Salvaging Bill C-18: Will the Liberals' gamble pay off?

It's Political with Althia Raj

In this episode: Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge, Toronto Star Publisher Jordan Bitove, Ottawa University law professor Michael Geist, Toronto Star reporter Raisa Patel, Meta’s head of public policy Rachel Curran, Google Canada’s Richard Gingras, News Media Canada President Paul Deegan, Village Media CEO Jeff Elgie. La Presse President Pierre-Elliott Levasseur, Yellowknife evacuee Kelsey Worth, Conservative MP Kevin Waugh, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre. Hosted by Althia Raj.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau apologized to the world and House of Commons Speaker Anthony Rota resigned after MPs honoured a man in Parliament who’d fought with a Nazi unit. This isn’t the only story that rocked Canadian politics recently. Last week, Ontario Premier Doug Ford reversed course on the development of Greenbelt land and Trudeau announced the government of India is more than likely involved in the shooting death of a Canadian citizen.

These controversies may not have come to light if it wasn’t for the work of journalists. But journalism, in Canada, is facing a crisis. Declining advertising revenues have led to the shedding of thousands of jobs and the closures of hundreds of local publications. Meanwhile, Google and Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, are reaping billions of ad dollars worldwide.

This week on “It’s Political,” we dig into the federal government’s response to a crisis decades in the making. The Online News Act, which became law this summer, has prompted Meta to block news links on its platforms. Is Google ready to follow suit? Is the government shooting itself in the foot or has it found the path to sustainability for newspapers and local broadcasters?

Ottawa University law professor Michael Geist, the Canada research chair in internet and e-commerce law, joins Toronto Star reporter Raisa Patel in helping us break down the law, formerly known as Bill C-18. We’ll also hear from Meta, Google, and publishers affected by the bill, including Toronto Star owner Jordan Bitove. Then, we’ll sit down with Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge.