CRTC grants single-faith
licence to Crossroads
Winnipeg's Trinity Television turned down for same market
By Debra Fieguth ChristianWeek staff
BURLINGTON, ON–It took almost two decades, but David Mainse has finally been granted his wish: to operate a Christian television station in the greater Toronto area.
The CRTC announced April 9 that it had accepted the application by Crossroads Television System to provide 24-hour broadcasting. In the same decision, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission rejected an application by Trinity Television Inc. of Winnipeg for a licence in the Toronto area.
It’s the first time a major Canadian market has been granted a single-faith licence. The only other Christian television station in the country is the "Miracle Channel" in Lethbridge, Alberta, which has a much smaller base.
Mainse, president of Crossroads Christian Communications and host of 100 Huntley Street, is understandably happy with the decision. "We leap for joy and hope to win viewers one at a time," he says.
The application, made in December, was his fourth attempt. "The fourth one was blessed by the Lord and blessed by the Commission," he says.
Fall opening
Mainse and Marten Mol, chairman of the Crossroads board, expect the new station to be up and running some time in the fall. That could be as early as September 21, says Mainse, or as late as December 1.
One advantage the new station has is that the Crossroads Centre in Burlington can provide most of the space and equipment needed to run the commercial Crossroads Television System (CTS).
Crossroads had to do a lot of homework to get the application accepted. And though the licence has been granted for a "single-faith" station, CTS has had to promise that it will provide 18 hours a week of "balance programming"–that is, programs that are from other religious perspectives.
That’s okay with Mainse. "We’ve got to listen to each other," he says. But he adds, "there is no compromise whatsoever–none–in the message of our Lord Jesus Christ."
The CRTC is also satisfied that Crossroads submitted a realistic business plan. The plan projects a first-year advertising revenue of $2.1 million, increasing to $3.9 million in the seventh year, as well as first-year brokered time sales of $3.9 million, increasing to $6.3 million. Since CTS will be a commercial station, it will not have charitable tax status and will not receive revenue from solicitations.
Not viable
The CRTC’s decision states that Trinity’s application did not contain a viable business plan; nor did it include a clear enough commitment to balance programming.
Willard Thiessen, the ever-optimistic president of Trinity Television, says he is happy with the CRTC decision. "It’s a fabulous day for Christian television in Canada," he says. "For a major market in Canada to get a licence–we were praying that would happen."
Thiessen says the decision establishes the ground rules for other applicants. But, he adds, "on a personal level, we were disappointed."
The last round of applications was Thiessen’s fifth. By now he’s wondering if Trinity is going to be "always a bridesmaid, never a bride," but he hasn’t given up. "We haven’t found the right mix yet," he concedes.
Thiessen says Trinity’s application was actually helpful to Crossroads. For example, Trinity had asked for 12 minutes of advertising an hour, while Crossroads had only asked for eight. The CRTC is allowing 12 minutes.
Both Crossroads and Trinity have expressed interest in working together. For example, "Trinity has a wonderful children’s program," Mainse points out.
Supporters have suggested Thiessen make an application for Winnipeg rather than Toronto. He’s reluctant, however, because Winnipeg has just a fraction of the market Toronto does. "We can’t do in Winnipeg what Toronto would allow us to do."
