B.C.’s Premier David Eby did not mince his words at a press conference on Thursday when addressing the recent cuts at Bell Media.
“I heard today about the catastrophic layoffs of journalists, media workers across the province by Bell,” Eby said.
“The sale of dozens of radio stations. Bell and corporations like Bell have overseen the assembly of local media assets that are treasures to local communities. They bought them up, like corporate vampires. They sucked the life out of them.”
“The impact on communities in British Columbia of their unrestrained corporate greed — they made almost $3 billion last year — is profound,” Eby added.
“The fact that they cannot find it possible with all of their MBAs to operate a few local news stations, in British Columbia, to ensure that people get accurate, impartial, reliable information in an age of disinformation and social media craziness is such an abandonment of any idea of corporate responsibility. I find it reprehensible. I think it’s appalling.”
Eby said Bell and other media companies need to be held accountable for the information atmosphere in which B.C. now exists.
“On behalf of all of the families, of the journalists, the media outlets, on behalf of all British Columbians that have watched their local news stations slowly turned to garbage by these companies, who now say, unsurprisingly, that there’s not a lot of support for them, I just want to say shame on you,” Eby said.
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“Shame on you.
“And I call on the federal government to stop this assembly of media properties that are not actually properties to the local communities they serve, they are an indispensable source of information.”
BCE Inc. announced Thursday that it is selling off 45 of its 103 regional radio stations as it cuts nine per cent of its workforce, including journalists and other workers at its Bell Media subsidiary.
The affected stations are in British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada.
The company announced Thursday in an open letter signed by chief executive Mirko Bibic that 4,800 jobs “at all levels of the company” would be cut.
It marks the second major layoff at the media and telecommunications giant since last spring, when six per cent of Bell Media jobs were eliminated and nine radio stations were either shuttered or sold.
Eby said the provincial government is doing everything it can to support local media companies, including pulling all advertising from Meta platforms amid the blocking of Canadian news sites on those platforms.
“I realize that is a small measure, but my complete disgust with their response, with their offer of sending a lobbyist to meet with me but refusing to agree to provide local news coverage, led to my increasing understanding of the frustration of families,” Eby said.
This includes legislation aimed at making social media companies accountable and responsible for harmful online content aimed at kids.
Eby added that the provincial government will provide support at the federal level around media regulation law.
“Previous administrations at the federal level allowed companies like Bell to buy up all these local outlets and slowly, over time, turn them into one consistent outlet that is not responsive to local communities,” he said.
“And then react with shock, that people are not as interested in watching, and then close those stations down. It cannot be allowed to continue. So we’ll support them in the work that they need to do to support local media as well.”
Bell chief legal and regulatory officer Robert Malcolmson said in an interview with The Canadian Press that Bell Media is in the midst of a “digital transformation” for both entertainment and news.
But whether or not prioritizing digital growth is viable for the company in terms of generating profit remains to be determined.
“We’re investing in it; we’ll see,” said Malcolmson. “Without some form of regulatory supports, it’s tough.”
He blamed the federal government for taking too long to provide relief for media companies as well as the CRTC for being too slow to react to a “crisis that is immediate.”
That extends to two pieces of legislation intended to help Canada’s struggling media sector: Bill C-18, also known as the Online News Act, meant to force tech giants to compensate Canadian news outlets for their content, and Bill C-11, which updates the Broadcasting Act to require digital platforms such as Netflix, YouTube and TikTok to contribute and promote Canadian content.
Bell Media’s advertising revenues declined by $140 million in 2023 compared with the year before, and the company’s news division is seeing more than $40 million in annual operating losses, Bibic stated in his letter.
On Thursday, Bell said it could also further scale back network investments on its telecom side as it remains at odds with the CRTC over what it calls “predetermined” regulatory direction.
— with files from The Canadian Press
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