We Canadian journalists work in one of the most concentrated media markets in the world. Four corporations distribute 70 percent of our nation’s daily newspaper circulation, three corporations control most of our televised news market and one company owns the majority of our radio stations.

In cities across the country, it is not uncommon for just one or two corporations to completely dominate the local media market. As regional markets become more concentrated, local newsrooms are shut down in favour of centralized offices that are gentler on the bottom line. With fewer and fewer voices framing and distributing information, the less representative of our nation’s diverse views and values the entire media becomes.

We feel the continued media convergence is a detriment to Canada’s democratic integrity. The private interests of the largest media owners, along with the interests of their key advertisers, have gained undue influence over issues of critical regional and national importance. To practice our chosen trade, we are called upon to work within a system we cannot conscionably support. We feel our role shifting from acting as watchdogs on authority and sources of reliable, accurate public information, to simply serving as “content providers.”

As journalists, we are cautious of polarizing petitions and manifestos. But when the reputation of journalism itself is at risk, we cannot allow for complacency. At this critical juncture, we join an increasingly large body of the public in calling for a re-examination of Canada’s Broadcasting Act to maintain and strengthen limits on the amount and type of media one party can control, as well as on the number of outlets that a single company can own in one market. In addition, we call for an empowered, independent supervisory body to be implemented, so that it may ensure that the freedom and dependability of the press is protected.