The Development of Single-Faith Broadcasting in Canada
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THE CANADIAN 'ELECTRONIC CHURCH' McMaster University The Canadian 'Electronic Church'; The Development of Single-faith Broadcasting in Canada By Rkhard T. Brooks, H-B.A. rtiaI fulfillment of die degree of Mas~r o~ Arts, In pa t f McMaster Ul1lVerslty DepartmeB 0 m........."""_... , Hamilton, Ontario August 2003 MASTERS OF ARTS (2003) McMaster University (Department of History) Hamilton, Ontario Title: The 'Canadian Electric Church:' The Development of Single-faith Broadcasting in Canada Author: Rich Brooks Hons. B.A. (McMaster University) Supervisor: Dr. M. Gauvreau Number of Pages: xii, 157. " ABSTRACT This study investigates the advent and evolution of the Canadian 'electronic church' phenomenon as well as analyzing the creation of single-faith broadcasting in Canada It analyzes the role the federal government has played in circumscribing and directing religious broadcasting in twentieth-century Canada. Methodologically, it departs from many important studies of religion in society by adopting a cultural rather than demographic approach. This approach draws attention to the inner workings of federal regulatory bodies and religious broadcasters; where both cultural forces during the twentieth-century, negotiated a place for religious broadcasting in Canadian society. The argument suggests that during the twentieth-century, single-faith broadcasting in Canada and elements of the American 'electric church' phenomenon were circumscribed by federal regulatory bodies in order to ensure that some salient aspects of American fundamentalist religious culture and 'home grown' religious ministries focused on proselytization, did not transplant themselves in the Canadian broadcasting system. Due to some over-the-air radio disputes among religious broadcasters during the 1920s, all aspects centered on single-faith broadcasting and single-faith ownership of radio stations were banned in 1932, effectively placing the control over mass communications in the hands of the federal government. Thus, religious broadcasting and individual freedom were circumscribed in favour of ensuring social harmony and collective freedom. Although religious broadcasters never lost carriage rights to air their programs, they were banned from owning their own broadcasting licenses and were barred from owning their own radio or television station. However, with the creation of the Charter ofRights and Freedoms in 1982, the advancements in mass communications, and mounting pressure from religious organizations for more representation in the Canadian broadcasting system, the federal government decided to initiate a public discourse on religious broadcasting in 1982. Because individual freedom of conscience III and expression in matters of religion were guaranteed rights in the Charter, federal regulatory bodies eventually decided to fully deregulate their religious broadcasting policies in 1993. New technology and legislative provision combined to make it possible for Canadian religious groups to own satellite, radio and UHF cable channels. With this new freedom, power has trickled down to religious groups and individnals who are interested in developing a voice for religious radio and television in the Canadian broadcasting system Many religious organizations, particularly evangelical Christians, have scrambled to fill the Canadian broadcasting system with their religious messages but. in doing so, have found that their religious identity and evangelical message have been challenged, tempered and eroded by the very forces that issued them their power in the first place. 'v Acknowledgements The process of any objective requires inspiration, support and constant encouragement by many in order to make its completion possible, and my thesis reflects such assistance. I owe an inordinate amount of gratitude to my parents and my grandmother for their financial support as an undergraduate and their emotional support as a graduate student without either, my efforts would have been all the more difficult to accomplish. Also, heartfelt gratitude is extended to my best friends Mike Costa and Mark King for their countless hours of support and encouragement and mutual partaking of countless coffees. I'll be forever grateful to my wife Marianne from whom I received endless encouragement, patience and faith in my abilities- this labour is as much mine, as it is yours. I would also like to thank Dante A1ighieri whose lyric poetIy contained in the Divine Comedy inspired me to pursue the Divine and to appreciate and acknowledge things that are beyond the sphere of human comprehension. Most importantly, I would like to thank my Heavenly Father Who is my life and my very essence. For my initial inspiration, I must acknowledge a friend of