EZRA LEVANT ｜ When it comes to the mainstream media, they just can't get enough taxpayer-dollars
Episode Stats
Words per minute
145.6643
Harmful content
Misogyny
11
sentences flagged
Hate speech
28
sentences flagged
Summary
When it comes to the media and its now insatiable desire for more and more taxpayer dollars, the title of a James Bond flick comes to mind, namely, The World Is Not Enough. Thus that the CBC received more than a billion dollars annually in taxpayer money in recent years, and my God, where, oh where do they spend that money? Oh, you weren t a consultant? Well, suck it up, buttercup. You see, the Trudeau Liberals know what's best for you. Kind of like Rogers did back in 1994. Remember negative option billing? It was chutzpah on steroids.
Transcript
00:00:00.000
Tonight, the lamestream media hates you, but they love your bailouts and they want more.
00:00:23.400
It's Friday, October 7th, 2022. I'm David Menzies and this is the Ezra LeVant Show.
00:00:42.720
When it comes to the media and its now insatiable desire for more and more taxpayer dollars,
00:00:53.400
the title of a James Bond flick comes to mind, namely, The World is Not Enough.
00:00:59.440
T'was ever thus that the CBC received more than a billion dollars annually.
00:01:04.440
And my God, where, oh where, do they spend that money?
00:01:09.440
But in recent years, the non-CBC mainstream media has been receiving taxpayer bailouts too.
00:01:16.440
Oh, you weren't consultant? Well, suck it up, buttercup.
00:01:21.040
You see, the Justin Trudeau liberals know what's best for you.
00:01:24.840
Kind of like Rogers did back in 1994. Remember negative option billing?
00:01:32.720
Rogers decided to add a whole bunch of crappy channels to their subscribers' playlists,
00:01:38.280
which would be kind of nice if it was a gif, but it wasn't.
00:01:43.940
You see, if you didn't want the channels, it was incumbent upon you to contact Rogers
00:01:53.400
Otherwise, you'd be billed for content you never asked for and never planned to view.
00:02:01.440
By the way, that was yet another brilliant idea cooked up by Toronto Mayor John Tory.
00:02:09.380
But the thing is, what is happening with the government-funded media properties is even worse.
00:02:15.520
You see, at least old man Rogers gave you the option of opting out of such negativity.
00:02:21.920
The Trudeau liberals are much like the nefarious Borg from Star Trek.
00:02:26.140
You know, resistance is futile, self-determination is irrelevant.
00:02:30.180
Sugar Daddy Trudeau will continue to fund media properties with your money, whether you like it or not.
00:02:39.360
You might make an argument that this is what government does, unfortunately.
00:02:44.720
It picks winners and losers in the marketplace and cuts checks, again with your money,
00:02:50.500
and bails out those companies it takes a liking to.
00:02:53.980
General Motors, Chrysler, Bombardier, and the list goes on and on.
00:02:58.340
The thing is, the idea of government, aka taxpayers, constantly propping up losers,
00:03:05.700
is completely opposite to how a free market economy should function.
00:03:11.760
The free market subscribes to an economic version of Darwinism, namely survival of the fittest, evolve or go extinct.
00:03:19.920
There should be no safety net, at least no safety net paid for by citizens who have absolutely no say in the matter.
00:03:30.000
But as bad as it is to bail out manufacturers of automobiles and aerospace equipment,
00:03:36.060
it is immeasurably worse to bail out media companies.
00:03:40.020
That's because there are several ethical and moral issues at play when the watchdogs of society are paid off by the very entity that it should be holding to account.
00:03:52.720
It is a grotesque conflict of interest, and it is incredible to see that it has become the new normal.
00:04:01.220
You know, the other day, I dusted off my old copy of this, Morals and the Media, subtitled Ethics in Canadian Journalism.
00:04:12.040
Now, folks, this edition was published in 2006, not really that long ago.
00:04:17.040
And yet I was stunned that this book, through no fault of its author,
00:04:21.760
has been rendered obsolete in 2022, given the current lay of the media land in our great dominion.
00:04:28.880
For example, consider the chapter, The Media and Money.
00:04:33.860
There's a sidebar entitled Canadian Association of Journalists on Accepting Gifts.
