CBC Radio

CBC Radio is the radio division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The division operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches.

English

CBC Radio operates three English language networks.

*CBC Radio One - Primarily news and information, CBC Radio One broadcasts to most communities across Canada. Until 1997, it was known as "CBC Radio".
*CBC Radio 2 - Broadcasts music, arts and culture programming, including opera, classical music, jazz and theatre. It was previously known as "CBC Radio Two", and before that "CBC Stereo".
*CBC Radio 3 - Broadcasts a youth-oriented indie rock format on Internet radio and Sirius Satellite Radio. Some content from Radio 3 was also broadcast as weekend programming on Radio Two until March 2007.

From 1944 to 1962 CBC's English service operated two radio networks, the main Trans-Canada Network and the Dominion Network. In 1962 the Dominion Network was disbanded and the Trans-Canada Network became known as CBC Radio and, in 1997, CBC Radio One. In some cases CBC announcers will still say "CBC Radio" in reference to programs that air only on Radio One.

French

In the French language, the CBC (or, as it is better known in French Canada, "Société Radio-Canada"), also has three radio divisions, each of which closely corresponds to one of the English networks.

*Première Chaîne - News and information.
*Espace musique - Music, arts and culture.
*Bande à part - Youth-oriented programming on Internet and Sirius, although some content continues to air as weekend programming on Espace musique.

CBC North

In the Northwest Territories, the Yukon Territory, Nunavut, and northern Quebec, CBC North airs a modified Radio One schedule to accommodate programming in Native languages and Radio Nord Quebec, which airs a combined Radio One/La Première Chaîne schedule via shortwave mixed in with programming in native languages.

Other services

The CBC operates Radio Canada International, an international shortwave radio service. In some remote Canadian tourist areas, such as national or provincial parks, the CBC also operates a series of transmitters which broadcast weather alerts from Environment Canada's Weatheradio Canada service.

As well, the CBC operates Galaxie, a digital television radio service which provides 45 channels of music programming to digital cable subscribers in both English and French.

Accusations of bias

Critics, often led by private media, sometimes accuse the network of cultural elitism, liberal bias, or bias in favour of the Liberal or New Democratic Parties of Canada. The CBC is also sometimes thought to have an unfair economic advantage in the media marketplace because it competes with private broadcasters for advertising dollars while receiving government funding. Conservative think tanks such as the Fraser Institute have frequently criticized this arrangement, and say it results in journalism that favours the political party willing to allocate it the most funds.

Numerous members of the Canadian Alliance Party complained of biased CBC reporting against their party in the 2000 Canadian federal election. One website, [http://www.cbcwatch.ca/ CBC Watch] , has been exclusively dedicated to criticism of the public broadcaster. Organizations such as Canadian Free Press are consistently critical of CBC. Friends of Canadian Broadcasting is often critical of the CBC, but rarely over matters of bias.

External links

* [http://www.cbc.ca Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]