Dear Ms. Rhéaume:

Re: Broadcasting Public Notice CRTC 2003-36 (Item 1)

1. These comments are being made on behalf of B’nai Brith Canada
(“B’nai Brith”) in response to Public Notice CRTC 2003-36 concerning the addition of non-Canadian satellite services to the list of satellite services eligible for digital distribution (the “Digital List”).

2. Since 1875, B’nai Brith has been active in monitoring human rights issues of concern to the Jewish community and other minorities in Canada. B’nai Brith has been steadfast in supporting multiculturalism and the expression of different viewpoints within a context of respectful debate. However, this does not and must not include encouraging the importation of hatred from abroad.

3. B’nai Brith opposes the request filed by the Canadian Cable Television Association (“CCTA”) and Vidéotron Lté (“Vidéotron”) before the CRTC (“the Commission”) to sponsor the addition of Al-Jazeera to the Digital List (item 1 in Public Notice CRTC 2003-36).

4. B’nai Brith submits that, for the reasons set forth below, it would not be in the public interest, nor consistent with the values and objectives set out in the Broadcasting Act, to permit Al-Jazeera to be eligible for distribution to Canadian Broadcasting Distribution Undertakings (“BDUs”) subscribers.

The content on Al-Jazeera is in contravention of

Broadcasting Legislation and Industry Codes

5. B’nai Brith submits that the content on Al-Jazeera repeatedly contravenes the applicable regulations made under the Broadcasting Act and associated industry codes governing the content of programs aired by licensed Canadian broadcasters[1]. Much of the content aired on Al-Jazeera is clearly antisemitic and the views expressed by reporters and/or guests appearing on Al-Jazeera frequently express abusive commentary that, when taken in context, tends to, or is likely, to expose individual Jews or the Jewish community to hatred or contempt on the basis of their ethnic origin and religion.

6. There are numerous examples of programs on Al-Jazeera in which clearly antisemitic speech has been broadcast unedited. These incidents have been well documented. We have set out in Appendix “A” hereto examples of recent antisemitic programming broadcast on Al-Jazeera. As these examples amply demonstrate, it would not be in the public interest to permit this kind of programming to be distributed by BDUs to the Canadian viewing public.

7. Among the most egregious of content from Appendix “A” that clearly exposes Jewish groups and Jews to hate and contempt are the following:

§ On Oct. 24, 2000, a Palestinian Mufti, Sheikh Col. Nader Al-Tamini, said in a television debate broadcast on Al-Jazeera “there can be no peace with the Jews because they suck and use the blood of Arabs on the holidays of Passover and Purim”.

§ On May 15, 2001, Al-Jazeera moderator Dr. Faisal Al-Qassam read on air a viewer opinion referring to “The (Jews), whom our God described as the sons of apes and pigs, will not be deterred unless there is a real holocaust, that will destroy all of them at once…”

§ On Jan. 22, 2002, the same host, Dr. Al-Qassam, wondered whether Osama bin Laden was good or bad for Islam. A Saudi cleric, arguing in the affirmative, described Jews as “the most despicable people . . . worms . . . all evil,” blaming Jews for 9/11 and calling on the United States to “get rid of them”.

8. Al-Jazeera is on record that it opposes any measures to edit its content in an attempt to rectify or curb the antisemitic tone of its broadcasts. In an interview with “The Current” on CBC Radio, which aired on July 16, 2003, Al-Jazeera producer Imad Musa was unapologetic in admitting that the station has broadcast “some inflammatory speech about Jews”. Mr. Musa noted that Al-Jazeera will not censor their guests and “[has] no delay button…we will allow them to say what they need to say”.

9. A number of arguments have been put forward in defence of allowing Al-Jazeera to be added to the Digital List to which B’nai Brith will set out its response:

a) Antisemitic content on Al-Jazeera is acceptable because it is not expressed by the station’s reporters.

The notion that the virulently antisemitic, racist sentiments broadcast on Al-Jazeera are acceptable because they are voiced by individuals being interviewed rather than by Al-Jazeera’s reporters is not a meaningful distinction. The fact remains that Al-Jazeera provides a platform for the utterance of antisemitic hatred. Antisemitic commentary on Al-Jazeera is not suitable for broadcast in Canada, irrespective of whether such commentary is uttered by reporters or by various guests.

b) The antisemitism disseminated by Al-Jazeera is acceptable because it accurately reflects the cultural and political climate of the Arab world.

