CBC and TVO are alive and well, at least to the Canadian public, if not necessarily the politicians. Such are the findings of a pair of new polls commissioned by media watchdog Friends of Canadian Broadcasting, as the federal government hatches an election call and Ontario releases a new budget.

The first and more extensive poll ranked the CBC as the TV broadcaster that best protects Canadian culture and identity, while eight in 10 respondents believe the Corp. does a ‘good-to-excellent’ job of meeting its mandate.

Fifty-one percent believe the feds should maintain the current level of CBC funding, while 38% would like to see an increase and 9% would prefer a decrease. Seventy-eight percent of Canadians think it’s important for the CBC to produce local programs.

The poll also asked broader questions on the subject of media ownership. Two-thirds of respondents oppose foreign ownership of Canadian cable and telephone companies, and seven in 10 disapprove of foreign ownership and control of any Canuck media companies. Sixty percent of Canadians think there is too much media concentration in general, and three in four feel that media owners force too many personal views into the news.

The poll results were used as part of a May 13 oral presentation by Friends to a Senate committee studying national media. The poll was conducted by Ipsos-Reid among a representative, random sample of 1,100 adult Canadians between May 4 and 9. National results are considered accurate within three percent 95% of the time.

A separate Ipsos-Reid poll for Friends asked Ontarians whether TVO should be privatized, a notion bandied about by the provincial government. Seventy-six percent of respondents said no, while 22% would be in favor of a sale to a private ‘caster. Friends sent these results to the premier.

‘Ontarians believe that TVOntario is a jewel in our education system. We urge you to use your influence to preserve and strengthen its service to the people of Ontario,’ wrote Friends spokesman Ian Morrison in the letter to Premier Dalton McGuinty.

The poll involved 420 Ontario adults, participating from May 4-9, and is considered accurate to 4.9%, 19 times out of 20.

-www.friends.ca