To an exemplary speech during his election as leader of the Conservative PartyPierre Poilievre quickly returned to the natural.
The new leader doesn’t trust the media. Like Donald Trump, social media maniacs and conspirators! In an email to all members of his party yesterday, he wrote that “the media is not even interested in being neutral anymore. They want us to lose.” Then, in the purest Trumpian style, he adds: “We cannot rely on the media to get our messages across to Canadians. We need to bypass them and their biased reporting.”
The day before, the new boss had expressed outrage to the press – with good reason – about the untimely interruptions of Donald Atkins, the global TV network’s chief political correspondent. Atkins was quick to apologize on Twitter, adding that “there are better ways to make sure politicians answer questions.” During the leadership campaign, I wrote a column asking Mr Poilievre to explain what he intends to do with Radio-Canada when he becomes Prime Minister. I’m still waiting for the answer.
WHAT FUTURE FOR CBC/RADIO CANADA?
In the email to his supporters, Poilievre reiterated his promise to “disappoint the CBC”. What exactly is he up to? Does he want to abolish the English network altogether? Or do you reduce it to its simplest expression, namely its continuous information service? CBC radio is very popular, as evidenced by the UK channel’s unfortunate lockout in August 2005. Does Poilievre intend to cut or even eliminate the radio’s budget? As for the French network, the conservative leader understands its importance to Quebecers and francophone minorities outside of Quebec, having grown up in Saskatchewan in a francophone home himself.
He declared during his campaign that he would not touch the French network. But it’s not without knowing that more than one has criticized Radio-Canada for its specialty pay channels and the increasingly substantial sums the network sustains on its digital platforms. The Liberal government has always said it is ready to increase the public broadcaster’s budget so that it can at least rid itself of advertising. This is one of the things the Liberals agreed with in Janet Yale’s panel report. What is Poilievre’s take on the report? In the Northwest Territories, Nunavik and Nunavut, CBC/Radio-Canada plays what I believe to be an essential role. Is that also the opinion of Pierre Poilievre?
THE MEMORY OF ITS PRECURSORS
If the Conservative leader speaks ample French and English, he has been more than discreet on cultural issues during the leadership race. Since he proposes state withdrawal in a variety of areas, we can understand that he could also “defund” the Canada Council for the Arts, the National Arts Center in Ottawa, the museums that run under federal and cultural organizations like Telefilm , the NFB and the Media Fund? Perhaps he is thrifty with the various tax credits that support arts and culture, and just as indifferent as Stephen Harper to our artists’ influence on the ‘foreign?
It is all the more important that Pierre Poilievre announces his cultural intentions, since his recent predecessors did not leave a very good memory.
