Prairie producers are calling on the cbc to allot specific funding envelopes and broadcast time to regional production as part of its conditions of licence renewal.

At the national crtc hearings into the cbc licence renewals underway in Hull, Que., the Alberta Motion Pictures Industry Association is recommending that the commission require CBC Alberta to designate five hours per week in primetime (over and above its current licence requirements for local news programming) and Alberta-produced drama, kids’, documentaries and music/variety programming.

ampia is also proposing that at a national and regional (Edmonton and Calgary) licence level, the cbc establish a regional production fund of at least $2 million annually to support script and concept development, broadcast licences and the broadcast of Alberta independent productions. The fund would be administered at the regional level.

The Manitoba Motion Pictures Industries Association is lobbying for the creation of dedicated development funding of at least $250,000 annually, plus broadcast licences, specifically designated for Manitoba-based production, including drama series and mows. mmpia is also proposing the cbc commit dedicated airtime for regional programming.

Saskatchewan broadcaster scn’s submission to the cbc hearings goes even further, calling on the public broadcaster to stop chasing big-budget dramatic and sports programming and redefine itself as ‘Canada’s source of information about itself.’

The scn submission points out that the cbc has been slow in realizing ‘it can’t be everything for everyone,’ and in attempting to maintain a mass audience, is ignoring regional and informational programming.

The cbc, according to scn, should address the areas defined in Section 3 of the Broadcasting Act which are not being provided by the commercial sectors, namely common informational programming relevant to all Canadians balanced with regional and/or community-specific informational programming.

Furthermore, scn is advocating that the cbc take on the role of partner and facilitator, working with regional and educational broadcasters through partnership deals and by providing infrastructure equity to redirect scarce resources to programming, and develop an ongoing supply of varied programming from all parts of the country to be funneled into the national service.

The Western producers associations and broadcasters have headed to the hearings armed with stats and studies that indicate a very bleak track record in the Prairies for the national pubcaster.

According to the Western Canadian Television Production Study, prepared for the Department of Canadian Heritage, cbc’s financing of Western Canadian television dropped 51% between ’93/94 and ’97/98, while its total spending on Canadian programming decreased only 25%.

The study points out that while cbc reduced its financing to the West by $5.3 million over this five-year period, its total Canadian production financing decreased by $4.9 million over the same period. The report concludes that, in effect, the cbc dropped its Canadian production funding exclusively at the expense of Western Canadian production.

A review of Alberta’s broadcasting landscape, commissioned by the Alberta Motion Picture Industry Association, shows that cbc support for Alberta independent production dropped 57% to a low of $2.12 million in ’97/98 from a high of $4.98 million in ’94/95 (when two primetime drama series were produced out of Alberta). Almost all of this cbc production activity in the West was in the drama category. During this five-year period, no Alberta-based kids’ programming was supported by the cbc.

The cbc did not license any documentary or variety programs from Alberta producers between ’96/97 and ’97/98, despite the fact that doc production has increased more than tenfold in the province – to almost $4 million in ’97/98 from $361,633 in ’93/94 – and accounted for 32% of all production in the province.

The report notes that while private broadcasters in Alberta have commitments to invest in production, CBC Calgary and Edmonton licences do not have any commitment to the local industry through dedicated time slots or regional budgets for independent production. As a result, there is no incentive for the cbc, at the network level, to direct expenditures towards independent producers in Alberta.

The ampia study finds that the typical CBC Edmonton schedule of 132.5 hours contains 80% regular network programming, 6% of regularly scheduled regional news, 14.5% of foreign programming, no hours of regular regional programming in drama, music, variety, documentary or children’s and no hours of regular programming produced or coproduced with Alberta independent producers.

The report calls into question the cbc’s ability to meet its Broadcast Act mandate to reflect regional needs and concerns as well as fulfill its long-term crtc licence requirement to attain a fair and equitable balance between regional and network production and scheduling.