FACE TO FACE: Is Canada ready for its very own right-wing TV network?
Two wrongs never make a right. But in the aftermath of last week's horrific shooting in Tucson, the evil that was perpetrated by the crazed gunman was, in my analysis, compounded by an outbreak of mean-spirited vitriol aimed at outspoken conservatives in the U.S. - conservatives who were accused by many mainstream commentators of fanning the flames of hatred which ignited the murder spree.
The question of whether American conservatives such as Bill O'Reilly, Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin helped spark the massacre is an important one for Canadians to consider because of the connection between the chief media outlet of these luminaries, Fox News, and the looming launch in Canada of Sun TV News, which critics have labelled "Fox News of the North."
For months now, these critics have been complaining about how un-Canadian Sun TV News will be, presumably because its commentators haven't had our country's unofficial motto, "Peace, Order, and Good Government," tattooed on their chests.
Granted, Sun TV News promises to be right-leaning, opinionated and hard-hitting. As such, though, it is merely positioning itself as an antidote to the publicly financed Mother Corp., otherwise known as the CBC.
The CBC and its defenders claim its news and analysis are fair, balanced and reflective of the great Canadian value of moderation. Really! Any network that can give airtime to that palpable lefty, Neil Macdonald, and a platform to Heather Mallick (who once compared the aforementioned Ms. Palin to a porn star) can hardly been see as moderate, irrespective of the weekly counterbalancing act by Don Cherry.
Let's take it as a given, then, that Sun TV News will feature some inflammatory, anti-leftist talk. Does this mean it shouldn't be licensed, as some critics have argued? And does this also mean that any random act of violence, perpetrated by a madman, on a political target, will have been precipitated by the new channel?
The answer to both questions is No. Sun TV News will likely bring a fresh, no-nonsense approach to news and commentary, and deserves a spot in the 500-channel universe. As for any future culpability in fomenting division and violence - well, I trust in the good judgment of the station's journalists and its viewers.
