Radio & Podcast News – Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Awards honour radio legends

Canadian Music Week (CMW) hosted the annual Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Awards Gala Thursday evening in Toronto, where 2019 Broadcast Industry Hall of Fame inductees Guy Brouillard, longtime music director at Montreal’s CKOI;Gerry Forbes, who recently retired as the longtime morning man at CJAY 92 Calgary; and coast-to-coast radio veteran Brother Jake Edwards of TSN 1040 (CKST-AM) Vancouver, were honoured for their decades-long careers in Canadian broadcasting. Leslie Sole and Terri Michael were also inducted posthumously. The broadcasting power couple, who met at CHOM-FM in the 1970s, were tragically killed last November in an accident in Mexico. The 2019 recipient of the Allan Waters Young Broadcaster of the Year Award, in memory of legendary Radio Programmer Steve Young, was Brad Karp from Country 93.3 FM (CJOK-FM) Fort McMurray. Other inductees included Michael McCarty, Chief Membership and Business Development Officer at SOCAN, Steve Herman, Senior Vice President, Touring – North America at Live Nation, and Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Robbie Robertson. Read more here.

The Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Awards also recognized the following winners:

MUSIC DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR MAJOR MARKET
Lisa Grossi – CHUM FM – Toronto                                          

MUSIC DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR SECONDARY MARKET
Barry Stewart – Hot Country 103.5/Jewel 105 – Halifax      

MUSIC DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR SMALL MARKET
Shilo Bellis – New Country 96.9 – Moncton               

ON AIR TALENT OF THE YEAR MAJOR MARKET
Garner Andrews – Sonic 102.9 – Edmonton                           

ON AIR TALENT SECONDARY MARKET
Jeff & Rachel – 97.5 Virgin – London                                       

PROGRAM DIRECTOR MAJOR MARKET
Sarah Cummings – CHUM FM – Toronto                   

PROGRAM DIRECTOR SECONDARY MARKET
(A Tie!)
Brad Gibb – FM96/Fresh –London                                           
Jim McCourtie – 89X/93.9 The River – Windsor                    

PROGRAM DIRECTOR SMALL MARKET
Matt Cleveland – Capital FM 106.9 – Fredericton                                        

PROMOTION OF YEAR
Kiss Your Ashby Goodbye – CHUM FM – Toronto               

STATION MEDIUM MARKET
96.3 Cruz-FM – Saskatoon                                                                     

STATION A/C
98.1 CHFI – Toronto                                                                      

STATION CHR
The New Hot 899 – Ottawa                                                                     

STATION CLASSIC GOLD
Boom 97.3 – Toronto                                                                               

STATION COUNTRY
Country 105 – Calgary                                                                         

STATION MULTICULTURAL
CHIN – Toronto                                                                  

STATION NEWS/TALK/SPORTS
680 News – Toronto                                                                     

STATION ROCK
Indie 88 – Toronto                                                             

STATION SMALL
K-Rock 105.7 – Kingston

Edison Research and Triton Digital previewed the second annual Infinite Dial Canada research project at last week’s Radio Interactive conference at Canadian Music Week. However, Edison Research SVP Tom Webster cautions that the high cost of data plans in Canada may be holding the growth of online audio listening back, which was relatively flat, monthly, moving from 57 to 59%. The survey finds technology adoption continues to grow in Canada with 82% of Canadians 18+ now owning a smartphone. Smart speaker penetration also continues to grow with 26% of Canadians owning a smart speaker vs. 23% in the U.S. While Webster says that presents an opportunity for radio – increasing the number of people who say they have a radio in their home – AM/FM online tuning was flat on a monthly basis at 22%. Webster and Stephanie Donovan, SVP, Publisher Sales, Triton Digital, believe the comparatively punishing cost of data plans in Canada is stifling growth when compared to its findings in the U.S. and Australia. Read more here.

Stingray has agreed to acquire the assets of CIXL-FM and CKYY-FM in Welland, ON, from Wellport Broadcasting Limited/RB Communications Ltd, subject to CRTC approval. “We are thrilled about the opportunity to enter the Welland market, where GIANT FM and COUNTRY 89 already have a strong presence in the community,” Ian Lurie, President, Radio Operations of Stingray, said in a press release. “This acquisition expands our already significant presence in Ontario and makes certain that Stingray will continue to offer the best services to classic rock and country music listeners in the Niagara region.” Financial terms of the transaction, which is expected to close in fall 2019 following CRTC approval, have not been disclosed.

Global News has announced the forthcoming launch of the network’s first original daily news podcast Wait, There’s More, hosted by Toronto-based Global News journalist Tamara Khandaker. The podcast will be available daily – Monday through Friday – starting June 10. Prior to joining Global, Khandaker was a reporter for VICE and the Toronto Star.

The 11th Annual Radio for Cardiology radiothon in support of the Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre’s cardiac care unit reached its $1M goal May 10-11. The two-day event was hosted by Bell Media stations 104.1 The Dock (CICZ-FM) Midland and KICX 106 (CICX-FM) Orillia.

The 2019 Critical Care on the Air Radiothon for STARS Air Ambulance Presented by Bayer wrapped up May 10, raising $108,000. The Radiothon aired on Golden West Broadcasting’s stations in Portage, Steinbach and Winkler, with the support of over 40 volunteers.

The 13th annual GX94 and FOX FM Airwaves for Health Radiothon raised $143,128 for the Health Foundation of East Central Saskatchewan. Held Apr. 29-30 and broadcast live from the Regional Hospital in Yorkton, Harvard Broadcasting covered costs so 100% of donations could go toward buying medical equipment.

The 88.7 the River (CIWN-FM) Radiothon held May 3 in support of the Let’s Build it Campaign – a collaboration between the Mount Forest Aquatic Committee and the Mount Forest Lion’s Club – raised over $25,000. The funds will go towards building a splash pad in Mount Forest this summer at Bill Moody Park. The Radiothon was a first for Saugeen Community Radio (88.7 The River) – a not-for-profit community station covering the area from Arthur to Chatsworth, Shelbourne to Mitchell, up to Kincardine.

Google has rolled-out podcast search results, complete with links to recent episodes and play buttons. Announced at Google’s I/O Developer Conference, the move is seen by many as the removal of a major barrier to improved podcast discovery. Web searchers will be able to listen to the podcast right in Google’s Search results, or save episodes for later. It’s not clear if Google will offer podcast analytics tracking.  

On the latest episode of Broadcast Dialogue – The Podcast, we talk digital strategy for broadcast with Futuri Media’s Zena Burns, SVP Strategic Marketing and Brand Development, and formerly part of the team that built the iHeartRadio brand. Burns lays claim to the title of radio’s first digital program director, hired back in 2006 to lead content strategy for iHeart’s NYC stations. We’re also joined by Jim Tarantine, Engagement and Insights Consultant, who was previously with Nielsen for a decade.

Spotify has launched Soundtrap for Storytellers, a cloud-based podcast creation platform that features editing, automatic transcription, audio processing and cloud collaboration capabilities at a cost of $14.99/month USD or $11.99 if billed annually. Spotify acquired the online music studio in late 2017.

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