CBC vs. CTV vs. Global

[balletomane]

Not sure if there has been something posted about this in the past, but which Canadian news network do you watch most or prefer, CBC, CTV, Global or something else?

I find that CBC outperforms CTV for national news, however for local news CTV is my go-to, I rarely watch Global so I can't comment.

[SignalHillHiker]

I haven't had cable for years so I don't really watch any of them, but I stream the evening news from CBC and NTV (Newfoundland Television). They're also the best for local shows, both good (This Hour Has 22 Minutes) and bad (NTV's St. John's real estate agents reality shows).

To my knowledge we don't have a local CTV or Global network, though I'm sure NTV is aligned with one of them. The nearest ones to us would be whatever's in the Maritimes, and I imagine the American affiliates are all the Boston ones (they've tried changing us to Detroit and Buffalo but people keep complaining).

For your interest...

NTV is a bit of a cultural touchstone here. It's cheap and dirty and weird but fun. It comes up in all sorts of indirect ways. Drew Brown (local VICE writer) even credited them with preventing Newfoundland from going full Canada after Confederation.

Excerpt from transcript of group discussion:

Drew
Okay, I will now give you my theory of how Geoff Stirling secretly won the Confederation referendum. Stirling was part of the Economic Union movement during the Confederation referenda. He wanted us to join America, but it never panned out. He said whatever, fine, people want to watch American TV, I’ll set up a TV station that plays American content. So when they brought all the Canadian content rules in in the ’70s, he said “Fine, we’ll just be a 24-hour station, and I’ll fill the quota by talking into the camera about aliens for six hours every day.” Which is exactly what happened, and it’s why NTV is the wonderful way that it is.

But basically the guy spends decades effectively circumventing cultural protection laws as Newfoundland is transitioning out of its past, at a time when cultural mores and aspirations were still changing rapidly. I’m being glib here. It’s not all Stirling’s fault, obviously. But we started to dream…

https://thedeepmag.ca/therockinahardplace/

Those shows about aliens were hilarious. This is literally the kind of stuff he did to meet the Canadian content quota without ever having to show any of it:

• Video Link

Still cracks me up. There was also a Captain Newfoundland who was a time traveler.

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[Denscity]

CBC is the most Canadian of the three so that’s good but Global has a B.C. based all news channel called BC1 so its refreshing that it isn’t based on Toronto.

[Marty_Mcfly]

Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker

I haven't had cable for years so I don't really watch any of them, but I stream the evening news from CBC and NTV (Newfoundland Television). They're also the best for local shows, both good (This Hour Has 22 Minutes) and bad (NTV's St. John's real estate agents reality shows).

To my knowledge we don't have a local CTV or Global network, though I'm sure NTV is aligned with one of them. The nearest ones to us would be whatever's in the Maritimes, and I imagine the American affiliates are all the Boston ones (they've tried changing us to Detroit and Buffalo but people keep complaining).

NTV is essentially a Global affiliate since a huge majority of their programming is owned by Global. However, NTV also aires the CTV National News so it really isn't a complete affiliate. NTV essentially tries to please both CTV and Global to keep them out of the local market: if NTV decided to completely ditch CTV in favour of Global, they fear that CTV will then apply to launch a local station, which may trigger Global to do the same, leaving NTV up shits creek.

Newfoundland is also the largest Canadian market that doesn't have CTV available on basic cable packages. If you don't have digital cable, you can't watch CTV (CTV2 is readily available to almost everyone though since Halifax's ASN was apart of basic cable packages in the 80s/90s). Compare that to the fact that a lot of places have 2 Global channels: the Halifax and Edmonton feeds (Edmonton's CITV was also a part of the basic cable package back in the day).

I remember back in the day the American main channels (ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS) were all from Detroit. It never made sense, considering Boston was closer to here. Except Fox....which for some reason we received the Rochester, NY feed. Supposedly, there are some Rogers cable customers in the province outside the city that still receive the Detroit feeds.

EDIT: Kind to think of it, the PBS feed on Rogers cable here in St. John's is from Detroit. Saturday mornings I watch this old house on PBS, and eventually some show about exploring Michigan comes on.

[MonctonRad]

CBC is all social justice all the time.

CTV tends to be more balanced, and in the Maritimes, gives good regional coverage.

Global has a minimal presence in the Maritimes (news program for the Maritimes is based out of Toronto), but I find the Global National News to be surprisingly good.

Although I dislike the CBC television news (especially since the loss of Mansbridge), I really enjoy CBC radio for their news and public affairs coverage.

[esquire]

For local and national news, I definitely prefer CBC. I'll often watch The National or just have CBC News Network on in the background while I do stuff around the house on weekends.

I watch CTV National News from time to time, but I seldom watch Global's news offerings.

[drew]

CBC, both on TV and online.

Seldom CTV, never Global.

When I am down in the States, I do admit to watching Fox News - simply for the entertainment factor.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by esquire

For local and national news, I definitely prefer CBC. I'll often watch The National or just have CBC News Network on in the background while I do stuff around the house on weekends.

I watch CTV National News from time to time, but I seldom watch Global's news offerings.

I'm similar, except re the "background" - I tend to bounce around a bit between the CBC and CTV news networks and CNN (although that's become a slog since they decided to go "all anti-Trump all the time". I don't know that I've ever watched Global news.

[esquire]

Originally Posted by drew

When I am down in the States, I do admit to watching Fox News - simply for the entertainment factor.