While we value the notion of broadcasters offering an Arab viewpoint to Canadian viewers, Al-Jazeera’s viewpoint often sanctions or tolerates the promotion of violence and racial hatred against Jews, and is therefore unacceptable in Canada.

c) Al-Jazeera is harmless because the majority of Canadians do not subscribe to digital television and thus will not have access to it.

The fact that only a minority of Canadian viewers will have access to Al-Jazeera’s antisemitic content does not render the channel any less antithetical to the Canadian values of tolerance, inclusion and respect for diversity. The principles governing oversight of content in the Canadian broadcasting system should apply, irrespective of the penetration of a given programming service among Canadian viewers. In any case, the penetration of cable digital subscribers continues to increase and, if the request were granted, Al-Jazeera would be available to every DTH BDU subscriber.

10. Al-Jazeera’s programming contravenes a number of the broadcasting policy objectives set out in Section 3 of the Broadcasting Act, including the following:

· The programming of all broadcasting undertakings shall be of a high standard
(subsection 3(1)(g));

· the Canadian broadcasting system…makes use of radio frequencies that are public property and provides, through its programming, a public service essential to the maintenance and enhancement of national identity and cultural sovereignty. [emphasis added] (subsection 3(1)(b));

· the Canadian broadcasting system should:

serve to safeguard, enrich and strengthen the cultural, political, social and economic fabric of Canada;

encourage the development of Canadian expression by providing a wide range of programming that reflects Canadian attitudes, opinions, ideas, values and artistic creativity, by displaying Canadian talent in entertainment programming and by offering information and analysis concerning Canada and other countries from a Canadian point of view; and

through its programming and the employment opportunities arising out of its operations, serve the needs and interests, and reflect the circumstances and aspirations, of Canadian men, women and children, including equal rights, the linguistic duality and multicultural and multiracial nature of Canadian society and the special place of aboriginal peoples within that society. (subsection 3(1)(d))

11. Moreover, under the applicable regulations governing all programming undertakings licensed by the Commission, licensees are prohibited from broadcasting:

(a) anything in contravention of the law;

(b) any abusive comment or abusive pictorial representation that, when taken in context, tends to or is likely to expose an individual or a group or class of individuals to hatred or contempt on the basis of race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age or mental or physical disability;

(d) any false or misleading news.[2]

12. In order to ensure that the foregoing broadcasting legislative objectives and related requirements are achieved, the Commission has developed a thorough regulatory framework in which licensed broadcasters are responsible for the content of their programming with a view to ensuring that it not only reflects the values and perspectives of Canadian viewers but also to ensure that no group or class of individuals are portrayed in an unfair or contemptuous manner. These objectives are reflected in various content codes that have been adopted by the broadcasting industry. For example, the Canadian Association of Broadcasters’ Code of Ethics provides as follows:

· broadcasters must “ensure that their programming contains no abusive or unduly discriminatory material or comment which is based on matters of race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion…” (Clause 2);

· broadcasters must ensure that the news is reported “with accuracy and without bias…and that news broadcasts are not editorial.” (Clause 5);

· news, opinion, comments and editorial are accorded full, fair and proper presentation (Clause 6);

· controversial public issues are treated fairly (Clause 7); and

· religious broadcasts, which reach persons of all creeds and races simultaneously, shall not be sued to convey attacks upon another race or religion. (Clause 8).

13. The Commission has noted the importance of cultural diversity for the broadcasting system. As it noted in Public Notice CRTC 1999-97:

The objectives for the Canadian television system in his area are clear. The system, as a whole, can better reflect the presence of minority groups in Canadian society, and in doing so, portray them accurately and fairly. The Commission believes that broadcasters should recognize, respect and actively promote diversity, such that negative portrayal of minority groups is not the norm.

14. Al-Jazeera’s programming reflects a strictly Arab/Middle Eastern perspective that does not reflect the context and milieu in which Canadians of all ethnic groups live and work. B’nai Brith submits that Al-Jazeera does not reflect a Canadian perspective in which tolerance and diversity are applied to all ethnic and cultural groups. If Al-Jazeera were allowed to be distributed in Canada, it would present a skewed worldview, where antisemitism is tolerated and even encouraged, which is antithetical to Canadian values. By broadcasting antisemitic content and speech, Al-Jazeera serves to undermine the values of tolerance, diversity and respect in public discourse that mark the Canadian political, social and cultural milieu.

