CRTC rulings

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission this week released a set of new policies addressing last year's media and diversity hearings.

The decisions, which apply only to private broadcasters, decree that:

• a person or entity will only be permitted to control two of the following types of media that serve the same market: a local radio station, a local television station or a local newspaper (that's two types, not two papers, a major distinction newspaper giants like Canwest)
  
• one party can't control more than 45 per cent of the total television audience share as a result of a transaction
• the CRTC will not approve transactions between companies that distribute television services (such as cable or satellite companies) that would result in one person effectively controlling the delivery of programming in a market

These rulings might seem monumental, but as as Marc Edge observed on TheTyee.ca, they merely preserve the status quo for Canada's current media conglomerates.

Canadian journalists and audiences are still sussing out what these rulings really mean, and next week, journalism professor Kim Kierans will explain it all on JournalismEthics.ca. Stay tuned!