Here's a letter I wrote to the Vancouver Sun about Shaw Communications' recent newspaper ads regarding the Canadian Television Fund. It wasn't published. While the Sun editors seem to generally like my letters I find that they have a "don't bite the hand that feeds us" rule. Hmph.

Dear Editor,

Recently, Shaw Communications has been running advertisements in major Canadian newspapers attacking the Canadian Television Fund (the "CTF"). For the readers who don't know, the CTF was started to help fund original Canadian television programs. It's worth mentioning the CTF is funded by the federal government and cable companies.

This weekend I felt compelled to read through Shaw's advertisement. I learned that some of the higher-ups at Shaw are upset that CTF money was used to finance, among other programming, a "show about the dysfunctional residents of a mobile home park". And I found myself thinking, "Hey, did they just take a swipe at Trailer Park Boys?"

Reading further through the ad, I learned that Shaw is looking for programs that "entertain", and which "should be a lot more reflective of the audience that will ultimately watch it". Apparently, in Shaw's opinion, the programs which the advertisement took shots at don't match these criteria. I think more than a few Canadians would disagree. However raunchy, Trailer Park Boys has been a huge success, both in Canada and the United States. Like it or not, any media produced in Canada by Canadian artists IS distinctly Canadian. It can be comedy, science fiction, reality television, or anything under the sun. It need not necessarily take place in remote Canadian towns and beat us over the head with its stereotyped definition of "Canadianess".

Just because Jim Shaw doesn't particularly like some of the programs which the CTF helped finance doesn't mean that his company should be exempt from contributing to it. As Jim said, the CTF should fund Canadian programs that have broad appeal. That includes popular shows with raunchy humour that don't appeal to stuffy old CEOs.