Local and Quebec-media groups are claiming that Facebook’s parent company Meta is restricting access to their news content because of the Liberal government’s decision to push forward with regulating the online news industry via Bill C-18.
Editor-in-chief of Le Journal de Quebec Sebastien Menard said that the outlet is having its reach suppressed on Facebook and has forced the outfit to put out a call to readers to access their website directly instead of through social media.
“We launched ourselves a campaign inviting our readers to come directly to our website instead of waiting for news to come to them through Facebook,” said Menard.
“When your social networks let you down regarding information, come on our news website.”
Bill C-18, which seeks to force companies to pay for sharing links to Canadian news, is currently in its third-reading in the Senate.
The news editor of the small Winnipeg media outlet, ChrisD.ca, Chris Dell has told CTV News that the social media company was “blocking some of” his content.
“It appears Meta is blocking some of our content, but not all of it,” said Dell.
Dell has said that the mounting dispute between the federal government and social media giants has resulted in local news providers being caught in the middle.
“As a small local news outlet, the majority of our traffic comes from Facebook and Google. My hope is that an amicable agreement can be reached between Silicon Valley and Ottawa that doesn’t leave publishers caught in the middle.”
Meta has recently admitted that it was in fact blocking access to some news sites randomly but would not name specifics.
The company says that it is a test to ensure that should Bill C-18 become law, they can comply with regulations by barring the sharing of news content by Canadians on Facebook and other platforms like Instagram.
A free speech event was cancelled last month by the London Public Library, despite its stated commitment to “intellectual freedom.”
Chiang Mai University visiting professor and C2C Journal contributor Patrick Keeney joined The Andrew Lawton Show to discuss the erosion of academic freedom in Canada, and the potential long-term consequences for academia and society as a whole.
Canada’s House of Commons voted down a Private Member’s Bill from Saskatchewan Conservative MP Cathay Wagantall that aimed to strengthen protections for vulnerable pregnant women – amid progressives falsely claiming the bill was anti-abortion.
Bill C-311, titled the Violence Against Pregnant Women Act, had nothing to do with abortion.
The bill would have amended the Criminal Code of Canada and added abusing and causing physical or emotional harm to a pregnant woman to the list of “aggravating circumstances” during the sentencing process.
This would have meant that an offender could have received a harsher sentence for assaulting a pregnant woman.
113 MPs voted in favour of Bill C-311, while 205 MPs voted against it.
Vote result: Bill #C311 was defeated at 2nd reading. #cdnpoli
The 113 MPs who supported the bill were all Conservative. All Liberal, NDP, Bloc Quebecois and Green MPs present voted against it. Independent MPs Han Dong and Alain Rayes also voted against the bill.
Before the vote on C-311 took place, Liberal, NDP and Bloc Quebecois politicians shared their opposition to it – again claiming that the bill is anti-abortion.
“Bill C-311 proposed by the conservatives is yet another in a series of transparent attempts in order to give a legal status to a fetus here in Canada,” said Liberal MP Rachel Bendayan at a press conference. Meanwhile, Liberal MP Jenna Sudds claimed that the bill “is a means to an end, which is to criminalize pregnant people experiencing miscarriages and eventually criminalizing abortions.”
Liberal MP Rachel Bendayan says that Liberals will vote against Bill C-311, an act that aims to strengthen punishment for committing violence against pregnant woman, because it gives “legal status to a fetus” in Canada. pic.twitter.com/0GP177geut
NDP MP Heather McPherson claimed that there was no need or rationale for the bill aimed at protecting pregnant women, adding that the latter was actually “dangerous to women in Canada and it is dangerous to women around the world.”
Meanwhile, Bloc Quebecois MP Rheal Fortain said his party would be voting against Bill C-311 because “today’s debates on this subject are out of date and I would even say, with all due respect, out of place.”
Here are the top 4 embarrassing and cringeworthy things that happened during yesterday’s debate on Bill C-311, the Violence Against Pregnant Women Act.
MPs will vote on this bill today after question period, so make sure you email or call your MP before 2pm EST to tell them to… pic.twitter.com/jJmN9VXRBy
Over 80 pregnant women in Canada have been killed in recent years.
These women include 18-year-old Rori Hache, who was killed by a man who repeatedly hit her in the head with a hammer or similar object, and 31-year-old Cassandra Kaake who was killed by a man who strangled her, slit her throat, poured gasoline on her and set her house on fire.
I'm grateful for the friendship and support of Jeff Durham, and sister Joanna, during tonight's debate on the Violence Against Pregnant Women Act. #C311
Jeff, Joanna, as well as the Goberdhan family are voices representing so many more who lived through their experience, their… pic.twitter.com/xlpnPC82UB
YouTube has limited the spread of Conservative advocate and filmmaker Aaron Gunn’s new documentary “Canada is Dying” for allegedly having “excessive violence” and the decision has forced him to release the production on Twitter.
