ARCHIVED - Decision CRTC 84-349

Decision

Ottawa, 5 April 1984

Decision CRTC 84-349

Radio Nord Inc. Rouyn-Noranda, Amos and Val d'Or, Quebec - 832466700 - 832467500 - 832468300

Radio La Sarre Inc.La Sarre, Quebec - 832491500

Following a Public Hearing in Hull, Quebec on 13 December 1983, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission announces that it renews the broadcasting licences for CKRN Rouyn-Noranda, CHAD Amos, CKVD Val d'Or and CKLS La Sarre from 1 October 1984 to 30 September 1989, subject to the conditions specified in the licences to be issued.

The "Groupe d'intervention pour l'amélioration des services de radio et télévision en Abiti-Témiscamingue" (Groupe d'intervention) appeared at the hearing to express its views on the service offered by the licensee. The Groupe d'intervention comprises the mayors of the municipalities of Senneterre, Val d'Or, Amos and Malartic, the city manager of Malartic and representatives of the Conseil régional de développement de l'Abitibi-Témiscamingue (CRDAT).

Radio Nord owns most of the electronic media in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region. In addition to the AM stations noted above, the licensee operates radio stations CHLM-FM Rouyn-Noranda and CHLM-FM-1 Val d'Or, as well as television stations CKRN-TV and CFEM-TV Rouyn-Noranda, affiliated to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's French-language network and the TVA network respectively.

In this context, the Groupe d'intervention submitted to the Commission its concern about the licensee's role and obligations as the region's principal broadcaster, particularly with respect to the licensee's responsibility to provide adequate coverage of news and public affairs of local and regional interest. At the time of the licensee's last AM licence renewal the Commission emphasized the importance of this responsibility (Decision CRTC 79-209).

The Groupe d'intervention noted, among other matters, that the news policy adopted by Radio Nord in 1978 had not been discussed with community leaders, as originally planned, and questioned whether the policy had really been implemented. The Groupe pointed out that the community should be able to express its opinion on the licensee's policy on access to airtime. The licensee stated at the hearing that its news policy had been communicated to interested organizations and individuals when it was adopted and that it "[TRANSLATION] constitutes the basic framework of our coverage of news and public affairs". The licensee undertook to publicize its news policy again and to take suggestions received from the community into consideration.

The Groupe d'intervention also emphasized the excessive centralization of the licensee's operations, which, in its opinion, creates an imbalance between regional news coverage originating in Rouyn-Noranda and the coverage in the other communities, especially on weekends. It also stressed the lack of adequate production facilities in regional stations and the insufficient number of reporters assigned to the regions. Further shortcomings, according to the Groupe d'intervention, include the lack of mobility of the staff working in Rouyn-Noranda, in particular the host of the open-line program.

The Commission had acknowledged that there was a degree of consolidation of these stations' operations in Decision CRTC 79-209. Radio Nord stated at the hearing that it had had to decrease its news coverage because of the economic constraints of the past few years, but that it had since increased its budget in this area and was, therefore, now able to provide a news service of the same quality as before. The news department now has 12 full-time employees assigned to news on both radio and television, including five reporters in Rouyn-Noranda, two in Val d'Or, one in Amos, one in La Sarre, and one correspondent in Ville-Marie. From Monday to Friday, the licensee broadcasts six regional newscasts and one local newscast daily; it also broadcasts two regional newscasts on Saturday and one on Sunday.

The Commission is generally satisfied with the licensee's efforts regarding regional news and it has noted the licensee's commitment to improve its regional production facilities in 1984, particularly the installation of a new production console in Val d'Or, the relocation of the CHAD studio in Amos, and the installation of additional production equipment in Amos, La Sarre and Val d'Or. The licensee also undertook to set up its own communications system in the spring of 1984; this will enable the licensee, among other tasks, to broadcast its open-line program live from regional stations when the topic of discussion is relevant.

Other concerns raised by the Group d'intervention related to the fact that the licensee's weekly public affairs program is limited to a summary of the week's newscasts, and that cultural and artistic topics are too often ignored or limited to sports events.

The licensee undertook at the hearing to consider a round table approach for its public affairs programming, noting that the public affairs, socio-cultural aspects of its programming were basically covered in its television broadcasts. The Commission invites the licensee to look into the possibility of including in its radio broadcasting schedule programs that reflect these areas, bearing in mind the different audience targets between radio and television. In this regard, the Commission notes the licensee's commitment to increase its programming expenditures and, during 1985, to devote 35% of its annual revenues from AM and FM radio to programming.

The Groupe d'intervention referred to some other shortcomings in the service offered by the licensee, including the lack of service in the Matagami-Joutel area and the La Vérendrye reserve, "dead zones" between the coverage areas of the licensee's stations, and duplication of AM and FM programming in the evening.

Radio Nord stated at the hearing that it was willing to investigate the feasibility of improving service along the Matagami-Joutel-Quévillon axis, and undertook in this regard to submit shortly an application for a licence to operate a new AM station in Joutel to rebroadcast its regional programming in that community. With respect to the La Vérendrye reserve, the licensee stated that its Val d'Or station, CHLM-FM-1, already serves one-third of the territory, and that the market is not lucrative enough to warrant further investment.

Regarding "dead zones" and program duplication, Radio Nord stated that its AM stations are currently operating at maximum capacity day and night. They are, however, obliged to reduce their power at nightfall in accordance with Department of Communications regulations. The licensee explained that, to compensate for these shortcomings in the coverage areas of the AM stations, it had applied to the Commission in 1976 for authorization to operate two new FM stations, so that it could broadcast programs similar to those broadcast by the AM stations, but over a wider coverage area and at a uniForm power, day and night (Decision CRTC 76-556). The licensee indicated that it had recently entered into discussions with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation with a view to eliminating the duplication of programs broadcast on the AM and FM stations in the evening. The licensee said, moreover, that it would be willing to take advantage of the possibility of increasing the night-time power of its AM stations as soon as technical regulations permitted.

The well-documented intervention submitted by the Groupe d'intervention made it possible for the Commission to examine many of the problems affecting broadcasting in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region. It also showed that there is a convergence of opinion on the means to improve service and the necessity for listeners to develop a sense of belonging to the region, as advocated by the Groupe d'intervention and reflected in Radio Nord's overall objectives.

The Commission expects the licensee, within one year of the date of this decision, to submit a status report on its policy on news coverage, access to air-time, the production studios, its public affairs and open-line programs, the question of "dead zones", and on any progress made in response to the concerns raised by the Groupe d'intervention.

The Commission would like to thank the Groupe d'intervention for its interest in the development of communications media in this region, and encourages it to continue to seek to improve broadcasting services in the Abitibi-Timiscamingue region through consultation with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and Radio Nord.

J.G. Patenaude Secretary General