An Examination of the Policy Discourse Shifts in Canadian Broadcasting: 2003-2017
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FROM PUBLIC INTEREST TO CREATORS’ INTEREST: AN EXAMINATION OF THE POLICY DISCOURSE SHIFTS IN CANADIAN BROADCASTING: 2003-2017 by Emma Whyte Bachelor of Public Affairs and Policy Management, 2016 Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada A thesis presented to Ryerson University and York University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the program of Communication and Culture Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 2018 © Emma Whyte, 2018 AUTHOR’S DECLARATION I hereby declare that I am the sole author of this thesis. This is a true copy of the thesis including any required final revisions, as accepted by my examiners. I authorize Ryerson University to lend this thesis to other institutions or individuals for the purpose of scholarly research. I further authorize Ryerson University to reproduce this thesis by photocopying or by other means, in total or in part, at the request of other institutions or individuals for the purpose of scholarly research. I understand that my thesis may be made electronically available to the public. ii ABSTRACT FROM PUBLIC INTEREST TO CREATORS’ INTEREST: AN EXAMINATION OF THE POLICY DISCOURSE SHIFTS IN CANADIAN BROADCASTING: 2003-2017 Emma Whyte Master of Arts in Communication and Culture Ryerson University 2018 This thesis investigates the policy discourse shifts in Canadian broadcasting that occurred between 2003 and 2017 by examining two government consultation processes about Canadian broadcasting in the digital age: the 2003 “Our Cultural Sovereignty: The Second Century of Canadian Broadcasting” report, and the 2017 Canadian Content in a Digital World consultations. These two consultation processes are compared through a policy document analysis, analyzing government policy documents and stakeholders’ submissions to the consultations. Through this analysis, it was found that, although both reports stressed the necessity of policy reform, three key shifts in the policy discourse were identified: a shift from distinctly Canadian to internationally viable, a shift from cultural good to economic good, and a shift from public interest to creators’ interest. Because of these shifts, although these reports addressed similar problems about broadcasting in the digital age, the reports had considerably different outcomes regarding their policy recommendations. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS As Allison Janney jokingly said in her 2018 Academy Awards acceptance speech, “I did it all by myself.” However, this could not be further from the truth. This thesis has greatly benefitted from the time and attention of my supervisory committee, as well as assorted friends, family, and faculty. Specifically, many thanks to: • My supervisor, Dr. Jeremy Shtern, for all your academic support, pep talks, and for proving to me that I was capable and that I did not need to schedule meetings all the time. • My committee members, Dr. David Skinner and Dr. Jonathan Obar, for your insights and perspectives which helped improve my work. • The Communication and Culture program for providing a supportive environment for conducting this research, and especially with the faculty and resources to do this communications policy research • Dr. Shtern and the Global Communications Governance Lab at Ryerson University for giving me access to the submissions for the 2003 Lincoln Report which greatly helped my research. • My MA cohort for being always so supportive of one another and always there for a study session. Also, thanks to Steph Hill for your encouragement when I needed it, and your frankness when I needed it. • My undergraduate experience at Carleton University. My Bachelor of Public Affairs and Policy Management prepared me well for conducting this policy research. Also, thank you to Dr. Dwayne Winseck at Carleton for teaching me about the field of media policy and helping cultivate my passion for the field. • My family and friends for all your unconditional support and for tolerating my random discussions of broadcasting policy at the dinner table. iv DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to my wonderful mother, father, and brother for their unwavering support throughout all my endeavours. v CONTENTS Author’s Declaration ....................................................................................................................... ii Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................ iv Dedication ....................................................................................................................................... v List of Tables and Figures............................................................................................................. vii List of Appendices ........................................................................................................................ vii Chapter 1: Introduction ................................................................................................................... 1 Setting the Stage: A Brief History of Canadian Broadcasting Policy in the 21st Century .......... 1 Objectives .................................................................................................................................. 14 Thesis Structure ......................................................................................................................... 16 Literature Review ...................................................................................................................... 17 Theoretical Framework ............................................................................................................. 26 Method and Sources .................................................................................................................. 34 Chapter 2: Findings and Analysis ................................................................................................. 41 A Need for Change? .................................................................................................................. 41 From Distinctly Canadian to Internationally Viable ................................................................. 46 From Cultural Good to Economic Good ................................................................................... 57 From Public Interest to Creators’ Interest ................................................................................. 64 Structural Differences in these Reports ..................................................................................... 75 A Comparative Shift in Focus ................................................................................................... 77 Chapter 3: Conclusion................................................................................................................... 79 Research Questions ................................................................................................................... 79 Importance and Implications ..................................................................................................... 80 Future Research ......................................................................................................................... 84 Review ....................................................................................................................................... 85 Appendices .................................................................................................................................... 89 Works Cited ................................................................................................................................ 112 vi LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES Figure 1.1 - Broadcasting distribution undertakings subscriber (thousands) numbers – Basic and non-basic services……………………………………………………………………………….. 23 Table 2.1: Description of shifts found through the analysis of these two reports…………………77 LIST OF APPENDICES Appendix A – List of Recommendations – Our Cultural Sovereignty: The Second Century of Canadian Broadcasting ............................................................................................................. 89 Appendix B – Pillars of the Approach – Canadian Content in a Digital World Consultation Paper ........................................................................................................................................... 101 Appendix C – Creative Canada at a Glance – Creative Canada Policy Framework .................. 103 Appendix D – List of Sources Used ........................................................................................... 104 Appendix E – Suggested Study Themes and Study Questions – Our Cultural Sovereignty: The Second Century of Canadian Broadcasting ......................................................................... 108 vii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION SETTING THE STAGE: A BRIEF HISTORY OF CANADIAN BROADCASTING POLICY IN THE 21ST CENTURY Since television emerged in the 1940s and 1950s, broadcasting has consistently been disrupted by new technologies. From the introduction of cable to satellite, to pay and specialty television services, these innovations have introduced new ways for Canadians to watch television and new challenges for Canadian policymakers to adapt broadcasting policy to new cultural and technological norms. Throughout