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Christians livid as CRTC denies religious radio, but OKs porn TV

2 spots on Ottawa dial to be secular despite groups' zealous appeals

Jennifer Green
The Ottawa Citizen

Friday, September 05, 2008

The CRTC -- the same agency that recently gave two thumbs-up to a homegrown Canadian porn TV network -- has nixed two applications for Christian radio stations in the Ottawa area, and that has left some supporters of the religious proposals very unhappy.

Ottawa's CHRI came to a recent hearing of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission with 780 letters of support for a new FM station that would have played traditional Christian music, hymns and classical music targeting an older audience. Gatineau resident Fiston Kalambay Mutombo also attended the hearing to propose a French-language Christian station.

Only two broadcast slots were available and neither went to the Christian proposals. Instead, Astral Media Corp. got a spot at 99.7 on the dial, with just 77 letters of support for a soft adult music station aimed at older women.

Astral's EVE-FM should go on the air in about five months. The other available slot, at 101.9, went to a blues station.

Robert du Broy, CHRI co-founder and vice-president, said he doesn't know why Ottawa needs two more secular stations. Most American cities the size of Ottawa have at least four Christian stations. CHRI's current operation has between 30,000 and 40,000 listeners in Ottawa, Pembroke and Cornwall, playing contemporary Christian music for a youth audience.

Just a few weeks ago, the CRTC approved Northern Peaks, a porn cable channel based in Alberta, leaving many to wonder about its values as a government regulator.

"The approval of (Northern Peaks) was quite offensive," said Don Hutchison, director of law and public policy for the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada. "The CRTC has, for the past 15 years, sent a strong message they don't like Christian broadcasting, but they will allow it with heavy restrictions."

Ottawa listener David MacDonald, who used to have his own Christian radio program, is more blunt: "It's really getting tough to be a Christian in a country that was founded on Christian values.

"On Normandy Beach, what you see is a big cross ... you don't see a big dildo."

The cable TV approval is not quite the same as the radio licences. There were only two spots available on the FM band in Ottawa, but there are hundreds of cable spots. As well, Northern Peaks can't be bundled with other channels, so viewers must subscribe and pay for it separately.

As to the new Ottawa radio stations, Astral agreed to emphasize Canadian music and programming and invest almost $6 million over seven years in Canadian content development.

That seemed to be part of the appeal with Northern Peaks as well. Under the licensing conditions, it will broadcast at least 50 per cent Canadian content. The parent company, Real Productions, owns more than 200 Canadian porn titles and plans to develop a sex-industry reality TV series set in B.C.

The man behind Northern Peaks, Shaun Donnelly, believes the Canadian programming will be a selling point.

Mr. du Broy knew he would have some trouble with CHRI's proposal, because the CRTC requires balance in religious broadcasting. Christian music doesn't have to be offset with, say, Jewish or Muslim music, but Christian talk programs must be countered with discussion about other faiths. Announcers at CHRI find themselves in the bizarre situation of working for a Christian station without being able to talk much about Christianity for fear of triggering the "balance" issue. His proposal for the new station would have included approximately 71 minutes of daily programming concerning other faiths, particularly Judaism.

The CRTC did not respond to Citizen requests for comment, but last year a spokesman said it's "unlikely that a single-faith station could be balanced" without some programming on other faiths. The spokesman was asked if it was possible to get a licence without programming from other faiths. "I'm not going to respond to that," he said.

In 1993, the CRTC decided to ease some requirements, particularly for specialty cable channels on religious programming, but some commissioners dissented.

"We are disturbed by the extent of social, cultural, and racial intolerance which is often rooted in religious intolerance," they cautioned. "One need only look to Bosnia, the Middle East, India, Northern Ireland, South Africa and other world 'trouble spots' to observe this phenomenon in its most violent form. Such cultural and racial intolerance is less dramatic and violent, but no less real, in Canada."

http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=6a4bcebe-edcf-4c1f-bf3a-b96a49297261&p=1

Posted: 09/ 05/ 08 10:33 am Post subject:

Stephen Harper could have introduced a confidence motion bill to curtail the CRTC's power and put the Liberals and NDP in the position of forcing an election while getting social conservatives on his side in a short autumn parliamentary session. But no-o-o.

Posted: 09/ 05/ 08 10:54 am Post subject:

The CRTC's conduct in terms of awarding licences has been a total scandal - giving gays a Toronto FM frequency while denying Catholics (who are far greater in number) one; licensing a porn channel while denying Christians their application in Ottawa; putting Crossroads television through numerous hoops before grudgingly giving it a licence loaded with conditions for "balance" and such.

Is there any doubt there is horrific bias at the CRTC?

Posted: 09/ 05/ 08 11:04 am Post subject:

Posted: 09/ 05/ 08 11:18 am Post subject:

Harper has made it very clear which side he stands on regarding social issues. What fools we were for once supporting him.
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Pray this prayer.
Jesus I believe You died for my sins and were raised from the dead 3 days later. Forgive me and save me. Jesus be my Lord and Saviour. Help me to follow You from this day forward. Thank You God. Amen.
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Posted: 09/ 05/ 08 1:06 pm Post subject:

CRTC CHRC they are interchangable aren't they Rolling Eyes

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FREE DOMINION FORUM RULES
All the great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom; justice; honor; duty; mercy; hope ~ Sir Winston Churchill
"The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people's money." Margaret Thatcher

Posted: 09/ 05/ 08 1:12 pm Post subject:

Posted: 09/ 05/ 08 3:42 pm Post subject:

Posted: 09/ 05/ 08 4:35 pm Post subject:

Well it's OK to promote pornography as long as there is enough Canadian content. I mean we must protect our porn industry and give it a fighting chance against foreign pornography. We must protect our Canadian culture afterall.

Posted: 09/ 05/ 08 5:18 pm Post subject:

Posted: 09/ 05/ 08 5:55 pm Post subject:

No kidding tothechase. But as others here have said. You wouldn't want to vote for someone that believed in virgin birth or creation. We're doing much better with socialist seculars. Look at how far we've come in civil society for the last 4 decades. I'm impressed aren't you?

Posted: 09/ 05/ 08 6:15 pm Post subject:

Posted: 09/ 07/ 08 10:09 am Post subject:

Posted: 09/ 07/ 08 10:47 am Post subject:

The reason Harper has left you people in the dust is because he feels you hurt more than you help come election time.

Based on evidence in 2004, and 2006... he might be right.
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10 And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you:
11 They shall be even an abomination unto you; ye shall not eat of their flesh, but ye shall have their carcases in abomination. - Leviticus 11:10-11

Posted: 09/ 07/ 08 11:10 am Post subject:

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