mine Carla, who set me on the path of completing my MA through the thesis route. In addition, a sincere thanks goes to Dr. Gauvreau for his continual assurance, critical analysis and his expertise in the historical field. You have been a mentor to me and I am truly proud, honoured and blessed to have you as my master and teacher. Without the contribution of each of these individuals, the completion of my thesis would have been more difficult to achieve. My financial independence from my parents is due largely to the generous support of McMaster University and the History Department. I would also like to thank Dr. Nancy Christie, Dr. Balcom, Dr. John Weaver, Dr. Wayne Thorpe, Dr. Daniel Woolf, Dr. Patrick Shan, PAOC archivist Dorthy Raymer, CCCI archivist Karen Stowell, CRTC archivists Paul Chard and Chantal Bradshaw, CTS archivist Dick Gray, EFC archivist Adele Auxier, David Mainse of CCCI, David Spencer of ChristianRadio.ca, Don Millar of Joy 1250, Janet Epp Buckingham ofEFC, Robert H. DuBroy ofCHRl-FM and Brad Lockhart of the Miracle Channel. Finally, I would like to thank the countless professors, staff and graduate students at McMaster's History Department who provided me with insurmountable love and other individuals who supplied me with time, effort and support in the pursuit of my paper. When there is no vision, the people perish ... Proverbs 29. v.IS v TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ...... ....... .... .......................... ............................ .......................... iii Acknowledgements ••.•..•••••..•.•••••.•••.•.•••••••••••••••••••...•.•••••••••.••.••••••••••• _. v Table of Contents ••••••• .................................................. ........ ............. vi Abbreviations ................................................................................... viii Collage............. ................................................................................... x Chapter I Iutroduetion ...................................................................................................._ 1 Canadian Historiography: Evangelicalism in late Twentieth-Century Canada... ... ... ... 5 American Historiography: American Religious Television and tb.e 'Electric Church' .. 15 Outline of the Argument ............................................................. ,. ... ........ 25 ChapterU The Fight for Canadian Single-faith Broadcasting Part 1: The CRTC and its predecs80rs vs. single-faith broadcasters ................ 29 Justification for regulation: The development of a Federal regulatory body... ... ... ...... 35 The incipient development ofthe Canadian 'electric church' ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ..... 40 The CRTC initiates a public discourse with religious broadcasters: The 1982 Public Hearings on Religious Broadcasting ... .. ... ... .. .... ............................... 46 Public Notice CRTC 1983-112 ...... ...... ... ... .. .............. , ... ... ... ...... ... ... 48 The development of Canada's first religious television channel: VISION TV .. .......... 50 New technoligies, new developments... ... .. ... ... .. ............... ' ... ........... 54 TBN rebroadcasters: A Civil Disobedience Movement in Western Canada ... ... ... ... .... 55 The CRTC initiates a second public discourse with religious broadcasters: The 1992 Public Hearings on Religious Broadcasting . .. ... ... .. .. ... ... 62 Conclusion. ....................... .................................. ... ...... ...... ... .. .. 66 Chapter III The Advent and Development of Canadian Single-faith Broadcasting Part 2: The development ofthe Canadian 'electric church' .............................. 72 A new religious broadcasting policy: CRTC 1993-78 ...... 73 The development of Canadian single-faith television and radio 74 The future of Canadian single-faith television: digital distribution. 82 The development of Canadian single-faith radio... ... ......... 84 Map 1.0: # of single-faith radio and television stations before and after (1993-78) 85 CRTC Public Notice 1993-78: A neo-regulatory system for single-faith broadcasters. 89 Inherent anomalies in the CRTC' s regulatory system. 94 Conclusion. .. ................ 98 VI Chapter IV A Forerunner to the Canadian Electric Church Part 3: A case study of Crossroads Christian Communications Inc. (CCCI) An example on the development of Canadian Christian broadcasting .............. 101 The historical development of Crossroads Christian Communications Inc. (CCCI) 106 The advent of daily Canadian Christian television ..... , .. , ... ... ... .... .. ........... , . .. 112 CCCI's national Christian unity and international evangelical outreach and mission campaigns (1980·1991) ................... , .................. .. .............................. 117 The development of CCCI' s foreign and national missions