On this February 13, World Radio Day decreed by UNESCO, and a few days before the 50e anniversary of the presence of community radio in Quebec, as well as with the arrival of the CKRL station in Quebec City, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary on February 15, it is time to highlight the exceptional contribution of community radio to Quebec society. This media management model by and for the community served marks an important turning point in accessibility to local information in Quebec, to a distinct source of entertainment, specific to the reflection of each of the territories served and to a tool effective collective economic development.
It is, today, 250 employees who evolve within the 37 member radios of the Association of Community Radio Broadcasters of Quebec (ARCQ), with more than 600 volunteers involved, serving more than 450 municipalities for an annual turnover over $20 million. On average, community radio stations are nearly 80% self-financed through advertising sales, member contributions and the production of bingo. This distinct model in Quebec — and taken up elsewhere in the country with its own characteristics — has made it possible to promote artisans in the cultural field and allows animators, journalists and members of other trades to acquire experience and sometimes launch their careers.
Reading the article published in The duty reporting the words of the CEO of CBC/Radio-Canada, Catherine Tait, who announced that the Crown corporation would drop the airwaves in the near future, I could not help noticing the difference between our types of management and to be delighted by the presence of community radio stations in Quebec. Not that I criticize Mme Tait, on the contrary, are important questions to be asked. One of the big differences within a community business model, in which the media is 100% owned by its community, before making such a public statement: the reflection, the discussion and the search for a consensus with its members and its population take on a much more important place.
Moreover, the digital shift has been taken by a majority of our radio stations, and a good number of community radio stations are no longer just radio media, but also written media thanks to their website. Sometimes, some stations have even become video producers, ensuring the dissemination of local and regional information. Stations like CKAJ in Saguenay, like CFIM in Îles-de-la-Madeleine and like many community stations from Nord-du-Québec to Estrie and from Outaouais to Gaspésie, have taken an important role in the proximity information.
Note, among other things, the role of community media in public security, which is more than essential. During floods, power outages at -40°C, storms that hit our regions as well as any emergency that may arise, community radios have often been the only media present on the scene live , and the Hertzian waves are, even today, the most effective means of informing the population.
We should also note the essential role of some of our stations, which are sometimes the only media that show up at certain municipal meetings and produce reports, as well as articles that can be found on the Web.
There are obviously always, in some stations, challenges related to funding. Some seek to develop new strategies, but even the lows experienced by some radio stations make it possible to adapt to the realities of each community. Given that community radio has a role above all of service and that the surpluses generated are reinvested in the community, it is time to highlight, not its current challenges, but its 50 years of success.
If the Government of Quebec is looking for an example of collective Quebec success and a business model that has taken root everywhere, community radio is the perfect example of a community, whether in an urban or rural setting, which mobilizes to promote its local development. I invite you not only to listen to our various radio stations, but also to discover their information offer through their website.