The Media, Colonial-Mindedness, And The Culture Of Canada (Part One)

Why not? Most managers of Canadian press and media are, alas, colonial-minded. That means they instinctively believe a person in a biased U.S. “research” institute is more valuable than a Canadian who has thought and written on the same material. They are, moreover, afraid of Canadians and Canadian ideas. When Canadians such as Michael Ignatieff and Barbara Frum’s son make clear they are reactionaries in love with the U.S.A., Canadian media can’t use them enough. But other Canadians? Who knows what they may say? Canadian commentators might say things sharply critical of the U.S.A. They might say things arising naturally from Canadian experience – about the virtues of socialism or social democracy, the effectiveness of Crown corporations, the importance of politically committed labour unions; they may even, perhaps, insist upon the necessity of the Crown to Canadian independence. They might not, in short, parrot the U.S. view of the world. In order to prevent the presentation of a range of views and commentary that truly reflects Canadian perspectives and ideas of community, Canadian press and media avoid, neglect, ignore, and carefully go around present and potential Canadian experts, analysts, commentators. Federal Member of Parliament Carolyn Parrish spoke – boldly – what a large portion of Canadians think about the U.S.A. She expressed her ideas bluntly, even with great wit (after all, stamping on a George Bush doll on a satire show has to be seen as witty). Canadian media couldn’t overlook the Parrish position. And so they made it a “news outrage.” A news outrage is an event that is marginalized, contained, and exceptionalized so that it can be offered as a highly eccentric, completely unacceptable position. To his discredit, Paul Martin kowtowed and removed MP Parrish from the Parliamentary Liberal caucus. George W. Bush has been named a war criminal by serious critics. He is dangerously war-like. He supports despots and dictators. He runs a government that oppresses human rights, that violates international law, and that savages the environment. He runs a government that persistently and knowingly violates its Free Trade Agreement with Canada. One might conclude that Canada’s important policies for the future should, therefore, be concentrated upon every kind of disengagement from the U.S.A. Canadian experts and commentators who say those kinds of things ought clearly and unequivocally to be heard from many locations in Canada, broadcast by Canadian press and media. They should be heard as part of the range of ideas current in Canada. They won’t be. At a very deep level Canadian press and media practice rejection of Canada. Leonard Asper, head man at CanWest monopoly media conglomerate, wants to merge Canada and U.S. communications ownership. His organization has introduced U.S.-style, anti-democratic, politically motivated media concentration in Canada that is dangerously pro-U.S. and dangerously private-corporation-centred. Recently it hired lavishly from the U.S.A. to fill a number of top CanWest positions. Those things matter. And they’re built upon another level of colonial-mindedness – in education. That will be the subject of “The Media, Colonial-mindedness, and the Culture of Canada, (Part Two). [Proofreader's note: this article was edited for spelling and typos on March 2, 2005]