Canada's public broadcaster stands at a critical crossroads, according to a veteran insider who spent decades shaping its programming. David Cayley, who worked at CBC Radio from 1971 to 2012, delivers a stark assessment in his newly released book, arguing the corporation has exhausted its previous era and must fundamentally change direction.
The Monologue Problem
In his recently published work The CBC: How Canada's Public Broadcaster Lost Its Voice (and How to Get it Back), Cayley presents a compelling case that the CBC has strayed from its foundational principles. The broadcaster now engages in "thoughtless cheerleading" rather than meaningful journalism, he contends, serving only one preferred audience instead of the entire nation.
"Everything ends in time," Cayley observes in his conversation with journalist Donna Kennedy-Glans, "and I believe that CBC's properties, its idea that it would belong to the audience, that it would stake its legitimacy on the audience, has brought it to a place where it has only one preferred audience — and can't address the rest of the country."
A Career of Context
During his extensive career, Cayley served as a producer, documentary-maker and program host, with much of his time dedicated to the acclaimed program Ideas. This background gives weight to his criticism that the broadcaster has abandoned its mission to explain current affairs to all Canadians and introduce people across the country to diverse perspectives.
Now approaching his 80th birthday in March, Cayley brings the perspective of someone who says he "can't really be cancelled" due to his age and experience. His motivation for writing the book stems from T.S. Eliot's observation that "old men ought to be explorers" — a philosophy Cayley embraces as he fearlessly critiques the institution he once served.
Timely Publication Amid Broadcasting Turmoil
The book arrives during a period of particular significance for public broadcasters. The CBC's British counterpart, the BBC, is currently embroiled in a bias scandal that has already cost two top executives their positions and faces potential reputational damage.
Cayley describes his book as "a bit of an iceberg," suggesting that most of its substance lies beneath the surface. Kennedy-Glans, who interviewed him for the National Post piece published November 12, 2025, confirms the text provokes significant reflection, requiring slow, thoughtful reading.
The federal government's recent budget allocation of an additional $150 million to the CBC adds another layer to the conversation. While ostensibly intended "to strengthen its mandate to serve the public and to better reflect the needs of Canadians," Cayley suspects partisan motivations behind the funding.
"The Conservatives want to defund the CBC, so we (the Liberals) want to re-fund the CBC," he suggests with a knowing smile.
More substantially, Cayley questions Prime Minister Mark Carney's frequent assertion that "the CBC exists to combat misinformation." He probes what exactly constitutes "misinformation" in this context — whether it involves straightforward fact-checking or extends to situations where someone says something another person simply believes to be wrong.
As Canada's public broadcaster stands at what Cayley calls a "watershed moment," his book serves as both critique and call to action, demanding a return to genuine dialogue that serves all Canadians rather than continuing what he characterizes as a one-sided monologue.
