Canadians can choose to watch virtually anything from anywhere in the world online. And they can share virtually any opinion globally through their cellphone. It’s astonishing freedom. But the federal government sees a problem. Canadians aren’t watching enough of the right stuff and sometimes they say the wrong things. So, the Liberal government introduced Bill…
When regulators threaten doctors for engaging in public debate, doctors go quiet and patients suffer
“Call for help.” This is one of the first rules in every advanced life-saving course. When you see someone collapse, rush over to assess and call for help. Raise the alarm. Let people know. Doctors and nurses do this all the time in hospitals across Canada. It would be professional misconduct to do otherwise. What…
Want the power to direct, regulate and shut down social media platforms
Freedom of speech has long been a cherished principle in most Western democracies. While Canadians don’t have the same passion for free speech that our American friends do, we’ve always recognized the importance of preserving and protecting this value in times of war and peace. Until recently, that is. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his…
An eerie silence has met Ottawa’s plan to regulate the Internet and outlaw hurtful – not just hateful – expression
Canada’s long march towards violating Charter rights to free expression continues without any sign of political or media opposition. Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault’s campaign to suppress the Internet has now opened up on three fronts. It is no longer limited to hate speech, which is already illegal. He now promises action against words or ideas…
Freedom of the press will diminish as long as the new culture of controlling online content persists
In November, the winner of the first Canada-United Kingdom Media Freedom Award was announced by government representatives. The prize is designed to promote free press globally and encourage other nations to improve security for reporters. It was awarded to the Belarusian Association of Journalists. The association from Minsk has won several awards for its work…
The goal is less about the interests of consumers and more about funnelling money to special interest groups
Were the consequences not so serious, Canada’s chaotic venture into the regulation of content on the Web might be consigned to the realm of thigh-slapping farce. The government’s goal, it was learned last week, will be to focus programming funding on the needs of ethnic, racial, language and sexual identities in a fashion so ill-defined…
And leads to extremism
Censorship is a slippery slope, especially when there are no clear guidelines. The idea of cancel culture, where one is ostracized because of a stance on an issue determined as taboo by current cultural trends, is very dangerous. One is judged in the popular media and the conversation is over. And while people on the…
Knowledge dies when starved of criticism
University administrators and student unions are tearing down something more important than statues. These self-appointed censors are dismantling the dialectic method bequeathed to us by Socrates and generations of scholars, triggering a brain drain away from academia. Neither arcane nor novel, the rigorous, timeless methodology at stake means examining, discussing, and arguing opposing ideas to…
To say that Canada needs journalists is simply to state the obvious. Of course, Canada needs journalists who are free to uncover, discover and convey news from our neighbourhoods on up to the international level. Canada also needs commentators who are free to provide points of view or analysis. But how can we have good…
What message do we send dictators and the people who live under their tyranny if we don’t have the courage to live up to our own ideals?
It’s very rare to hear Fox News commentator Tucker Carlson and scholar Noam Chomsky agree on anything but a largely underreported topic brings both ends of the political spectrum together: the Julian Assange affair. In a recent interview, Carlson’s guest Glenn Greenwald pointed out that efforts to silence Assange go back to the administration of…