Bills C-11 and C-18, which would give the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) more power over Canadians’ online communication, “penalize innovation success by propping up individuals that are less successful,” says Conservative Sen. Leo Housakos.
“Governments, bureaucrats, and the CRTC should not be the ones deciding on what pops up on our [social media] feeds in terms of our priority music, videos, or news,” Housakos said during a panel at the Canada Strong and Free Network on March 22.
“The beauty of the internet and digital platforms is it gives us endless opportunities and endless choice, and no one should have the right to take that away from us.”
Housakos criticized the bills at the panel, called “How to navigate Bills C-11 and C-18.” Housakos said Bill C-11, which would update the Broadcasting Act that gives the CRTC regulatory powers over radio and television, is “primarily a censorship bill.”
But critics say Bill C-11 would give the CRTC the authority to monitor all online audiovisual content, including smaller content creators. The CRTC would thus have the ability to increase the visibility of some officially recognized Canadian content creators, while decreasing the reach of other creators.
Bill C-11, according to Housakos, will benefit traditional media broadcasters at the expense of smaller, more independent outlets. Housakos said while he might not agree with the views of smaller broadcasters and content creators, he supports their rights to disseminate those views in an open and democratic way.
Bill C-18 a ‘Shakedown of Digital Platforms’
Housakos called Bill C-18, also known as the Online News Act, a “shakedown of digital platforms.” Bill C-18 would force companies like Google and Meta to negotiate deals with Canadian media companies, paying them for the content they link to and preview on their websites and platforms.Housakos said that Bill C-18 is another “feeble attempt” to finance a failing business model. “We’re not against journalism. I think journalists should have a vibrant and important role to play in our democracy, but it’s not incumbent on taxpayers and successful businesses in this country to support failing businesses,” he said.
Housakos compared Bill C-18 to someone taking an Uber to a restaurant and then having the restaurant demand a percentage of the fare. “How ludicrous is that? So the way I see it, the news outlets in this country should be paying our digital platforms a share of their profits for promoting their product,” he said.
Housakos said he is optimistic when he sees that many millennials, who previously voted Liberal, have become the “most vociferous voices for free speech.” Housakos said he believes the Liberals miscalculated when they “started messing around with algorithms and user-generated content.”
“They are concerned about free speech, maybe not in its intellectual, pure sense of the word as old guys like me are, but more from a practical point of view,” he said. “Because these digital platforms have become a way of life, and they feel and they see for the first time their way of life being challenged by a government they thought was on their side.”
