Weekly Newsletter for May 14, 2024

Weekly News (May 14, 2024)

Compiled by Brad McNeil with Sara Bannerman

McMaster University, Communications Governance Observatory

(May 8 – 14, 2024)

Canadian News

• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/PRIVACY]  Ottawa should address AI’s impact on workers’ rights, privacy: parliamentary report  (Toronto Star) 
• [PLATFORM REGULATION/ONLINE HARMS] Trudeau points to fire fight, says Meta news ban degrades safety as it makes billions (CTV News) 
• [BROADCAST REGULATION] CRTC grants Canadian content spending relief for Corus, but says other asks must wait  (Globe and Mail) 
• [PUBLIC BROADCASTING]  Seven media experts selected to help modernize CBC/Radio-Canada before next election  (Toronto Star) 
• [DECEPTIVE MARKETING] Canada Launches Greenwashing Investigation Into Lululemon (Forbes) 
• [TELECOMMUNICATIONS] Quebecor reviewing part of wireless expansion plans following CRTC ruling, CEO says (Times Colonist) 
• [TELECOMMUNICATIONS] No evidence Big Three carriers acting as fibre wholesalers would hurt smaller providers, CRTC says  (Globe and Mail) 
• [HATE SPEECH]  Students warn ‘irrational Jew hatred’ is spreading — and they’re heading to Parliament Hill to testify  (Toronto Star) 
• [HATE SPEECH/POLICING] Politicians keep getting more threats. The head of the RCMP says new tools might be needed to protect them (CBC) 
• [INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY] Imitation art is everywhere – and it’s hurting the livelihoods of Inuit artists who make the real thing (Globe and Mail) 
• [PLATFORM REGULATION/ONLINE HARMS]   The Ford government wants to curb kids’ access to harmful online content, and has asked Snapchat and Instagram to help  (Toronto Star) 
• [CYBERSECURITY] Cyberattack on B.C. government information systems was state sponsored (Globe and Mail) 
• [CAMPUS PROTEST/FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION] McGill encampment injunction decision could come Tuesday (The Gazette) 
• [CAMPUS PROTEST/FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION] Western Canada: Police action and arrests at University of Calgary change the tone for protests over Gaza war on Canadian campuses (Globe and Mail) 
• [PERSONAL DATA] Customers trade personal data for deals with in-store retail tech (Globe and Mail) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE] Canadian companies’ AI policies aim to balance risk with rewards  (Globe and Mail) 
• [FREEDOM OF THE PRESS] In the Second World War, The Globe’s skirmishes with the censors nearly sent its publisher to jail (Globe and Mail) 
• [CAMPUS PROTEST/FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION] OPINION: Faisal Kutty: Why student encampments and protests should be encouraged  (Toronto Star) 
• [PLATFORM REGULATION] OPINION: Martin Regg Cohn:  Here’s how to fight the corrosive effects of social media  (Toronto Star) 
• [PUBLIC BROADCASTING] OPINION: Konrad Yakabuski: Who would ever want to be president of the CBC? (Globe and Mail) 
• [CAMPUS PROTEST/FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION] OPINION: Tony Keller: The campus occupations aren’t protected by free speech, because they aren’t speech (Globe and Mail) 