Despite the move to limit the sharing of the film, the documentary has been viewed over 1.2 million times already and Gunn suspects that the censorship could rob the documentary of a potential $10,000 in ad revenue or nearly 2 million views.
24 hours after decision by @YouTube to censor & limit distribution of Canada Is Dying, and I already estimate they have prevented 50,000 people from viewing the documentary.
“This insidious form of censorship, without regard for free speech or even basic transparency, directly contradicts YouTube’s commitment to ‘open debate’ and ‘free expression’ and also raises important, unanswered questions as to whether political pressure contributed to YouTube’s actions almost 3 weeks after the film’s release,” Gunn told True North.
It is unclear which part of the documentary in particular violated YouTube’s rules despite repeated requests for an explanation, according to Gunn.
“This is an overtly political decision that will essentially stop the spread of the documentary and work to suffocate a very important and ongoing debate in the country,” tweeted Gunn on Tuesday.
“Whether this is the result of political pressure or C-11 is impossible to say, but it should be noted the film has been openly attacked and targeted by sitting cabinet ministers of the Trudeau Government.”
Wow. After reaching 1.2 MILLION views in just two weeks, @YouTube has made the decision to arbitrarily censor and block Canada Is Dying so that it can no longer be seen by the vast majority of Canadians.
This is an overtly political decision that will essentially stop the spread…
Gunn pointed to Twitter CEO Elon Musk’s commitment to free speech as the reason behind deciding to re-release the film on the social media platform.
“Since coming under new ownership, Twitter has shown a determination to facilitate, rather than manipulate, free and open debate. Because of my commitment to ensure this documentary reaches as wide an audience as possible, I will be posting the documentary, in full, to Twitter later today for all Canadians to see,” said Gunn.
The nearly hour and a half film features interviews with victims of random stabbings, Crown attorneys, local residents of areas hit by crime, law enforcement, federal MPs and others.
According to Gunn, the film is still available for viewing but only for those who have a YouTube account and it is no longer being distributed by the YouTube algorithm, cutting off “about 90%” of the documentary’s reach.
Last year, Gunn had released a similar film called “Vancouver is Dying,” highlighting the city’s drug and crime crisis. The film has been viewed over three million times.
The documentary will be released on Twitter tomorrow.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says she’s prepared to form a coalition with allied premiers over Ottawa’s plans to further regulate and stymie the energy sector.
The Trudeau government plans to impose an emissions cap on Canada’s oil and gas sector and to introduce regulations for a net-zero power grid by 2035.
“I prefer collaboration as the first option,” Smith said of Ottawa on Tuesday, after speaking at the opening day of the annual Global Energy Show in Calgary.
“I think I have drawn the line in the sand … I’ve already raised it with my provincial counterparts that if we need to develop a coalition so that we can fight back against Ottawa, if need be, then that’s what we’re going to do.”
Those allies include Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe, who told conference attendees it’s impossible for his province to move its electricity system to net-zero by 2035.
About two-thirds of Saskatchewan’s electrical generation is powered by natural gas and coal.
“Quite simply, it isn’t attainable in Saskatchewan and, quite frankly, isn’t attainable in many other jurisdictions either,” Moe said.
“They (Ottawa) come forward with unconsulted, ideological and unrealistic policies, time and time again and now these policies are layering on top of one another.”
Federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc will fly to Alberta next week to meet with Smith.
The premier said she’s hopeful they can find common ground on the issues.
Alberta has made an aspirational commitment to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. But the province says Ottawa’s emissions cap would be a production cap and impose on Alberta’s right over resource development.
Despite previous claims that Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino’s office had no idea that convicted killer Paul Bernardo was getting transferred to medium security, in fact, Mendicino’s staff knew for three months that the transfer was going to happen. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre is calling on Mendicino to resign, though all the public safety minister is committing to is a new “policy directive” allowing for more information to be shared.
Also, True North’s Andrew Lawton weighs in on the Bell Media layoffs.
Plus, Dr. Ann Cavoukian, head of Toronto Metropolitan University’s Privacy by Design Centre of Excellence, joins the show to talk about the privacy dangers of digital ID.
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland made a surprising announcement on Wednesday, pledging to halt Canada’s activity with the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) after a prominent member alleged the entity was under the influence of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
According to the Globe and Mail, Canada’s involvement at the AIIB – where Freeland sits as Canada’s Governor – will be placed under review pending further notice.
Breaking: Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland announces Canada immediately halting all activity with China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and launching review of Canada’s membership in AIIB and allegations of control by Chinese Communist Party.
