The Windsor Star from Windsor, Ontario, Canada • 76

F4 THE WINDSOR STAR, SATURDAY, OCTOBER 24, 1992 Robertson that the No side was already galloping along for about two weeks by the time they got going at all IF HE HAD his way, Robertson would switch CTV's National News to 10 p.m., bumping it ahead an hour. With CBCs new Prime Time News starting at 9 p.m. as of Monday, Nov. 2, the need for some counterbalance in the late evening's news programming is greater than ever, he said. The CBC is going to leave a void at 10 oclock I think we should fill.

Like CBC, Robertson realizes the television audience is tending to go to bed earlier than it used to. Lake. CBC was accused of being a cheerleader for the federal government at the time. The media is playing a critical role in the referendum, Robertson said. Remember, you had the entire community of elites in this country coming out on the Yes side.

So very early the media was reporting those other elements in Canadian society that decided for one reason or another that they didnt like the Charlottetown accord. The No side was very quick off the mark as it turned out. It was ironic because the Yes side was so slow in getting its act together But he has also been around long enough to know there won't be much sympathy among station owners for an earlier news show. CTV is a network of affiliates that are in the television business to make money. CBC doesnt have to worry as much about the commercial impact of its programming decisions.

Besides, Robertson remarked, our owners are likely to ask what we're complaining about. Were getting 1.2 or 1.3 million viewers a night and in many cases, we draw more than the programs that precede us." returned to Canada from news jobs in the U.S. Keith Morrison returned from Los Angeles to take over as coanchor of CTVs Canada AM and Peter Kent recently took over as co-anchor of Global-TVs evening and late news. Robertson isnt surprised. This is a wonderful time in our history," he said.

They (Morrison and Kent) understand that no matter what happens on Monday, Oct. 26, were into a watershed in Canadian history. CERTAINLY, if there is a No vote, we are into some uncharted waters regarding our political future. If the vote is Yes, the future of our entire political system could be called into question. Are we moving into a democratic, responsive system such as they have in the United States? Does this augur well for our future or badly? It's great for us because you really feel that you are on the edge of history in this country at this time.

(Continued from FI) With that in mind, Robertson said the networks must attend to every detail in reporting on major news stories like the Charlottetown accord. 'Being a national network and being responsible, you try to bring balance and objectivity and integrity to the news institution. You try to be fair. Its hard to achieve, however, when reasonable arguments are being offered on both sides of the issue. "There will be times when you seem to tilt to one side or the other and there have been times when both sides (of the Constitution debate) have said, ten, the country's at stake, here.

We have to pull together. "But which side is saying it? It's very difficult for us to take a position one way or the other if we're going to re- port accurately and fairly. In recent months, two former high-' profile associates of Robertson have On the eve of Monday night's coverage of the referendum, Robertson reflected on the spirit of co-operation between Canada's major networks for the first time, they will share results. It could mean the end of the friendly competition of the past, where results were tabulated individually and predictions made on the basis of computer analysis. There is in Canada more co-operation between news sources than in the U.S.

Its a common factor we all share, Robertson said. You see our real competition comes from the American networks and we have to present a uniquely Canadian image. There may still be some competition between the two major networks, and if you count Global in Ontario, that's three. But we all know we're really fighting for a stake in the territory that is increasingly mapped out by the American networks. ROBERTSON knows from personal experience the influence of American society on our lives.

His daughter married an American and lives in Detroit and he visits them often. Walter Lippmann remarked once that journalists should be informed critics of policy in order to keep the government of the day functioning effectively. In that regard, news organizations in Canada, according to Robertson, have been bending over backwards to provide balance in their coverage of the referendum. Ive noticed CBC has gone to great lengths this time to be perceived as fair and balanced in its coverage," he said, referring to criticism levelled at the public broadcaster during Meech Kent St Anne's High School mmusim cumin For More Information Call fOQm0UZ4 3 Strip Bandies, Only S45 EXTRA STRIPS ONLY fit WithMimmm Receive Half Dozen Mini Pastries With Every Mocha Torte Cake Pre-Ordered Coupon Expires Sept. 3092.

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(Continued from FI) It was a job and a city Kent relished, i.but World Monitor, unfortunately, was dismantled in the wake of high costs 'and the concern of the church membership that it shouldnt be engaged in commercial TV. Kent went searching for a job and considered going back to an American network. He didnt think twice about Canada, however, especially returning i toCBC. He hadnt left on the best of terms. Although he was instrumental in getting The Journal off the ground, bureaucrats at the network saw him as "something of a malcontent.

