REVOLVING DOOR:
Dany Meloul has been appointed Director General of Television for Radio-Canada. Set to join the French-language arm of the public broadcaster Oct. 10, Meloul will succeed Dominique Chaloult after a brief transition period. Meloul was previously vice-president, Programming, French-Language Television at Bell Media, starting in 2015, responsible for acquisitions and original content for Canal Vie, Canal D, Z, VRAK, Investigation, Super Screen and Cinepop. Chaloult will continue to work with the public broadcaster as a consultant.
“Cousin Vinny” Barrucco and Shannon King have been officially named as the new morning team on Virgin Radio Montreal (CJFM-FM), following last week’s sudden release of “Freeway Frank” Depalo and Natasha Gargiulo. Depalo and Gargiulo had helmed the show since 2011 up until last Wednesday. Barrucco returns to Virgin Radio from The Beat 92.5 (CKBE-FM). Up until this past February, Barrucco had been with The Beat for the last seven years, the last two and a half as morning co-host. Shannon King joins the station from Rogers’ KiSS (CJMX-FM) Sudbury where she’d been hosting mornings since 2015. Adam Greenberg will serve as the show’s content producer and manage its social media. Lee Haberkorn, who had contributed to the morning show since 2016, moves into an extended afternoon drive shift from 3 – 8 p.m. Charlie Paige will continue on middays from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Read more here.
Chelsea Bird and Shaye Ganam are the new co-hosts of the 630 CHED Edmonton morning show. With longtime host Bruce Bowie’s retirement approaching on Aug. 30, Bird and Ganam will helm the show starting Sept. 3. Bird has done on-air stints as the afternoon drive host on CHED sister station 103.9 CISN Country (CISN-FM) Edmonton, in addition to hosting mornings on 104.9 Virgin Radio (CFMG-FM). She and co-host Ian McKinnon were part of layoffs across the Bell Media chain last November. She also appeared as a house guest on Season 7 of Big Brother Canada. Ganam is a local staple on Global Edmonton as co-host of both Global News Morning and Global News at Noon. Read more here.
KiSS 103.1 (CHTT-FM) Victoria has bounced its on-air staff, disappearing Dez Fernando and Jay Hatton of its Dez and Jay morning show and Johnny Novak from its afternoon show. Novak only joined the station in March from Hot 105.5 (CKQK-FM) Charlottetown. It’s the second on-air sweep in less than a year with former morning show hosts Vanessa Chiu and Tyler Barr, and afternoon announcer Bailey Parker, caught up in a station revamp just last November. The KiSS website teases a format flip coming this Thursday.
Vanessa Doban is joining News 1130 (CKWX-AM) Vancouver as a part-time weekend and overnight anchor. Doban comes over from Corus all traffic station AM 730 (CHMJ-AM) where she’s been for the past eight months.
Paul James is set to join News 1130 (CKWX-AM) as a part-time reporter/anchor. James, who was previously with the station in the early 2000s, recently returned to Vancouver after 14 years in Beijing where he was a host for China Radio International.
Tara Jean Stevens is set to join Kiah Tucker as co-host on the KiSS (CKKS-FM) Vancouver afternoon drive show. The duo, who previously co-hosted the JACK 96.9 (CJAX-FM) morning show, have already been on-air together doing summer fill-in for Kevin Lim and Sonia Sidhu.
BLVD 102.1 (CFEL-FM) Quebec City has announced that it has ended its relationship with former Quebec deputy premier Nathalie Normandeau. Normandeau had been host of Nathalie le midi since the fall of 2016. Martin Dalair, who is the host of mornings on Leclerc-owned sister station WKND 91.9 (CJEC-FM), is stepping in to host The Rock Show in the noon to 1 p.m. time slot with BLVD morning co-host Philippe Couture.
Marieke Walsh and Kristy Kirkup are the latest additions to The Globe and Mail’s Ottawa bureau. Kirkup has been a national affairs reporter for The Canadian Press for the past four years, while Walsh recently departed online startup iPolitics where she was Queen’s Park correspondent.
Nick Wells is heading to Sarajevo this fall to write for not-for-profit media organization the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project. Up until recently, Wells was a web and associate producer with CTV Vancouver.
Meghan Furman is moving on from CTV Kitchener after 10 years. Furman joined CTV in 2008 as a videographer. Most recently, she’s been the anchor of the 6 p.m. local newscast.
Jeff Lawrence has accepted a position as Supervisor, Online News at CTV Edmonton. Lawrence had been with CTV Vancouver Island for the last four years.
