The first producer, Dodi Robb, with consumer reporter Joan Watson (from CBC Radio) and broadcaster George Finstad as hosts, had a mandate to inform consumers about questionable sales practices and inferior products. From the beginning, the show treated consumer information as hard news, but it gradually expanded its mandate to include investigative reports with particular attention to public health and safety. According to Globe and Mail television writer John Haslett Cuff, the program is “a veritable gadfly in the hard-sell marketplace of consumer television.” It is “routinely monitored...by manufacturers and government regulatory agencies and frequently copied by American newsmagazine programs such as 60 Minutes and 20/20.” Although it does put defenders of commercial practices and products on the “hot seat,” Marketplace has an earnest quality that distinguishes it from the “ambush journalism” sometimes practiced by U.S. public affairs producers.

The program not only gets headlines; as one reviewer put it, it also gets results. Laws have been amended, new regulations adopted, and consumer guidelines imposed as a result of Marketplace reports. Its major contributions include the banning of urea formaldehyde foam insulation (UFFI) and lawn darts, warnings on soda pop bottles that sometimes explode on store shelves, prosecution of retailers for false advertising (leading in one case to a fine of $1 million), new standards for bottled drinking water and drinking fountains, new regulations for children’s nightwear (to make the clothing less flammable), and new designs for children’s cribs. From tests for bacteria content in supermarket ham- burger (an early report) to checks on the safety of furnaces and long-haul tractor-trailers, the program has used its small staff—relying on independent laboratories for tests—to considerable effect. More recent investigations include the safety of rebuilt air bags, lead in children’s jewelry, and toxic waste. It has examined both specific consumer and larger issues of public health and safety. Despite lawsuits and threats of suits (and other pressures), the show has retained its probing quality. The longest-serving hosts, Joan Watson and Bill Paul, became leading consumer advocates.

Reviewers have commented that the tough-minded consumer advocacy practiced by Marketplace is the kind of programming that public broadcasters, somewhat insulated from commercial considerations, should be providing. It is unlikely that the show would have had the same effectiveness and longevity in private-sector television. Its producers attribute consistent good ratings to its focus on the personal concerns of its audience, which derives in part from careful attention to the thousands of letters it receives from viewers each year, many of which have led to Marketplace investigations. Freedom from commercial pressures may also be significant. Recently, Marketplace has made its reports available on its website (http://www.cbc.ca/consumers/market).