“Creeping Dictatorship”. Storm over streaming censorship law in Canada

The storm inside Canada For the project Law The Trudeau government’s Bill C-11 threatens free speech and freedom of expression on the Internet. The most controversial part of the law concerns whether government agencies can begin regulating user-generated content, which in essence has the power to censor videos people post on YouTube, TikTok and elsewhere under the guise of “fake news” and online protest. hate law, Senate approvalIt also aims to regulate digital streaming platforms like Netflix, YouTube and Spotify in the same way as broadcasters.

“The Online Streaming Act will help ensure our cultural sector works for Canadians and supports the next generation of artists and creators in this country.Canada’s Heritage Minister said Pablo Rodriguez In a February 2022 press release, the Senate made 26 amendments before passing the bill on February 2. One of these amendments, proposed by Senators Paula Simons and Julie Miville-Dechêne, limits the discretionary power of government bodies and limits the bill’s application to professional music content.

Margaret Atwood v. Canadian Government Act

Famous poet and writer Margaret Atwood He intervened in the debate by rejecting Bill C-11. In an interview The Globe and MailBureaucrats shouldn’t even decide what’s Canadian and what’s not, Atwood said. “All you have to do is find some biographies of writers who wrote in the Soviet Union and the degrees of censorship they had to suffer from government officials“, he said. “And Governments telling creators what to create is a form of creeping authoritarianism“. The author said he had not read the bill.”Even deeper“and seemed to be”Trying to achieve some sort of fairness in the market“.

But as with many goodwill initiatives, he added, “The result may be different than you thoughtThe Online Streaming Bill, set to become law this month, would force streaming platforms to promote Canadian content. Ms Atwood tweeted the senator’s speech on Wednesday. David Adams RichardsA fellow author, in the Senate this week, railed against the bill and government interference.It should be heard“.

David Adams Richards speech

The senator’s stern warning against preventive censorship of government bodies. At age 72, Richards said during his Senate speech sheet,“I doubt if I ever will, but I know something about art, a little creativity. There is an essay by Cicero called “Philippics” written to expose freedom of speech and thought and the power of the state against authority. By a man named Mark Antony, it’s a brilliant declaration and Cicero’s Showing great bravery, he was handed over to the Senate and Cicero offered his life.“.

His hands were cut, he recalled.Mark brought Antony as proof that Cicero would not write again. Cicero lived in a dangerous age“. When Vasily Grossman finished “Life and Fate”, “”This book should be approved by the Cultural Section of the Communist Central Committee. They took a year to respond and said it was anti-Soviet. It is not accepted. It has just been published, and of course, a wonderful book that shows fascism and communism as derogatory reflections of each other and contempt for human freedom.“Cultural groups teach liberals in government a lesson,” the writer noted.They are based on prejudices and fear. I’ve seen enough bands to know that. We must resist the prison of self-censorship, said Orwell. This bill goes a long way toward building such a prison“.

Trudeau’s “progressiveness” is a confusing prospect for Canada.