Matt Gilmour has left CJAD Montreal to join the local CTV affiliate as a VJ. Gilmour had been with CJAD the last three and a half years as a field reporter.
Andrew Brennan has joined CTV Montreal as a videojournalist/assignment editor. A CJAD alum, Brennan has most recently been a reporter and writer for Breakfast Televison Montreal.
Paul Sexton-Chadwick has joined sports streaming service DAZN as SVP Commercial Propositions. Sexton-Chadwick will help the platform drive its strategy and execution for commercial premises and other B2B commercial enterprise opportunities. He joins DAZN from Sky Deutschland, where in his most recent role he was responsible for Sky’s newly formed OTT business – Sky Ticket.
RADIO/AUDIO/PODCAST:
The Canadian Podcast Listener 2019 study from Audience Insights Inc. and Ulster Media has released some initial findings. Among them, that YouTube is indeed the leading platform for past year usage among monthly podcast listeners. More than four-in-10 (43%) say they went to YouTube for podcasts in the past year, ahead of Apple Podcasts/iTunes at 34% and a strong showing from the new arrival, Spotify, at 23%. More than half of those YouTube “primaries” say they watched/listened to the Joe Rogan Experience in the past month. Read more here.
Le Conseil de presse du Quebec says comments by host Jeff Fillion on CHOI 98.1 Quebec City perpetuated prejudices against Mexican workers. Fillion suggested immigration would be a solution to the labor shortage. In its decision, the Council argued that by suggesting to go and get Mexicans, “guys from Central America” because they are “not afraid of the book,” that “it’s going to take a damn boil before they speak French” and that they “will not disgust you with union stories and patents alike”, Fillion discriminated by conveying prejudices that Mexicans and Latin Americans represent a docile workforce that will never learn French and have little interest in labour law. The Council concluded that Fillion exceeded the limits of journalistic ethics.
iHeartRadio Canada has launched its new Artist Radio feature which provides users with a personalized listening experience, including playlists dedicated to favourite artists and genres. Listeners can search for their favourite artists, or click on the radio tab on the bottom of the app to view the Featured Artist Radio playlists. Once the user finds the artist of their choice, Artist Radio begins to play songs from that artist along with similar artists, and music within that artist’s genre.
This week’s episode of Broadcast Dialogue – The Podcast features veteran TV newsman Kevin Newman – the latest broadcaster to announce a move into the podcast space. Editor Connie Thiessen speaks to Newman about his pivot to what he terms “narrow-casting”, the impact of technology on the coming federal election and the future of news.
SIGN-OFFS:
Carmel Kilkenny on Aug. 13. Kilkenny grew up in Toronto, but after a year living abroad in Paris, she made her home in Montreal. Kilkenny graduated from Concordia University in 1988 with a degree in Communication Studies and Journalism, and went on to work with CBC/Radio-Canada. Among the roles she held were anchoring Quebec’s late-night TV newscast, in addition to reporting and guest-hosting a daily program for CBC Radio that was broadcast internationally on RCI shortwave. That led to her producing ‘The Link’ – a program featuring stories and interviews with immigrants to Canada. Since 2012, Kilkenny had been freelancing, including contributing to the Radio Canada International website.
Monica Miller, 64, on Aug. 11. Miller got her start with CKUA Radio Edmonton in 1977 as a library assistant. She would go on to work with the station for four decades, holding roles including writer, assistant producer, arts coverage producer, and eventually host. In a post to the CKUA website, senior producer David Ward said Miller’s “curious, playful musical taste” was combined with hours of careful research and planning. “Because of that she brought a reverence and dedication to her work…It also meant that she had an ear for quality music, often overlooked music, and depth that delved across genres with strong flavour of jazz and world music.” Miller is also credited for bringing that attention to detail to the CKUA database to help the station run smoothly, even while off on medical leave. Penning her own obituary, Miller said of CKUA: “that for 40-odd years allowed me to play, learn, experiment, and share the magical world of radio with unsuspecting listeners, while having the opportunity to meet, work with, and learn from the best of the best. Viva CKUA!”
Barry Mercer, 66, on Aug. 11. Mercer began a career with CBC Radio in 1972 as a summer relief announcer in Goose Bay, NL. That led to a 35-year career with the public broadcaster, much of that time as a reporter and host at CBC Radio Sudbury where he landed in 1985. Mercer served as host of long-running afternoon show Points North, co-host of Radio Noon, and reporter for Morning North, before retiring in 2006, however he continued to be heard on the airwaves as a fill-in announcer.
