ARCHIVED - Public Notice CRTC 1996-135
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Public Notice |
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Ottawa, 4 October 1996
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Public Notice CRTC 1996-135
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Application of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters' Voluntary Code Regarding Violence in Television Programming to the Programming Originated by Distribution Undertakings
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Paragraph 3(1)(h) of the Broadcasting Act states that : " all persons who are licensed to carry on broadcasting undertakings have a responsibility for the programs they broadcast".
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In Notice of Public Hearing CRTC 1995-5 dated 3 April 1995 and entitled "A Review of the Commission's Approach to Violence in Television Programming", the Commission noted that, because cable licensees have editorial control over the programming they originate, they could reasonably be expected to apply a violence code to their own locally-produced community channel programming and to special programming services such as ethnic services and pay television promotional (barker) channels.
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Under the Commission's policy, a cable licensee is responsible for the content of any programming service that it originates. This position has been reflected in the Commission's Community Programming policy of 1975 (restated in Public Notice CRTC 1992-39), its policy governing the distribution of pay television promotional material (Decision CRTC 83-635 and Public Notice CRTC 1995-172), and numerous decisions approving the distribution of special programming services by cable licensees.
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The Commission has decided, as a general approach, to require the licensees of cable television and other distribution undertakings to adhere to the Canadian Association of Broadcasters' (CAB) Voluntary Code Regarding Violence in Television Programming with respect to the programming that they originate.
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The Commission notes that the Canadian Cable Television Association (the CCTA) is in agreement with this approach as it relates to the community channel, and has advised that its membership is "generally prepared" to accept a condition of licence governing violence on the pay television barker channel since, in most cases, it is the cable licensee who selects and packages the promotional material with other promotional and advertising material, and therefore has editorial control over the programming on that channel.
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The Commission also notes that the CCTA has stated that responsibility for the pay-per-view barker channels rests with the pay-per-view licensees, and has submitted letters in support of this position from the two pay-per-view licensees whose services are currently in operation, namely Viewers Choice Canada and Allarcom Pay Television Limited (Home Theatre).
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The Commission is of the view that, in cases where a barker channel is a component of a pay-per-view service, and the distributor has no editorial or scheduling control, it is consistent with the Commission's policy that the pay-per-view licensee, as the originator of that service, be held accountable for the programming.
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Therefore, cable licensees will be invited in licence renewal proceedings to comment on the following condition of licence:
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For community programming and any other programming of a service that is originated by the licensee, the licensee shall adhere to the guidelines on the depiction of violence in television programming set out in the CAB's "Voluntary Code Regarding Violence in Television Programming", as amended from time to time and approved by the Commission.
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Except where a licensee can demonstrate that such a condition would be inappropriate, it is the Commission's intention to include it in the renewed licence.
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This approach will also be followed with respect to applications for new direct-to-home, wireless, cable and other terrestrial distribution licences, and for the renewal of those licences.
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The adoption of this policy marks another step towards achieving a consistent approach in which all originators of television programming will generally be required to comply with a violence code as a condition of licence.
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Allan J. Darling
Secretary General |
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- Date modified: