Click “Play” above to listen to an audio segment from a hearing of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage from earlier this afternoon. It’s committee member Charlie Angus asking the Minister of Canadian Heritage, James Moore, whether he would consider opening CBC Radio 1 and Radio 2 for advertising when the CBC’s licence renewal comes up soon.
The answer is, well, not too heartening, although it’s not definitive either way. Earlier today we Twittered about this idea, based on a tip from a friend of the magazine who was listening to the proceedings. The Minister says that yes, he would consider such a move — “I would frankly consider anything,” he says — but no, it’s not on the radar right now — “It has not been discussed…it’s not something I’m looking at doing.”
Crisis averted? We’ll see. Will update if anything further rolls in today.
Update: The Friends of Canadian Broadcasting has responded with this message, and the Ottawa Citizen ran a story on Tuesday morning.