Calgary-North West MLA Lindsay Blackett has been in trouble with the Canadian television industry for remarks he made at the Banff World TV Festival. (PC Association of Alberta) Alberta Culture Minister Lindsay Blackett says his much-publicized remark that Canadian television is "crap" referred not to current shows on air, but to dozens of productions that get public money without ever airing.

Blackett's bashing of Canadian TV came at the Banff World TV Festival in June and was made to a room full of industry professionals after a panel discussion.

"I sit here as a government representative for film and television in the province of Alberta and I look at what we produce, and if we're honest with ourselves … I look at it and say, 'Why do I produce so much shit? Why do I fund so much crap?'" Blackett told the panel June 15, to ripples of laughter.

"Why do the broadcasters not pick up more Canadian content? Because the Canadian content isn't what it should be," he continued.

The Canadian TV industry has been dissecting and debating his remarks ever since.

Blackett attempted to clarify his criticism of the industry in a debate Wednesday on CBC Radio's Q cultural affairs show.

"What I was referring to was a lot of junk that we fund that never makes it to television. There is a lot of pilots, a lot of episodes that are funded that never get picked up or seen by Canadians," he said.

"I wanted to get a discussion started, but I certainly didn't mean to impugn everybody's work."

Blackett said he's not happy with the way Alberta hands out money for TV and film production and wants to meet with industry professionals to create a new model.

"We're putting in $20 million, I know it's a pittance compared to Ontario and B.C., but it's still $20 million and what are we getting out of it?" he said.

Alberta's system is "first past the post," he said, with money handed out to any production regardless of its quality, he said. Blackett said he plans to change that.

Blackett said he wants to know why Canada's top professionals are working outside the country as actors, directors and producers, instead of working here and creating quality TV.

"I think we have to find a way in this country to be able to produce more Canadian … content and be able to disseminate that and maybe it's because the structure that we have today, maybe it's the governance model, maybe those things have to be looked at to find a way," he said.

Canadian actor Peter Keleghan debated the quality of Canadian TV with Lindsay Blackett on CBC Radio. (ACTRA) Canadian actor Peter Keleghan, star of CBC's 18 to Life, said it's not unusual to make pilots that never are seen on air — Americans make hundreds of them every year.

The key problem in Canadian production is that private broadcasters spend so much on American programming — $740 million last year compared to $54 million for Canadian programming — that the Canadian industry is not given a fair shake, he said.

"The result is that when you make television shows for 25 cents and you marginalize them and you put them on at midnight and they're infomercials or they're reality shows it leads to an awful lot of apathy among Canadians for Canadian television shows," Keleghan said.

"The reality is that under the broadcasting act, supporting, creating and airing Canadian shows is part of the mandate of the private networks," he said, adding that access to public airwaves should come with a responsibility to air Canadian shows.

Keleghan blamed the change in federal broadcasting regulations in 1999 that allowed private broadcasters to divert money from Canadian dramas.

Actors' union ACTRA has recommended a rule that would force private broadcasters to channel six per cent of their revenues into Canadian production and would withhold incentives until the programs produced are aired in primetime. Keleghan said this kind of rule would allow the industry to be viable without so much public funding.

Keleghan was critical of Blackett for bashing Canadian TV, saying he doubts the minister would stand before a crowd of forestry executives and tell them Canadian softwood is "crap."

Blackett defended his approach, saying he was trying to kick-start a discussion.

"I know there's a disproportionate amount of money spent elsewhere and that limits the amount of quality we are able to produce, even though we produce the Flashpoints, the Heartlands, the Tudors," Blackett said.

He said he believes the industry is "hamstrung by the three networks controlling everything" and needs to find a way to address script development so programs that are produced have more potential.

Blackett said he is planning to bring together a panel of film and TV professionals, unionists and academics to address how the province handles its TV funding. But governance of the private broadcasters falls under federal jurisdiction, he points out.