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National Identity, TV, and CBC

A COMPAS Poll for CanWest Newspapers, Global TV, and the National Post

April 29, 2002

COMPAS Inc. Public Opinion and Market Research

Toronto / Ottawa

National Identity, TV, and CBC: A COMPAS Study for CanWest Newspapers, Global TV, and the National Post, April 28, 2002

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Contents

Introduction.......................................................................................................................... 3

How People Feel About CBC Television as Viewers—the Appeal of CBC Television News and the Dilemma of an Apparent Leftwing Agenda ............................................................. 5

CBC Television’s Appeal—Division between Those Who Love the Network’s News and Know Why vs. Those Who Have Difficulty Finding Something Good to Say................... 5 What News Do People Watch and Why.......................................................................... 7 The Problem of Ideological Polarization in Viewing Habits.............................................. 8 Counter-Spin as a Lightening Rod for Ideological Polarization ..................................... 10 Explicit Perceptions of Ideological Bias ......................................................................... 12

News and Entertainment Programming............................................................................. 14 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 14 Choosing Police Shows, Sci-Fi, and Romance—Program Is King, Canadian Content and the Network Matter Much Less............................................................................... 15 Choosing News—The Show, the Network, and Canada All Matter............................... 18

National Unity and the Big Issues...................................................................................... 20 Who Cares .................................................................................................................... 20 What Keeps Canada United—Democracy, Fighting for Freedom, and Shared Economic Interests ........................................................................................................................ 21 What Would Happen If There Were No CBC Television ............................................... 25

How Do People Feel about CBC Television as Citizens and Taxpayers ........................... 29 Money for CBC Television—A Divided Public ............................................................... 29 Weak Mandate for Change ........................................................................................... 30 CBC Television’s Value................................................................................................. 33 Entertainment Programming Policy ............................................................................... 35 Cable Fee Policies ........................................................................................................ 37

Methodology...................................................................................................................... 39


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Introduction This is the second part of a two-part national poll conducted for CanWest

newspapers, the National Post, and Global Television. Focusing on major public policy issues, the first report was entitled Canadians on Taxes and Spending.

This second part provides a detailed analysis of where the public stands on a wide range of broadcasting and CBC television-related issues. On the single most important element of the study, where the public stands on CBC television, the answer contains many complexities:

Canadians are enthusiastic about CBC television’s historic role, and respect highly its role in bringing choice to outlying regions of the country today, but are lukewarm about its other present mandates; Canadians are not antagonistic to CBC-produced entertainment programming, but they do not consider it superior to the imported product and they do not consider Canadian content to be a vital driver of the entertainment programming they seek; Canadians respect highly the quality of CBC television news but they are concerned--many are very concerned--about what they perceive as strong bias and leftwing news agendas; While most Canadians would protect or enhance government grants to CBC television, far more would cut or abolish such grants than increase them; The political left and right in Canada are deeply and persistently divided in their television news viewing behaviour and in virtually all their assessments of CBC television news; CBC television news appears to polarize the right and left far more than any other public policy explored in this wide-ranging survey—certainly far more than on the nominally hot button issue of healthcare; Canadians consider that the main factors in keeping Canada united are our shared democratic values and economic interests and our shared history of fighting for freedom, as Canadians did in World War II; The CBC does not emerge as an important factor for unity when respondents are asked to make choices in a forced-choice setting, but, when not obliged to make choices, respondents do assign some degree of importance to the CBC;


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Nonetheless, when asked to indicate how Canada would change if CBC television no longer received a subsidy, the vast majority of respondents predicted that the country would not change; The vast majority of Canadians do not think that it matters whether CBC television or private broadcasters carry blockbuster entertainment specials or NHL hockey; To the extent that cable fees are not allocated to all channels, the public would prefer that the imported channels be excluded from benefits.

The broadcasting elements of this study relate to CBC television to a considerable extent, albeit not exclusively to the corporation. To the extent that the focus remains on the CBC, the focus is on its television service. The survey questions were about television and did not touch on radio.


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How People Feel About CBC Television as Viewers—the Appeal of CBC Television News and the Dilemma of an Apparent Leftwing Agenda

CBC Television’s Appeal—Division between Those Who Love the Network’s News and Know Why vs. Those Who Have Difficulty Finding Something Good to Say

Respondents were asked to volunteer in their own words “the single best aspect” of

the CBC Television network, as shown in table 1. The main patterns of response are for one sizeable minority to highlight CBC news as the network’s chief asset while another, somewhat smaller, minority acknowledges difficulty finding something good to say. On the positive side, 39% point to some aspects of news programming as CBC television’s chief asset. The biggest component, representing 23% of responses, is a reference to “news in general.” Other news-related responses encompass national news, international news, local news, Newsworld, and the network’s leftwing orientation, as shown in table 1.

The grand total of 39% references to news may be an underestimate insofar as some of the other volunteered assets may incorporate a news aspect as well. For example, one could argue that the 4% who referred to documentaries or docu-dramas like the one on former Prime Minister Trudeau had news in mind to some degree.

Apart from news, the only other sizeable cluster of opinion encompasses those Canadians who have nothing good to say about CBC television or cannot think of a major asset of the television network under the time pressures of a telephone interview. Twenty-seven percent of Canadians fit into this negative category. The category encompasses 13% who say that they cannot think of something good to say about CBC television because they do not watch the network, the 10% who merely volunteer that they do not know what to say, and the 4% who assert bluntly that they have nothing good to say because they abhor the network.


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Table 1: “Thinking of CBC television, what would you say is the single best aspect, if any, of the network or what it does? [DON’T PROMPT BUT

RECORD]”

% News in general 23 The fact that it is Canadian 9 National news 6 Hockey night in Canada 5 Documentaries like the one on Trudeau 4 International news 3 Local news 3 Curling or other sports 2 Entertainment including specials like Celine Dion or Anne Murray 2 Newsworld 2 Its general quality 2 Its perspective/ideology…stands up for people, not an instrument of business, not rightwing, stands up to American policy/influence

2

It provides an option/alternative to viewers 2 Canadian comedy shows 2 The fact that it is government-funded or not run by private enterprise/business

1

National unity, keeps the country together, unites English and French, the regions

1

Educational programming 1 Variety of programs 1 Its historical role in Canada * Quality children’s programs * Nothing good about CBC 4 Don’t know because never watch CBC 13 Don’t know 10

Entertainment programming emerges rarely in volunteered opinions about CBC

television’s assets. The leading entertainment reference is to Hockey Night in Canada, volunteered by 5%. Other references are to coverage of sundry sports activities like curling (2%), Celine Dion/Anne Murray-type entertainment specials (2%), and comedy (2%).

Opinions are relatively homogeneous across demographic, party, and ideological lines except for the greater tendency of NDP voters to say that the best aspect of the CBC television is its Canadian nature. As evidenced in the accompanying interview schedule of questions and answers, English-speakers and French-speakers tend to share the same perspective as do the party and ideological segments.


