http:\/\/www.cmg.ca\/en\/2014\/04\/28\/ask-your-mp-to-commit-to-making-our-national-public-broadcaster-strong-again\/<\/span><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n I am ambivalent\u00a0about this pressure campaign. CBC’s VP English said recently it would not be good for CBC’s image to ask people for financial support, as PBS does. The Harper government is just the latest in a long chain of administrations to disregard CBC’s financial woes. It isn’t as simple as saying governments are paying back for expos\u00e9s of wrongdoing, (although Harper might have a case, given the thinly veiled contempt\u00a0our journalists have shown for\u00a0his administration.)<\/p>\n The problem goes much deeper than that ,\u00a0and it is a CBC problem as much as it is the failure of any administration to support public broadcasting.<\/p>\n I cannot send any letter asking anyone for more money for CBC when I have walked the talk and have seen what goes on. I am less than moved.<\/p>\n If CBC wants to get off its mountain and start to recognize and respect its once-loyal following, read local, regional, creative, original, daring, truthful, unbiased, <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Canadian Media Guild is encouraging Canadians to write their Member of Parliament\u00a0asking \u00a0to commit to make the\u00a0CBC strong again. The CMG would like\u00a0its members to send\u00a0the following\u00a0letter to their\u00a0MP and share it within their\u00a0community\u00a0\u2013\u00a0 http:\/\/www.cmg.ca\/en\/2014\/04\/28\/ask-your-mp-to-commit-to-making-our-national-public-broadcaster-strong-again\/ But not everyone is ready to jump in. After much soul searching retired CBC broadcaster Terry Ledrew of … Continue reading I’ll march for the CBC … but not at any cost<\/span> But not everyone is ready to jump in. After much soul searching retired CBC broadcaster Terry Ledrew of Pasadena, NL had this to say: <\/em><\/h6>\n
![\"Ledrew\"](\"http:\/\/cwa-scacanada.ca\/retirees\/EN\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/Screen-Shot-2014-04-11-at-11.03.15-AM-e1397658537897-150x150.png\")
<\/p>\nBy Terry Ledrew<\/h3>\n
\nThough you would be hard-pressed to find a deeper supporter of public broadcasting.
\nThe corporation has knowingly diminished its presence and connection to the smaller regions.
\nBecause the eyeballs aren’t there, the CBC
\nhas knowingly and willingly robbed radio to prop up television, which is why I have to choke\u00a0down ads on Radio 2 and
\nlisten to Gomeshi’s best-of interviews\u00a0at the end of April.
\nAnd repeat after repeat of every show.
\nIn chasing ratings, CBC has cheapened itself by\u00a0copying inane commercial programs \u2013\u00a0cooking contests, capitalistic crap like Dragon’s Den and so forth\u00a0\u2013
\nand all the while refusing to tighten its own management belt.
\nThis latest round of cuts exemplified management’s head-in-the-clouds attitude.
\nAnthony Germain said it best during an interview with CBC Atlantic’s director.
\n“So, how many jobs will be lost in this province?”
\n“Six.”
\n“And how many of those would be managers?”
\n“None”
\n“Thanks for this.”<\/p>\n
\nShe indicated it would be “demeaning.”
\nHow much more demeaning, I wonder, than expecting someone like Mr. \u00a0Germain, former host of The House, former excellent correspondent in\u00a0Asia, to run around wearing\u00a0a turkey suit during a CBC fundraiser to get taxpayers to donate a turkey to food banks?
\nWhy? So someone could eat a wing at Christmas?
\nNope. To try to come out on top of the private radio and television operations in my\u00a0province.
\nWait, no, just in St. John’s because that’s the only operation of the four here that counts.<\/p>\n
\nI think we should be asking, were they ALL wrong?<\/a><\/p>\n![\"spending](\"http:\/\/cwa-scacanada.ca\/retirees\/EN\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/cbcgrant-2011update2.png\")
<\/p>\n
\nUnless top brass recognize it took a wrong turn somewhere, and makes an effort to correct, (instead of trotting out the intended commitment to \u00a0the regions
\neach and every time\u00a0\u2013\u00a0the regions they gutted, on their own and blamed cuts for what they wanted to do all along.)<\/p>\n
\nnon-sensational and\u00a0stop to skirt-chase the ratings,\u00a0I’ll be right there not to just send a letter. I will march, as so many people did for so many years.
\nWhy they no longer do … speaks volumes.<\/p>\n![\"images-1\"](\"http:\/\/cwa-scacanada.ca\/retirees\/EN\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/images-12.jpg\")
<\/p>\n