Is Fox News unavailable in Canada because the "Radio Act" makes it a crime to lie to the public? No, that's not true: Fox News is available in parts of Canada and the "Radio Act" is a made-up piece of legislation.
The claim has been circulating online in different forms since 2011. This iteration of the claim reads:
No FOX news in Canada. The Radio Act makes it a crime to lie to the public via airwaves. Wish we had that.
Users on social media saw this image:
https://www.cdn-liker.com/uploads/post_images/5f404bf7231ac.jpg
Both Fox News Channel and Fox Business Channel are available in Canada through a number of private dish providers, according to a 2019 article published by Fox. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) first approved Fox's broadcast in Canada in 2004.
The Radio Act does not exist as the post claims. Rather, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission Act is regulatory law that regulates the broadcast industry. "It's not punitive in any way. It's not a criminal code," said Iain MacKinnon, the president of the Canadian Media Lawyers Association. "There is no act in Canada that prevents anybody from misleading or lying to the public," MacKinnon continued.
PolitiFact and Snopes have previously conducted fact checks on similar claims.