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What News Do People Watch and Why

Given that Canadians see news as CBC-TV’s greatest asset, one might expect CBC television news programming to have magnetic appeal. Indeed, CBC television news repeatedly emerges at the top of respondent preferences in response to sundry questions about news preferences. CBC television news benefits from what may called a halo effect or reputational advantage insofar as CBC television news earns a healthy share of audience and an even bigger share of reputation-driven preferences.

The CBC television news halo effect becomes evident when one compares the network preferences of those viewers who choose their news show primarily on the basis of the network and those who do not.1 Among those who choose a news show on the basis of network, 30% opt for the English-speaking CBC television news service including Newsworld. The corresponding proportion is 17% in the case of viewers who do not choose on the basis of network.2

The poll explored a number of news and public affairs issues. Both for this reason and because of CBC’s halo effect, it is possible that the survey results inflate the true strength of CBC television news in the eyes of the public. Whether this hypothesis holds true, it is evident that CBC television repeatedly places first as a news preference or news experience. For example, in a separate question respondents were asked “to the extent that you choose a national news show by the channel or network it’s on, which network is that?” CBC television emerged at the top with 27% of choices coming from English-speakers (additional 6% from French-speakers) as compared to 18% for second-place CTV. Asked if they had watched the news the previous evening, the CBC emerged at the top again with 37% of responses, again followed by CTV in second place with 22% of responses.

Only 29% of the approximately 500 respondents interviewed had watched the news the previous evening so that the sub-sample is too small to allow a confident comparison of the motivations of respondents for choosing their particular news show. However, it does look as if the choice of watching CBC news was affected by much the same range of considerations as the choice of watching CTV or Global, albeit with one exception. CBC viewers appear to place more emphasis on quality and less on objectivity as compared to CTV/Global news viewers. Respondents were asked to identify the best reason for their choice of news program the previous evening. The main reasons were as follows:

1 Respondents were asked: “When you turn on the TV looking for national news, would you describe

yourself as…[ROTATE POLES] Above all as someone who compares news shows each time, Mainly someone who compares news shows, Somewhat of a person who compares news shows, Somewhat of a network or channel loyalist, Mainly a network or channel loyalist, Above all a network or channel loyalist.” For purposes of this particular analysis, responses were dichotomized into those who compare shows vs. those who are network loyalists.

2 The French-language sub-sample is necessarily small with resulting greater uncertainty of interpretation.


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The time of the show, identified by 23% of CBC watchers and 17% of CTV and Global watchers The respondent’s confidence in the on air journalists, identified by 17% of CBC watchers and 21% of CTV/Global watchers Perceived objectivity and lack of bias, identified by 6% of CBC watchers and 15% of CTV/Global watchers The quality of national or international reporting, identified by 40% of CBC watchers and 24% of CTV/Global watchers.

While CBC television news is in many ways an emblem of success, it is nonetheless vulnerable to two threats—the appeal of U.S. news channels and especially viewer misgivings about a leftwing bias on the CBC. The challenge of the corporation’s perceived leftwing bias will be addressed in a number of places in this report. Here, a small hint of ideological polarization emerges from the apparent tendency of those who watched CBC the night before to place more emphasis on quality and less on objectivity than did those who watched CTV/Global the night before.

The Problem of Ideological Polarization in Viewing Habits

The apparent tendency of CBC viewers to attribute their choice to quality and CTV/Global viewers to attribute their choice to objectivity is a harbinger of a broader pattern of ideological and party polarization. As evidenced in table 2, self-described leftwingers are the most likely to choose CBC news.3 Excluding Newsworld, Radio-Canada, and RDI from a calculation of the total CBC audience, 44% of leftwing Canadians opt for English-language CBC news to the extent that they make a choice based on the network, as compared to 27% among all Canadians.

Table 2: Selection of Network for News on the Left-Right Spectrum

Over all

Left-wing

In the middle

Right-wing

Eng. Fr.

CBC 27 44 22 34 33 7 CTV 18 9 23 21 23 0 Global 7 7 5 5 9 0 CNN 6 3 7 5 7 2 Radio Canada 6 7 8 5 0 30 TVA 6 2 4 8 0 25 Other US 4 6 4 2 5 2 City TV 2 1 2 0 2 0 TQS 2 6 2 1 0 11 LCN 2 1 1 4 * 7

3 “To the extent that you choose a national news show by the channel or network it’s on, which

network is that?” [DON’T PROMPT BUT RECORD]


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Newsworld 1 1 1 2 2 0 CFTO 1 0 * 0 1 0 ATV 1 0 1 0 1 0 RDI 1 1 1 0 0 4 TVO 1 2 * 1 0 6 CTV Newsnet * 0 * 0 1 0 PBS public broadcasting in US

* 0 0 1 * 0

CKVR * 0 0 0 * 0 CHCH * 0 * 0 1 0 Other 6 3 7 5 7 0 DNK/Refused 9 6 10 4 9 6

Table 3: Selection of Network for News by Party Grouping

Over all

Lib. All. PC NDP BQ

CBC 27 32 21 34 48 7 CTV 18 18 35 21 12 0 Global 7 5 20 9 11 0 CNN 6 6 6 10 4 2 Radio Canada 6 5 3 4 0 29 TVA 6 4 0 0 2 29 Other US 4 4 6 4 4 5 City TV 2 2 0 0 2 0 TQS 2 3 0 0 2 2 LCN 2 2 0 4 0 7 Newsworld 1 3 0 0 2 0 CFTO 1 1 0 0 0 0 ATV 1 0 3 0 0 0 RDI 1 0 0 0 0 7 TVO 1 1 0 0 2 2 CTV Newsnet * 1 0 0 0 0 PBS public broadcasting in US * 0 0 2 0 0 CKVR * 0 0 0 0 0 CHCH * 0 0 0 0 2 Other 6 4 3 12 6 0 DNK/Refused 9 9 3 2 4 7

The real-world of left-right polarization over the English-language CBC television

news is at least as strong when party groupings are compared as when self-labelled ideologues are compared. Among self-labelled leftists, 44% choose English CBC television and 53% choose the constellation of CBC television services including R-C,


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RDI, and Newsworld, as shown in table 2. Among NDP voters, 48% choose English CBC television while 50% chose the entire constellation, as shown in table 3. Among self-labelled rightists, 34% choose English CBC television and 41% choose the entire constellation. Among Alliance voters, 21% choose English CBC television and 24% the entire constellation.

The Alliance vs. NDP polarization is stronger than the left-right polarization. This is probably because voters may behave as if there is a left-right spectrum but are not necessarily familiar with the language of left and right. NDP voters are more than twice as likely as Alliance voters to choose CBC television for their news—48% vs. 21%. By comparison leftwingers are only 1.3 times as likely as self-labelled rightwingers to choose CBC television—44% vs. 34%.

