Weekly News (November 16th, 2021)

Compiled by Boxi Chen, Fizza Kulvi, Meaghan Wester, and Nick Gertler with Sara Bannerman, Fenwick McKelvey, Guillaume Dandurand, Marek Blottière, and Kevin Morin
McMaster University, Communications Governance Observatory

The Communications Governance Discussion Group meets every few weeks by Zoom.  Email organizer Derek Hrynyshyn <derekh@yorku.ca> for details.

(November 9-15, 2021)

Canadian News 

·         [PATENT/VACCINES] Bolivia calls on Canada to waive patent and export COVID-19 vaccines (Globe & Mail)

·         [PLATFORM REGULATION] Clock already ticking on Liberal promise to introduce host of bills in first 100 days (CBC News)

·         [COMPETITION] ‘Holy battle’: Competition Bureau chief readies for fight to shake up merger laws (Financial Post)

·         [PLATFORM REGULATION/HATE SPEECH/DISINFORMATION] Trudeau calls for clearing cyberspace of hate, disinformation at peace forum (CTV News)

·         [TELECOMMUNICATIONS POLICY/ CYBERSECURITY]  Canada has no choice but to bar Huawei from 5G mobile networks, security experts say (National Post) / Des experts en sécurité disent que le Canada doit exclure Huawei de son réseau 5G (Le Devoir)

·         [DEFAMATION] Judge dismisses Maxime Bernier’s defamation case against Warren Kinsella over Project Cactus campaign (Globe & Mail)

·         [INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY] Repatriation of ancestors next step for reconciliation (Toronto Star)

·         [ACCESS TO INFORMATION] When it comes to CEWS, it’s your money – but none of your business (Globe & Mail)

·         [PRIVACY] Province sued over privacy breach involving 9,000 children (Winnipeg Free Press)

·         [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE] Canada is refusing more study permits. Is new AI technology to blame? (Toronto Star)

·         [INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY] These Toronto entrepreneurs accidentally helped Facebook’s rebrand to Meta (Globe & Mail)

·         CYBERSECURITY] TTC failed to file cybersecurity report, raising questions about its ability to defend itself against hackers (Toronto Star)

·         [PRIVACY] OPINION: Levitt: Battle lines are drawn as anti-vaxxers’ cases show mixed rulings (Financial Post)

·         [FREEDOM OF THE PRESS/ONLINE HARMS/JOURNALISM] OPINION: Tait: Enough is enough. Online harm threatens our democracy (Toronto Star) / [HATE SPEECH] OPINION: Catherine Tait: La haine en ligne, une attaque en règle contre notre démocratie (La Presse)

·         [BROADCASTING POLICY] OPINION: Guy Fournier: Pablo Rodriguez doit ressusciter la loi C-10 (Journal de Montreal)

·         [CYBERSECURITY] EDITORIAL: Canada needs a strategy on cyber-defence (Hamilton Spectator)

International News

·         [PLATFORM REGULATION] $4.3-billion class action against Google blocked by UK Supreme Court (Reuters)

·         [PRIVACY/SURVEILLANCE/TELECOMMUNICATIONS] INSIGHT-‘Scary and chilling’: AI surveillance takes U.S. prisons by storm (Reuters)

·         [PLATFORM GOVERNANCE/HATE SPEECH] Leaked Facebook document shows how often the company restores posts — and how the rates change depending on where you live (Toronto Star)

·         [PLATFORM GOVERNANCE/HATE SPEECH] Facebook Is Stifling Independent Report on Its Impact in India, Human Rights Groups Say (Wall Street Journal)

·         [PLATFORM REGULATION/MISINFORMATION] The White House needs a better plan to curb misinformation pronto, commission argues (Washington Post)

·         [VACCINE MISINFORMATION/MEDIA GOVERNANCE/PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] On Podcasts and Radio, Misleading Covid-19 Talk Goes Unchecked (New York Times)

·         [PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] Prince Harry says he warned Twitter CEO of Jan. 6 Capitol riots: ‘I haven’t heard from him since’ (USA Today)

·         [SURVEILLANCE] Algorithmic tracking is ‘damaging mental health’ of UK workers (Guardian)

·         [PLATFORM GOVERNANCE/ONLINE MISOGYNY] Reddit got the best grade on a ‘misogyny report card’ for social media. It was a C. (Washington Post)

·         [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE] The next normal: Algorithms will take over college, from admissions to advising (Washington Post)

·         [DEFAMATION/PRIVACY] White supremacists find a new platform to spread hate: A federal courtroom in Charlottesville (Washington Post)

·         [CENSORSHIP] Hong Kong’s M+ museum opens amid censorship controversy (Globe & Mail)

·         [DEFAMATION] Former ‘Apprentice’ contestant Summer Zervos ends defamation lawsuit against Trump  (Washington Post)[PRIVACY] OPINION: Zuboff: You Are the Object of a Secret Extraction Operation (New York Times)

