AdBusters weighs in to free the airwaves

Since my plane buddies from the other night and I talked at length about what could be done to stop this slow, terrible erosion of democracy we all seemed to see and help resurrect public discourse about real issues :

Adbusters, the anti-consumerism culturejammers, have launched a legal challenge against the major Canadian media outlets which refuse to let Adbusters buy airtime on Canadian networks for airing their ads.

How important is this case? For a generation of people, and a growing social movement that sees the media as its main battleground, a victory here will change everything. Without media democracy - which means genuine public access to the most powerful forms of communication - we can’t raise healthy children, create good public policy or hold elections that are legitimate or that matter. We lose power to shape our consciousness, our culture and our future. We even lose the power to imagine what that future should look like.

Activists concerned with almost every social issue - from the environment, worker rights, electoral politics . . . you name it - have had their messages rejected by media corporations.

I think this is a hideously important issue. Why should corporations, basically only legal individuals, have unlimited access to the airwaves while activists and members of the public do not? Adbusters ads are well produced and make you think. There is no reason they should be kept off the public airwaves if they can afford to buy time for the spots.

You can help… Send a Support Letter to the CRTC and media station heads and pass the message along.