Canada entered the organization under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in 2018 in order to promote “inclusive global economic growth.”
The announcement comes after a top Canadian official with the bank publicly tendered his resignation from the AIIB citing nefarious influence at the upper levels by CCP officials.
Former AIIB Global Communications Chief Bob Pickard took to Twitter on Wednesday to announce his departure from the bank.
“As a patriotic Canadian, this was my only course. The Bank is dominated by Communist Party members and also has one of the most toxic cultures imaginable. I don’t believe that my country’s interests are served by its AIIB membership,” tweeted Pickard.
In a subsequent tweet, Pickard said that CCP treats some of the board members at the bank as “useful idiots.”
“Happy to be gone from that cesspool. The Communist Party hacks hold the cards at the Bank. They deal with some board members as useful idiots. I believe that my Government should not be a member of this PRC instrument. The reality of power in the bank is that it’s CCP from start to finish,” he tweeted.
I have tendered my resignation as the global comms chief of @AIIB_Official. As a patriotic Canadian, this was my only course. The Bank is dominated by Communist Party members and also has one of the most toxic cultures imaginable. I don’t believe that my country’s interests are…
Conservative Foreign Affairs Critic MP Michael Chong blasted the Liberal government for ignoring prior warnings raised about the bank.
“Pickard has confirmed what Conservatives have long said about the Beijing-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). It’s a tool of Beijing to export its authoritarian model of governance throughout the Indo-Pacific region,” said Chong.
“The AIIB is willing to skirt the rules-based international order and willing to lend to military juntas like the one in Myanmar.”
5/ Global Affairs Canada itself has warned the Trudeau government that the AIIB is an example of how Beijing “promotes perspectives on governance, economic security and human rights that diverge in fundamental ways from Canada’s.”#cdnpolihttps://t.co/z0jXgzKC7s
Ahmed Hussen became Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion of Canada in Oct. 2021, but Canada’s housing crisis has only worsened since – and housing analysts believe Hussen’s policies are to blame.
According to the owner of Toronto-based Butler Mortgage, the plain and simple explanation is Hussein’s inept and working in the wrong government post.
“Hussen is incompetent and he believes he’s there to do theatre. He should resign,” Ron Butler told True North. “There’s been absolutely zero progress made by him.”
The 2022 budget introduced the Tax-Free First Home Savings Account that’s intended to help first-time homebuyers save as much as $40,000 through an RRSP-style account. It would function like a TFSA by making contributions tax-deductible and protecting home purchase withdrawals from taxation.
However, Butler questions what good $40,000 is in a runaway price environment.
“It’s nice in theory,” Butler said, “but if the price of a house goes up 40, 50 or $60,000 in a year, how in the name of Jesus will that help? It’s absolutely ridiculous.”
The government is launching the Housing Accelerator Fund this summer, which the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation defines as providing “incentive funding to local governments encouraging initiatives aimed at increasing housing supply.”
It is also intended to support creation of “low-carbon, climate-resilient communities that are affordable, inclusive, equitable and diverse.”
Butler sees it another way.
“They are putting together billions of dollars to bribe municipalities across Canada to reduce red tape,” he said. “It is not anything to do with a direct credit to the first-time homebuyer—so in other words, anything that would help reduce the cost.”
Richard Dias, co-host of The Loonie Hour, a podcast exploring the macroeconomic impact domestic and international events have on Canada, says Hussen is failing by every objective standard because none of his policies have tapered exorbitant housing prices.
“Literally by every objective standard, his housing policies have been a failure,” Dias said, adding that record immigration also plays a role.
“He’s clearly failing.”
It’s not just Hussen who’s getting the blame for the condition of Canada’s housing market. The finger is also being pointed at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Even before Hussen’s became housing minister, the First-Time Home Buyer Incentive —an equity stake program in which the government contributes towards down payments with 5% on a resale home and up to 10% on a new build, eventually recouping the investments at their appreciated values—introduced in the 2019 federal budget fell flat on its face.
The government expected 100,000 homebuyers would use it in its first two years but, three years in, only 16,000 Canadians took advantage of it.
The reason, says Butler, is “it’s a stupid program.”
“Why would I use the incentive?” he said. “I’m going to pay for the property taxes, I’m going to pay for the upkeep, I’m going to pay to paint, I’m going to pay to renovate, I’m going to pay to repair, I’m going to pay for all those things for, what, 10 years, and then you’re going to take the profit? It’s a stupid program and nobody wants to participate in it.”
Although he believes Hussen’s ineptitude aggravates matters, Butler says Canada’s housing crisis is predominantly a consequence of system failure on the Liberal Party’s behalf.
“If these guys fail for almost a decade, it’s time for change,” he said. “Trudeau promised it would get better, but it’s gotten worse. He’s talked about the housing crisis in every election he’s participated in, he’s promised to make it a priority and fix it, but here we are.”
