Deepak Obhrai says ‘old Canada’ media is biased against him
Conservative leadership candidate Deepak Obhrai is alleging that some national media commentators are biased against him for being a visible minority. The MP for Calgary Forest Lawn, Alta. attributes the bias to “institutional discrimination,” and says it is evident in their coverage of his leadership campaign. A couple commentators he singles out deny any discrimination. Specifically, Mr. […]
There is some logic to the Trump victory
The win by president-elect Donald Trump in the United States may not be illogical at all. Rather, it may be something simpler and more basic. The perceived to be anti-professional-political-class candidate won. Trump seemed to effectively tap into the same sentiment that supported Occupy Wall Street, the Tea Party, Brexit, and Bernie Sanders. Voters across the […]
Globe and Mail head wants ‘level playing field’ in battle for ads with CBC
The CBC came under fire Tuesday at the Commons committee inquiry into the effect of the digital news revolution on media and communities, as the publisher and CEO of The Globe and Mail said the public broadcaster is squeezing out private-sector news outlets in the competition for online advertising. “We do like to play on a level playing […]
Trump’s not going away, now what?
Canadians shared the shock of many Americans and others around the world last week when Donald Trump eked out a victory in the United States’ presidential election against Hillary Clinton. Time will tell what this means for Canada. Prime Minster Justin Trudeau was conciliatory in his official statement: “On behalf of the Government of Canada, […]
Look out, it’s the past disguised as the future
The finance minister has received advice from his blue ribbon panel of advisers. After years of members of the investment community lobbying for an increased role of public-private partnerships, the panel has come out with a new and improved model of PPP Canada in the form of the Canadian Infrastructure Development Bank. The advice tendered […]
‘The biggest challenge is the CBC,’ as other media cuts continue, questions raised over impact of Mother Corp
As Hill news outlets continue to make cuts and struggle to find the right formula to succeed in the digital world, questions are being raised about the CBC’s impact on Canada’s media landscape. “The biggest challenge is the CBC,” iPolitics publisher James Baxter told The Hill Times when asked about challenges faced by his independent, online publication. “The government […]
Private fundraising events are a necessary evil
OTTAWA—Odious is how one Globe and Mail columnist characterized the job of private event fundraising. Lawrence Martin actually ascribed the descriptor to me, based on an interview I gave last week to CTV parliamentary bureau chief Bob Fife. Fife asked me what I thought of the current political controversy surrounding the private fundraising activities of […]
MPs in rural, remote ridings do put themselves at greater risks
When former Alberta premier Jim Prentice was killed in a small-plane crash shortly after takeoff from the Kelowna airport on Oct. 13, some MPs back in Ottawa could particularly relate. There is a handful of MPs who not only fly the big airlines every week, but then have to get on small single or dual-engine planes to […]
The Liberals screwed up, but let’s not overestimate the impact of pricey fundraisers
OTTAWA—To date, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the federal Liberals have done a reasonable job of not sounding smug or looking self-interested. But with political fundraising back in the news and focused squarely on current Liberal Party of Canada practices, the vanilla veneer is getting smudged. In different reports last week The Globe and Mail […]
The story behind Robert-Falcon Ouellette’s attention-grabbing button
You might have noticed the Liberal MP for Winnipeg Centre, Robert-Falcon Ouellette, sporting an odd, bobble-head-looking button on occasion. If you felt like you wanted to know more, but were too shy to ask, don’t be: that’s exactly what it’s there for. Mr. Ouellette wears the button, which features cut-outs of his wife and five […]
