The internet must remain FREE in Canada and outside the control of regulatory Agencies and government bodies

BY PAUL JUNOR

Media attention has been focused on Bill C-11, the Online Streaming Act. It was tabled in the House of Commons on December 2nd, 2020, by the Minister of Canadian Heritage and was unanimously endorsed on June 21^st, 2022.

According to the Government of Canada’s website: justice.gc.ca, Bill C-11 is an Act to enact the Consumer Privacy Protection Act and the Personal Information and Data. If the bill is passed it would require streaming services, such as: Netflix, Crave and Disney Plus to make financial contributions in support of Canadian content in areas such as: television, film and music. Bill C-11 is now before the Senate’s Standing Committee on Transport and Communication, which began their votes on Monday, September 19^th, 2022.

There have been many responses to Bill C-11. The Canadian Media Producers Association has called for the government to pass Bill C-11. It believes that Canada’s broadcasting laws are outdated and need to be updated to keep abreast with streaming services, on-demand technology and home internet. According to its website: cmpa.ca,  “Canadian laws don’t apply to the foreign-based web giants and streaming services that operate over the Internet like broadcasters. As a result, they siphon billions of dollars out of the country, without any requirement to invest back into the Canadian system.”

Opponents to Bill C-11 (CanCon) have raised several objections. They are concerned that it could potentially threaten the manner in which they make a living by impacting opportunities for visibility and impacting video views. Canadian YouTuber J.J. McCullough, who has 782,000 subscribers to his channel, raised several concerns with respect to restricted access and freedom to capitalize on the potential of YouTube to generate revenues.

CitizenGo, a community-driven global organization has initiated a petition to stop Bill C-11, as it believes the Trudeau government is bent on pushing censorship. They are concerned that left-wing activists are pushing this agenda, which is in opposition to its goals to ensure that those in power respect human dignity and individuals’ rights. It is particularly concerned by what it perceives as “woke rhetoric language” and how it may impact conservative groups, which espouse pro-life and pro-family values.

The petition by CitizenGo Canada directed to Canadian senators argues that the federal government is trying to censor the Internet and put the social media feeds of Canadians in the hands of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).” It believes that the bill threatens to suppress the social media posts by groups that aren’t Canadian enough. It requests these changed to Bill C-11:

• Amend section 4.2(2) so that it does not affect those who indirectly generate revenue from social media posts
• Reject the proposed amendments to subparagraph 3(1)(d)(iii) of the Broadcasting Act, which includes unnecessary woke language about the need for all Canadian programs to serve’ racialized communities and Canadians of diverse ethnocultural backgrounds, socio-economic statuses, abilities and disabilities, sexual orientation, gender identities and expressions, and ages.

CitizenGo Canada invites Canadians to sign the petition, “Tell Canada’s Senate to Stop Internet Censorship” in order to ensure that the internet remains free in Canada outside of the control of regulatory agencies and government bodies. Details can be seen at: citizengo.org/en-ca/node/208