Canada’s freedom of information laws are outdated and flawed (McKie, 2012). Introduced in 1980, Canada’s Access to Information Act was envisaged as an economical and efficient means for Canadians to get information about their government and its work. Yet, some forty years later, advocates for transparency and journalists often both complain about the lack of information the law produces and the obsequiousness of bureaucrats administering the programme. In fact, the commissioner charged with overseeing Canada’s information laws called the system “very outdated” in 2018 (Desmarais, 2018). Critics of Canada’s freedom of information process say there are too many loopholes for the government to withhold information. As well, journalists have expressed concern about the secrecy that cloaks government decision-making, and they complain it is hard to illuminate how the government arrives at policy options if administrators of the programme constantly exempt records because they are deemed to be a cabinet confidence or advice to a minister.
Journalists interviewed for this project complained vociferously about Canada’s freedom of information laws at both the provincial and federal levels. Journalists called the system hopelessly broken, noting it often takes too long and costs too much (the government often imposes exorbitant search fees) to get little information. While the journalists and experts interviewed for this project describe a wealth of information available online and through publicly available databases, many noted there has been a retrenchment of access to experts and civil servants. Public relations controls have clamped down on access to sources. One long-time journalist remembered being able to call up low- and mid-level bureaucrats in the 1980s: “There was no rule against most public servants talking to most reporters about things that were within their area of competence”, the journalist recalled, stressing, “that has completely changed”, with government rules now requiring reporters to go through public relations officials to request information and interviews. Statistics Canada data shows that there are 4.1 public relations professionals for every Canadian journalist (Baluja, 2014).
Reporters Without Borders’ most recent report highlighted a number of troubling incidents blocking Canadian journalists from getting access to information, including the national police force’s efforts to block journalists from reporting on a protest of the construction of a natural gas pipeline. The Royal Canadian Mountain Police threatened to arrest journalists if they crossed the force’s assembled roadblock near camps erected by Indigenous protestors. Reporters covering the protest also complained that jammed communication signals in the area prevented them from filing their stories. Reporters Without Borders also raised concerns about a ruling by Canada’s top court that forced a VICE reporter to hand over to police all his communication with an alleged Canadian terrorist. As well, the report also highlighted concerns about a Radio-Canada reporter who was compelled by a Quebec Superior Court to reveal her sources surrounding a corruption scandal (Reporters Without Borders, 2020). Clearly, access to information remains a problem for Canadian journalism.
