CRTC presents Al-Jazeera

Earlier this month, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) decided to allow Al-Jazeera, an Arab cable news network based in Qatar, to broadcast in Canada.

However, the CRTC’s ruling is conditional; cable providers that pick up the network will be required to censor any comments deemed inappropriate or inconsistent with current Canadian broadcasting regulations.

Some cable companies, such as Rogers, are unlikely to broadcast Al-Jazeera at all because they say the imposed regulations are too strict and burdensome. Some NGOs, such as the Canadian Jewish Congress, argue that the network shouldn’t even be allowed in Canada and allege the network broadcasts anti-Semitic content.

Those familiar with Al-Jazeera can reasonably question the network’s ability to report news accurately and objectively. Still, Al-Jazeera should be allowed to broadcast in Canada and Canadians should be allowed to decide for themselves whether the network is worth watching.

In its ruling, the CRTC has attempted to strike a delicate balance. Unfortunately, their decision may satisfy few.

Supporters of Al-Jazeera may be frustrated by the choice to partially censor the network while opponents may have wanted nothing less than unconditional prohibition. It is not clear if there is a large Canadian market for a watered-down version of Al-Jazeera.

Last, there might be a double standard in play. Western media occasionally broadcasts content that could be reasonably interpreted as offensive to the Arab world and media regulators seem less pro-active in their efforts to prohibit such content. Perhaps the Canadian reaction to Al-Jazeera has more to do with culture shock than with a neutral effort to standardize Canadian media.

The politics of censorship is a difficult subject. The politics of the Middle East is even more challenging. By creating a Canadian-filtered version of Al-Jazeera, the CRTC has attempted to establish common ground on an explosive issue. What remains to be seen is whether the Canadian public is satisfied with the result.

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