Does the truth matter to you?
Marla recently wrote a letter to some of our most dedicated supporters. Read it below, and ask yourself the question – does the truth matter to you?
Spring 2024
Dear Friend
In mid-April, I participated in DemocracyXChange — Canada’s democracy summit that aims to connect and equip people and organizations who are taking action to strengthen democracy and civil society.
Leaving aside the very worrying fact that Canada needs to have an annual summit to protect its democracy, my experience at this event made two things very clear to me. We must fight for the dissemination of truth at the highest levels. And when our politicians are part of the disinformation and misinformation problem, it’s organizations like ours that need to step up and step in.
I regret to say that this concern points directly to the politician who could well be our next Prime Minister, Pierre Poilievre. When I first joined Friends of Canadian Media, he was already on the scene experimenting with Trump-style politics. We were hopeful that when it came to electing their leader, the Conservative Party would put forward a more unifying candidate.
Obviously, that didn’t happen. Conservatives chose Poilievre and he chose polarizing politics. And nothing could be more polarizing than his call to “defund” the CBC. Not to mention his attacks on Parliament Hill journalists for simply doing their jobs and asking uncomfortable questions.
Which is why one year ago I asked you to take Poilievre at his word, that he means to defund the CBC and repeal federal support for all news journalism. At the time, you might have decided to wait and see.
There can be no doubt any longer.
Poilievre means what he says. Riding high in the polls for months, he renews his defund the CBC pledge every chance he gets.
Equally concerning is the way Poilievre wears his disdain and disrespect for journalists like a favourite lapel pin. The fear of appearing partisan will not stop Friends of Canadian Media from speaking out against Poilievre’s attempt to cow the media into submission, through disparagements or threats of defunding.
You’ve helped in the past. We need your donation today as we continue to fight for the very existence of the CBC and the integrity of our vital news media sector.
As you know, over the last several years, Friends of Canadian Media has focused on the threat to democracy and civil public discourse posed by our spreading “news deserts.” As journalists continue to get laid off across the country, that information vacuum is filled on social media by a combination of confused misinformation and malignant disinformation.
Social media platforms amplify it all: their content algorithms are engineered to reward emotion over reason, and feelings over facts. Without a doubt, red-hot anger is the currency of social media. Politicians of all stripes have discovered this, and, without the counterweight of news journalism, it threatens to tear our country apart. We flatter ourselves to think that can’t happen here.
Just look at the trend lines: a two-decade decline in public trust of politicians, public institutions, and news journalism. In that time, public opinion of news journalism has migrated from a healthy skepticism of corporate media outlets to a knee-jerk mistrust of even the most reliable of news sources, as those sources are caricatured as members of the “elite.”
Into this toxic mix, Pierre Poilievre may well be headed for election victory. He long ago swept People’s Party supporters into his camp. Now, against all predictions, he has eaten deep into Liberal support from self-described centrist voters, and even some NDP voters, by positioning himself as a fighter of “elites.”
Combative politicians like Poilievre and his populist role models love to “fight,” but they especially like to pick on those that can’t fight back: like the CBC and the private press corps of journalists.
He is so deadly serious about vilifying the press that his fundraisers and spokespersons are now telling their base that a Conservative government may not be able to deliver the goods after an election win because of journalists.
Their fundraising refrain claims a “Liberal-CBC alliance” and invites donors to “neutralize the CBC.” They deride private media as “Trudeau’s paid journalists” and “the propaganda arm of the Liberal Party,” simply because the federal government saw fit to provide financial support to both national and local journalism programs. Poilievre even egged on X (formerly Twitter)’s Elon Musk to mislabel the CBC as a Soviet-style state broadcaster.
You can see where this is going. If he doesn’t get white-glove treatment from the press, don’t be surprised if Poilievre resorts to Trump-style attacks on journalists as the “enemy of the people.”
He is warming to the task already. In case you missed it, of late Poilievre has fed his fundraising on social media by turning media scrums and on-camera interviews into feisty counter-interrogations of reporters and disparagements of their news outlets.
Poilievre’s favourite “paid journalist” targets are, of course, CBC and Toronto Star reporters, plus the Canadian Press, the backstop of coast-to-coast news coverage. In close competition are Global News and the CTV network, neither of which even qualify for federal financial support.
Naturally, Poilievre doesn’t accuse all press of being Trudeau staffers. He spares the National Post and the chain of Postmedia and Sun newspapers, all of whom receive the same government support as the Canadian Press and the Toronto Star. Funny, that.
If all of this was just Poilievre squeezing his base for more donations, it might be a bit of a nothing burger.
But Poilievre’s relentless attack on the CBC and news journalism is so polarizing that it’s clear he hopes to tilt the table of democracy. That will happen if he succeeds in hobbling the ability of Canadian news journalism to hold the powerful to account (beginning with a Prime Minister Poilievre) or to provide robust, verified journalism and fact-checking. Imagine, if you can, whether factual disputes over carbon emissions and taxes will be settled by Internet memes and slogans on social media or by news and rigorous analysis.
