Cultural sector reaches out to Rodriguez

Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez has met with creative groups in his first registered lobby communications since being sworn into the Liberal cabinet three months ago and taking over an often-contentious portfolio. The communications were with the Fédération nationale des communications in July, Friends of Canadian Broadcasting (FCB), the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA), and the Association québécoise de la production médiatique (AQPM) in August, and the Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) this month. The registrations relate to a variety of issues, including the Copyright Act, tax related to foreign digital advertising, and the long-term investment in CBC/Radio-Canada. Registered lobby communications don’t necessarily have to entail policy discussions, as they can be informal and unrelated. ACTRA spokeswoman Carol Taverner said in an email that her organization’s encounter with the minister was a “meet and greet” and not a sit-down meeting. The date of the communications lines up with announcements Rodriguez was making in Toronto and Montreal, which included funding for professional arts organizations. In any event, these communications represent the first for Rodriguez since becoming Minister of Canadian Heritage as part of the Liberal government’s cabinet shuffle in July, succeeding Mélanie Joly. Following his appointment, creative groups applauded the decision, citing Rodriguez’s knowledge of the sector. His experience means this isn’t the first time Rodriguez has fielding concerns from telecom and media lobbyists. In fact, he’s heard from a wide gamut of players as a member of parliament for the Quebec riding of Honoré-Mercier from 2004 to 2011 (he lost the seat in 2011, but won it back in 2015). Those parties include the Canadian Communication Systems Alliance (CCSA), the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA), BCE Inc., the CMPA, FCB, the Writers Guild of Canada, the Canadian Music Publishers Association, ACTRA, Rogers Communications Inc., Manitoba Telecom Services, and Astral. Some of these communications date back to 2010. Before that -- prior to becoming an MP -- he was a consultant lobbyist himself, doing the bidding of GGA Communications Inc.’s clients on the Hill. He was a partner and vice-president of the public relations company, from 1996 to 2004, according to his Linkedin page. Records, however, do not reflect that he was lobbying on broadcasting- or telecom-specific matters, though an archived lobby registry page lists Telus Corp. as once a client of the now-defunct company. Rodriguez, who was previously the chief government whip, adopts a fiercely debated area of policy for the government. Critics had attacked his predecessor Joly for not taking what they say are actions that would level the playing field with foreign internet players, including taxing their operations here. Parliament resumed a new session on Monday, and lobby communications picked up pace slightly leading up to parliamentarians coming back from summer break. The Association of Canadian Advertisers, who’ve lobbied on a junk food bill that some say could cripple traditional TV advertising, launched 12 communications in August with the Bill S-228 as the subject matter. Shaw Communications Inc. led the telecoms in August with seven communications under the registration of CEO Brad Shaw. Matters on the registration related to broadcasting and telecommunications and included officials from Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED), Heritage, and the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). Rogers filed six communications under the registration of president Joe Natale with matters on the registration including intellectual property, international trade and telecommunications, with figures in the PMO, Public Safety Canada, ISED, and Global Affairs. Xplornet Communications Inc. filed eight communications related to rural broadband with the CRTC, ISED, and the PMO under the registration of CEO Allison Lenehan and consultant Eric Lamoureux of Conseillers Affaires Publiques Inc. Bell and Telus each filed only two communications. Under head George Cope, Bell spoke with ISED officials with a registration including telecommunications-related issues, such as the upcoming reviews of the copyright, broadcasting, and telecommunications acts, and issues related to the in-progress negotiations in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Telus, under CEO Darren Entwistle, communicated with ISED officials and MP Gordie Hogg, with their registration including similar matters. Copyright-related matters have also picked up, with Music Canada putting up three communications through their consultant lobbyists and the Canadian Music Publishers Association filing two of their own on those matters. All told, as of the publication of this story, broadcast-related lobby communications jumped 200 per cent to 24 files compared to 8 last month, while telecom communications was up a more modest 42 per cent to 44 versus 31 last month. — With reporting by Ahmad Hathout at ahathout@thewirereport.ca and editing by by Anja Karadeglija at akarad@thewirereport.ca

Cultural sector reaches out to Rodriguez

Broadcast | September 19, 2018

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Cultural sector reaches out to Rodriguez

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