Canadian legacy media companies could see increased taxpayer-funded handouts depending on how the next Canadian government decides to interpret one of many recommendations made by the Foreign Interference Commission.
Among Commissioner Mary-Josee Hogue’s 51 recommendations for the government to help secure against foreign interference in Canadian democracy was a call to “support” traditional media as it struggles and faces financial challenges.
In her 44th recommendation, Hogue said the government “should pursue discussions with media organizations and the public around modernizing media funding and economic models to support professional media, including local and foreign language media, while preserving media independence and neutrality.”
She highlighted some points to help clarify what she meant in the preamble to the recommendation.
“Traditional journalism is struggling,” Hogue said in the report. “Media organizations are facing financial challenges as citizens turn away from mainstream media, and towards social media or non-traditional platforms that may, for a variety of reasons, be more susceptible to misinformation and disinformation.”
Hogue said she agreed with Department of Canadian Heritage witnesses, who spoke about the importance of “supporting” Canadian media to ensure the news is “trustworthy and of good quality” at one of the commission hearings.
“I share their concern about Canada’s professional media. Canada must have a press that is strong and free,” she said in the report. “It is crucial to have credible and reliable sources of information to counterbalance misinformation and disinformation.”
In a previous volume of the report, she said she agreed “entirely” with the government in saying Canadian media needed to be supported in the name of building resilience against foreign disinformation. At the same time, however, she said it was “also important that media be independent from government and political parties.”
Franco Terrazzano, the federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, a government finance watchdog, questioned how media could remain independent from the government while taking money from the state and taxpayers.
“Taxpayers should not be forced to fund media corporations,” Terrazzano told True North. “The government must end all media bailouts and defund the CBC.”
He said media companies should compete in a free market and was concerned that the government would decide who constitutes “reliable” media.
“Canadians should be able to voluntarily choose which media to support, not be forced to subsidize media corporations with our tax dollars,” he said. “And independent media shouldn’t have their tax dollars taken from them to fund their competitors.”
Hogue’s report said foreign language media was underresourced and susceptible to foreign governments, such as the People’s Republic of China, “taking over” the Chinese media sphere in Canada.
“Foreign language media outlets can be attractive vehicles for foreign state efforts to interfere in Canada’s democratic processes,” Hogue said in the report. “If media become financially dependent on foreign advertising and investment, they can become more vulnerable to foreign interference.
Also, in the report, Hogue recommended that the government consult with media organizations and others about funding the development of artificial intelligence to translate English and French language journalism to make immigrants less reliant on foreign language media.
She suggested that the government fund language training for new Canadians, particularly promoting their access to “professional media.”
Also, to combat the use of deepfakes and AI as part of foreign disinformation campaigns, she advocated for the government to build on and develop publicly available tools to verify if digital content has been altered.
“The government should explore existing technologies and consider assisting civil society organizations, such as media observatories and universities, to develop a publicly available tool to help citizens verify whether digital content is fabricated or altered,” it said.
The report also advocates for legislation to force news and social media companies to disclose whenever they publish “altered content.”