00:04:40.820
We should not accept or solicit gifts, passes, or favors for personal use.
00:04:47.120
We must pay our own way to ensure independence.
00:04:51.420
If another organization pays our expenses to an event that we are writing about, we should say so.
00:04:58.880
So that the reader, viewer, or listener can take this into account.
00:05:04.280
We will promptly return unsolicited gifts of more than nominal value.
00:05:09.400
If it is impractical to return the gift, we will give it to an appropriate charity or institution.
00:05:16.580
Like I said, folks, this 16-year-old book is irreparably obsolete and broken,
00:05:24.380
given the way in which journalism is funded by the taxpayer today.
00:05:28.480
And yes, I do think that mainstream media outlets that are being funded to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars per year
00:05:44.920
But the media minions, they're quite content to devolve from society's watchdogs to Justin Trudeau's lapdogs.
00:05:53.940
Golly, I'd love to know what Bell Media's Evan Solomon has to say about journalistic ethics being so brutally compromised these days.
00:06:05.540
Yesterday was Solomon's last day at Bell Media.
00:06:08.440
You see, Solomon was recently named the new publisher of GZero Media,
00:06:14.280
a global affairs news site and a subsidiary of New York City-based political risk analysis firm Eurasia Group.
00:06:25.280
This isn't the same Eurasia Group that has as its vice chairman, Gerald Butts,
00:06:35.960
So, you see, this is what happens when journalists like Evan Solomon are so loyal to Prime Minister Blackface McGroper.
0.74
00:06:47.060
For the past seven years at Bell Media, Solomon has proven to be a wonderful little train seal.
00:06:53.420
And his reward is not a fish, but a nice New York City gig and undoubtedly a salary in the high six figures.
00:07:07.460
The liberals are looking to appoint more operatives in political risk analysis firms.
00:07:12.780
They're not so much interested in recruiting waitresses for Hooters or dancers for the Zanzibar.
00:07:19.340
By the way, speaking of ethics, I should point out that prior to his Bell Media gig, Solomon was a CBCer.
00:07:28.580
But he had to part ways with the public broadcaster in 2015.
00:07:32.680
You see, there was an internal review of his side business of brokering high-end art sales.
00:07:40.700
And that included guests that had appeared on his programs.
00:07:46.200
Gee, I guess Solomon never read Morals in the Media.
00:07:50.400
Certainly not that chapter pertaining to media and money.
00:07:58.280
He'll be a good little useful idiot when it comes to advising Justin Trudeau on censoring the journalism business.
00:08:11.080
But at least there are some scribes still around who are calling out the media party for its unethical and immoral behavior.
00:08:19.140
Consider the superb commentary last week in the Epoch Times penned by Peter Menzies.
00:08:26.080
Entitled, You Can't Build a Viable Media Culture on Bailouts and Political Favors.
00:08:33.160
Quote, According to Advocates for Canada's Online News Act, Bill C-18, Rupert Murdoch, the Australian media baron's shakedown of online web giants Meta and Google,
00:08:45.780
has already saved the newspaper industry down under.
00:08:49.340
And once this country passes its legislation, it's going to be jobs, jobs, jobs for journos.
00:08:57.760
Jason Kint, CEO of Digital Content Next, a U.S.-based trade organization slash lobby group,
00:09:06.020
flew into Ottawa from Washington, D.C. to appear before the House of Commons Heritage Committee on September 27th.
00:09:13.340
There he dismissed highly respected critics, such as Dr. Michael Geist, Canada Research Chair in Internet Law at the University of Ottawa,
00:09:24.640
of spreading misinformation, declared the Aussie rules to be a sweeping victory for journalism,
00:09:31.460
left me with the general impression that anyone who disagreed with him was paid for by global web monopolists and flew home.
00:09:41.760
In terms of lobbying, it was a masterful performance.
00:09:46.880
All Canada had to do, he assured those listening, was to follow Australia's Murdoch-inspired model.
00:09:53.880
And judging by the warm reception he received from Liberal MPs, that's what Canada intends to do.
00:10:01.680
Trouble is, while I can't find evidence it has helped Murdoch's market-dominating Australian News Corp,
00:10:08.680
he also owns the Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Dow Jones, HarperCollins, the UK Sun, the Times, the Sunday Times, etc.
