ACTION ALERT: Lockout highlights dangers of media concentration

September 26, 2007

Please see, Lockout highlights dangers of media concentration, an op-ed by Maude Barlow published by rabble.ca.

In the op-ed Maude writes, "On April 22, Sun Media Corporation locked out newsroom and office workers at le Journal de Québec. There was nothing to justify this move. The unions were in the midst of collective bargaining, and had not taken strike votes or adopted any other pressure tactics. Until then, not a single day of work had been lost to labour conflict at le Journal de Quebec since the paper opened in 1967."

She then notes, "The Sun Media Corporation is Canada's largest chain of tabloids and community newspapers. Its parent company, Quebecor Inc., is one of Canada's largest media conglomerates. Quebecor also owns Vidéotron Ltd., the largest cable service provider in Quebec, TVA, the largest private French language broadcaster in North America, Canoe, one of the largest networks of English and French language general-interest and special-interest Internet portals in Canada."

She concludes by stating, "This is a cautionary tale about convergence that serves as a warning for journalists across the country. Sun Media's actions show a general lack of respect for labour rights and a disdain for the journalistic profession which are typical in an environment of media concentration where large conglomerates compete with each other by cutting labour and administrative costs...With media ownership being more highly concentrated in Canada than almost anywhere else in the industrial world, our government has a vital role to play in reversing the trend and preventing what is happening to workers at le Journal de Québec from happening elsewhere in the country."

TAKE ACTION

1. Act now to stop the big media takeover. Over 1,900 Canadians from across the country have already swamped the CRTC with comments demanding a less concentrated, more diverse media system. To send a letter to your Member of Parliament and spread the word, go to the Canadians for Democratic Media website at http://democraticmedia.ca/act.

2. Write to Pierre Péladeau, the chief executive officer of Quebecor Media Inc., by fax at 514-877-9757 or through their corporate contact page at http://www.quebecor.com/Tools/ContactUs.aspx.

3. Cancel your subscription or do not buy Le Journal de Quebec for the period of this strike. Instead, please read the free daily newspaper, MédiaMatin, produced by the locked-out workers. To read MédiaMatin, go to http://www.mediamatinquebec.com/.

Brent Patterson, Director of Organizing and Campaigns, The Council of Canadians