Star Ray TV

February 1, 2006 Press Release

Dear Mr. Harper,

Star Ray TV is an independent community television station in Toronto. Since 1997 we have been attempting to license the station through the CRTC. From then to now the CRTC has been using various bureaucratic devices to keep Star Ray's local programming off the air. Apparently we are perceived as a great threat to the elites that run broadcasting in Canada.

CRTC actions in regards to Star Ray in this past year could best be described as shameless bald-faced fraud. These actions include returning our application as "incomplete" over a year after we answered all '"deficiency" questions, manufacturing a complaint using a fictitious person, taking almost one year to answer correspondence, inventing a regulation to stop the processing of our application, violating our privacy rights, in sum denying Star Ray TV any due process to become a legitimate station.

Mr. Harper, the people of Canada elected you because they are tired of government corruption. The people want accountability restored in Ottawa. The CRTC's dealings with Star Ray TV clearly show a pattern of fraudulent criminal behavior. It is time that the CRTC be held accountable for what they have done to Star Ray TV and other new entrants into Canadian television broadcasting.

We are not activists here in Toronto; we just want to run a local TV station. We can not begin to tell you how many countless hours we have wasted fighting the CRTC. We could have used this time productively informing and entertaining our neighbours. We are quite offended by the fact that a handful of corporations own 95% of all the television stations in this great country of ours. This cartel did not come about by accident. The CRTC has persistently shut out any new innovative applicants that would threaten this elite's monopoly in broadcasting.

Mr. Harper you give us hope that things will change. The CRTC must be disbanded. The CRTC has been using its so called "arm's length" status as a shield to prevent any accountability for its actions. It is time these arrogant, self -serving bureaucrats found themselves out of a job and prosecuted for their criminal actions. We cannot call ourselves a democracy when we have a corrupt, incompetent body like the CRTC micro-managing broadcasting and access to the airwaves. Freedom of speech should include equal access to broadcasting frequencies for everyone, not just for rich corporate insiders. Help us become legitimate broadcasters.

Sincerely,

Jan Pachul
General Manager, Star Ray TV

For more information, please contact Jan Pachul directly at (416) 693-7400, email: srtv at srtv.ca, or visit the Star Ray web site at srtv.ca

More commentary on this issue can be found at TOchat.tv, Star Ray TV's forum under the topic "Star Ray TV and the CRTC: Questions and Answers."