I have never watched more than about 5 minutes of Fox News (or, for that matter, MSNBC) for the simple reason that when I put it on, there is never any actual *news*... it's always just some loudmouths opining about the news.

Even CNN is mostly talking heads for so much of the day. It makes me very grateful that Canada's main news networks focus on presenting actual news reporting and keep the opinion jibber-jabber to a minimum.

[Echoes]

I'll watch The National for national and international news, but don't find any of the local news broadcasts to be worth my time. I get my local news online and via twitter.

CBC Radio is my background when I'm doing things around the house.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Echoes

CBC Radio is my background when I'm doing things around the house.

The CBC's French radio network Radio-Canada is my background in the house as well, and more often than not in the car too.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

CNN (although that's become a slog since they decided to go "all anti-Trump all the time".

I've become annoyed by this as well. CNN used to be my go-to for American news (and to some degree for international) but at this point I don't really have a go-to for U.S. news anymore.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

CBC is all social justice all the time.

CTV tends to be more balanced, and in the Maritimes, gives good regional coverage.

Global has a minimal presence in the Maritimes (news program for the Maritimes is based out of Toronto), but I find the Global National News to be surprisingly good.

Although I dislike the CBC television news (especially since the loss of Mansbridge), I really enjoy CBC radio for their news and public affairs coverage.

I've always liked the CBC but in recent years I find many of their people have taken on a sanctimonious, foreboding tone. And I find this applies to the radio more than the TV news, but it's present in both.

I often get the sense that the CBC person reading the news or doing an interview is about to break down and cry any minute. And they're just talking about... expanding the parking lot for a ski hill or something like that.

I find I can't even listen to stuff like As It Happens anymore... which is too bad 'cause the premise and research work that goes into the show is awesome.

[Acajack]

Generally speaking though my main TV news source is the French CBC's network (mainstream and all-news). I also watch TVA sometimes. (And I recently added France 24 to my cable package so I go there too for European and international.)

When I check out how the other three quarters lives I still go to the CBC first.

The only other Canadian news channel in English I watch is CTV, but far less than CBC.

I never watch Global.

[elly63]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

CBC is all social justice all the time.

Agree, but I think that is the fault of the producers, they have some pretty good commentators they use. Two of the best in the country are Andrew Coyne and Chantal Hebert, both are eminently fair. I like Rosie Barton too, she doesn't seem to play the leftist game from what I've seen of her. I don't really watch them much anymore but their older staff are pretty good (ie Hanomansingh, Arsenault). The younger ones in the news chair seem SJWish to me.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by elly63

Agree, but I think that is the fault of the producers, they have some pretty good commentators they use. Two of the best in the country are Andrew Coyne and Chantal Hebert, both are eminently fair. I like Rosie Barton too, she doesn't seem to play the leftist game from what I've seen of her. I don't really watch them much anymore but their older staff are pretty good (ie Hanomansingh, Arsenault). The younger ones in the news chair seem SJWish to me.

Journalism in general has gotten very teary-eyed in recent years. I mean, you don't want to show the pearly whites too much when talking about a plane crash that killed 200 people, but still... some people go way overboard with the emotion.

[someone123]

I don't really watch TV but I also find CBC radio has shifted dramatically toward social justice issues during the past few years, and away from substantive news stories (international coverage or current events, deeper policy discussions, etc.). I am not against some coverage of social justice issues but they don't merit 80% of the airtime or whatever they get. I also find that the radio commentators tend to have fairly narrow political perspectives.

[elly63]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Journalism in general has gotten very teary-eyed in recent years. I mean, you don't want to show the pearly whites too much when talking about a plane crash that killed 200 people, but still... some people go way overboard with the emotion.

I worked for the news division at one of the networks and knew the people at the other well. Rarely competitive, mostly good camaraderie, this was in the 80s-90s. Totally unrecognizable today, sadly.

There's a good explanation for the societal shift by Jonathan Heidt below (start at 11:30) Ignore the Youtube poster's ideology and listen to Haidt himself.

• Video Link

[SignalHillHiker]

I have a mixed relationship with CBC Radio. Nationally, they're almost all Newfoundlanders. Locally, they're all the mainland spouses of Newfoundlanders. I miss CBC Radio in Winnipeg when Gordon Pinsent was reading me stories about Fogo Island on my morning commute. Now the only Newfoundlander I hear regularly is Tom Power because they play excerpts of Q. And although this isn't the case in my daily life, on radio I need ANY accent other than that fake, faux-friendly one mainland CBC talkers use. It just grates on me. Robotic, disingenuous, pompous. It sounds like a local church lady on the phone with her bank.

Locally, VOCM is my go-to for talk radio (which has around 30% of the audience in NL, twice Quebec's, and orders of magnitude more than in the other provinces - it's entirely left-wing). Music, we have nothing here. Irish folk, top 40, country, classic hits, etc. None of it is anything you haven't heard before, or mentally enriching. You definitely can't use the radio to discover anything new.

[elly63]

Originally Posted by someone123

I don't really watch TV but I also find CBC radio has shifted dramatically toward social justice issues during the past few years, and away from substantive news stories (international coverage or current events, deeper policy discussions, etc.). I am not against some coverage of social justice issues but they don't merit 80% of the airtime or whatever they get. I also find that the radio commentators tend to have fairly narrow political perspectives.

Aside from Don Cherry, are there any Conservatively minded people at CBC? Kevin O'Leary is gone isn't he?