A new commission of inquiry on radio broadcasting leads to the establishment of CBC/Radio-Canada in November 1936. Will it live up to the expectations of western Francophones? At its opening, the executive director emphasizes the crucial role of radio for a bilingual Canada. But will these fine words be translated into action? Once bitten, twice shy. A few weeks before the establishment of the CBC, the three French-Canadian organizations in the West set up the Associations nationales de l'Ouest (ANO) (National Associations of the West). This joint committee makes a common front possible for several causes, including broadcasting. It does not take them long to put forward reasons for their demands. In this respect, let's listen to what Antonio de Margerie, head of the ACFC secretariat, has to say to the CBC on March 11, 1937 (audio).

Two months later, Father Maurice Baudoux, the priest at Prud'homme, presents a memorandum on behalf of the ANO to the Board of Governors, the top echelon at the CBC. He calls for “a fair share for bilingual and French programming on the network”. His demands are clear: “a daily news bulletin”, “a 30-minute daily broadcast in French with news predominating”, “a daily 15-minute broadcast of French vocal music”, and “a French version of all government communications, speeches, etc.” The response from the CBC is just as clear: these wishes will be granted when station CBK is built at Watrous, Saskatchewan. After that, broadcasting of CBC French network programs will no longer depend on the good will of the private stations. The hopes of the French-Canadians are unlimited.