The most neglected of radio, the children

Canadian radio is focused on adults, there are no programs for children, big or small. It is the absolute silence of children on the radio and a total indifference from the authorities to the very simple idea of ​​an educational and fun service for the youngest.

Children are not only consumers of music and songs, but also good producers of radio content, however as artists they are completely absent from the radio. When did we hear them singing on our airwaves? Songs, tales, stories, theater: they are kept away from it. Few people have any idea what children produce each year, and not all of this material is transmitted or broadcast on the radio.

The Canadian Broadcasting Act provides that media programming must meet the needs and interests of men, women and children, and reflect their needs and aspirations. The radio is aimed only at adults, while children are excluded from the Canadian radio space and reduced to silence. They experience systemic discrimination that excludes them from this media.

The Charter of Children’s Rights in Article 13 provides that they have the right to freedom of information, expression and participation in the media. This right includes the freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, in oral, written, printed or artistic form, or by any other means of their choice.

Radio plays a vital role in cultural promotion, particularly of artists. The CRTC has set standards to ensure the presence of Canadian content on radio. Why not apply a similar policy to ensure the presence of children on the radio, by reserving space for them? The effect would be immediate in the population in general, and among young people in particular. Municipalities with more than 50,000 inhabitants should offer a radio to children, in the same way as public spaces. Why not take the opportunity of the closure of Bell radio stations to create a collaborative radio service from studios and equipment in schools? A radio service dedicated to people aged 0 to 18.

It is a right of children to have access to media, and it is also an obligation established by the Broadcasting Act, that programming meets their needs, aspirations and interests. “Will it be necessary to take collective action against the broadcasting authorities to enforce children’s rights and the Broadcasting Act? »

Say yes to children’s radio!

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