If you have been faithfully following this blog until now, you will remember that I had not received any replies to the letters that I sent to CBC management (Mr. Robert Rabinovitch, Ms. Jane Chalmers or Ms. Jennifer McGuire), nor any replies to the feedback I submitted on the CBC Radio Two "Tell Us What You Think" link. My posting to Mr. Jowi Taylor's blog had not been posted on the CBC Radio Two web site either.
Feeling thwarted by the unresponsiveness of CBC Radio management, I decided to turn to the House Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage next. According to the CHPC web site, the mandate of the CHPC for the 1st session of the 39th Parliament is as follows:
Mandate
Pursuant to Standing Order 108(2), Standing Committees are empowered to study and report on all matters relating to the mandate, management and operation of the department or departments of government, which are assigned from time to time by the House. In general, the committees shall be severally empowered to report on
- the statute law relating to the department assigned to them;
- the program and policy objective of the department and its effectiveness in the implementation of same;
- the immediate, medium and long-term expenditure plans and the effectiveness of implementation of same by the department;
- an analysis of the relative success of the department, as measured by the results obtained as compared with its stated objectives; and,
- other matters, relating to the mandate, management organization or operation of the department, as the committee deems fit.
In addition, Standing Order 108(3)(b) states:
The mandate of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage shall include, among other matters, the monitoring of the implementation of the principles of the federal multiculturalism policy throughout the Government of Canada in order:
- to encourage the departments and agencies of the federal government to reflect the multicultural diversity of the nation; and
- to examine existing and new programs and policies of federal departments and agencies to encourage sensitivity to multicultural concerns and to preserve and enhance the multicultural reality of Canada.
As well, the CHPC is conducting "A Full Investigation of the Role for a Public Broadcaster in the 21st Century". You may see the scope of this study here.
Now, interestingly enough, the mandate of the committee in the 1st session of the 38th Parliament is described as follows:
Mandate
The House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage ("the Committee") plays a central role in supporting cultural, artistic and civic activity in Canada, and in preserving and protecting Canada’s cultural and natural heritage and shared history.
The Committee studies and reports on matters referred to it by the House of Commons or on topics the Committee itself chooses to examine. It is a permanent committee established by the Standing Orders of the House.
Powers
The power of the Committee to examine any matter referred to it by the House is found in Standing Order 108(1). The Committee can report to the House, send for persons or records, and delegate its powers to subcommittees. It can sit whether the House is sitting or adjourned and may sit jointly with other standing committees.
Under Standing Order 108(2), the Committee also has the power to study and report on the policies, programs and legislation of the department and agencies assigned to it, as well as other matters relating to the mandate, management, organization or operation of the department and agencies, as the committee deems fit. This includes examining expenditure plans and assessing the success and effectiveness of a wide range of organizations, programs and policies. Key examples are:
· Department of Canadian Heritage
· Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
· Canadian Cultural Property Export Review Board
· Canadian Museum of Civilization
· Canadian Race Relations Foundation
· Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
· Library and Archives Canada
· National Battlefields Commission
· National Film Board of Canada
· Status of Women Canada
A comprehensive list of organizations, programs and policies administered through the Department of Canadian Heritage and which the Committee may study can be found on the Department's Web site.
In addition to its cultural and civic mandate, the Committee may also study and report on the Public Service Commission, which reports to Parliament through the Minister of Canadian Heritage.
The Committee also has the specific mandate to monitor the implementation of the principles of the federal multiculturalism policy throughout the Government of Canada. The object of this, as set out in Standing Order 108(3), is:
- to encourage the departments and agencies of the federal government to reflect the multicultural diversity of the nation; and
- to examine existing and new programs and policies of federal departments and agencies to encourage sensitivity to multicultural concerns and to preserve and enhance the multicultural reality of Canada.
Did the mandate change from the 38th Parliament to the 39th Parliament? I don't follow the inner workings of the Standing Committees of the House of Parliament on a regular basis - if you do, please feel free to comment here - but I suspect that it did not. I assume the differences are just due to wordsmithing.
In any case, given that the CBC falls within the mandate of the CHPC, and given that the CHPC is currently conducting "A Full Investigation of the Role for a Public Broadcaster in the 21st Century", I thought the committee members might be interested in the opinions of a taxpayer and shareholder in the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
So, I decided to send letters to the members of the CHPC. I decided to begin with letters to:
- Mr. Gary Schellenberger, Chair of the House Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage
- Mr. Maka Kotto, Vice-chair of the House Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage
- Mr. Andy Scott, Vice-chair of the House Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage
- Mr. Jim Abbott, Member of the House Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage
I sent the following letter to Mr. Gary Schellenberger on or about March 28, 2007. I enclosed a copy of the letter that I had previously sent to Mr. Robert Rabinovitch:
Dear Mr. Schellenberger,
Please see the enclosed letter, as sent to Mr. Robert Rabinovitch, concerning my opinions on the recent changes to the CBC Radio Two evening schedule.
I believe it is especially important that you consider the comments of the CBC Radio Two audience at this time, given Mr. Rabinovitch's recent appearance and statements before the House Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage.
As I remark in my letter to Mr. Rabinovitch, I am outraged at the changes that have taken place in the CBC Radio Two evening schedule and the lack of public consultation preceding these changes. I am further outraged at the lack of a public forum to express these opinions, and urge that CBC Radio management foster a public debate on the merits of these changes and any further planned changes to CBC Radio Two programming.
I would be very grateful if you could assist in this matter, and could encourage CBC Radio management to make it possible for CBC Radio Two listeners to express their opinions in an open, public forum.
Sincerely,
James Wooten
Now, I did not think that I was asking for a lot here. I was not asking for the CHPC to demand that CBC Radio Two revamp it's evening schedule and return the programming that existed prior to March 19, 2007. No, I simply asked that the CHPC "encourage CBC Radio management to make it possible for CBC Radio Two listeners to express their opinions in an open, public forum". The form of the encouragement could be anything that the CHPC members deemed appropriate - perhaps a friendly word in the hallway the next time Mr. Robert Rabinovitch appeared before the CHPC? Perhaps something along the lines of "Well, you know Bob, the citizens are a little upset about what's going on with CBC Radio Two. Couldn't you just give them a web site where they can express their opinions? Answer their letters? Make them think someone's listening?". Or some similar words of advice. Was this too much to ask? Considering that the CBC seems to fall within their mandate, and given their current study topic, "A Full Investigation of the Role for a Public Broadcaster in the 21st Century"? Shouldn't the CHPC know that the taxpayers (who are also voters, as well as shareholders in the CBC) are just a little bit peeved with the CBC?
As you may have guessed, I sent the same letter to all of the committee members listed above. Did I receive a response? This will be the subject of the next post to this blog.
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