The Federal Court of Appeal overturned a Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) ruling penalizing Radio-Canada for a French broadcast where a title of a book containing the “N-word” was read out loud.
Last year, the CRTC forced Radio Canada to issue an apology and implement new practices over an Aug. 17, 2020 broadcast of the radio show Le 15-18.
The radio show in question was discussing a petition launched by woke Concordia University students triggered by a white professor reading aloud the title of a book by Front de liberation du Quebec (FLQ) leader Pierre Vallières. The book is titled Nègres blancs d’Amérique (White N*****s of America).
The title of the book was mentioned four times in the broadcast discussing the petition – three times in French and once in English. The latter led to a black progressive filing a complaint with the CRTC and Radio-Canada’s ombudsman.
In its 2022 ruling stemming from that complaint, the CRTC noted that “the use and repetition of the ‘N-word’ on this program was inconsistent with these objectives of the [Broadcasting] Act” and that SRC “did not implement all the necessary measures to mitigate the impact of the ‘N-word’ on its audience.”
The CRTC cited Section 3(1) of the Broadcasting Act in its decision, which says programming “should be of high standard” and should “serve to safeguard, enrich and strengthen the cultural, political, social and economic fabric of Canada,” and that CBC/Radio-Canada programming “should reflect the multicultural and multiracial nature of Canada.”
However, the Federal Court of Appeal found that section 3(1) was misinterpreted by the CRTC.
“Subsection 3(1) does not give the CRTC this power. The Supreme Court has repeatedly recognized that subsection 3(1) is not a jurisdiction-conferring provision. Instead, its purpose is to describe the broadcasting policy that Parliament was pursuing in adopting the Act,” wrote Court of Appeal Chief Justice Justice Noel in the decision.
“The CRTC overstepped its jurisdiction by sanctioning the SRC (Société Radio-Canada) on the sole basis that the content broadcast on the air was, in its opinion, inconsistent with the Canadian broadcasting policy.”
The court also took aim at the CRTC for not considering the Charter right to freedom of expression. It has asked the CRTC to reevaluate the complaint.
“Given that Parliament has mandated the CRTC to act as the initial decision-maker with respect to what can and cannot be said on the air, I would return the matter to the CRTC so that it may re-determine the merits of the complaint,” said Justice Noel.
In a statement, a CBC/Radio-Canada spokesperson said, “The court has returned the matter to the CRTC. We will wait for their direction on next steps.”
“It is important to remember that this does not affect the policies we have already put in place to minimize the use of hurtful or offensive language.”
The Court of Appeal’s unanimous decision is being well received among Quebec media figures.
Reacting to the ruling, Le Journal de Montreal columnist Sophie Durochers wrote she was “delighted that the Federal Court of Appeal overturned the CRTC’s decision to uphold a complaint against Radio-Canada for using the ‘N-word’ on radio.”
“It is not the CRTC’s role to say what can and cannot be said.”
One of Saskatchewan’s fastest-growing energy companies has announced a major milestone after the Toronto Stock Exchange approved the company for graduation onto its main trading board.
This means that investors will be able to directly publicly trade the company’s stock instead of relying on stock warrants, which are a form of contract with the investor issued directly from the company.
According to Saturn Oil & Gas Inc. press release, the upgrade will give the company increased visibility and attract more diverse international investors.
Commons shares for the company are expected to begin trading on Thursday under the ticker symbol “SOIL” while listed warrants will also transition to the exchange.
“The graduation to the TSX, Canada’s most senior stock exchange, is an exciting achievement for our company,” said Saturn CEO John Jeffrey.
“The hard work of our staff and support of shareholders over the past 24 months has made it possible to rapidly grow into a company that meets the stringent listing requirements of the TSX,” he continued.
“We anticipate that trading on the TSX will provide us with additional visibility in the marketplace, provide our shareholders will additional liquidity and allow access to a broader and more diverse range of international and institutional investors.”
Despite setbacks caused by an earlier than expected wildfire season, Saturn has been able to resume its operations to over 90% with all employees and contractors returning to their respective properties.
According to the company’s 2023 first quarter financial and operational results, Saturn remarked that 13 new wells drilled this year have seen some of the most productive output in the company’s entire history.
“The first quarter of 2023 was a landmark period for Saturn that set new performance records following the closing of the acquisition of Ridgeback Resources, which has enhanced the sustainability and potential profitability of Saturn for years to come,” said Jeffrey.
“Building on the successes from last year’s development program, the 13 new horizontal wells drilled in Q1 2023 have been the most productive group of new wells in Saturn’s history.”
The company has invested a total of $24.3 million in development capital with plans to expand even further in the future.