That’s why we need to recognize that the battle to save Canadian news journalism, especially the battle to save the CBC, is happening right now. The other political parties don’t seem to grasp that the defence of the CBC can’t begin from a standing start on the day the election is called. Or perhaps they are just pacing themselves given the huge fundraising lead enjoyed by the Conservatives. Last year alone they raised more money than the total of the Liberals, NDP, and Greens combined.
Having spent almost 40 years in the ‘defending the CBC’ business, at Friends of Canadian Media we know that pacing ourselves is not an option. Which is why we need your help right now. Yes, again. We are a citizen’s movement, and the citizens can fund their own voice through our work.
As I write this, we are already working on a massive multi-channel election campaign to appeal to Canadians to vote for a political party that chooses the CBC. We must reach millions of Canadians with our message.
We will do this through print, social media, radio, television, and the work of thousands of volunteers like we did in the last three federal elections, but bigger — much bigger — than ever. We’ll be approaching you soon about ways you can get involved, but first, we must raise the cash to fund all this work.
The time to fight for the CBC and news journalism is now.
And that is why I am asking for your donation today.
Poilievre may be on course to win the next election and defund the CBC because he would rather destroy our national public broadcaster than work towards reinvigorating it. But there is still time to win the hearts and minds of Canadian voters. Make no mistake, those hearts and minds are very winnable.
Most voters in the next election, including lifelong Conservatives who probably consider themselves Mulroney Tories, support public broadcasting and news journalism. According to a recent Gandalf Group poll, Canadians crave trustworthy media sources and especially trust television news. Among reputable media sources, the CBC is English Canada’s most trusted news source. Nearly 60% of English Canadians overall support federal funding of the CBC, including 30% of Conservatives.
These numbers are a great start, but we can and must do better. With every dollar Poilievre raises, he is emboldened to increase his attacks on our beloved CBC. That is why it is our job to remind Canadians that the CBC is one of our country’s most valuable public institutions. One that provides every Canadian, regardless of means or geographical location, with credible news, current affairs, arts, culture, education, music, and sports programming in multiple languages and on multiple platforms. And all for the bargain-basement price of $2.75 per month in taxpayer support.
Personally, I can’t even imagine life without the CBC. My day doesn’t start until I’ve finished combing through CBC news. And CBC radio and podcasts are my constant daytime companions before I wind down into the classic evening programming. As I’m sure you know, Ed Broadbent and Brian Mulroney passed away recently. The CBC dedicated valuable airtime to broadcasting their funerals live to the Canadian public, allowing us to gather together and process the news as a nation. Who would have done that if there was no national Canadian broadcaster?
And with the CBC employing 40% of the country’s journalists, it is central to the fight against misinformation and disinformation. No matter what a “perfect” CBC looks like, news journalism is at its core. News journalists are the public’s watchdogs. Our democracy depends on a free press.
Whether we get a snap election later in 2024 or the scheduled trip to the polls in 2025, every day we get closer to the existential moment for the CBC and all Canadian news journalism. If we lose our national public broadcaster, we lose our national voice. There is no properly functioning democracy in the world that can exist without that.
So please, again, come forward with a special donation. For the CBC, for news, for democracy.
Sincerely,
Marla Boltman
Executive Director
P.S. The truth still matters. Help us fight against Pierre Poilievre’s disinformation campaign and stand up for the CBC and news journalism. Thank you.
At Friends of Canadian Media, we believe the truth matters. That is why we are fighting Poilievre’s disinformation campaign against the CBC. Recently, we asked Canadians to have their say about our national public broadcaster and thousands of people from across the country responded.
Do you agree with any of these Canadians?
In this era of misinformation, fake news, increasing distress among most Canadians, and the decline of our civil liberties as well as the public institutions that form the bedrock of our healthy, functioning civil society, we need the CBC more than ever.
Supporter from Alberta
CBC radio is many things that are central to community and democracy…It is where we hold politicians to account, make sure our civil society is staying on track and track it when it wobbles or falls apart in places. It is the basis for the national fabric. It is still the foundation of democracy. How do we talk to one another without it?
Supporter from Nova Scotia
The CBC is a major part of the glue that keeps this country together. We are blessed to have such an impartial, unbiased, informative and educational news radio, TV and media source that covers this vast and beautiful country we call Canada, as well as the rest of the world. CBC forever!
Supporter from Ontario
If you answered yes, make your donation today so we can reach more Canadians and stand up for the CBC. And if you haven’t had a chance, there is still time to Have Your Say on the CBC. Either send us your thoughts with your donation in the mail or visit friends.ca/have-your-say.