Counter-Spin as a Lightening Rod for Ideological Polarization

The public affairs discussion show, Counter-Spin, may be a lightening rod for ideological friction over the objectivity of the television network’s news service. About one in five English-speakers (19%) claims familiarity with the show.4 Among NDP voters, the overwhelming majority consider it an objective show, as shown in table 4. Only a minority of every other grouping considers it “objective and balanced.” Tory and Alliance voters are the least apt to view it as objective—11% and 23%, respectively.

Among those who do not see it as objective, most see it as exhibiting a leftwing bias while some say that it shows a rightwing bias. A portion of the minority ascribing a rightwing bias is probably misusing the terms left and right. As reported separately in the document entitled “Canadians on Taxes and Spending,” most Canadians have difficulty using the terms correctly. Only a minority is able to correctly state that the Alliance party is to the right of the NDP in response to a question about whether the Alliance party is to the right or left of the NDP. Among those who proffer the correct response to this question, 11% reportedly perceive a rightwing bias in Counter-Spin and 35% a leftwing bias. Among respondents with definite views on the program’s bias, i.e. ascribing a clear leftwing or clear rightwing bias, those perceiving a definite leftwing bias outnumber the others by 5:1—21% vs. 4%.

A similar pattern of bias assessment emerges across ideological groupings, as shown in table 5. The only majority perceiving the program as objective exists among self-labelled leftwingers (75%). Among rightwingers, only 9% perceive it as objective while 55% say that it has an occasional or persistent leftwing agenda.

4 “Are you familiar with or have you seen the television discussion show Counter-spin?” Yes 19%, no

80%, 1% DNK.


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Table 4: ONLY ENGLISH-SPEAKERS FAMILIAR WITH COUNTER-SPIN: Perceptions of Bias by Party Grouping and among Those Who Say that

Alliance Party is to the Right of the NDP5

Over all

Those Saying All. to Right of

NDP

Lib. All. PC NDP BQ

Has a persistent rightwing agenda

6 4 4 0 22 0 0

An occasional rightwing agenda 8 7 11 22 0 0 0 Is objective and balanced 38 43 39 23 11 75 0 Has an occasional leftwing agenda

13 14 15 11 23 8 0

Has a persistent leftwing agenda

17 21 8 34 34 17 0

UNPROMPTED: DNK 19 11 23 11 11 0 0

Table 5: ONLY ENGLISH-SPEAKERS FAMILIAR WITH COUNTER-SPIN: Perceptions of Bias by Ideological Grouping and among Those Who Say

that Alliance Party is to the Right of the NDP

Overall Those

Saying All. to Right of

NDP

Left-wing In the middle

Right-wing

Has a persistent rightwing agenda

6 4 0 6 9

An occasional rightwing agenda

8 7 0 9 9

Is objective and balanced 38 43 72 45 9 Has an occasional leftwing agenda

13 14 0 12 18

Has a persistent leftwing agenda

17 21 9 9 37

UNPROMPTED: DNK 19 11 19 19 18

In follow-up questioning, respondents were asked if they agreed or disagreed with

the criticism that “the show is an ongoing argument with no real attempt to find out or

5 “Some people say that it is a very objective show while others say that it has a political slant

[ROTATE]. Would you say that the show…”


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establish the facts.” Agreement was expressed by 43% and disagreement by 38% while the remainder was not sure. Though sample (n=57) and sub-samples are very small, the ideological patterns are so extreme that they are worth noting. Among Alliance voters, 78% agreed with the criticism as compared to 57% among Tories, 27% among Liberals, and 25% among New Democrats.

Explicit Perceptions of Ideological Bias

To this point, our discussion of bias focused mainly on viewer behaviour and specific viewing perceptions, notably of Counter-Spin. COMPAS interviewers also asked questions about bias in general. The good news for CBC news is that most respondents do not subscribe to the view that its news treatment suffers from a leftwing or other bias. Yet, there is bad news too. First, only small minorities resolutely affirm the network’s news objectivity. As shown in table 6,

16% flatly deny that “the people who run CBC television news today have an unfair access to millions of taxpayer dollars so that they can promote their own personal political opinions and agendas,” scoring 1 on the 7-point agree-disagree scale.; 14% flatly deny that “the CBC television’s news bias today leads to its giving far too much attention to street demonstrations and to radicals hostile to international trade and globalization and not enough to objective experts,” and 24% flatly deny that “CBC television news today has an anti-American bias in its coverage of international events.”

CBC television news is particularly susceptible to the criticisms that its journalists have unfair access to resources to be deployed to advance their own opinions and that the network displays a news bias in favour of radicals hostile to globalization. On these two matters, 34% and 36% agree with the criticism, scoring 5-7 on the 7-point agree-disagree scale. CBC news is also vulnerable because the criticism is unevenly distributed across the ideological spectrum. A majority of Alliance voters agrees with the criticisms and many Tories agree with the criticisms while only a quarter of NDP voters agree, as displayed in table 7.

A more statistically liberal interpretation of the numbers would suggest that the overwhelming majority of Canadians of all parties see some truth in the criticism of the CBC for ideological bias. For example, on the issue of bias in favour of radicals opposed to globalization, 77% score 2 or higher, 69% score 3 or higher, and 51% score 4 or higher. Respondents who score 4 on the 7-point scale are essentially saying that the criticism is about half right. Thus, half of Canadians agree that the CBC is at least half-biased in favour of radicals antagonistic to globalization. This is a very high percentage subscribing to an accusation of bias given that a minority of Canadians do not watch the CBC often enough to develop opinions about it.


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Table 6: “As you know, people have varied opinions about CBC television. Please use a 7-point scale where 7 means a lot of truth and 1, no truth at

all to indicate how you feel about each of the following opinions [ROTATE]”6

Mean 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 DNK (Q30L) The people who run CBC television news today have an unfair access to millions of taxpayer dollars so that they can promote their own personal political opinions and agendas

3.9 14 6 14 17 13 11 16 9

(Q30J) The CBC television’s news bias today leads to its giving far too much attention to street demonstrations and to radicals hostile to international trade and globalization and not enough to objective experts

3.9 11 8 17 18 14 9 14 8

(Q30G) CBC television news today has an anti-American bias in its coverage of international events

3.2 6 5 12 16 13 15 24 9

Table 7: “As you know, people have varied opinions about CBC television. Please use a 7-point scale where 7 means a lot of truth and 1, no truth at

all to indicate how you feel about each of the following opinions [ROTATE]” – Percent Agreeing, i.e. Scoring 5-7, by Party Grouping

Over all

Lib. All. PC NDP BQ

(Q30L) The people who run CBC television news today have an unfair access to millions of taxpayer dollars so that they can promote their own personal political opinions and agendas

34 29 57 38 25 33

(Q30J) The CBC television’s news bias today leads to its giving far too much attention to street demonstrations and to radicals hostile to international trade and globalization and not enough to objective experts

36 34 52 46 27 29

(Q30G) CBC television news today has an anti-American bias in its coverage of international events

23 22 32 28 21 29

6 This was a partial list of questions. Others did not touch on the ideological character of news. See

the interview schedule of Qs and As for details.