15. B’nai Brith urges the Commission to recognize that the nature of Al-Jazeera’s content is such that to permit it to be distributed through the Canadian broadcasting system would be contrary to the values and underlying objectives set out in our broadcasting legislation.

Al-Jazeera is an unlicensed broadcasting undertaking
outside of the Commission’s jurisdiction

16. Licensed Canadian services provide meaningful contributions to cultural diversity, further the objectives of the Broadcasting Act, and are sensitive to the inclusive multicultural milieu of Canada. They are subject to regulatory oversight and must adhere to various programming standards and codes of the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council. Foreign services have no such requirements or safeguards and are essentially unregulated.

17. Since only Canadian services are required to further the objectives of the Broadcasting Act, they play a unique role in connecting with multicultural communities and in ensuring that their programming accords with Canadian values, aspirations and needs.

18. Non-Canadian services, on the other hand, are subject to none of these requirements and safeguards with respect to the programming they offer and enjoy an essentially unregulated status in Canada. If Al-Jazeera were approved for broadcast distribution in Canada, Canadians would have little control over its content and little recourse in the event that content that is in contravention of the regulatory framework is broadcast.

19. We note that in Public Notice CRTC 2001-82, the Commission denied the request by cable distributors to add Spice Platinum, Spice Platinum 2 and Spice Platinum Live, to the Digital List. The Commission noted that the Spice services are not obliged to adhere to Canadian law with respect to the content of adult entertainment programming. The Commission was not satisfied that compliance would be maintained at all times and accordingly denied the application to add these non-Canadian services to the Digital List.

20. B’nai Brith submits that similar concerns apply in this case. Al-Jazeera is an unlicensed broadcasting undertaking and is not subject to the Commission’s jurisdiction. The Commission can only indirectly have an impact on the content on Al-Jazeera with a single instrument, namely its ability to de-list any service on the Digital List or other lists of eligible satellite services. This, we respectfully submit, is a “blunt instrument”. There is no ability for the Commission to enforce or require Al-Jazeera to edit or truncate certain program elements or segments on its service. Therefore, once placed on the Digital List, the “genie would be out of the bottle”.

21. The Commission cannot in this circumstance exercise its regulatory oversight by holding broadcasters to high standards of broadcasting as it has done in many cases. For example, in Genex Communications Inc, the Commission expressed its concern regarding offensive comments broadcast on the radio and directed at women, natives and the disabled. The Commission clearly confirmed that abusive remarks directed at a class of individuals are unacceptable in Canadian broadcasting. The Commission found that comments by the host of CHOI-FM’s morning radio show comparing disabled children to animals “constituted an abusive comment that, when taken in context, clearly exposed persons with a physical or mental disability to hatred or contempt.” In its decision, the Commission renewed the license of CHOI-FM, subject to a number of conditions, including adherence to a code of ethics.[3]

22. In contrast to the foregoing circumstances, if the Commission were to authorize Al-Jazeera for distribution in Canada, it would be incapable of imposing similar conditions on Al-Jazeera, and thus would have little recourse to address abusive comments directed at Jews on Al-Jazeera.

23. Finally, B’nai Brith notes that several Arabic category 2 digital speciality services providing for an Arabic news format have already been approved (but not yet launched) by the Commission. In particular, we note that one category 2 service, Canadian Arab Television, could well provide a Canadian alternative to Al-Jazeera. This licensed programming undertaking, once launched, would be subject to Canadian broadcasting regulations and be accountable for all of its programming content. Such a service could elect to acquire some of the content currently on Al-Jazeera. However, there would be a critical difference between such a service and allowing Al-Jazeera to be added to the Digital list. If a licensed programming service were to contravene applicable broadcasting codes and regulations, remedial measures could be applied through the existing complaint process before the Commission (or, for example, through establishing time-delay measures to ensure compliance with Canadian broadcasting standards).

24. We therefore submit that Al-Jazeera should not be permitted to enter the Canadian market, as it would effectively come at the expense of and in competition with Canadian services already approved by the Commission, where such Canadian services will introduce programming that complies with Canadian broadcasting policy.

25. In summary, B’nai Brith urges the Commission to deny the request of CCTA and Vidéotron to add Al-Jazeera to the Digital List, for the reasons set out above – namely, that the content on Al-Jazeera is in contravention of Broadcasting Legislation and Industry Codes and that Al-Jazeera is an unlicensed broadcasting undertaking outside of the Commission’s jurisdiction.

