Independent third-language community television producers are appealing for inclusion in the upcoming federal budget, warning that their sector “is on the brink of collapse.”
The Canadian Ethnic Media Association (CEMA) is calling for $10.52 million in annual funding over a two-year period. Their budget submission, titled the Canadian Independent Ethnic Community Television: Anti-Disinformation and Digital Transition Program, says the investment would help producers transition online and preserve multilingual local news across more than 85 language communities serving 800,000 weekly viewers.
Their proposed program would offer a base production grant to independent producers of $96,200 per eligible program per year, with an additional digital transition grant of $24,000 per program per year.
Without intervention, CEMA says thousands of Canadians could lose access to local news in their own languages, creating an information vacuum that could allow “hostile foreign actors” to spread disinformation.
“We fear that once again, despite years of engagement with officials, our voices will be lost in the noise. This is the only media sector without access to any public funding. Closing this policy gap would finally make Canada’s multicultural media system fair and inclusive,” said Campaign Coordinator Igor Malakhov, Campaign Coordinator, who serves as Editor-in-Chief of online platform and weekly OMNI 1 program Vestnik.ca, serving Canada’s Russian-speaking community. “If this sector disappears, Canada will lose a crucial link between its institutions and millions of citizens who rely on trusted information in their heritage languages.”
“It is fundamental to acknowledge the crucial role that Canada’s multilingual, multicultural media plays in our democracy,” added CEMA Chair Madeline Ziniak. “Access to a funding mechanism would finally create a fair and equitable playing field for this important sector. It would preserve trusted multilingual news for over 800,000 Canadians and help deliver on Bill C-11’s commitment to reflect Canada’s ethnocultural diversity in broadcasting.”