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News and Entertainment Programming

Introduction

In this section, we report some of the kinds of entertainment programming that Canadians watch and what they look for. As shown in table 8, romantic dramas, police dramas, and science fiction account for only a portion of the time that Canadians spend viewing television. A similarity of habit cuts across the country with minor variations. One minor variation is that Alliance voters, in keeping perhaps with the social conservativism of many of them, seem more inclined than others to watch police dramas, as shown in table 9. Leftwingers seem less inclined than others, as shown in table 10, while francophones are more inclined to news than anglophones.

Table 8: “People tell us that they watch television for all sorts of different reasons depending on their need for relaxation or their other needs. Could you please tell me approximately what percentage of your time watching

TV is spent watching the following 4 types of programs [DOES NOT HAVE TO TOTAL 100%]”

Mean DNK Drama shows involving the police 12 3 Science fiction 7 2 Love stories or romantic drama 8 2 News 39 2

Table 9: Viewing Patterns by Party Grouping

Over all

Lib. All. PC NDP BQ

Drama shows involving the police 12 8.6 16.5 12.2 13.7 12 Science fiction 7 8.5 5.6 8.6 8.3 6.5 Love stories or romantic fiction 8 8.8 6.1 9.4 4.7 9.6 News 39 41.1 38.5 39.0 34.9 45.6


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Table 10: Viewing Patterns by Ideological Grouping

Overall


Right-wing

Eng. Fr.

Drama shows involving the police 12 8.8 12.6 12.6 11.8 10.2 Science fiction 7 7.3 7.3 8.7 7.3 7.5 Love stories or romantic fiction 8 6.8 8.8 6.2 7.9 9.7 News 39 43.2 38.5 41.6 37.0 46.2

Choosing Police Shows, Sci-Fi, and Romance—Program Is King, Canadian Content and the Network Matter Much Less

For all three categories of entertainment, COMPAS interviews asked to what extent the respondent’s choice of show was driven by a specific drama or series, a network or channel, or Canadian content. In the case of all three types of entertainment programming, viewers search above all for a specific show or series and secondarily for a network. Canadian content does not emerge as a vital consideration. In the case of police drama, the specific drama or series is the key driver, identified by 56% (scoring 5-7) of viewers who watch police dramas, as shown in table 11. For a sizeable minority, tuning to a specific network or channel does matter but Canadian content matters hardly at all. Thus, 42% score 5-7 on the 7-point importance scale with respect to network importance while only 24% assign such importance to having a plot at a Canadian locale.

Similar drivers of viewing choice emerge in the case of science fiction and romantic dramas. As shown in table 12, 59% score 5-7 for the importance of a specific sci-fi program or series and 18% for a plotline in Canada. As shown in table 13, 33% score 5-7 for a specific romantic drama or series compared to 14% for a Canadian locale.


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Table 11: IF AT LEAST SOME DRAMA INVOLVING POLICE, I.E. > 0%: Thinking of how you decide which police drama to watch, please tell me the importance of each of the following considerations using a 7-point scale where 7 means very important and 1, the opposite [ROTATE]

Mean 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 DNK (Q11B) You look for a specific police drama or series

4.4 26 17 13 6 6 7 24 1

(Q11A) You tune to a specific network or channel to find a police drama

3.7 20 11 11 8 6 13 29 3

(Q11C) You look for a police drama with its plot in Canada

2.9 4 7 13 12 12 13 38 1

Table 12: IF AT LEAST SOME SCIFI: Thinking of how you decide which science fiction program to watch, please tell me the importance of each of

the following considerations using a 7-point scale where 7 means very important and 1, the opposite [ROTATE]

Mean 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 DNK (Q12B) You look for a specific science fiction program or series

4.5 29 18 12 7 5 8 19 1

(Q12A) You tune to a specific network or channel to find a sci-fi program

3.9 20 11 11 11 6 14 24 2

(Q12C) You look for a for a science fiction program with its plot in Canada

2.4 6 3 9 7 12 12 50 2


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Table 13: IF AT LEAST SOME ROMANTIC DRAMA: Thinking of how you decide which romantic drama program to watch, please tell me the

importance of each of the following considerations using a 7-point scale where 7 means very important and 1, the opposite [ROTATE]

Mean 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 DNK (Q13B) You look for a specific romantic drama program or series

3.3 14 6 13 11 9 15 32 2

(Q13A) You tune to a specific network or channel to find a romantic drama

3.0 11 8 9 9 6 15 41 2

(Q13C) You look for a specific romantic drama program with its plot in Canada

2.4 5 3 6 11 10 14 48 2

Those for whom a network or channel was an important driver of choice were asked in follow-up questioning which networks they turned to. Too few individuals choose their program in significant measure on the basis of network to yield a sufficiently large sub-sample to provide confident data. However, across all three entertainment categories, U.S. channels predominated among the top choices. A&E led in the police category, Space in the sci-fi category, and Global in the romantic drama category but all sub-sample sizes were too small to allow a confident interpretation.

The CBC emerged infrequently as a network choice for entertainment programming. This likely reflects the moderate regard for the quality of entertainment shows that it produces. As shown in table 14, few people agree with the proposition that “CBC-produced television entertainment programming delivers better entertainment than the U.S.-produced entertainment programming”—28% scoring 5-7 vs. 46% scoring 1-3.


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Table 14: “As you know, people have varied opinions about CBC television. Please use a 7-point scale where 7 means a lot of truth and 1, no truth at all to indicate how you feel about each of the following opinions

[ROTATE]”

Mean 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 DNK (Q30A) CBC-produced television entertainment programming delivers better entertainment than the U.S.-produced entertainment programming

3.5 7 7 14 18 15 11 20 7

Choosing News—The Show, the Network, and Canada All Matter

The drivers of news program choice are different. As shown in table 15, news programming is the only one of the four types of programming in which the specific program matters less than the other drivers, albeit not appreciably less. News is the only one of the four types of programming in which Canadian content truly matters. While fewer than a fourth of Canadians consider Canadian content important in their choice of entertainment programming, 72% consider Canadian content important to their choice of news show. Furthermore, 43% score this feature the highest possible score, 7 on the 7-point scale. As shown in tables 16 and 17, the concern for Canadian content in news cuts across language, party, and ideology. As explained in an earlier section of this report, the CBC is the object of choice, particularly for those for whom network matters.


