SIRIUS Canada folks get to finally hear Howard Stern (legally) in Canada since he was cancelled in 2001 from Q107 Toronto. But now as a result the CBC finds themselves in a bit of a PR conondrum. The CBC, who owns a 40-percent stake in SIRIUS Canada, has a lot to lose should they piss off the CRTC - directly or indirectly. So while they own a lot in the business side of things, they need to ensure everyone understand they have little to do from the broadcast side of things.

"It's no secret that Howard Stern's program is not consistent with the kind of programming that you find on our [the CBC's] airways. But Sirius Canada made a business decision that was right for it, a decision that was based on the market's demand," said CBC spokesman Jason MacDonald. "We've expressed concerns about some aspects of the content. But Sirius Canada has in place significant safeguards to make sure that the people who are going to hear Howard Stern are the people that want to hear Howard Stern."

[globeandmail.com]