Losing hockey gives the CBC a chance to do better. How fantastic would that be? (I’ve recommended it before, but it’s worth repeating: Wade Rowland’s book Saving the CBC is fantastic.)
The public-affairs programming is as cream-filled as the rest. The Fifth Estate long ago gave up probing the weightier issues of our democracy (in its heyday, Adrienne Clarkson discussed cruise-missile testing) to become a Canadian hybrid of Cops and 48 Hours.
The National is an overproduced, scattered mess of overwrought or feel-good segments passing for reportage. This week, Peter Mansbridge is trying out the bobsleigh run in Calgary. (“Awesome!” he tweeted.) Discussion panels are no longer forums for spirited debate but marketing vehicles for self-important talking heads promoting their own brands.