Bill C-18 is likely to pervert news coverage and undermine trust, according to Peter Menzies, former vice-chair of communications for the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC)..He added the controversial bill is "as likely to kill journalism in Canada as it is to save it.". Peter MenziesPeter Menzies ."The very prospect of it is already perverting news coverage and undermining trust — the commodity upon which the industry most depends," said Menzies, who is also a former publisher for the Calgary Herald.."Bill C-18 will permanently entrench the industry's dependency not on the loyalty of citizens, readers, viewers, but upon the good graces of politicians and the ability of offshore quasi-monopoly tech companies to remain profitable," he said..Menzies was a witness on Tuesday during a House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage. The committee was discussing Bill C-18, An Act respecting online communications platforms that make news content available to persons in Canada..Menzes said Bill C-18 will only perpetuate a market already distorted by subsidies, and it will punish independent news outlets like the Western Standard.."For instance, while newspapers in Regina, Saskatoon, Edmonton and Calgary will benefit from Bill C-18 money, not one of them directs its own reporter in the parliamentary press gallery. Yet the Western Standard, which has declined to submit government approval, does.".Bill C-18 aims to regulate social media sites that act as intermediaries for Canadian news sites, with the goal of enhancing "fairness in the Canadian digital news market." The bill would allow news companies to skirt anti-trust laws and receive financial compensation from social media companies when their content generates revenue for the companies through advertising..But as University of Ottawa Law Professor Michael Geist explained, the bill would grant "exceptional news powers" to the CRTC, including the right to decide what organizations are worthy of receiving funding from content shared on social media..“On top of that, the CRTC will also create a code of conduct, implement the code, and wield penalty powers for failure to comply. Far from a hands-off approach, the CRTC will instantly become the most powerful market regulator of the news sector in Canada,” Geist said..As Blacklock's Reporter has also pointed out, the CBC would be the largest beneficiary of Bill C-18. The Crown broadcaster, which already received $1.3 billion in annual federal funding, claims an average 21.7 million average monthly unique visits to its websites..Menzies said Bill C-18 "inappropriately places the state squarely in the newsrooms of the nation" by giving the CRTC oversight of agreements and directing how federal funding for news organizations is spent. He said the bill would also be likely to incentivize "more gossip and less gravitas" among news organizations..He cited a recent poll that found 61% of Canadians believe journalists are purposefully trying to mislead them, while 58% do not support the federal government subsidizing media organizations.."The more government assistance news media gets, the more broken the relationship with readers becomes. The more that relationship is broken, the more subsidy will be required. And so it goes," he said..Menzies said while Bill C-18 might, "keep the wolves at the door of a few legacy media companies for a few more years," it won't save Canadian journalism.."What Canada needs is a policy framework that encourages the innovation required for journalism to sustain itself," he said. "We need a strategy that values the efforts of the Canadian entrepreneurs who built close to 100 new news sites.".Bill C-18 passed its first and second reading in the House of Commons, and is now being reviewed by the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage.
