.
harry leslie — May 16, 2010 - 01:00 pm MT
the most important estate of democracy is being killed. the ideologues continue to win. Raise my INCOME taxes to fully fund the CBC!
Anonymous — Aug 14, 2010 - 08:30 pm MT
Yes, I agree. Raise Harry's taxes to fully fund the CBC.. but sure as heck don't raise mine!! Not every CBC listener is a socialist ya know.
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