00:10:16.800
I'm having trouble finding proof these latest subsidies are going to be enough.
00:10:23.920
After all, the first $119 million a year in tax credits that Canada's newspaper industry managed to squeeze out of taxpayers in 2019 hasn't created any more jobs.
00:10:37.480
Sure, the pandemic was an issue, but there was additional subsidies for that.
00:10:42.300
And if you don't want to believe me, take it from Jamie Irving, chair of News Media Canada, the trade group lobbying for online loot.
00:10:53.720
The financial pressures facing Canadian news outlets due to the current market failure are only becoming more dire,
00:11:01.100
he wrote to the Commons Finance Committee earlier this year.
00:11:04.680
We are forecasting annual losses as an industry of about $500 million a year.
00:11:10.740
It would appear that even if the Canadian news industry lobby that now includes CBC, Bell Media, and other broadcasters
00:11:19.240
is able to shake $500 million annually out of Mark Zuckerberg's and Google's pockets,
00:11:34.020
Millions, tens of millions, hundreds of millions, and in the CBC's case, more than a billion dollars.
00:11:40.540
The gravy train just hurdles down the track delivering content that less and less of us, you know, the consumers, want to consume.
00:11:50.720
And look at some of these parent companies, will you?
00:11:54.040
Bell Media is owned by Bell Canada Enterprises, and BCE recorded an income of $2.89 billion last year,
00:12:02.640
which was up from the income of $2.7 billion in 2020.
00:12:08.900
So, maybe if Bell wants to be a media baron as well as, you know, a co-owner of a hockey and basketball team,
00:12:16.400
it should dig into its own bank account to prop up its media properties.
00:12:21.980
And if those media properties, as opposed to professional sports teams, are not moneymakers,
00:12:28.940
then I would suggest Bell has a decision to make.
00:12:33.580
Either run the media department as a charity case,
00:12:36.880
or it could sell off Bell Media and stick to those businesses, you know,
00:12:42.780
cell phones, internet service, etc., where it can actually make money.
00:12:47.980
But for a multi-billion dollar entity like BCE to come cap in hand to the government
00:12:54.580
and demand taxpayer dollars so that it can continue to broadcast woke garbage
00:13:02.520
that fewer and fewer of us want to watch or listen to,
00:13:07.220
I'm sorry, that is sheer unmitigated gall on both sides.
00:13:12.320
Bell, the recipient, and the Trudeau liberals, the sugar daddies.
00:13:19.220
The credibility of mainstream media journalists has never been lower.
00:13:24.340
While the likes of Soyboy Solomon and Rachel Crymore gasp when they are confronted by members of the public
00:13:30.040
chanting, fake news, fake news, right in their sourpuss faces,
00:13:35.080
they are oblivious to the fact that by hurrying themselves out to the Justin Trudeau liberals,
00:13:40.960
they have hoisted themselves upon their own petards.
00:13:44.700
And yes, I have the proverbial proof in the pudding.
00:13:51.620
Canadians, trust in the news media hits a new low.
00:13:55.760
Quote, according to the Reuters Institute's 2022 digital news report,
00:14:01.900
trust in the Canadian news media has sunk to its lowest point in seven years.
00:14:07.720
The study produced by the Reuters Institute for the study of journalism at the University of Oxford
00:14:15.000
has found that trust in the news has dropped 13% since 2016.
00:14:21.980
Only 42% of Canadian respondents trust most news most of the time.
00:14:32.060
It's possible that government support programs for news media, such as federal tax credits,
00:14:39.400
are linked to the more negative perceptions about the media.
00:14:44.660
To be sure, these funding programs have allowed the Canadian news media much-needed breathing space
00:14:51.440
to recover financially, in addition to a boost in advertising revenue during the pandemic.
00:14:58.160
But they have also generated criticism and fueled concerns regarding journalistic independence.
00:15:11.400
You mean to tell me that the majority of Canadians,
00:15:17.060
two, aren't willing to support the mainstream media by purchasing subscriptions,
00:15:22.620
and three, doubt the validity of journalistic independence and integrity,
00:15:28.240
given they are increasingly funded by the federal government?