Jack Hagerman, 92, on Aug. 8. Hagerman began his career in radio in 1946 at CFQC Saskatoon. As the legend goes, he stepped off the train in Edmonton in May 1949 and landed a job at CKUA Radio within hours. Worthington would go on to work with the station for more than 70 years, holding roles from host (under the on-air pseudonym of John Worthington), sports announcer, program manager, and by the mid-1950s station manager. In a 70th anniversary tribute on the CKUA website, Hagerman is credited with defining the station’s sound with the hiring of young, creative announcers with a deep love of music, including Bill Coull, Gill Evans, and a young Robert Goulet. Hagerman was also instrumental in expanding the station’s reach, establishing a 10,000-watt transmitter in 1960 and later FM transmitters across the province. Hagerman semi-retired in the 1970s, continuing as host of big band show The Old Disc Jockey.
Howard Lapides, 62, on Aug. 1 after a battle with colon cancer. Hailing from the Village of Kenmore in Erie County, New York, Lapides got his start in radio at age 16, as a post-game host on Buffalo Bills broadcasts on WSYL-FM, using the pseudonym Michael O’Shea. He went on to attend Emerson College in Boston, while producing “The Steve Fredericks Show” for WMEX and working on-air part-time at WEIM Fitchburg, Massachussetts. Lapides landed at Baton Broadcasting in Ontario after graduation where he worked at CKLW Windsor and CFGO Ottawa. After five years, Lapides went on to work in concert promotion, teaming up with Michael Cohl and Donald Tarlton, and later became owner of the Yuk Yuk Comedy Clubs in Buffalo and Rochester. After forming Lapides Entertainment in the early 1980s, he began managing clients that included Carson Daly, Jimmy Kimmel, Adam Carolla, Tom Green and Dr. Drew Pinsky. His creative credits include consulting on CTV talk show Open Mike (hosted by Mike Bullard); was executive producer of VH1 reality series “Celebrity Rehab”; Comedy Central’s “The Man Show”; developed MTV show “TRL” for Daly; and produced Tom Green-directed feature “Freddy Got Fingered.” He was also a regular visiting professor at USC, UCLA and Emerson.
TV/FILM/VIDEO:
Super Channel is partnering with Northern Arena Productions to bring esports and gaming culture series SQUAD to GINX Esports TV Canada. Hour-long episodes of the gaming lifestyle series will air Tues. to Thurs. at 7 p.m. ET, beginning Sept. 17 and will also be available via Super Channel On Demand. SQUAD, which is shot in Mississauga, brings together a ‘squad’ of featured hosts including Marissa Roberto and Brody ‘Liefx’ Moore, in addition to a rotating lineup of esports professionals, game developers, YouTubers, and Twitch streamers. It debuted last March on multiple platforms including Twitch, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter. View the trailer here.
Global News Montreal is airing four-part series Everyday Joe, hosted by local comedian Joey Elias. Airing on Global News Morning for the next few Fridays, Elias pokes fun at Montrealers love of complaining, the city’s seemingly endless construction, and other Montreal quirks.
ONLINE/DIGITAL:
GENERAL:
Mary Ellen Carlyle, SVP and general manager of Dome Productions, will be inducted into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame in New York this December. Carlyle has been with the Toronto-based TV production service provider for 30 years through the move to HD, UHD, and hosting remote productions via control rooms instead of trucks. Currently overseeing administration, sales, and operations, Carlyle has held roles from VP of production services to director of mobile and stadium operations and was responsible for the operation of Canada’s first HDTV mobile. She was a member of the 2010 CTV/Rogers Olympic broadcast team, CBS’ 1992 Olympic Team, and the TSN 1988 Olympic team in Calgary. Carlyle started her career with TSN in 1985 and joined Dome Productions at its inception in 1989.
The CRTC has opened calls of interest for a report on “Harnessing TV Distribution for Canadians in the Digital Age.” Posted to the federal government procurement site last Wednesday, the bid closes on Aug. 28. The report being commissioned is aimed at helping the commission better understand how TV distribution has evolved in other countries, how they are adjusting to online distribution and an analysis of factors that may also impact the evolution of online TV and video distribution in Canada, including an assessment of market potential. In its report, Harnessing Change: The Future of Programming Distribution in Canada, the CRTC proposed that legislation be updated to permit a new adaptable approach to regulation based on how the TV market is evolving. The commission acknowledges online or “virtual” BDU (vBDU) services have not yet developed in Canada in the same way as in other markets due, at least in part, to a variety of economic, legislative and regulatory factors that may be unique to Canada.
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