From Rebecca Tucker of The National Post:
The Canadian Screen Awards air March 1. Will you tune in? Don’t worry: you’re not alone (we’re assuming you said no). In 2014, the CSAs earned a mere 534,000 viewers, a dip of more than 30% from the year before, when 756,000 tuned in. Somewhat appropriately, the latter figure is what you would get if you combined the average yearly viewership of the Genie and Gemini awards, which were married in 2013 to create the Screenies. By contrast, last year’s Oscars were watched by 6.1 million Canadians. It’s a jarring disparity, but an unsurprising one — and not just because ours are called “the Canadian Screen Awards.†Continue reading.
I likely won’t get to watch. I work that night and I’m still without a DVR and the CBC site keeps giving me problems streaming their videos . I guess it depends if I can find it elsewhere online…
the cause of the fast disappearing of canada can be summed up to just one thing. over the past 30 years the majority of the population of canada are not canadians anymore, they are american wannabees who couldn’t get in there so settled for canada and demand ever more ‘americanization’ of canada, and the over 3 million dual citizenship americans living in canada and the far more non-dual ones who deliberately suppress and bury all things ‘canadian’ while stuffing their pockets with our money and calling the rest of us nothing more than a stupid herd of sheep lining up to be sheered by them every day, which is exactly what the majority of ‘canadians’ are these days. stupid sheep.
I think that’s true of people in Southern Ontario but not elsewhere in Canada, especially out West. I noticed a huge difference when I worked down in Ontario. People were definitely more Americanized and generally liked Americana. Maybe it is because of their proximity to the big Eastern American cities. In my experience out West, having lived in all 4 of the Western provinces, things are very different. Western Canadians are fairly Anti-American and the culture is definitely more Canadian. Have a look at the tv ratings in each region of Canada and you’ll see differences. I think a large reason is that Western Canada grew culturally and historically apart from the the American states below it like the Dakotas, Minnesota and Montana whereas there has always been a lot of interaction between Southern Ontario/Quebec and the United States, there was little in Western Canada, especially in the 3 prairie provinces.
Thanks muchly AO, to know there still are ‘Canadians’ in Canada does very cheer me up.
But just as you feel Ontario is more “Americanized†than the west, the reverse argument is just as often made by people in Ontario about the west (Stephen Harper is often accused of trying to remake Canada into a 51st State – and he’s from Alberta). I’ve even heard westerners themselves make the exact opposite argument to yours – that the prairies have closer ties to the mid-western States than they do to Central and Eastern Canada. Heck, sometimes it seems like Ontario is one of the few provinces that isn’t constantly threatening to separate over one issue or another :)
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I think it’s all in perspective. We know what we are like, what our circle of family and friends are like, but we don’t always know if that’s truly representative of our community (or how others perceive our community) and likewise whether our perception (and stereotyping) of other regions is based on anything more than isolated examples.
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I’ve long thought Culture and cultural identity is like the old joke about blind men describing an elephant. The second largest country in the world. Two official languages. Three founding peoples, bolstered by generations of immigration. By most studies, one of the most ethnically and culturally diverse nations in the world… A conservative might tell you true Canadian culture is going hunting on Friday, watching hockey on Saturday, and attending church on Sunday – while a liberal might tell you a true Canadian is an Atheist with a Greenpeace membership. Others define Canada by their particular region, and dismiss as un-Canadian anything that originates in another region.
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I apologize for ranting. But it’s hard enough to get the conversation going about Canadian culture. And arguing about which region bleeds the purest maple syrup I worry is counter-productive.
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But, hey, what do I know? I’m just Canadian :)
It’s funny you mention maple syrup, because it’s an Ontario/Quebec thing. We don’t make too much maple syrup here:) but that doesn’t make us less Canadian. As for the three founding cultures, in the West, that story differs somewhat. In Saskatchewan, for example, about 70% the population is of Eastern and Northern European ethnicity. I think there’s huge regional differences and I think there’s a major rural/urban divide in most provinces. I’ve traveled to many parts of this country (north, east, south, west) and there’s huge differences between cultures but of course from an outsider, it might not be so apparent. I’m from Saskatchewan and I admit, we are a bit wonky here, and I’m dang gone proud of it. As for Stephen Harper being from Alberta, I should also point out that he grew up in Toronto. The prairies have a deep history of rural socialism but the reason so many people vote Conservative here is because it seems the party that’s most pro-West, even if we disagree with many of its policies. The important thing to realize, is this country is probably one of the most diverse on the planet.
Lol. Just shows how complicated these things can be. I suppose all countries have to settle on shared fictions when trying to find things to symbolize a more culturally diverse whole – “maple syrup†kind of like a cultural synecdoche. And, of course, the “three†founding people is itself kind of a poor categorization: it should really be just “two†– Europeans and First Nations. After all, if we’re going to lump the First Nations together as “one†people, we probably shouldn’t distinguish between English and French (and Ukrainians, etc.). But really this just gets to my oft repeated refrain: that Canadian storytellers should set their stories in Canada, ‘cause there’s a lot to build upon.
There are. It’s why I’ve taken such a keen interest in Canadian television.I think television is one of the best mediums for showing a Canadian voice in storytelling and its important to me that television does a sufficient job at showing many of those diverse voices, not just one. There’s been so many shows that I’m happy have been made here that have captured and capsuled segments of Canadian culture such as The Beachcombers, North of 60, Road to Avonlea, Arctic Air, Republic of Doyle, Corner Gas, Da Kink in My Hair, Mohawk Girls, Heartland etc. My hope is that it continues.
It’s all anecdotal, of course. But I often find immigrants tend to be the more culturally aware and, yes, patriotic — if only because they chose to come here.
I don’t buy the “it comes after the Oscars/Grammys/BAFTAs” excuse mentioned in this article. The Juno Awards air after the Grammys, and the Junos earned 1.4 million viewers last year. That said, the Junos (as well as the MuchMusic Video Awards, a June staple) are consistent in presentation and format. Building public trust in an awards ceremony takes time.
One problem needs to be addressed this year. The Canadian Screen Awards broadcast gala airs live for the Atlantic time zone, then time-shifted for other time zones, even though the Screenies are held in Toronto. While I don’t suggest the broadcast gala airs live across all time zones, at least don’t spoil the ceremony for the time zone in which the broadcast gala is held; it defeats the awards’ immediacy.
So it’s the Americans fault?
Gotcha.
Of course it is. Blame America.