00:15:34.040
And now that the government's grandiose plans to prop up friendly media outlets
00:15:42.900
well, the censorious thugs who comprise the Trudeau liberals
00:15:46.160
are putting away the carrot and they're picking up the stick.
00:15:50.380
Which is to say, for those independent media outlets, such as Rebel News,
00:15:58.500
well, then, it's obviously time to regulate, i.e. censor, the internet.
00:16:08.720
The Trudeau government is already well on its way to regulating the internet
00:16:13.600
in order to enrich one class of approved creators at the expense of another.
00:16:22.760
of which it and certain classes of people disapprove at the expense of others.
00:16:31.420
it appears ready to insert the state into the newsrooms of the nation.
00:16:45.800
you can expect years and years of legal challenges ahead
00:17:00.320
I can tell you that when I covered several Pierre Polyev rallies
00:17:05.620
the one pledge that always generated the loudest and most prolonged standing ovation
00:17:14.180
was Mr. Polyev's statement that if elected prime minister,
00:17:22.840
This current liberal government is morally and ethically bankrupt,
00:17:27.560
just like the state-sponsored members of the media party
00:17:51.700
and someone who thinks that contrary to popular belief
00:18:02.900
I think most people here, virtually everybody, would agree with that.
00:18:18.680
I guess there's a lot of people experiencing buyer's remorse
00:18:41.240
died for not allegedly wearing her hijab properly.
00:18:44.940
How can this force be called the morality police?
00:18:48.460
That seems to be the most immoral thing possible,
00:18:51.400
killing someone for not wearing clothing properly.
00:18:57.460
Well, folks, that was the scene in Richmond Hill last Saturday
00:19:05.220
showed up to protest against the Iranian regime.
00:19:09.160
But these people realize they have no true ally
00:19:15.240
The very MP for Richmond Hill, after all, Majid Johari,
00:19:21.080
And this government, for reasons that remain baffling,
00:19:25.520
has yet to put the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps
00:19:31.000
Then again, when it comes to Prime Minister Blackface McGroper,
0.58
00:19:42.360
Maybe he also admires Iran for the same reasons.
00:19:48.160
And joining me now to try and make sense of it all
00:19:51.400
is Nikki Ballou, the author of eight best-selling books
00:19:55.060
and someone who left Iran for a better life in Canada
00:20:05.680
or what you'd like to see Canada's response to be, Nikki,
00:20:13.720
What we're seeing in Iran with all these protests,
00:20:17.120
all these girls throwing their hijabs off,
1.00
00:20:20.480
cutting their hair, chanting death to the mullahs,
0.98
00:20:24.580
is this just a blip that's going to be violently extinguished?
00:20:29.620
Or are we indeed seeing the very beginning of a regime change
00:20:33.700
and the end of the rule of these murderous mullahs?
0.86
00:20:37.660
Well, listen, it's difficult to really predict that
00:20:43.900
but I certainly pray and hope fervently that this will be the case.
00:20:48.360
You know, these women are fighting not just for women,
0.99
00:20:55.480
They're fighting not just for the people of Iran,
00:21:00.520
Because if any one of us is unfree anywhere around the world,
00:21:09.080
Mahsa Amini, you know, was murdered for the crime
0.98
00:21:16.460
A wrestler in Iran by the name of Navid Afghari
00:21:19.240
was killed because he stood up against the local regime official
00:21:24.700
trying to get food for the people of his village.
00:21:27.620
This man was a world champion wrestler and they hung him for that.
00:21:34.020
And, you know, what is incredible too, I find, Nicky,
00:21:37.640
I mean, our friend Tarek Fatah had a very interesting column
00:21:42.220
two days ago in the Toronto Sun, which was entitled,
00:21:47.020
Why Weren't Canada's Feminists and Leftists at the Big Iran Protest?
1.00
00:21:53.360
And I think one of the conclusions Tarek comes to
00:21:57.780
is that the world is so perverse and so woke and so politically correct
00:22:02.860
that maybe to take a stance against the Iranian regime
00:22:13.320
because the greatest victims of the Iranian regime
00:22:22.840
But the other thing that you need to understand
00:22:24.560
is that the left actually is the racist entity in the world.
00:22:39.480
And then they realized that they couldn't be so open
00:22:45.980
And what they do is they point fingers at other people
00:22:58.700
in which this man is on camera wearing blackface.