26. B’nai Brith appreciates the opportunity to file these comments with the Commission.

Submitted by

Anita Bromberg, Legal Counsel

B’nai Brith Canada

cc. Canadian Cable Television Association (CCTA)

Suite 1010

360 Albert Street

Ottawa, Ontario K1R 7X7 email: ccta@ccta.com

Vidéotron ltée

300, Avenue Viger East

Montréal, Quebec H2X 3W4 email : assistance@Vidéotron.ca

Appendix “A”

· On October 24, 2000, a Palestinian mufti stated on-air that “there can be no peace with the Jews because they suck and use the blood of Arabs on the Holidays of Passover and Purim.”

· An episode of the weekly talk show The Opposite Direction on May 15, 2001 asked: "Is Zionism worse than Nazism?" An e-mail read on-air noted: "God ... will not be deterred unless there is a true holocaust that will exterminate all of them [the Jews] at once ..." while the infamous French Holocaust denier Robert Faurisson participated via telephone.

· On May 15, 2001, Dr. Faisal Al-Qassam, host of the Al-Jazeera weekly talk show The Opposite Direction, read an email from a viewer on the air of his talk show. The email stated that Jews were “the sons of apes and pigs” who will not be deterred unless there is a true Holocaust to exterminate them, once and for all. In reference to this particular incident, Mr. Musa on “The Current” as noted in paragraph 8 of our response rationalized that “it’s a trend of thought that exists in the Middle East and to not acknowledge it is to kind of hide behind – I mean to actually betray the premise of Al-Jazeera”.

· Dr. Al-Qassam himself, on July 10, 2001, asked: "Who hurt Israel and achieved the first victory in modern Arab history, if not the Islamic Jihad movement? The heroic Hezbollah in southern Lebanon is a popular movement. 'Hezbollah' is a beautiful, mighty name, and as many have said, it succeeded in expelling the Zionists from southern [Lebanon] like dogs -- my apologies to the dogs "

· On Jan. 22, 2002, Dr. Al-Qassam, wondered whether Osama bin Laden was good or bad for Islam. A Saudi cleric, arguing in the affirmative, described Jews as "the most despicable people ... worms ... all evil," blaming them for 9/11 and calling on the United States to "get rid" of them.

· In November 2002, the Al-Jazeera show Without Borders interviewed notorious American white supremacist David Duke, presenting him as an “ex-GOP representative from Louisiana”. Mr. Duke’s message included antisemitic conspiracy theories including the outrageous and baseless assertion the Israeli intelligence agency, the Mossad, knew of terrorist plans to destroy the World Trade Center with hijacked airplanes and warned Israelis to get out before the planes hit.

· In an interview with the CBC Television program Disclosure, broadcast on April 1, 2003, Dr. Al-Kassam made comments amounting to Holocaust denial. In response to the statement “I suspect you don’t believe that the Holocaust happened” Dr. Al-Kassam stated: “No, no, it’s not that, it’s not that. I mean I’m sure something happened but I tend not to swallow historical rubbish very easily if you like and I think history is full of rubbish.”

· Al-Jazeera has described groups associated with Osama Bin Laden as "International Islamic Front to confront Jews and crusaders" (1998 interview); U.S. reaction to the Sept. 11 attacks is a "new Jewish crusade" (on-air letter, Sept. 23, 2001); U.S. government officials are "agents of the Jews" (audio tape, October, 2002), who are "murderers of the prophets ... violators of agreements ... usurers and whoremongers...." (sermon carried March, 2003).

· Sheikh Yousif al-Karadawi, host of the weekly program Sharia and Life aired on Al-Jazeera, champions and encourages suicide bombers. During an interview on CBC Television’s show Disclosure shown on April 1, 2003, a close disciple and sometime stand-in, Dr. Eltamimi, denied the Sheikh "incites" young people to suicide terrorism. Rather, he stated, the Sheikh "motivates people to sacrifice themselves for a noble cause”.

****End Document

[1] Section 5(1) of the Television Broadcasting Regulations, 1987; Section 3 of the Speciality Services Regulations 1990; Section 3(2) of the Pay Television Regulations, 1990, section 8(1)(b) of the Broadcasting Distribution Regulations.

[3] See also Decision Public Notice CRTC 88-887 (CJRN 710 Inc.)