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Table 15: IF AT LEAST SOME NEWS OR PUBLIC AFFAIRS DISCUSSION: “Thinking of how you decide which news and current

events to watch, please tell me the importance of each of the following considerations using a 7-point scale where 7 means very important and 1,

the opposite [ROTATE]”

Mean 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 DNK (Q14A) You tune to a specific network or channel

5.6 44 21 15 6 5 4 6 1

(Q14C) you look for a news show that’s broadcast from within Canada

5.3 43 17 12 7 7 3 10 1

(Q14B) You look for a specific news show

5.1 38 18 14 7 7 5 11 1

Table 16: Drivers of News Choice by Party (Percent Scoring 5-7)

Over all

Lib. All. PC NDP BQ

(Q14A) You tune to a specific network or channel

80 81 93 76 80 86


72 72 72 74 80 65

(Q14B) You look for a specific news show 70 68 81 74 68 74

Table 17: Drivers of News Choice by Ideology and Language (Percent Scoring 5-7)

Over all

Left-wing

In the middle

Right-wing

Eng. Fr.

(Q14A) You tune to a specific network or channel

80 71 78 81 79 79


72 80 72 70 75 59

(Q14B) You look for a specific news show

70 68 67 76 71 63


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National Unity and the Big Issues

Who Cares

There is some good news about national unity. The overwhelming majority of Canadians are desirous of national unity with half (49%) assigning this the maximum possible score on the 7-point desirability scale, as shown in table 18. In a manifestation of paradox, even a majority of Bloc voters favours unity. The desire for unity cuts across language, party, and ideology while necessarily attenuated among Bloc and francophone voters, as shown in tables 19-20.

Table 18: “Thinking about Canada as a society, one issue is how desirable it is for people in different parts of the country, for example Quebecers and non-Quebecers, to want to stay together as a united country. On a 7-point

scale where 7 means very desirable, how desirable is it to you personally?”

Mean 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 DNK How desirable is it for people from different parts of the country to want to stay together as a united country

5.6 49 14 13 6 3 5 8 3

Table 19: Desirability of Unity by Party Grouping (Percent Scoring 5-7)

Over all

Lib. All. PC NDP BQ

How desirable is it for people from different parts of the country to want to stay together as a united country

76 84 72 77 73 57

Table 20: Desirability of Unity by Ideological Grouping (Percent Scoring 5-7)

Over all


Right-wing

Eng. Fr.

How desirable is it for people from different parts of the country to want to stay together as a united country

76 73 73 86 78 67


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What Keeps Canada United—Democracy, Fighting for Freedom, and Shared Economic Interests

One of the raison d’etres of the CBC is its role in keeping Canada united. The CBC may indeed perform an important function in this respect. However, the Canadian public does not see the CBC as performing a comparatively important unifying role.

Respondents were asked to select from a list the most and least influential factors in keeping Canada united. As shown in table 21, the most important factors emerging from the forced choice list relate to shared democratic values (identified by 19%), shared economic interests (14%), World War II history in defending freedom (13%), and co-location in northern North America (12%). Our healthcare system followed with 11% while the CBC trailed with a 2% mention, 1% above Air Canada and 1% above watching Canadian police dramas.

A consensus cuts across the country on these issues with little variation by language or party. Leftwingers placed slightly more emphasis on democratic values, rightwingers slightly more on our World War II history of defending freedom, and francophones slightly more emphasis on shared economic interests. None of the differences were more than nominal or slight. No group singled out the CBC for special mention.

As for least influential factors keeping the country together, Canadians single out watching Canadian rather than non-Canadian police dramas (22%) and Air Canada (16%), as shown in table 22. For its part, the CBC is singled out for its non-contribution to unity by 6%, 1% ahead of our good schools.


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Table 21: Please tell me which of the following factors is the most influential in keeping Canada united, that truly explains why we stay together, and which the least influential [ROTATE] [Most Influential

Factors]

% Our shared interests in standing up for democratic values in the world 19 Our shared economic interests vis-à-vis the United States and our other trading partners

14

Our history of defending freedom and democracy as Canada did in World War II

13

The fact that we live together on the northern part of North America 12 The healthcare system we have 11 When we visit each other’s regions and learn about each other first hand 10 When the government of Canada does a very good job of governing 6 Our good schools 3 The CBC 2 When we have world class scientists 1 When we watch Canadian rather than non-Canadian police drama shows 1 Air Canada * UNPROMPTED: DNK/Refused 10

Table 22: Least Influential Factors (Percent Singling Out)

% When we watch Canadian rather than non-Canadian police drama shows 22 Air Canada 16 The fact that we live together on the northern part of North America 8 When the government of Canada does a very good job of governing 8 Our shared economic interests vis-à-vis the United States and our other trading partners

6

The CBC 6 Our good schools 5 When we have world class scientists 4 Our history of defending freedom and democracy as Canada did in World War II

4

When we visit each other’s regions and learn about each other first hand 3 The healthcare system we have 3 Our shared interests in standing up for democratic values in the world 2 UNPROMPTED: DNK/Refused 15

The preceding forced choice question was followed by scale questions. Respondents were invited to score the contribution to unity of each of the elements of the forced-choice question using a 7-point scale. The order of perceived importance


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changed little. Police dramas and Air Canada earn the lowest mean scores, as shown in table 23. The CBC is third from the bottom, just above Air Canada but with a reasonable score.

When the CBC’s role is evaluated by scale scores, its role gets good grades. About half of Canadians believe that it does constitute a major factor in keep Canada united. But CBC is still seen as a less important factor than most of the others on the list. The most important drivers of unity, according to the data in table 23, are shared democratic values, shared history of fighting for freedom, shared economic interests, our healthcare system, and what we learn when we visit each other in the different regions of the country.

Table 23: “On a 7-point scale where 7 means it’s a major factor in keeping Canada united, please score the importance of each of the following

factors [ROTATE]”

Mean 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 DNK (Q22C) Our shared interests in standing up for democratic values in the world

5.5 31 24 19 12 4 2 4 3

(Q22G) Our history of defending freedom and democracy as Canada did in World War II

5.3 29 22 20 13 7 4 3 3

(Q22D) Our shared economic interests vis-à-vis the United States and our other trading partners

5.2 25 22 25 12 6 2 5 3

(Q22I) the healthcare system we have

5.2 24 28 22 12 7 3 4 1

(Q22B) When we visit each other’s regions and learn about each other first hand

5.1 23 20 28 13 8 3 4 2

(Q22H) Our good schools 5.1 23 20 22 16 8 5 4 2 (Q22A) The fact that we live together on the northern part of North America

4.6 19 16 23 15 7 8 11 2

(Q22E) When the government of Canada does a very good job of governing

4.6 19 16 23 15 7 6 13 2

(Q22F) When we have world class scientists

4.4 17 12 21 16 15 8 8 3

(Q22K) The CBC 4.3 14 15 22 17 9 10 12 2 (Q22J) Air Canada 3.0 6 5 11 16 14 16 30 3 (Q22L) When we watch Canadian rather than non-Canadian police drama shows

