Canadian Cultural Policy

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Introduction As society advances more attention being placed on cultural policy in both the public and political sectors with changes implemented to keep up with the advancements—many of which are brought about by rapidly changing technology (Rabinovitch, 2007). The presence of a diverse and complex mixture of British Canadians, French Canadians, Aboriginal peoples as well as Europeans has also contributed to these changes. The Canadian cultural policy has played a vital role in the maturity of Canada’s heritage and in achieving a cohesive, all inclusive cultural infrastructure. Because of this diverse population, the government has supported mass culture since the 19th century, through introduction of various cultural policies. The main…show more content…
Cultural policy in general refers to government measures taken to encourage or to protect activities in areas defined as cultural (Marsh & James, 2012). Through the decades, the cultural sector has played a most important role in national cohesion. Government intervention has also boosted the cultural industry and so have technological advances, which have helped in the dissemination of mass culture among the citizens. The modern- state is a sophisticated information apparatus with the government and traditional mass media acting as the two major information arms (Gasher, 2012, p. 9). However, there have been several stumbling blocks. Some have included the overshadowing of the cultural industry by other industries such as the education sector and the health sector which compete for resources and attention with the cultural sector. In recent years, immigration of Asians, South Americans and other Europeans into Canada has further complicated the social and cultural dynamic of the country as has the emergence of a contemporary Canadian society (Cohnstaedt, 2007). Canadian cultural policy has had to incorporate all the different viewpoints of the diverse societies living in the country. When the political perspective is included into this equation, then it leads to contentious cultural…show more content…
The U.S. was superior to Canada in terms of population, economic power and cultural influence (Audley, 2010; Taylor, 2010). While this proximity was unfortunate, the commission concluded that excluding foreign cultures was not advisable. Canada needed to be proactive, not reactive. It recommended more direct government involvement in cultural issues through the creation of the Canada Council (Audley,
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