By Cheryl Jahn

Council supports local media

Mar 23, 2021 | 2:27 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – Council has unanimously endorsed a resolution put forward by Councillor Garth Frizzell with respect to local media. In it, he cites that “Canadians have lost the essential services provided by more than 2,500 media workers in 100 communities across Canada due to layoffs since the time the COVID-19 pandemic began, and advertising revenues” and that “the residents of 190 Canadian communities lost 250 established news outlets due to closings or mergers between 2008 and 2018.

He says a recent Nanos Research poll in April 2020 showed that “two-thirds of Canadians agree or somewhat agree that because of the Coronavirus/Covid-19 outbreak the federal government should treat widespread media bankruptcies and lay-offs as an emergency.

The resolution concludes that “the City of Prince George Council recognizes that a healthy, professional news media is essential to the proper functioning of democracy in our city; urges all local governments in BC and across Canada to recognize that a robust news media is essential to the proper functioning of democracy in their jurisdictions; endorses legislation and regulations to support and rejuvenate news outlets across Canada, and urges the federal government to move quickly to pass legislation to ensure an ecosystem for a healthy news media to serve all Canadians.”

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