Public Broadcast and Democracy

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Recommended: Role of broadcasting in supporting democracy

“Constructing Canada: Do we need a public broadcaster to enhance democracy?” written by David Taras, a professor at the University of Calgary and director of Alberta Global Forum. Taras reinstates the turning point of Canada Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) and their relationship with the Canadian parliament. He addressed on the developments and struggles Public Service Broadcasters (PSB), specifically CBC, encounter in order to continue to telecast. Lastly, he explains that PSB has a major role in maintaining the balance of power between the government and the mass media. PSB were created by the public for the public because a democracy can only happen if everyone cooperates.

Taras examines the commitments and values of CBC with the Canadian government and the citizens. He looked at a particular case of when CBC clashed with the government, and how CBC struggled to keep their TV programs running (Taras, pp.4-5). Next he talked about how the media industry is being taken controlled by powerful corporation and claims that PSB have the responsibility to protect the minorities (Taras, p.6). Subsequently, Taras discussed the ups and downs CBC had gone through until this day. Lastly, Taras explores the complex and intimate relationship between public broadcasters and the government; how they take advantage of each other to accomplish their goals. Ultimately, Taras believes that PSB will continue to have an impact in society despite living in a generation of digital media.

Convinced that the society needs public broadcasters, Taras recalls the event of the internment ceremony, a memorial dedicated to the Canadian soldiers who died fighting in Afghanistan, on June 7th, 2006. The government attempted to censor the event. Their re...

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...PSB is only one of many tools people can use to achieve their goals. Nevertheless, PSB will continue to exist because conflicts will constantly appear in a democratic society.

Reference List:

Gerken H., Fraga L.R., Fung A., Issacharoff S., Karlan P.S., Keyssar A., Overton S. (2006, September/October). Six ways to reform democracy. Retrieved from http:// http://bostonreview.net/BR31.5/gerken.php

Lorimer , R., Gasher, M., & Skinner, D. (2008). Mass communication in canada. (6 ed.). Don Mills, Ontario: Oxford University Press.

National Identity, TV, and CBC. A COMPASS Poll for CanWest Newspapers, Global TV, and the National Post. 1-39. Retrieved from http:// http://www.compas.ca/data /020429-NationalIdentityTVAndCBC-PC.pdf

Taras, D. (n.d.). Constructing canada: Do we need a public broadcaster to enhance democracy?. Communication and Canadian Society, 4-10.

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