The Whole Vision Thing

Times are slow, it's the last long weekend of Summer, people (not involved in the Labour day parade) have finished their picked duty and gone to spend it with friends and family. Labour day (a Canadian invention) doesn't (let's be honest) mean what it used to. But, for hard working people to take some down time, gather with friends and family, and have a last barbecue and beer before the kids go back to school and the leaves turn and signal another cold dark winter would certainly be no insult to the people who fought for the rights of workers in the last century.

Since things are slow, and because we are embroiled in an argument about vision, I'd like to tell you what I see, or what I would like to see from the CBC for the foreseeable future. The CBC, starting at the top, should be well funded, much more than it is now, either by the Government, or by allowing private donations - allowing it to be both a Crown corporation and a legal charity at the same time. In exchange for this funding it should be something of true and lasting value to all Canadians, but I'll get back to that shortly.

Once the CBC is well funded it should be staffed by someone with a passion for public broadcasting (not a bean counter or a bureaucrat) - someone with solid industry credentials, a deep well of creativity and an inclination to build teams rather than order foot-soldiers. Management should be staffed by people who share these passions and ideals.

It should be staffed by people from a variety of regions, from a variety of social, cultural and economic backgrounds and a variety of fields who love what they do, who love Canada and who want to tell it's stories. When these people are found it should be the primary objective of human resources to entice them to stay with job security, reasonable salaries and benefits - in short the things that it will take to keep their minds on the work they love and not concerns over how to take care of their families.

Then in exchange for their tax dollars and willing donations the CBC should become, even more than it already is, the repository of the Canadian experience. It should both archive and remind us of our history, as well as always being there, with reliable coverage when history happens - even if (and this is a matter for lawmakers) even if someone else has bought the rights. It should be impartial in it's coverage, but should include the widest possible range of voices and opinions and cover events as thorough as possible. Even this can be done better. How often, for example, are new immigrants asked what they think of debates in Parliament? The constant flood of immigrants coming to Canada come with a vision that inspired them to leave their homes, friends and sometimes families to come here, knowing what that vision was could tell Canada alot about itself.

It should be steady and reliable, Canadians should know that if anything significant is happening the CBC will be there and will tell them about it. It should tell the stories of both ordinary and extraordinary Canadians from coast to coast to coast and the regional offices should be expanded and empowered with this goal in mind.

While it is being steady and reliable it should also be experimental and new. The CBC should include the arts as part of Canada's experience and should find, display and nurture talent that has yet to find a commercial outlet. The CBC's staff also should be encouraged to experiment and test new ground. After all, if these people have a passion for what they do, they should be allowed to express that passion without always having it stifled by those who do not share it.

The CBC should not be about ratings or revenue, it is a National asset, created for a purpose and it should strive only to fulfill that purpose. If the CBC stands up every day and says 'here is Canada, here are Canadians - for better or worse' and the public doesn't want to watch then the problem is not with the network. The postal service delivers the mail, even if you don't like the bills. Canada Revenue collects taxes, it does not have to be popular, it has to fulfill it's mission. The CBCs mission is more creative, but should rely no more on popularity contests than any other public service.

If I was a government, and I was going to design a public broadcaster that would be an asset to my country, and a national treasure now and in the future this is what I would build (and fund.) I don't know how current management's vision varies from this, but apparently it does rather sharply.