CBC annually dominates the Geminis in the arenas of news and current affairs. No surprises there and, predictably, this year there’s more of the same. The National/CBC News alone has 15 nominations, and the fifth estate has 10. To scan the list, you’d almost think there was only one national network in Canada.

Despite the budget-slashing and staff reduction that have characterized the cbc since the 1996 Geminis, the public broadcaster continues to pull in nearly all the news and information nominations. Which begs a few questions: is the cbc managing to keep up the quality, the depth and breadth, despite less money and fewer staff? Or will the other outlets lag a few steps behind what the cbc does, no matter how much or how little the public broadcaster spends?

Tony Burman, executive producer for The National, believes cbc sets the bar for Canadian news quality, for better or for worse.

‘There’s evidence that the commercial networks are taking advantage of cbc cuts. They can save money and put it elsewhere. We’ve provided the pressure for them to keep up their coverage, and if we reduce our commitment to covering Canada and the world, so can they. Commercial networks are in the business to make money, that’s their nature.’

In the ideal free market, private broadcasters would jump in to replace what the cbc no longer had the resources to do properly. Producers at cbc are generally not holding their breath.

Joy Crysdale is executive producer of Venture, the Canadian business show often identified (along with programs like Country Canada, Marketplace and the fifth estate) as the kind of programming only cbc does. Says Crysdale: ‘I can’t say I believe that a private broadcaster would do this program in the same way.

‘I consider it my mandate, as a public broadcaster, to cover the country in the field – not just doing interviews with people from across the country or, worse still, interviewing people in Toronto about other parts of Canada. People say that if we weren’t covering business, the public sector would. But would they go to Newfoundland, or to Brandon, or to small towns in Alberta?’

While choosing not to disclose her budget, Crysdale calls Venture an ‘incredibly efficient program.’

‘We produce 42 original episodes a year, and you couldn’t put this program on for the budget I have and still attempt to make a profit. That’s the nature of the private sector, and there’s nothing wrong with it, but they would not maintain what we’re doing now.’

As for the post-cuts Venture, Crysdale already feels her mandate has been compromised.

‘I think we definitely should be doing more about Canadian business internationally. Chile is a big story, for example, but we can’t afford to go to Chile. We recently did a story in Cuba, only because we got a cheap package deal to go there.’

Down the hall at the fifth estate, producer David Studer has the same feeling. Investigative journalism is labor-intensive, and it’s not cheap.

‘We’re still taking substantial cuts, and we want to avoid, at all costs, the lure of becoming a tabloid in efforts to artificially keep our ratings up.’

Studer says the loss of whole shows from the current affairs department – Undercurrents being the most recent victim – is regrettable but necessary if the existing programs are to even hope to maintain quality.

‘You can’t starve all the livestock. At some point you have to be tough. Undercurrents was enormously original and vital, and it had a terrific group of people behind it, but all the programs here could be debated in similar ways. But from my perspective, from this program, I’m very glad the corporation is moving away from across-the-board cutting.’

Looking to the future, Studer can pick out bright spots in the landscape beyond The Corp. (he singles out @discovery.ca which is competing against the fifth estate for best information series), but on the whole he’s pessimistic.

‘I think if you took all of the cbc news and current events programming off the air, I very much doubt it would be replaced. You don’t see private radio jumping in to replace Morningside or Sunday Morning.’

Despite the grim words, cbc has already taken steps towards tying private broadcasters to some of its programming. Last May, cbc struck a two-year deal with Life Network to coproduce the long-lived and critically acclaimed series Man Alive under the condition that Life run the episodes a week later.

However, even people in private broadcasting agree that private nets and specialties will never attack news and current events like the cbc. Paul Lewis, producer of @discovery.ca, says ‘cbc is and always will be the leader in those areas,’ but he’s actually looking forward to some erosion.

@discovery.ca is a daily science and technology news program, and it’s something Lewis doesn’t think the cbc would ever have the resources to produce.

‘We can do it because we are able to focus our resources. The cbc can’t be all things to all people as it gets stretched more and more. That’s not necessarily a negative thing, because it will help the cbc clarify its vision and focus on what it does best.’

Lewis foresees a time when many niche networks will offer daily news programming in highly specialized areas. Not only will it make sense in terms of audience fragmentation, but it will be the only approach within their means financially.

‘The fact is, on many nights, @discovery.ca is among the highest rated programs. It brings the channel prestige and support from the outside community, and that’s beyond a price tag. And in terms of advertisers, the audience that watches us is very valuable. We cannot talk down to our viewership, they are very intelligent.’

It’s yet to be seen where @discovery.ca’s educated, intelligent audience will eventually be turning for their news beyond the realm of science and technology, but the journalists at the cbc are accepting their Gemini accolades with irony.

‘Despite hundreds and hundreds of awards over the years,’ says Burman, ‘the standard of Canadian broadcast journalism is in peril.’