·         [HATE SPEECH] OPINION: Bensinger: Social Media Is Polluted With Climate Denialism (New York Times)

·         [PLATFORM REGULATION] OPINION: Maher: Expect Europe, not the U.S., to take the lead on regulating social media giants (Toronto Star)

·         [PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] OPINION: Trenaman: Facebook’s ‘unlawful’ deal with Google greater threat than whistleblower revelations (National Post)

(November 9-15, 2021)

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada

• Minister Champagne attends the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence Paris Summit 

CRTC

News Releases:

• Telecom order 2021-381
  [2021-11-12 11:00:00]
  Broadband Fund Payment Order – Approval of Claim Forms – September 2021
• Telecom order 2021-379
  [2021-11-12 11:00:00]
  Streamlined order – The Commission approves on a final basis the following tariff application: Bell MTS, a division of Bell Canada, TN 840
• Broadcasting notice of consultation 2021-378
  [2021-11-12 11:00:00]
  Call for comments – Call for comments on market capacity to serve Newmarket, Ontario, and call for applications to serve Newmarket, Ontario – Public record: 1011-NOC2021-0378
• Broadcasting notice of consultation 2021-377
  [2021-11-12 11:00:00]
  Call for comments – Call for comments on market capacity to serve Sarnia, Ontario, and call for applications to serve Sarnia, Ontario – Public record: 1011-NOC2021-0377
• Broadcasting notice of consultation 2021-376
  [2021-11-12 11:00:00]
  Call for comments – Call for comments on market capacity to serve Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, and call for applications to serve Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec – Public record: 1011-NOC2021-0376
• Broadcasting notice of consultation 2021-375
  [2021-11-12 11:00:00]
  Call for comments – Call for comments on market capacity to serve Squamish, British Columbia, and call for applications to serve Squamish, British Columbia – Public record: 1011-NOC2021-0375
• Broadcasting notice of consultation 2021-374
  [2021-11-12 11:00:00]
  Call for comments – Call for comments on market capacity to serve Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, and call for applications to serve Yellowknife, Northwest Territories – Public record: 1011-NOC2021-0374
• Telecom decision 2021-373
  [2021-11-12 11:00:00]
  Relief for area code complex 450/579 in the area surrounding Montréal, Quebec – Public record: 8621-C12-01/08
• Broadcasting decision 2021-380
  [2021-11-12 11:00:00]
  Durham Radio Inc. – Grimsby and Beamsville, Ontario – Application to change the authorized contours of the unlaunched English-language commercial radio station CKLK-FM Grimsby and Beamsville
• Telecom decision 2021-372
  [2021-11-10 11:00:00]
  Relief for area code complex 343/613 in eastern Ontario – Public record: 8621-C12-01/08
• Telecom decision 2021-371
  [2021-11-10 11:00:00]
  Relief for area code complex 249/705 in central Ontario – Public record: 8621-C12-01/08
• Broadcasting decision 2021-370
  [2021-11-10 11:00:00]
  North Superior Broadcasting Ltd. – Marathon and Nakina, Ontario – Application to change the authorized contours of CFNO-FM-7 Nakina, a low-power rebroadcasting transmitter of the English-language commercial radio station CFNO-FM Marathon
• Broadcasting decision 2021-369
  [2021-11-10 11:00:00]
  North Superior Broadcasting Ltd. – Marathon and Longlac, Ontario – Application to change the authorized contours of CFNO-FM-5 Longlac, a low-power rebroadcasting transmitter of the English-language commercial radio station CFNO-FM Marathon
• Report
  [2021-11-09 11:00:00]
  Snapshot of CASL enforcement activities – Period: April 1, 2021 and September 30, 2021

Google:

• Welcoming US-EU collaboration on cybersecurity

YouTube

• An update to dislikes on YouTube

Twitter

• Our continued work to protect your privacy and security

Amazon 

• Amazon and Weber File Joint Lawsuit Against Counterfeiters

Senate of Canada

• Planned & Possible sitting days this week: No sitting days this week

Canadian House of Commons

• Planned & Possible sitting days this week: No sitting days this week. The first session of the 44th Parliament is scheduled to open on Monday, November 22, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. ET.

CRTC 

Open Proceedings

·         CRTC Open Broadcasting Proceedings

·         CRTC Open Telecom Proceedings

Anticipated releases for the week of November 15-19, 2021

• The CRTC plans to issue the following decisions and/or regulatory policies in the week of 15 to 19 November 2021. This is subject to change without notice.

Broadcasting Decisions:

• Coastal Community Radio Co-operative Limited
  CKOA-FM Glace Bay – Technical changes
  Public record: 2021-0353-9

Open Public Consultations: 

• Proposed amendments to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 for requirement for policies on Disconnecting from Work (reply comments due November 22, 2021)
• Consultation on New Access Licensing Framework, Changes to Subordinate Licensing and White Space to Support Rural and Remote Deployment  (reply comments due November 24, 2021)
• Prescribed electronic format to enable digital access to personal health information (reply comments due December 15, 2021)