International News

• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/REGULATION] US, China meet in Geneva to discuss AI risks (Reuters)
• [COPYRIGHT] US Supreme Court rules against Warner Music in copyright damages case (Reuters) 
• [SURVEILLANCE/CENSORSHIP] Secret Hamas Files Show How It Spied on Everyday Palestinians (New York Times) 
• [CAMPUS PROTESTS/FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION] British Colleges Are Handling Protests Differently. Will It Pay Off? (New York Times) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE REGULATION] UK agency releases tools to test AI model safety (Yahoo News) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE REGULATION] Senators to release wide-ranging directive on AI regulations, spending  (Washington Post) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE REGULATION] US lawmakers unveil bill to make it easier to restrict exports of AI models (Reuters) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/COMMUNICATIONS SECURITY]  Microsoft creates top-secret generative AI service for U.S. spies  (Seattle Times) 
• [COPYRIGHT] Musk’s X Corp loses lawsuit against Israeli data-scraping company (Reuters) 
• [ONLINE HARMS/CONTENT MODERATION] Judge Ends Order Criticized by Elon Musk Over Video of Stabbing on X (Wall Street Journal) 
• [DEFAMATION] Roman Polanski Did Not Defame British Actress, French Court Rules  (New York Times) 
• [CAMPUS PROTEST/FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION] Name and shame: Pro-Israel website ramps up attacks on pro-Palestinian student protesters (Reuters) 
• [ANTITRUST CASE/COMPETITION]  Google’s empire is massive. A judge will soon rule if it’s a monopoly.  (Washington Post) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/DEEPFAKES] Fooled by AI? These firms sell deepfake detection that’s ‘REAL 100%.’  (Washington Post) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/DEEPFAKES] CEO of world’s biggest ad firm targeted by deepfake scam (The Guardian) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/ELECTIONS] In Arizona, election workers trained with deepfakes to prepare for 2024  (Washington Post) 
• [CONTENT MODERATION/ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE] TikTok to label AI-generated content from OpenAI and elsewhere (Reuters)
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] Sam Altman Says OpenAI Would Like to Enable Gore and Erotica for “Personal Use” (Yahoo News) 
• [CYBERSECURITY] FBI Warns Hackers’ Use of AI Is Growing. So Is the Bureau’s. (Wall Street Journal) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/DISINFORMATION] Flood of Fake Science Forces Multiple Journal Closures (Wall Street Journal) 
• [PERSONAL INFORMATION] Judge orders ‘pink slime’ publications to remove voters’ personal information  (Chicago Tribune) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/SEARCH RECOMMENDATIONS] Publishers fear a wipeout as AI reshapes Google search  (Washington Post) 
• [PRIVACY]  Google’s ‘Find My’ device network: Useful, but also a stalking risk  (Washington Post) 
• [ALTERNATIVE SOCIAL MEDIA/POLITICAL COMMUNICATION] How Trump’s allies amplify his Truth Social messages to the wider world  (Washington Post) 
• [ONLINE HARMS/CONTENT MODERATION] Gamergate was 10 years ago. How has hate in online spaces changed since then? (Globe and Mail) 
• [CONTENT MODERATION/CENSORSHIP] Why Jack Dorsey gave up on Bluesky (Washington Post)  
• [PLATFORM REGULATION] OPINION: Nick Frisch & Dan Wang: The End of TikTok Is a Propaganda Win for Beijing (New York TImes)
• [MEDIA/CENSORSHIP/FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION] OPINION: Erik Wemple: Israel’s shameful ban on Al Jazeera  (Washington Post)
• [DISINFORMATION/FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION] OPINION: Freddie Sayers: When ‘fighting disinformation’ turns into political censorship  (Washington Post) 

(May 8 – 14, 2024)

Supreme Court of Canada

• [FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION/DEFAMATION] Christopher Zeppa v. Karen Rea (Ont.) (Civil) (By Leave) (41034) – The application for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal for Ontario, Number COA-23-CV-0058, 2023 ONCA 668, dated October 13, 2023, is dismissed with costs.
• [FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION] Joseph Volpe and M.T.E.C Consultants Ltd. v. Kristyn Wong-Tam, Paul Ainslie, Yahoo Media Group Inc., Elizabeth Di Filippo, Maria Rizzo, Norm Di Pasquale, Markus De Domenico and Ida Li Preti (Ont.) (Civil) (By Leave) (41041)  – The application for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal for Ontario, Number C70833, 2023 ONCA 680, dated October 18, 2023, is dismissed with costs.

Canadian Heritage

• Minister St-Onge announces the appointment of Sylvain Lafrance as Chairperson of Telefilm Canada  
• Minister St-Onge appoints Advisory Committee on the Future of CBC/Radio-Canada 
• Government of Canada to announce 41st year of support for Inuit broadcaster OKâlaKatiget Society 

Communications Security Establishment Canada

• Canada joins international security partners in release of advisory, guidance on growing cyber security threat to civil society 

Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada

• Commissioner appears before the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics to discuss the 2024-2025 Main Estimates 

Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission

• Broadcasting and Telecoms 
  • Telecom order 2024-108
    [2024-05-14 11:00:00]
    Streamlined order – The Commission approves the following tariff application: The Westport Telephone Company, Limited, TN 47
  • Broadcasting order 2024-107
    [2024-05-14 11:00:00]
    Distribution order – Aboriginal Peoples Television Network Incorporated – Across Canada – Pursuant to subsection 9.1(1)(h) of the Broadcasting Act, the Commission orders licensees of broadcasting distribution undertakings to distribute the programming service of Aboriginal Peoples Television Network Incorporated known as APTN Languages/APTN as part of their basic service
  • Broadcasting decision 2024-106
    [2024-05-14 11:00:00]
    Aboriginal Peoples Television Network Incorporated – Across Canada – Application to amend the conditions of service for the national English- and French-language discretionary service APTN to consolidate its four programming feeds to two, with one of those feeds to be an Indigenous-language programming service
  • Broadcasting decision 2024-105
    [2024-05-14 11:00:00]
    First Peoples Radio Inc. – Ottawa and Toronto, Ontario – Application to redirect part of the tangible benefits package approved in Broadcasting Decision 2018-404 to support the operations of its two English- and Indigenous-language Indigenous radio stations CFPO-FM Ottawa and CFPT-FM Toronto
  • Broadcasting decision 2024-104
    [2024-05-13 07:30:00]
    Quebecor Media Inc. – Québec, Quebec – Application to amend the Québec station’s conditions of service relating to local programming
  • Broadcasting decision 2024-103
    [2024-05-13 07:30:00]
    Corus Entertainment Inc. – Toronto, Ontario – Application to amend certain conditions of service relating to expenditures on programs of national interest and Canadian programming expenditure under-expenditures for its English-language television stations and discretionary services
  • Telecom order 2024-102
    [2024-05-10 11:00:00]
    Streamlined order – The Commission approves on an interim basis, by majority decision, the following tariff application: Northwestel Inc., TN 1212
  • Telecom order 2024-101
    [2024-05-09 16:00:00]
    Streamlined order – The Commission approves on an interim basis the following tariff application: Bell Canada, TN 7664B
  • Telecom order 2024-100
    [2024-05-09 16:00:00]
    Bell Canada and TELUS Communications Inc. – Tariff applications filed pursuant to Telecom Decision 2023-358 – Public record: Bell Canada Tariff Notices 7664, 7664A, 7664B, and 7664C and TELUS Communications Inc. Tariff Notices 583, 657, 657A, and 657B
  • Telecom decision 2024-99
    [2024-05-09 11:00:00]
    Northwestel Inc. – $20 surcharge for stand-alone residential digital subscriber line (DSL) Internet access services – Public records: 8622-S93-202008482, 1011-NOC2020-0367 and 1011-NOC2022-0147
  • Broadcasting decision 2024-98
    [2024-05-08 11:00:00]
    Haliburton County Community Radio Association – Haliburton, Ontario – Application to amend the broadcasting licence for the English-language community radio station CKHA-FM Haliburton
  • Telecom order 2024-97
    [2024-05-08 11:00:00]
    Streamlined order – The Commission approves on an interim basis the following tariff applications: Bell Canada, TN 983 and TELUS Communications Inc., TN 589

Apple 

•  App Store stopped over $7 billion in potentially fraudulent transactions in four years 
•  Apple and Google deliver support for unwanted tracking alerts in iOS and Android 

Disney 

• Rita Ferro, Disney’s President of Global Advertising, on the Company’s Upfront and the Differentiator of Storytelling 

TikTok

• Partnering with our industry to advance AI transparency and literacy 

OpenAI 

• Introducing the Model Spec 
• Hello GPT-4o 

Youtube 

• How YouTube is supporting the 2024 European Parliamentary elections 

Supreme Court of Canada

• The Supreme Court of Canada will decide the following leave applications at 9:45 a.m. ET on Thursday, May 16, 2024. This list might change.
  • [COMPETITION]   Stephanie Difederico, et al. v. Amazon.com, Inc., et al. (Fed.) (Civil) (By Leave) (40927) 
  • [COMPETITION] John Williams v. Amazon.com, Inc., Amazon Services International, Inc., and Amazon.com.ca, Inc. (B.C.) (Civil) (By Leave) (40935)  

Senate of Canada

• The Senate sitting and possible sitting days:  The Senate will not be sitting the week of May 13 to 17, 2024. The next scheduled sitting day is May 21, 2024

House of Commons

• The House of Commons sitting and possible sitting days:  The House of Commons will not be sitting  the week of May 13 to 17, 2024. The next scheduled sitting day is May 21, 2024.
  • Meetings
    • Standing Committee on Public Accounts (PACP): Report 1, ArriveCAN, of the 2024 Reports of the Auditor General of Canada – Tuesday, May 14, 2024, 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.  
  • Bills on the Agenda
    • C-70:  An Act respecting countering foreign interference – At second reading in the House of Commons 

Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission

• Regulatory plan to modernize Canada’s broadcasting framework timeline available here
• Implementing the Online News Act timeline available here

• Anticipated releases for the week of 13 to 17 May 2024
  • The CRTC plans to issue the following decisions and/or regulatory policies in the week of 6 to 10 May 2024. This is subject to change without notice.

• Upcoming Hearings
  • May 11, 2023 – National Capital Region
    To consider the broadcasting applications listed in Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2023-49, View hearing documents (2023-49)
  • June 28, 2023 – Gatineau, Quebec
    To consider the broadcasting applications listed in Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2023-72, View hearing documents (2023-72)                
  • July 6, 2023 – National Capital Region
    To consider the broadcasting applications listed in Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2023-129, 2023-129-1  View hearing documents (2023-129)
• CRTC Open Broadcasting Proceedings
• CRTC Open Telecom Proceedings

Consultations:

Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission

• Call for comments – Co-development of an Indigenous Broadcasting Policy – July 22, 2024 2024-67

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