Only 2% of Canadians turn to CBC for documentaries

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The news that a statistical rounding error of Canadians rely on the state broadcaster for non-fiction movies comes from a report drafted for the Department of Canadian Heritage. The report relied on survey data, prepared by Leger, from a sample size of 1,500 people.

Blacklock's first reported the data Monday morning.

The responses hint that most Canadians would rather pay monthly to watch a documentary on a subscription streaming service than watch one for free on the CBC.

When asked “Where do you go to watch documentaries?” respondents answered Netflix (25%), YouTube (12%), Amazon Prime (4%), Disney (4%) and then CBC was tied with the History Channel at 2%.

CBC also ranked way behind American streaming subscriptions on the issue of awareness.

When asked, “When you think of companies or organizations that produce documentary and animated films, which ones come to mind?” respondents answered Disney (37%), Pixar (17%), National Geographic (11%), Netflix (10%) and CBC at 9%.

CBC, despite receiving nearly $1.5 billion annually in federal subsidies, has seen dwindling ratings. Data from the CRTC show the CBC has dropped to less than 4% of viewership across Canada in 2018-2019 — a 25% drop in just one year.