00:23:05.720
about the true racism that resides in the hearts of the left.
00:23:17.980
in getting up and speaking for the Iranian people
00:23:28.080
And the pressure that Poiliev and the Conservative
00:23:36.620
So I think that they need to keep that pressure up.
00:23:43.540
but I don't just want to see Iranian people
0.99
00:23:47.200
I want to see Canadians in those demonstrations.
00:23:55.100
for Christians, for Baha'is, for Jews, for Hindus,
0.54
00:23:58.520
for white people, for black people, for Asian people.
00:24:08.360
And I love what you folks at Rebel News are doing.
00:24:13.940
is forcing the Liberal government here in Canada
00:24:39.640
I think that's baby steps, quite frankly, Nick.
00:24:52.140
where this incredible protest took place last Saturday,
00:24:59.620
there is something in the air about these uprisings,
00:25:14.300
he's all down with the Iranian people all of a sudden.
00:25:24.460
But first and foremost, Nicky, that's what I would do.
00:25:43.600
freely coming into Canada who have blood on their hands
00:25:54.660
I mean, Nicky, why isn't that on the terrorism list?
00:25:59.180
Iran is the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world.
00:26:03.080
But for Justin Trudeau, this is a nothing burger?
00:26:07.180
Well, like I said, the pressure that Rebel News
00:26:14.820
You got to keep pushing for the IRGC to be put on the terror list.
00:26:28.240
that have supported the Iranian regime and the IRGC.
00:26:31.820
And, you know, Mr. Johari, no question about it that he's done that.
00:26:36.080
He's got to be made to be held to account for his positions.
00:26:40.580
And Justin Trudeau would be giving a strong message to all Canadians,
00:26:47.920
And any Canadian that has come here escaping tyranny,
00:26:54.840
to live in freedom for themselves and their family,
00:26:57.040
should be clear that unless Justin Trudeau kicks out members of his caucus
00:27:11.580
that he represents freedom and the Canadian tradition.
00:27:15.380
And therefore, all these folks need to make sure
00:27:19.480
that they do not vote for Trudeau and his liberals
00:27:23.520
Even if you've never been a Conservative before,
00:27:32.200
versus the types of values that are abhorrent to Canadians.
00:27:36.280
And all Canadians need to stand up against this
00:27:38.720
because the Liberal Party no longer represents Canada.
00:27:42.360
I believe that we need to push the Liberal Party
00:27:51.000
the Liberal Party right now, based on how it's acting,
00:27:53.560
does not deserve to have those colors represent their party.
00:28:01.500
because it seems to be that they're representing fascist ideals
00:28:05.100
more than they're representing Canadian ideals.
00:28:09.940
And I hope to God that Reblus will continue to pressure,
1.00
00:28:14.100
the Liberals will continue to bring this out to light
00:28:19.860
and people like him that are supporting the Iranian government.
00:28:41.300
then everything, I believe, is going to start to build in Canada
00:28:45.500
and that the global energy to help bring freedom to Iran
00:28:54.880
Because I'm telling you, these brave men and women,
00:29:04.380
they're not just fighting for their own freedom.
00:29:06.440
They're fighting for the freedom of every man, woman, and child,
00:29:15.140
Not just in every country that's being oppressed,
00:29:23.380
reminding us of what true moral courage looks like.
00:29:33.280
They're bleeding and dying for Muslims in Iran
1.00
00:29:37.380
They're bleeding and dying for Christians.
1.00
00:29:39.380
They're bleeding and dying for Hindus, for atheists.
1.00
00:29:44.520
They're bleeding and dying for every single human being
00:29:53.540
because they represent the very best in us, my friend.
00:30:06.600
But every Iranian I've ever met post-1979,
0.99
00:30:25.160
I think usually when the tide turns for a dictatorship
00:30:51.300
What are they saying about the situation on the ground,
00:31:03.480
folks aren't going to be speaking on a live phone call
00:31:07.220
because phone calls outside of the country are monitored.
00:31:10.340
Okay, so I'm just going to be straight with you about that.
00:31:31.100
not have to worry about having their hair uncovered,
00:31:37.980
Be able to travel freely outside of the country.
00:32:04.800
you're huddled masses yearning to breathe free.