Ottawa, January 27, 1994 – In a unanimous decision released today, the Ontario Regional Council of the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) stated that comments made on CHTZ-FM (St. Catharines) morning show of April 21, 1993 were not discriminatory or exploitative towards women.
The Council made its decision in response to a listener, who felt that the comment was not humorous, particularly given that “many women suffer sexual harassment”. In its decision, the Regional Council noted the tone and the content of comments the on-air host made concerning secretaries. The Council agreed that while the comment was made in poor taste, the question of poor taste did not fall within the Codes the CBSC administered. Using the provisions of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters’ Sex-Role Portrayal Code for Television and Radio Programming, the Council members indicated that the comment was not exploitative, negative or degrading to women, nor could it be considered sexist language. The Council also looked to the CAB Code of Ethics and decided that the comment was not abusive or discriminatory.
The Regional Council members also considered the response of the station to the host’s comment. The manager of CHTZ-FM had issued a reprimand to the on-air host and reminded all staff of the station’s commitment to the Sex-Role Portrayal Code. According to the Regional Council, the station manager’s actions showed responsiveness and attempted effective dialogue with the listener.
The CBSC Ontario Regional Council includes representatives of the general public and of the broadcasting industry. Marianne Barrie, a public representative, chairs the Regional Council; Al MacKay, a broadcaster, is its Vice-Chair. Other public representatives on the Regional Council are Susan Fish and Robert Stanbury, while the other broadcaster members are Don Luzzi and Paul Fockler. All members participated in the decision.
The CBSC was created to provide self-regulation for Canada’s private sector broadcasters. The Council administers three Codes developed by the CAB: the Code of Ethics, the Voluntary Code Regarding Violence in Television Programming, and the Sex-Role Portrayal Code. The Council also administers the Code of Ethics of the Radio Television News Directors Association.
The decision is attached.
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For more information, please contact Ronald I. Cohen, CBSC National Chair, at (###) ###-####.