In Canada, citizen media has roots going back to 1922 when filmmaker Robert Flaherty brought in an Inuit hunter to participate in Nanook of the North.
In June 2016, as part of the recommendations put forth by the CRTC's "Let's Talk TV" review, the commission enacted a policy allowing television providers in metropolitan markets (population of one million or higher) to reallocate their mandatory community television expenditures towards the news departments of co-owned broadcast stations in the same market.
For example, the Toronto-produced movie review series Reel to Real aired on all Rogers Television channels throughout Ontario.
Community channels also frequently broadcast local minor or junior league sporting events, such as OHL, QMJHL or WHL hockey games.
While Canadian community channels are expected to make efforts to solicit program proposals from the public, nowadays despite the many requests for airtime it is relatively uncommon (compared to American public-access television cable TV channels) for a proposal from an individual member of the public to make air.
In February 2015, the CRTC reprimanded Vidéotron — a major cable provider serving Quebec — for not producing enough programming of local interest for its Montreal community channel MAtv.
[7][8] Bell Fibe's TV1 has also invested in some scripted comedy and drama programming by independent local producers, including the series Pink Is In, Vollies and Sunshine City.
[9] A notable community channel success story is Tom Green, whose guerilla gross-out comedy first appeared on Rogers Television in Ottawa.
Some other personalities who have been associated with community channel programming include Catherine Clark, Jacqueline Hennessy and Dale Goldhawk.
The term community channel may also refer to a conventional broadcast station — such as, CFTV-DT in Leamington, Ontario, CFSO-TV in Cardston, Alberta, CHCO-TV in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, and CIMC-TV in Arichat, Nova Scotia — owned and operated by a local non-profit organization to serve a similar function.