No respecter of borders.

The airwaves are crammed. The internet is full. Calgary even has more than three passable radio stations for the first time since, well, ever.

But the New Media is no respecter of borders. With the advent of 'You-Said-Mega-What?' bandwidth, the internet is front-and-centre in most people's lives- in a big way. Why watch 30 Rock tonight when you can stream it tomorrow? Why buy a newspaper when you can get it for free from any number of free news portals. (Plus, ever try reading the Herald on the can? Exactly.)

Is Canada's cultural identity threatened by this new globalization of information transfer?

In 1951 the Royal Commission on National Development in the Arts, Letters and Sciences was released by the Canadian government. In it, chairman Vincent Massey concluded that Canada was at significant risk of its culture being over-run by American radio and television waves drifting across the border.

Today's argument, as espoused by the ACTRA (Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists) is that Canada's culture is at danger of being over-run. Not only by the nasty Americans and their well-written and well-produced sitcoms, but indeed by the world and the legions of You-Tubers and extremely intelligent bloggers.

Canadians have been prominently in the spotlight urging the Americans to throw away "Buy American" and keep international tariff walls down.

Isn't this cultural isolationism?