Cost of news to consumers is not often measured. According to the 1991 Broadcasting Act, the media regulator CRTC can intervene if prices for broadcasting services are too high:
3 (1) It is hereby declared as the broadcasting policy for Canada that […] (t) distribution undertakings […] (ii) should provide efficient delivery of programming at affordable rates, using the most effective technologies available at reasonable cost [italics added]. (Canada, 1991)
While broadcasting news is accessible to Canadians, newspaper subscriptions have suffered, and online sources have not fared well either – only 9 per cent of Canadians pay for online news (Newman et al., 2019). Costs of Canadian newspapers can be a factor. More Canadians have subscriptions to the relatively cheaper The New York Times than The Globe and Mail (Adams, 2017).
