The Hook

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation is freezing executives' salaries, but -- given the scale of its shortfall -- it sounds like a stopgap measure.

In a report on the CBC website, President Hubert Lacroix said the freeze would also include a cut in bonuses:

Lacroix said executives at CBC/Radio-Canada will see their salaries frozen at 2008 levels for the 2009-2010 year. Bonuses will be cut by 50 per cent, meaning that overall, the company's 80 or so top managers will see their compensation reduced by 10 per cent to 20 per cent in the upcoming year.

The announcement came Tuesday after the CBC's board of directors approved the Crown corporation's budget. Details of the budget have not been made public, but it is expected the public broadcaster is facing a possible $200-million shortfall.

Lacroix also said CBC Radio will remain commercial-free, and CBC TV will not run more American programs.

Meanwhile, the Globe and Mail reported the results of a new Canadian Press/Harris-Decima poll on what Canadians think of granting the CBC a line of credit or an advance on next year's funding.

Nationwide, the response was 50% Yes, 41% No. In B.C., 49% said Yes and 42% said no. Quebec and Alberta: Yes 44%, No 47%.

The story has also been covered on inside the cbc.com, the corporation's official blog.

Crawford Kilian is a contributing editor of The Tyee.