“Any CBC employee who wants to start a personal blog which “clearly associates them with CBC/Radio-Canada” now requires their supervisor’s permission, according to a new “guideline document.””
Thomas Says:
August 4th, 2007 at 10:55 am PDTI suggest that everyone with a blog put the line “I am a CBC employee” in one of their posts. If they really want to enforce this stupid rule, make them wade through tens of thousands of internet blogs to do it.
So I will identify myself as being a CBC employee, simply to show solidarity with my fellow bloggers who are being unjustly intimidated.
I am Saskboy and I am a CBC employee! Now when the mucky mucks at CBC don’t like something I write, they’ll have to figure out if I really am a CBC employee before they go after me with a pointed stick. And thus they’ll waste time policing the Internet.
** Please write “I am ___ and I am a CBC employee!” on your blog too. **
Anyone who blogs about work, or gives an opinion of their employment or from their employer’s purported point of view, doesn’t hold keeping their job near and dear to their hearts. However, I think CBC is going too far, since the only guidelines they need (and any other company needs) are these:
1. Employees can say what they want about public issues.
2. However, they can’t use their jobs to give their personal opinions added weight.
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms ensures us point 1. And point 2 is simply a good way to show respect for your employer, and doesn’t abuse the power they hold.
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I have to wonder what brought on this latest effort at the CBC to control their public image on the Internet. Could they be attempting to put Ouimet into a position to be fired, simply because they are not “authorized to blog about the CBC”? Or did they have Ed Willett in mind? Or maybe John Gushue isn’t really on vacation and has gone underground to avoid the roving CBC management hordes … ;-) ?
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Hat tip to Bene Diction Blogs On.
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I’d be remiss in a blog post about the CBC, if I didn’t make use of their terrific feature, Blog Watch, where they highlight bloggers who write about their articles. And what better way to do that, than to link to a CBC story about a stupid policy.
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![[EFC Blue Ribbon - Free Speech Online]](http://www.efc.ca/images/efcfreet.gif)
Dean Shareski | 05-Aug-07 at 5:30 pm | Permalink
This sounds like a story that should have come from south of the border. Too bad. Do we have examples of companies in Canada that promote blogging ala IBM, Google, etc???
Megan | 05-Aug-07 at 8:58 pm | Permalink
I suspect that they are terrified of the power of the Internet and have decided to react out of that fear.
They do not need a separate policy, but it’s not because their existing policy about letters to the editor is appropriate in this situation. They are not the same thing at all.
I think they’re opening themselves to a ridiculous amount of liability here. They want to have employee personal blogs that are endorsed by the MotherCorp? How could they possibly maintain control? It’s better for them to accept that this is something that employees do on their own time and at their own risk. For example, if an employee libels someone, it’s his problem, not the CBC’s. What happens the first time there’s libel on a personal blog that’s been endorsed by the CBC?
Edward Willett | 05-Aug-07 at 9:44 pm | Permalink
I’m not a CBC employee; just a freelancer. So I’m pretty sure they didn’t have me in mind!
Saskboy | 05-Aug-07 at 11:16 pm | Permalink
Thanks for clearing that up Edward. I heard you on CBC Radio One so much when I listen, that I figured you counted :-)
Saskboy | 06-Aug-07 at 12:06 am | Permalink
Dean, not that I’ve heard of.
Megan, that’s a good point about having a CBC logo on the personal blog of Temp worker A. What happens when A describes how much they hate social group XYZ, and XYZ file a complaint with the Human Rights Commission or some such thing. The Technophobes at CBC would poop their pants.
Todd | 06-Aug-07 at 5:31 pm | Permalink
Saskboy, I’m not so certain that this isn’t a good idea. I mean, you don’t identify directly your employer and write under a pseudonym. I’ve always thought it is good policy to not mix blogs and your work — too many chances for something ugly to result.
Saskboy | 06-Aug-07 at 7:21 pm | Permalink
Not certain it isn’t a good idea? So sure it’s a bad one? ;-)
jenkew | 07-Aug-07 at 9:35 am | Permalink
Man, this is why I don’t blog anymore. Or do Facebook.
Boo!
Saskboy1 | 07-Aug-07 at 12:23 pm | Permalink
There are WAAAYYYY too many people who either:
-become hostile to someone when they say they are a blogger.
-become confused upon hearing someone keeps a journal online.
or
-thinks that the only thing a blog would be good for is office gossip, and so dismisses the blogger as some kind of kook looking to get ostracized (which is usually only half correct :-).