In 1978, at a CRTC hearing into CBCs licence renewal, Kent had slammed 'programmers for bumping The Na-1 tional all over the schedule in favor of -entertainment and sports program- ming. We were going on after American 'country music festivals," Kent recalled. Commercial considerations over- whelmed news decisions at the time, Jand Kent said he found it hard to de- fend CBC while working there. CBC HAD A relevance problem, he said. It was becoming anachronistic.

I thought when they added The Journal, it was an indication of a cor- porationwide decision to change things. The news had been moved up to 10 and The Journal was created. My three years at The Journal were terrifically satisfying in terms of the i news. But during those years, it also became obvious that the top-heavy Ot-t tawa bureaucracy, the Treasury Board careerists, were still running the show, I not the broadcasters. Sad to say, things havent changed much.

Kent learned at an earlier age the i value of healthy skepticism. It is a trademark of his familys upbringing, he said, and has led to brother Arthurs -run-ins with NBC. and sister Normas i decision to walk away from a cushy I job as co-host of CBCs Market Place. Were all trouble-makers! We were brought up to be confrontational and aggressive and never to accept no for an answer. It makes for some interest- MIGHTY BUCKS EMILIO ESTEVEZ TWO THUMBS UP, WAY UP! Siskd Ebert He admits his return to Canada in the midst of the referendum is no accident, but it wasnt the primary reason.

The fact that a story about a milestone in our history came with my decision to move here was a bonus, he said. But, besides the constitutional silliness and the prospect of an election and the shaking down of a generation of politicians, it is the shakeup of the Canadian television industry that maKe? it such a great time to be here. GLOBAL-TV and its parent company, CanWest-Global of Winnipeg, said Kent, is committed to being a national news alternative to Canada's two existing networks. And he cheers the arrival of CBC Newsworld. Newsworld, to me, is the greatest thing since Quaker Oats and its paid for in a way using sort of user fees and ad revenues that is a lot more palatable to the Canadian public than the main network.

On the subject of the referendum, Kent is decidedly provocative. He calls the debate silliness and says it is a uniquely Canadian experience. Its a reassuring quality about Canada, he said. Every country has its constant and this is the Great Canadian Constant, this 100 years of solitude, this dysfunctional family, the French and the English. You know, I bumped across western Canada as a cub reporter covering Pearson and Diefenbaker in the 60s and we were discussing some of the very same issues.

The role of the media in all this is to spark debate, not present one side or the other. "Political leaders made it a matter of treason almost to dump on Meech. At the time, people vented their frustrations on the CBC, saying they were in bed with the government. It was a bit unfair. BUT IT IS true that you can call a spade a spade in most news organizations, but not at the CBC.

We must provide alternative viewpoints. I think journalists can be provocative. "One can still be fair, accurate, and thorough in the coverage of events and still have the courage to present contrary views when they can find them. None of us can go spouting off personal views. We cant get on hobby horses, although there are many people on radio and in newspapers who do that.

It's just that when you've got government funds and a lot of self-interest groups running a bandwagon on one side, and you know there is a significant point of view on the other side, you have a responsibility to expose that other side. SAT SUN 1:00 7:00 9:00 MON 7:00 9:00 SAT SUN 2:10 7:10 9:15 MON 7:10 9:15 of the most moving films in recent years. Hi FAMILY -Patrick Stoner, FLICKS A must see. -Bob Diehl, ABC Radio a -leff Craig, SIXTY SECOND TREYIIW MICE AND MEN SAT SUN 1:10 7:15 9:20 MON 7:15 9:20 ADULT ACCOMPANIMENT MMl MLTOM3U)l1Mlt WMtlAOVKII OAJD sIMst Of MICE AM) ST1 1SBKK SIMsUct. DAVIOuROFMAN HORTON FOOTE is SMITH -CffijlMal: ad SAT SUN 2:05 7:05 9:10 MON 7:05 9:10 ADULT ACCOMPANINENT "SPINE-TINGLING! A slick, smart, edge-of-the-seat suspense thriller." ing family dinners at Thanksgiving I and Christmas.

Kents news career began in his na-tive Calgary at CFCN-TV in 1965. The following year, he left that job and 'went to Vietnam as a freelance earner-; aman and reporter. CTV recognized his talent and hired him in 1967 as a national correspondent reporting on mainly Quebec issues. It was at height of the Vive le Quebec fibre nationalism Hn the province. Between '67 and 73, Kent reported from various places in the world, in- C.i,i!iS.T, ICC 'AMtRICAN MOV IL CLASSIC was also eluding London.

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