The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) exceeded its powers when it blamed Radio-Canada for the use of the “word beginning with an N” during a radio broadcast, the Court ruled on Thursday. federal appeal, sending the agency back to do its homework.
The court thus sides with the arguments presented last December by the Attorney General of Canada, who had himself rallied to the argument of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (SRC) according to which “the CRTC has exceeded its jurisdiction” and that he “failed to consider the applicable legal framework as well as the CBC’s freedom of expression as guaranteed by the Charter,” reads the ruling released Thursday.
“Since the legislator has given the CRTC the mandate to act as the primary decision-maker regarding what can and cannot be said on the airwaves, I would return the matter to him so that he can decide again on the merit of the complaint”, and this, “after having duly weighed the impact that his decision could have on the freedom of expression of the CBC”, writes Chief Justice Marc Noël.
The state-owned company was forced to apologize on July 13 after being blamed by the CRTC for using the “word starting with an N” during a radio program broadcast in August 2020.
The word had been used four times during a segment of the show 15-18 on ICI Radio-Canada Première. Columnist Simon Jodoin and host Annie Desrochers discussed a controversy surrounding Pierre Vallières’ book white niggers of america.
A complaint was filed a few days later.
It was rejected by the first chief content officer, and subsequently, the CBC’s French services ombudsman who was in office at the time, Guy Gendron, refused to intervene, believing that the use of this word complied with current Journalistic Standards and Practices.
The complainant then turned to the CRTC, which agreed.
It is this decision that has just been overturned by the Federal Court of Appeal.
Bloc Québécois MP Martin Champoux was delighted. “Happy with this decision. I hope that the CRTC will take the opportunity to try to better understand freedom of expression and that it will undertake to protect the spaces of exchange where it is possible to debate, even when the subject is sensitive, “he said. he wrote on Twitter on Thursday.