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Contact: Elliot Chan,

Opinions Editor

M opinions@theotherpress.ca

www. theotherpress.ca

 

Proposed changes to copyright will hurt
quality of journalism in Canada

» Harper government wants unfettered access to media clips for attack ads

Patrick Vaillancourt
Senior Columnist

f you are an avid watcher of

Canadian politics, you may
be asking yourself: “What
happened to all the attack ads
against Justin Trudeau?” I was
wondering that myself a few
days ago, and came across some :
startling findings. :

It seems broadcasters have
had enough of the Conservative :
Party’s attack ads. Not because :
of the nature of the ads :
themselves, but rather, because :
of who owns some of the
content prominently featured
in those advertisements.

For years, the Conservative
advertising machine has
demolished successive Liberal :
leaders. It began with Stéphane :
Dion, then Michael Ignatieff.
Now, a year away from the next
expected federal election, the :
Conservatives are trailing in the :
polls and it seems that attack
ads meant to steer voters away:
from Justin Trudeau have failed. :
If you believe the polls, Trudeau :
is poised to lead the Liberals
to a historic comeback to the
government benches once
election night comes to a close.

This has the Conservatives
scrambling to find a way to
discredit the Liberal leader.
After years of allowing political
parties to broadcast attack
ads on national airwaves, the
major Canadian broadcasters

: got together to let all political
: parties know that they are

: calling a halt to it, saying they
: will not air advertisements

: that feature clips of their

: own broadcasts for political

: purposes without the express:
: consent of the copyright holder. :

 

: That means, should Trudeau

: make a gaffe during a CBC

: interview (as he did with the

: CF-18 story), the Conservatives
: would need to get the CBC’s

: permission to use the media

: clip in a political ad.

In response, the Harper

: government is planning to

: change the Copyright Act

: to remove “the need for

: broadcasters to authorize the
: use of their news content.” Does :
: the Conservative Party actually
: want to suggest stealing

: the intellectual property of

: Canadian television stations,

: which own clips and broadcast
: interviews that are widely used
: to attack other party leaders

: in the media? It’s a double

: standard, which, if passed, will
: allow a political party to use a

: clip without consent, develop

: an ad, and send it right back to
: the broadcaster they stole from
: to have it aired nationally. Talk
: about insult to injury.

As a writer, I’m very

: passionate about intellectual

: property, and have an interest
: in preserving my rights as a

: producer of content. If I were

: producing content with the

: expectation that someone

: could just take it without my

i knowledge or authorization,

: there isn’t much of an incentive
: for me to produce high-quality
_i writing. Why make the job

: easier for the thief?

That is exactly what could

: happen in political punditry.

: Fearing that a segment may

: be used for an attack ad,

: journalists may stop asking the
: tough questions we demand

: answers to from our elected

: leaders, opting instead to have
: the safe conversations that

: couldn't possibly be featured in
: a smear campaign.

These copyright changes

: are more than just legalizing
: the theft of intellectual

property; it will lead to a kind

: of censorship in journalism this
: country cannot afford to have.

 

A dying wish unfulfilled

» The Ebola virus is just another reason why we should seize the day

Margaret Matthews
Senior Columnist

he first Ebola patient in

the United States, 42-year-
old Thomas Eric Duncan, died
not long after his arrival from
Liberia. He had been working
there as a driver for a courier
company, and had been exposed :
to the deadly virus.

He tested positive on
September 30 and was kept
in isolation at a Texas Health

: Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas,
: where he was treated with an

: experimental drug. On October
: 8, the hospital announced

: his passing. While three

: American aid workers and a

: photojournalist also contracted
: Ebola while residing in Liberia,

: they were brought back to the

: United States and treated with

> recoveries; however, this was

: not the case for Duncan. Prior
: to his death, he went to the

: hospital and was sent home with :

a vaccine, resulting in three

: antibiotics, which did not cure
: him. He was then admitted to

: the hospital and treated with

: another experimental drug, but
: did not survive.

No one can predict when

it’s time to depart this world.

: Does life have to be so cruel

: and unfair? The Ebola virus

: has currently taken the lives of
: over 4,000 people in Liberia,

: Sierra Leone, and Guinea. US

: President Barack Obama said:
: “(Duncan’s] death showed we

don't have a lot of margin for

: Duncan’s passing was that his

: life-long wish of seeing his

: young son—whom he had not

: seen since the boy was around

: three years old, when he was

: taken away to live in the United
: States—was not fulfilled. He

: wanted to be at his graduation
and be proud of what he had

: achieved scholastically, but it

: error. If we don't follow protocols:
: and procedures that are putin :
: place, then we're putting folks in :
? our communities at risk.” :

The saddest part of

was not to be. It took decades

: for Duncan to obtain his

immigration documents and

: to see his young son again, but
: when he did arrive in the US he
: tested positive for Ebola, thus

: preventing any visitors from

: visiting him at the hospital.

: Circumstances prevented them
: both from seeing each other. It
; just wasn’t meant to be.

When it’s time for one to

go, there is no asking for an
: extension of time. There are no
> two ways about it.