This weekend, NewsWorld International (NWI) will be going off-the-air after a 11-year run. It will be a sad night tonight as I watch
The National for the last time (here in the US).
NWI was purchased by Al Gore and his partners. The decided that it would become the new News Channel - Current TV.
The CBC, who ran NWI and provide a vast majority of the programming, has worked since April (when the decision was made) to come up with arrangements to keep the CBC playing in the US, but to no avail.
I think it is pretty sad that FOX News was able to force its way into Canada, but the CBC can not get a carrier here in the US. Is it no surprise that DirecTV, now part of the Murdoch empire, was one that turned them down cold?
Burman said it became clear during those discussions that the people running the U.S. satellite and cable distribution world think there are already too many news and information channels and that there's no market for another international service.
"At the CBC, we don't accept this analysis but there is little at this point that we can do," he said.
This is why my first diary at DailyKos was about Insular Americans. Americans are not exposed to international news - they simply do not understand how the rest of the world operates and view us. The programming on NWI allowed more Americans to be exposed to that. It did file a gap in the numerous news and information channels.
I would like to ask those in the Kossack Nation that also will miss NWI and CBC's programs to contact them and encourage them to continue looking for ways to get their programming back on it the United States.
Tonight, I will open a bottle of Ontario Ice Wine and enjoy watching Peter for the last time at my home. At the end, I will toast him and those at NWI and the CBC and wait for my next trip to Canada.