Speech (House debate)

{
    "time": "2008-06-05 20:40:00",
    "attribution": {
        "en": "Mr. Richard Nadeau (Gatineau, BQ)",
        "fr": ""
    },
    "content": {
        "en": "<p data-HoCid=\"1140801\" data-originallang=\"fr\">Mr. Speaker, on April 15, the vice president of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Richard Stursberg, said before the Standing Committee on Official Languages that the broadcast of the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame gala last March did not show French-Canadian songwriters and composers because the anglophone audience would not appreciate the music and would change the channel. This left French-language singers without a chance to showcase their talent.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140802\" data-originallang=\"fr\">The gala was three hours and fifteen minutes long, and all of the French-language singers were cut for reasons that border on xenophobia. \u201cAnglophones will change the channel if the francophones sing.\u201d</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140803\" data-originallang=\"fr\">It is despicable. And it has been this way for three years. It is unacceptable. Conservative, Liberal, New Democrat and Bloc members do not approve of this state of affairs. This is what we told Mr. Stursberg and his boss, Hubert Lacroix, the president of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, on May 27 when he appeared before the Standing Committee on Official Languages.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140804\" data-originallang=\"fr\">What if Inuit singers Kashtin were to perform? Would the CBC go off air so as not to displease people who do not speak their language? You have to wonder. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140805\" data-originallang=\"fr\">Mr. Stursberg claimed that audience ratings studies supported his decision. That is out of order. Quebeckers, Acadians and Brayons, together with francophones in Newfoundland, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut, not to mention francophile anglophones, all pay their taxes to the federal government, and some of that money goes to the CBC. They all have the right to hear francophone singers on the CBC, particularly during its broadcast of the hall of fame gala honouring Canadian songwriters from coast to coast. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140806\" data-originallang=\"fr\">There is every reason for members of the House of Commons to get involved in issues related to the crown corporation's programming. We were elected by citizens who want us to represent them and who want us to spend their tax money well. In this case, they want us to make sure that public television programming reflects their Quebec culture or their Canadian culture, as the case may be.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140807\" data-originallang=\"fr\">According to Canada's broadcasting policy, the crown corporation, which includes both the Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 Radio-Canada and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, must \u201creflect Canada\u201d.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140808\" data-originallang=\"fr\">For the past three years, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has failed to comply with that important part of its mandate during CBC broadcasts of the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame gala featuring both francophone and anglophone songwriters. That has to change.</p>",
        "fr": "<p data-HoCid=\"1140801\" data-originallang=\"fr\">Monsieur le Pr\u00e9sident, le 15 avril dernier, le vice-pr\u00e9sident de la Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, M. Richard Stursberg, disait devant le Comit\u00e9 permanent des langues officielles que si on n'avait pas t\u00e9l\u00e9diffus\u00e9 le gala du Panth\u00e9on canadien des auteurs et compositeurs francophones comme anglophones de la chanson canadienne \u00e0 la CBC en mars dernier, de fa\u00e7on \u00e0 permettre aux chanteurs de langue fran\u00e7aise de d\u00e9montrer leur talent, c'est parce que les auditeurs anglophones n'auraient pas appr\u00e9ci\u00e9 et auraient chang\u00e9 de poste. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140802\" data-originallang=\"fr\">D'un gala de quelque trois heures et quinze minutes, on a coup\u00e9 tous les chanteurs de langue fran\u00e7aise au montage pour des consid\u00e9rations qui fr\u00f4lent la x\u00e9nophobie. \u00ab Les anglophones changent de poste si les francophones chantent! \u00bb </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140803\" data-originallang=\"fr\">N'est-ce pas l\u00e0 abject. Cela fait trois ans qu'il en est ainsi. C'est inacceptable. Conservateurs, lib\u00e9raux, n\u00e9od\u00e9mocrates et bloquistes d\u00e9sapprouvent cet \u00e9tat de chose. Nous l'avons dit \u00e0 M. Stursberg et \u00e0 son patron, le pr\u00e9sident de la Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 Radio-Canada, M. Hubert Lacroix, le 27 mai dernier, lors de son t\u00e9moignage sur le sujet au Comit\u00e9 permanent des langues officielles. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140804\" data-originallang=\"fr\">Que dire si Kashtin, les chanteurs innus, offrent un tour de chant? Est-ce que la CBC va fermer ses ondes pour ne pas d\u00e9plaire aux gens qui ne comprennent pas leur langue? Il faut se poser la question.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140805\" data-originallang=\"fr\">M. Stursberg arguait que les \u00e9tudes des cotes d'\u00e9coute lui donnaient raison. Ce propos est hors d'ordre. Les Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois, les Acadiens, les Brayons, les Franco-Terre-Neuviens, les Franco-Ontariens, les Franco-Manitobains, les Fransaskois, les Franco-Albertains, les Britanno-Colombiens francophones, les Franco-Yukonnais, les Franco-T\u00e9nois et les Franco-Nunavutiens ainsi que les anglophones francophiles paient tous leurs imp\u00f4ts au gouvernement f\u00e9d\u00e9ral, dont une partie va \u00e0 la CBC. Ils ont tous le droit d'entendre des chanteurs d'expression fran\u00e7aise sur les ondes de la CBC, surtout lorsqu'on pr\u00e9sente un gala du Panth\u00e9on des auteurs et des compositeurs de la chanson canadienne d'un oc\u00e9an \u00e0 l'autre. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140806\" data-originallang=\"fr\">Il est tout \u00e0 fait justifi\u00e9 pour les d\u00e9put\u00e9s de la Chambre des communes de se m\u00ealer de questions li\u00e9es \u00e0 la programmation de la soci\u00e9t\u00e9 d'\u00c9tat. Nous sommes \u00e9lus par des citoyens et citoyennes qui nous demandent, entre autres, de les repr\u00e9senter, qui nous demandent de d\u00e9penser leurs imp\u00f4ts de fa\u00e7on efficiente. Dans le cas pr\u00e9sent, ils nous demandent de nous assurer qu'elles et qu'ils peuvent retrouver leur culture qu\u00e9b\u00e9coise pour certains, canadienne pour d'autres, dans la programmation de leur t\u00e9l\u00e9vision publique. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140807\" data-originallang=\"fr\">D'apr\u00e8s la politique canadienne de la radiodiffusion, la soci\u00e9t\u00e9 d'\u00c9tat, autant la Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 Radio-Canada que la Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, doit \u00ab refl\u00e9ter la globalit\u00e9 canadienne \u00bb. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1140808\" data-originallang=\"fr\">Lors des galas t\u00e9l\u00e9diffus\u00e9s du Panth\u00e9on canadien des auteurs et compositeurs francophones comme anglophones de la chanson canadienne \u00e0 la CBC au cours des trois derni\u00e8res ann\u00e9es, la Canadian Broadcasting Corporation n'a pas respect\u00e9 cette partie importante de son mandat. Cela doit changer. </p>"
    },
    "url": "/debates/2008/6/5/richard-nadeau-2/",
    "politician_url": "/politicians/richard-nadeau/",
    "politician_membership_url": "/politicians/memberships/521/",
    "procedural": false,
    "source_id": "2516575",
    "h1": {
        "en": "Adjournment Proceedings",
        "fr": ""
    },
    "h3": {
        "en": "Canadian Broadcasting Corporation",
        "fr": ""
    },
    "document_url": "/debates/2008/6/5/",
    "related": {
        "document_speeches_url": "/speeches/?document=%2Fdebates%2F2008%2F6%2F5%2F"
    }
}