The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has just been called to order by Canada’s Attorney General over a complaint against Radio-Canada for using the “N-word” in a radio show, the former public service information director believes Senders, Alain Saulnier.
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Archive photo, Martin Chevalier
The new Radio Canada building in Montreal.
“It is a wake-up call that the CRTC should not micromanage. It has nothing to do with interfering in an editorial decision. I just hope they don’t start again,” stresses Mr Saulnier.
In this case, which is pending before the Federal Court of Appeals following an appeal from Radio-Canada, the Attorney General of Canada alleges that the CRTC, which he nevertheless has responsibility for defending, exceeded its powers when he accused the public broadcaster and asked him to apologize in June 2022, reports La Presse.
welcome position
Columnist Simon Jodoin, contacted by Le Journal, thinks no less. At the origin of Ricardo Lamour’s complaint for citing the title of Pierre Vallières’ book, Nègres blancs d’Amérique, in a segment of the Le 15-18 program hosted by Annie Desrochers on August 17, 2020, he believes that “The Attorney General’s position is welcome”.
“It sends out the message that it’s not for the CRTC to judge good taste and insults,” he says.
In any case, Simon Jodoin claims that what he said on the radio was not offensive. “My goal was to bring this book to mind [le livre de Vallières] controversial in society and to explain why.
Alain Saulnier
Congratulating Radio-Canada on appealing the decision, Alain Saulnier maintains his position: the state body should never have apologized to the complainant. “There was no basis to act on that complaint,” he said.
In his eyes, Annie Desrochers and Simon Jodoin have nothing to blame each other for. “That was a very good column. You had used the famous ‘N-word’ very correctly.”
An apology and a call
Last June, the CRTC accused the public broadcaster of using and repeating “that word beginning with the letter ‘n'” during a radio broadcast. Radio-Canada then issued a public apology at the CRTC’s request, but appealed its decision, ruling that it had no authority or jurisdiction to make such a decision and incidentally accusing it of violating freedom of the press.
Radio-Canada also noted in an article published Wednesday that “The CRTC made this decision pursuant to Subsection 3(1) of the Broadcasting Act, which states that the Canadian broadcasting system should serve to promote cultural, political and political life protect, enrich and strengthen Canada’s social and economic fabric and that the programs offered by broadcasters should be of high quality”.
But a provision specific to Crown Corporation agrees that “the corporation’s programming should reflect both the multicultural and multiracial character of Canada,” the public broadcaster added.
Against this background, the Attorney General’s motion argues that the case law on this provision does not confer any powers or jurisdiction on the CRTC, reports Radio-Canada.
The Attorney General also points out in his request that “no other provision of the law allows the CRTC to regulate, by regulation, the content broadcast on the airwaves”, adding that he “failed to decide”, in particular on the protection that broadcasting emits Law grants broadcasters freedom of expression and journalistic independence.
The CRTC’s decision was therefore “made without jurisdiction,” the Attorney General ruled.
– In collaboration with Frédérique de Simone from the QMI agency
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