2.9 6 4 12 12 13 13 36 5


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Table 24: Percent Agreeing (scores of 5-7) about the Importance of Each Contributor to National Unity by Party Grouping

Over all

Lib. All. PC NDP BQ

(Q22C) Our shared interests in standing up for democratic values in the world

74 85 66 77 73 69


71 74 60 79 73 62


72 75 78 72 73 72

(Q22I) the healthcare system we have 74 81 77 63 83 67 (Q22B) When we visit each other’s regions and learn about each other first hand

71 74 66 74 65 72

(Q22H) Our good schools 65 72 66 60 60 64 (Q22A) The fact that we live together on the northern part of North America

58 58 55 61 52 52


58 63 35 62 54 57

(Q22F) When we have world class scientists 50 52 37 60 48 45 (Q22K) The CBC 51 53 35 56 58 41 (Q22J) Air Canada 22 19 6 35 15 26 (Q22L) When we watch Canadian rather than non-Canadian police drama shows

22 21 15 30 19 22

A near consensus on the sources of unity cuts across party groupings and

ideological communities, as shown in tables 24 and 25. The CBC, however, breaks out of this consensus. It emerges again as a source of division. The CBC is the only item in the list to be associated with a greater than 20 percentage point difference between Alliance and NDP groupings. The corporation is scored highly as a source of unity by 58% of New Democrats but only 35% of Alliance voters. By contrast, healthcare, a major object of spending and ideological discussion, elicits essentially no difference of opinion to separate NDP and Alliance partisans. Thus, 83% of New Democrats score healthcare highly as a source of unity compared to 77% of Alliance voters.

Some difference of opinion also emerges to separate English from French. Francophones assign less importance than anglophones to our World War II-related history of fighting for freedom as well as less to the CBC.


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Table 25: Percent Agreeing (scores of 5-7) about the Importance of Each Contributor to National Unity by Ideological Grouping and Language

Overall

Left-wing

In the middle

Right-wing

Eng. Fr.

(Q22C) Our shared interests in standing up for democratic values in the world

74 80 79 69 76 70


71 71 71 70 74 59


72 73 76 72 73 69

(Q22I) the healthcare system we have 74 78 75 71 76 64 (Q22B) When we visit each other’s regions and learn about each other first hand

71 73 75 67 72 68

(Q22H) Our good schools 65 64 69 59 65 66 (Q22A) The fact that we live together on the northern part of North America

58 58 59 57 59 52


58 59 60 55 57 60

(Q22F) When we have world class scientists

50 51 57 57 51 49

(Q22K) The CBC 51 60 49 47 53 44 (Q22J) Air Canada 22 13 25 18 21 21 (Q22L) When we watch Canadian rather than non-Canadian police drama shows

22 19 22 19 20 29

What Would Happen If There Were No CBC Television

In keeping with Canadians’ middling attitudes about the CBC as a whole and their positive sentiments towards CBC television news, one might expect them to feel some sense of loss, but not an overshadowing one, if CBC television were hypothetically constrained by the absence of a subsidy. Such a portrait does emerge when respondents were asked to predict the impact on Canadian unity, society, the economy, and the political system if CBC television no longer received its grants from government. An overwhelming opinion is that the financial downsizing of CBC television would not impact on the economy, as shown in table 26. About a quarter feel that Canadian society would be worse off but the remaining majority does not hold this view. More than a quarter feel that Canada would be less united while the remainder do not feel this way. The strongest concern relates to our political life—27% say that it would be worse, 60% that it would be unchanged, and 7% that it would be better.


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Table 26: Suppose CBC television did not get its subsidy from taxpayers any longer. Do you think [ROTATE]

% Canada

More united 7 Stay about the same 63

Less united 28 UNPROMPTED: DNK 2

Society Better 4

Stay about the same 69 Worse 24

UNPROMPTED: DNK 3 Economy

Better 10 Stay about the same 71

Worse 14 UNPROMPTED: DNK 5

Politics Better 7

Stay about the same 60 Worse 27

UNPROMPTED: DNK 6

As might be expected, New Democrats express the most concern, especially about

national unity. On this issue, nearly half of NDP voters are concerned that the country would be less united if CBC television lost its subsidy. This concern is about half as frequent among the other party groupings.

As reported throughout this report, Alliance and NDP voters are deeply divided on the CBC. Compared to Alliance voters, New Democrats are twice as concerned about the impact of a subsidy loss on unity, 3.5 times more concerned about the impact on society, four times more concerned about the impact on the economy, and almost three times more concerned about the impact on political life, as shown in table 27. The Alliance vs. NDP pattern is paralleled in the right vs. left pattern reported in table 28.

English-speakers and French-speakers tend to assess the impact of a de-funded CBC television in much the same way except for the special case of national unity. In this instance, francophones seem to believe that unity would be stronger without a subsidy going to CBC television than with, as shown in table 28. Most English- and French-speakers feel that unity would be unaffected. But among English-speakers who feel that unity would be affected, fear outnumbers hope by 10:1—32% vs. 3%. Among French-speakers, more people believe that Canada would become more united than less—20% vs. 13%, as shown in table 27.


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Table 27: Impacts of a CBC Television Loss of Subsidy by Party Grouping

Over all

Lib. All. PC NDP BQ

Canada More united 7 6 3 5 2 17

Stay about the same 63 61 77 69 48 67 Less united 28 31 20 25 48 17

UNPROMPTED: DNK 2 3 0 2 2 0 Society

Better 4 4 0 7 4 0 Stay about the same 69 67 89 68 48 81

Worse 24 27 12 23 42 17 UNPROMPTED: DNK 3 20 2 0 6 2

Economy Better 10 7 11 11 6 10

Stay about the same 71 72 83 72 79 69 Worse 14 16 3 13 12 17

UNPROMPTED: DNK 5 6 3 5 4 5 Politics




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Table 28: Impacts of a CBC Television Loss of Subsidy by Ideological Grouping and Language

Over all

Left-wing

In the middle

Right-wing

Eng. Fr.

Canada More united 7 9 7 3 3 20

Stay about the same 63 47 68 65 62 67 Less united 28 42 24 30 32 13

UNPROMPTED: DNK 2 2 1 2 3 0 Society



Economy Better 10 8 7 15 10 8

Stay about the same 71 70 75 76 71 73 Worse 14 20 14 7 14 15

UNPROMPTED: DNK 5 3 4 2 5 4 Politics




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How Do People Feel about CBC Television as Citizens and Taxpayers

Money for CBC Television—A Divided Public

The bottom line question about the CBC is ultimately about the bottom line. But Canadians don’t express a consensus about this key issue. As shown in table 29, most Canadians would like CBC television to retain its subsidy (47%) or have it increased (13%). But the proportion who favour an increase are dwarfed in number by those who would reduce (24%) or abolish it (11%). A serious challenge for the CBC is that more than a third of the public wants the corporation’s grants for television downsized or removed.

