TVOntario is $10 million short, and is turning to its viewers for help.

Speaking before the Economic Club of Canada, CEO Lisa de Wilde said the educhannel needs to ‘adopt a new model’ to pay its bills; one in which ‘the bulk of the funding may come from the government, but more and more comes from the private sector, including individual donors.’ The channel has been overhauling its operations for a few years now, embracing new media and working to distinguish its high-minded, long-view programming from that of the commercial world.

Eighty percent of TVO’s funding comes from the province. A fundraising campaign calling on Ontarians to ‘go public’ is running on the channel and its website.