If anything, some time in Canada will abolish any illusions I may carry.

No doubt. I hope, though, that you'll also discover some unexpected happy truths.

I haven't read the article to which you refer, but it sounds accurate. CanWest is kind of the worst of two corporate worlds. On the one hand it is tightly-controlled by a single proprietor's vision; on the other, it is one of the only mass-media "voices" in the country.