Canada's broadcast regulator says CTV and CanWest Global Communications must keep separate management for the newsrooms of the television stations and newspapers the companies own.

However, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission's decision doesn't preclude the companies from merging their newsgathering outfits.

The decision was handed down as the CRTC renewed the broadcast licences for both CTV and CanWest for another full seven-year term

CTV shares Bell Globemedia as a parent company with The Globe and Mail, while CanWest owns the Global television network and many newspapers across the country, including The National Post. BCE and CanWest want to take advantage of media convergence, the grouping of television, newspapers and Internet portals, and save money by having journalists prepare stories for several media.

CTV called the CRTC decision fair.

"This is a balanced decision that allows us to proceed with our convergence initiatives while safeguarding the editorial diversity and independence of CTV News and The Globe and Mail," Ivan Fecan, the president and CEO of Bell Globemedia and CEO of CTV, said in a statement.

The CRTC expressed concern over the potential for a lack of editorial diversity if newsrooms within the two media giants are merged.

"The Commission acknowledges that some degree of co-operation and sharing between commonly-owned newspapers and TV newsrooms could increase the amount of original journalism available to Canadians and enhance the quality of news coverage," the CRTC noted.

"The Commission must, however, also be concerned about the possible loss of diversity voices and the potential reduction in the number of distinct editorial voices available to the public in the system as a result of cross-media ownership and convergence."

As part of the broadcast licence renewal, the CRTC said CTV and CanWest will have to abide by a Statement of Principles and Practices that covers media cross-ownership. An independent neutral monitoring committee will be created to handle public and employee complaints over a possible future lack of editorial voices and cultural diversity.

CTV and Global must each spend $1 million per year on promoting the monitoring committee.

The latest decision is looser than the conditions imposed recently on Quebecor. That company must maintain complete autonomy between its TVA television newsrooms and the reporting staff of its various newspapers.

When it comes to cultural diversity, the CRTC said it expects on-screen portrayal of all minority groups to be "accurate, fair and non-stereotypical." The regulator said CTV and Global have three months to produce a plan outlining how the companies will address these specific concerns.

An executive member of the Communications Energy and Paperworkers Union, which represents about 20,000 workers in Canada's media, called the decision ludricrous.

"How can we have a decision in Quebec which keeps broadcast and print newsrooms separate, but have another decision in English Canada which opens the door for an erosion of opinion and information?" Peter Murdoch, vice-president of media for the CEP said in a release.

"Once again Canada's regulators have let the foxes design the hen house - bad news for the chickens," Murdoch said.