Re: Canadian broadcast laws...

[Scott D Fybush <fybush@world.std.com>]

>     Here's a question someone on this list can most likely answer.  Right 
> now I am listening to the webcast of Mix 96 Montreal, it is about 2:30 AM.  
> They are running a live to air club mix show, and the dj at the club just 
> said the "f" word and it went over the air.  Now here in the US, I know that 
> if this ever happened, the station could rest assured it would be getting 
> some serious complaints and significant fines from the FCC.  But in Canada, 
> does anyone know what would be done by the CRTC or if they have any rules 
> regarding this issue? (they must have some sort of broadcast decency laws in 
> Canada).

They do, but it's much looser up there...in some ways.  It's much more 
common to hear the "f" word and its ilk on Canadian radio and TV; in
fact, CTV, one of the big Canadian broadcast networks, is running the
first season of The Sopranos right now -- uncut!  (Imagine CBS doing that...)

What's not permissible up there is hate talk, which is part of what got
Stern kicked off the radio in Montreal and off TV in Toronto.  The
Canadian Broadcast Standards Council has strict rules about programming
that casts specific races, genders, religions etc. in a negative light.

Canadian radio stations are required to keep full logger tapes for a month
in case of complaints, and the CRTC cracks down hard on stations that
can't make those logger tapes available upon request.

-s