Table 29: “On balance, do you think the subsidy to CBC television should be increased, left the same, reduced, or abolished?”

% Increased 13 Left the same 47 Reduced 24 Abolished 11 UNPROMPTED: DNK 6

Table 30: Future of the CBC Television Subsidy by Party Grouping

Overall Lib. All. PC NDP BQ Increased 13 12 3 9 27 21 Left the same 47 58 31 49 50 36 Reduced 24 22 35 28 14 24 Abolished 11 4 31 10 6 15 UNPROMPTED: DNK 6 4 0 4 4 5


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Table 31: Future of the CBC Television Subsidy by Ideological Grouping and Language

Over all

Left-wing

In the middle

Right-wing

Eng. Fr.

Increased 13 30 9 9 12 16 Left the same 47 47 51 44 46 48 Reduced 24 15 27 27 25 22 Abolished 11 3 7 17 11 9 UNPROMPTED: DNK 6 4 6 3 6 5

In keeping with the surfeit of evidence of the serious ideological division associated with the CBC, indeed more than with any policy issue explored in this study, one would expect Alliance voters and rightwingers to favour reduction or abolition of the grant for CBC television. Indeed, that is the case. Among Alliance voters, 66% favour reduction or abolition compared to 39% among Bloc voters, 38% among Tories, 26% among Liberals, and 20% among New Democrats, as shown in table 30. A parallel ideological division emerges between left and right, as shown in table 31.

Weak Mandate for Change

In keeping with the evidence of division about funding for CBC television, one might expect a lack of clear direction about what the CBC should become. Indeed, these are the findings. No consensus exists. Indeed, there is hardly a majority support for any given policy direction. To the extent that the public can be said to favour a shifting of emphasis, a variety of sometimes conflicting conclusions emerge from the data displayed in tables 32a-32b and 33a-33b. Thus, CBC television should

emphasize local and regional programming where there is little programming choice—supported by 62% do fewer things but better—supported by 57% continue to sell ads and keep its subsidy—supported by 54% retain its subsidies, discontinue ads, and focus on core purposes—supported by 47% let private broadcasters do sports—supported by 45% [become] a specialty channel on cable so that the CBC would earn fees from the cable subscribers who wanted to subscribe to it instead of having the CBC receive a subsidy from all taxpayers, most of whom rarely or never watch it—supported by 44%, and


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lose its subsidy and gradually emulate PBS in seeking voluntary donations—supported by 40%.

No consensus or serious majority support emerges on any CBC-related policy that we tested.

Table 32a: “As you may know, there’s talk about CBC television now that it is 50 years old. The following are some reasons sometimes given for

how or why CBC television should change. Please use the 7-point scale to tell me how much you agree where 7 means you agree completely and 1,

the opposite [ROTATE]”

Mean 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 DNK (Q29E) CBC television should emphasize strong local and regional programming in those regions of the country where there’s no or very little choice and de-emphasize the big cities, where people have lots of choice

4.9 22 18 22 15 9 3 6 4

(Q29A) The CBC television audience is getting smaller so the CBC should do fewer things but do them a lot better

4.7 21 15 21 13 9 7 9 5

(Q29B) CBC television should let the private sector do sports because they can do that well while the CBC should emphasize those things that the private sector would not normally do

4.1 17 11 17 14 11 8 18 5

(Q29C) CBC television shouldn’t carry paid advertising as long as it receives hundreds of millions of dollars of subsidies from taxpayers because this means that taxpayers end up subsidizing the advertisers

3.8 16 10 12 15 10 10 23 5


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Table 32b: CBC TV Mandates by Party Grouping (% Scoring 5-7)

Over all

Lib. All. PC NDP BQ

(Q29E) CBC television should emphasize strong local and regional programming in those regions of the country where there’s no or very little choice and de-emphasize the big cities, where people have lots of choice

62 65 55 63 68 62

(Q29A) The CBC television audience is getting smaller so the CBC should do fewer things but do them a lot better

57 54 69 67 43 57

(Q29B) CBC television should let the private sector do sports because they can do that well while the CBC should emphasize those things that the private sector would not normally do

45 40 46 47 44 53

(Q29C) CBC television shouldn’t carry paid advertising as long as it receives hundreds of millions of dollars of subsidies from taxpayers because this means that taxpayers end up subsidizing the advertisers

38 33 54 39 44 33

To make matters a little worse from a policy-making perspective, the absence of a mandate is accompanied by a polarizing of sentiment. The usual ideological division emerges on some of these issues. Having “CBC [television] … do fewer things but do them a lot better” is appealing to 69% of Alliance voters but only 43% of New Democrats. Fifty-seven percent of Alliance voters support the idea of transforming the CBC into a kind of donation-supported PBS compared to 25% of New Democrats. Meanwhile 54% of Alliance voters support the idea of turning the CBC into a cable fee-supported specialty channel compared to 37% of New Democrats.


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Table 33a: “I’d like to ask you about some basic policy options for the CBC. Please score each option on a 7-point scale where 7 means it’s a

very good idea and 1, the opposite [rotate]”

Mean 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 DNK (Q40.1) Let the CBC sell ads and also keep its subsidy of several hundred million dollars

4.4 22 10 19 16 10 7 14 4

(Q40.2) Continue the CBC subsidy, stop the ads on CBC television, and have CBC television focus on its core purposes

4.0 12 8 19 19 12 7 16 8

(Q40.4) Make CBC television a specialty channel on cable so that CBC television would earn fees from the cable subscribers who watch it and not from those who do not

3.8 19 8 11 11 11 10 24 6

(Q40.3) Gradually cut the subsidy and get CBC television to seek voluntary donations from viewers and sponsors the way PBS does in the U.S.

3.6 16 6 14 12 10 14 24 3

Table 33b: Policy Options by Party Grouping (% Scoring 5-7)

Over all

Lib. All. PC NDP BQ

(Q40.1) Let the CBC sell ads and also keep its subsidy of several hundred million dollars

51 57 43 51 56 46

(Q40.2) Continue the CBC subsidy, stop the ads on CBC television, and have CBC television focus on its core purposes

39 34 40 53 48 40

(Q40.4) Make CBC television a specialty channel on cable so that CBC television would earn fees from the cable subscribers who watch it and not from those who do not

38 33 54 47 37 45

(Q40.3) Gradually cut the subsidy and get CBC television to seek voluntary donations from viewers and sponsors the way PBS does in the U.S.

36 34 57 33 25 24

CBC Television’s Value

In keeping with above reported attitudes, one might not expected resounding enthusiasm about CBC television. Yet, CBC television does elicit some strong positive


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feelings for some aspects of its role. The greatest positive feeling is expressed about its role in history, as shown in table 34. The public also expresses sizeable appreciation for its news role in outlying regions. Almost half of Canadians feel that “it is important for taxpayers to continue to fund CBC television news to foster choice and competition for private sector broadcasters.”

