Public broadcasting and Canadian content regulations have been under siege since the dawn of the radio. In every generation, patriotic Canadians have stood up to corporate interests in defence of Canada's cultural sovereignty. We are proud to follow in that tradition.
FRIENDS prompts the Mulroney government to appoint the Caplan-Sauvageau Task Force, resulting in the 1991 Broadcasting Act, which clearly lays out the importance of Canadian content and ownership and the essential role of the CBC.
FRIENDS undertakes its first major electoral campaign to fight Jean Chrétien’s cuts to the CBC – the largest ever attack on its budget. FRIENDS distributes 140,000 election kits and bumper stickers in 40 Liberal-held ridings while undertaking a major outreach campaign. Liberal candidates are pressed to take “the CBC pledge.” Several refuse and are replaced by candidates who were willing to take the pledge. Bowing to public pressure, the Chrétien Liberals increased CBC funding in Budget 1998.
A successful FRIENDS campaign prevents omnibus Bill C-44 from passing with a clause that would have allowed the federal government to compromise the independence of the CBC.
FRIENDS launches its first major TV ad campaign, Telling Our Own Stories. The humour in these ads still resonates today.
FRIENDS heads off the Harper government’s agenda to privatize the CBC and delays the introduction of ads to CBC Radio 2.
Having kept Harper’s successive CBC cuts in the public eye, FRIENDS exposes a buried clause in the Omnibus Budget Implementation Bill (C-60) that would place the CBC under the Financial Administration Act, severely undermining CBC's independence. FRIENDS commissions an expert legal opinion and launches a major campaign to oppose Harper's deceptive attack on CBC.
After nearly a decade of work to expose the Harper government’s CBC agenda, FRIENDS launches the multi-platform We Vote CBC campaign and televises long format interviews with the federal party leaders. Stephen Harper snubs the invite, but the other three national party leaders seizes. Justin Trudeau rushes to accede the the FRIENDS demands just before the election and wins a majority governmnent.
After years of consistent work to restore the CBC’s budget and regular communication with the Liberal Party, the 2016 Federal Budget pledges $675 million in new funding to the CBC. The funding is to be implemented over the course of several years.
The FRIENDS struggle for non-partisan CBC governance appointments is partly rewarded when Heritage Minister Joly announces the government’s plan for an arm’s length appointments process. The new system sets up an advisory committee for CBC Board of Director and President appointments.
FRIENDS commissions research identifying a loophole in Section 19 of the Income Tax Act that sends more than $5 billion in digital advertising expenditures out of Canada, tax-free.
FRIENDS mounts a national campaign to Save The CBC Archive. After 19,000 people sign our petition in one week, CBC management quietly changes course, announcing that physical materials will not be destroyed, as previously stated.
We Vote CBC lawn signs displayed in swing ridings across Canada during the 2015 federal election.
Grassroots actions by supporters since 2006
personalized interventions submitted to the CRTC by FRIENDS supporters during the 2013 CBC Licence Renewal process.
briefs submitted to the CRTC on policy and licensing issues
major public opinion polls commissioned from top researchers
ads placed in national newspapers to help drive public and political attention to our issues
swing ridings where FRIENDS volunteers organized grassroots campaigns during the 2015 Federal Election.
Organization of our kind in the world.