While taxpayers appear supportive of subsidies for CBC news despite misgivings about its objectivity, some ambivalence emerges about the magnitude of the average subsidy for the corporation. As shown in table 34, a majority (54%) believes that CBC television’s subsidy is a “lot of money when taxes are high and key programs like healthcare, education, and security against terrorism need more support.” Meanwhile, 39% agree that “several hundred million dollars is a lot of taxpayer support going from the majority of Canadian taxpayers who never or rarely watch the CBC to the minority who usually or often do.”

Opinions are tepid on the remaining issues listed in table 34. Canadians as a whole are slightly inclined to feel that the corporation does a good job serving the west but westerns are less convinced of this. A sizeable number of people believe that Radio-Canada is favourable to separatists. Meanwhile, not everyone is convinced that the CBC is a good way of channelling tax dollars to the arts nor that CBC governance structure is a virtue. In keeping with previously reported findings, the left and right are once again polarized on funding the corporation with Alliance voters believing that the subsidy is excessive and NDP voters in disagreement. The relevant tables are in the accompanying interview schedule.

Table 34: “As you know, people have varied opinions about CBC television. Please use a 7-point scale where 7 means a lot of truth and 1, no truth at all to indicate how you feel about each of the following opinions

[ROTATE]”

Mean 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 DNK (Q30I) One of the great contributions of the CBC was its role in history, when there were very few if any other channels on the TV dial

5.4 29 20 20 12 6 2 3 8

(Q30E) A great value of CBC television is that it provides news and information in low population, outlying regions which either have no other broadcasting or would otherwise depend on a single monopoly broadcaster

5.3 27 20 22 14 5 2 3 8

(Q30D) A subsidy of hundreds of millions of dollars for CBC television each year is a lot of

4.6 23 13 18 14 10 8 10 4


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Mean 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 DNK money when taxes are high and key programs like healthcare, education, and security against terrorism need more support (Q30F) CBC television does a very good job of making western Canadians feel that they are part of the country

4.6 15 12 17 22 9 4 6 15

(Q30M) It is important for taxpayers to continue to fund CBC television news to foster choice and competition for private sector broadcasters

4.4 16 11 22 16 10 7 11 8

(Q30H) Several hundred million dollars is a lot of taxpayer support going from the majority of Canadian taxpayers who never or rarely watch the CBC to the minority who usually or often do

4.2 14 9 16 18 13 11 9 10

(Q30B) The French-language CBC television network is favourable to Quebec nationalists and sovereigntists

4.1 14 8 9 13 10 7 11 28

(Q30C) CBC television is the best way of channelling tax dollars to people working in the arts, entertainment, and journalism

4.0 12 9 18 19 13 8 13 9

(Q30K) A key virtue of the CBC is that its board of directors is selected by government instead of by shareholders

4.0 12 6 17 19 10 8 13 15

Entertainment Programming Policy

Given respondents’ tepid enthusiasm for CBC-produced entertainment programming, one might not expect them to have strong views about whether blockbuster shows or Saturday night hockey should be restricted to the corporation or available to commercial broadcasters. Indeed, the public lacks strong views on the subject. As shown in tables 35 and 36, the overwhelming majority of Canadians feel that it would make no difference whether a Bruce Springsteen special or NHL hockey were carried on a commercial channel or on CBC television.


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Table 35: Now I’m going to ask you about some television programming that the CBC alone has carried. Take a Bruce Springsteen special, for

example… Is it better for you that the CBC carries a program like a Bruce Springsteen special, would it have been better for another Canadian

network to carry it, or does it matter?

% Better for CBC to carry it 6 Better for another network to carry it 10 Does not matter 80 UNPROMPTED: DNK 4

Table 36: “How about NHL hockey? Suppose the entire show including the same teams, same hosts, same commentators, and same music were shown on another Canadian network. Would it be better, worse, or make

no real difference to you?”

% Better 11 Worse 14 Makes no real difference 70 UNPROMPTED: DNK 5

Majorities of every group, even the NDP and the left, see no real difference if a commercial broadcaster carried these types of programming. In the case of a Bruce Springsteen special, there were essentially no differences of opinion. In the case of hockey, a minority (25%) of New Democrats expresses concern that the programming would be worse. But even among the New Democrats, 78% say that it would make no difference, would be better, or offer no opinion, as shown in table 37.


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Table 37: Attitudes about Allowing Commercial Broadcasters to Carry NHL Hockey by Party Grouping

Over all

Lib. All. PC NDP BQ

Better 11 11 0 7 10 19 Worse 14 16 6 12 25 10 Makes no real difference 70 69 89 77 58 67 UNPROMPTED: DNK 5 4 6 3 10 5

Cable Fee Policies

COMPAS interviewers explored respondents’ attitudes towards the distribution of rediffusion fees. As shown in table 38, about half of the sample felt that all channels should receive a portion of these cable transmission fees emanating from cable subscribers. Meanwhile, 38% wanted such fees restricted to some channel providers. The 38% favouring a restriction were then asked which channels should be restricted. As shown in table 39, of those with an opinion 70% favour excluding imported channels. Small numbers recommend excluding the CBC (7%) or Canadian commercial channels of a general nature (12%). The opinion that favoured excluding imports cut across language, party, and ideology.


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Table 38: “As you may know, when people subscribe to a cable or satellite service, part of their fee is given to some broadcasting companies.

Thinking of the tax-supported CBC, the Canadian commercial channels of a general nature like CTV and Global (in Quebec: TVA), Canadian

commercial speciality channels like Much Music, U.S. general commercial channels like CBS and NBC, and U.S. commercial specialty channels like

CNN or A&E [ROTATE], do you think all of these channels should be given a portion of these fees or some of these channels should be

excluded from being given a portion of these fees? “

% All of these channels should be given a portion of these fees 48 Some of these channels should be excluded from being given a portion of these fees

38

UNPROMPTED: DNK 14

Table 39: IF SOME EXCLUDED: Which should be excluded from receiving any of the money from cable or satellite subscriptions?

[RECORD ALL THAT APPLY BUT DON’T PROMPT]

% Imported speciality channels 36 Imported general channels 34 Canadian speciality channels 15 The Canadian commercial channels of a general nature 12 CBC 7 UNPROMPTED: DNK/Refused 37

Note: This is a multiple response question i.e. respondents are allowed to name several answers. For this reason, the percentage when added will be greater than 100%.


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Methodological Note The representative sample of 501 Canadian adults of voting age was interviewed

April 4-9. Samples of this size are deemed accurate to within approximately 4.5 percentage points 19 times out of 20. The principal investigator on this study was Dr. Conrad Winn.

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