REVOLVING DOOR:
Jean La Rose and APTN, the network he’s helmed as CEO for the last 17 years, will part ways at the end of the year when his contract expires. La Rose joined APTN as CEO in 2002, just four years after it was granted a national broadcast licence. La Rose helped the organization develop into an IP-based, multi-platform broadcaster and established APTN service in eastern, western and northern communities. He also chairs the board of First People’s Radio which launched ELMNT FM stations in Toronto and Ottawa last fall. The board will launch a formal search to identify its next CEO in the coming weeks. Read more here.
Amir Nasrabadi is the new Executive Vice-President and General Manager of the DHX Media animation studio in Vancouver. Nasrabadi will join the team in the newly-created role June 10 reporting to DHX president Josh Scherba. Most recently, Nasrabadi was EVP of Finance and Operations for Illumination, known for producing global hits like Despicable Me, Minions, The Grinch and Sing. Prior to that, he was SVP of Production at Paramount Animation, and before Paramount, worked for 15 years with The Walt Disney Studios, where he was VP Finance and Operations for DisneyToon Studios and in 2009, launched and ran Pixar Canada in Vancouver.
Ross MacLeod, program director at JACK 96.9 (CJAQ-FM) Calgary, is joining Big 105.9 (WBGG-FM) Miami as PD. MacLeod has been with Rogers Calgary since last August following a three-year stint as PD with 102.1 The Edge (CFNY-FM) Toronto. Prior that he was with Bell Media’s Calgary radio stations.
Blair Bartrem has signed on to Virgin Radio (CJFM-FM) Montreal. Bartrem was PD at Q107 (CILQ-FM) Toronto for 12 years, up until he was caught up in layoffs at Corus in March of 2018. Bartrem previously worked worked at CJFM-FM, as operations manager and PD for the Standard Radio Montreal cell, encompassing what was then Mix 96, CJAD and CHOM, from 1996-2003. Brand director Mark Bergman, who had been with the station since 2000, recently exited.
Sandi Coleman is retiring as host of A New Day on CBC Radio Yukon after 16 years. A Fanshawe College grad, Coleman started her career with CFQC-TV Radio and Television in Saskatoon in 1978, and then CKY TV Winnipeg. She joined CBC Winnipeg in 1984 as host of Information Radio Noon, with stints to follow hosting TV series Breakaway, 24 Hours Almanac, and Coleman & Company. She went on to serve as the supper hour weather specialist from 1997-2000. Coleman left CBC to host call-in show Watercooler on 680 CJOB for a year, before heading to Yukon in 2003.
Bruce Cowan is retiring after a 47-year career in TV broadcast engineering. Cowan’s career started at Rogers Cable TV, followed by 31 years at Citytv/CHUM Television and over 10 years with Corus Entertainment. Cowan was instrumental in engineering aspects of Citytv and the launch of CHUM specialty channels including MuchMusic and CP24. He also worked on the design of CIVI-TV Victoria, Ottawa’s Market Media Mall, and helped launch Canada’s first OTA digital TV service (CITY-DT). Additionally, Cowan was part of the broadcast technical design team behind the Corus Quay facility in Toronto and Global TV Master Control in Calgary. His last day was Apr. 16.
Jessica Nordlander, former head of business development at Google in the Nordic Countries, is joining BC-based tech startup Thoughtexchange as VP, Operations. Nordlander joins the intelligence software company as it prepares to raise $20 million in a Series B investment round. Recently named Sweden’s Most Innovative Leader, she was previously Chief Digital Officer for global travel group STS Education, and managing director for Meltwater.
Leah Holiove has announced she’s getting out of radio. Holiove has been with 107.7 Pulse FM (CISF-FM) Surrey since 2016, most recently as morning show co-host, alongside Neil Morrison. Holiove has previously worked as a traffic anchor for News 1130 (CKWX-AM), Global BC and AM 730 (CHMJ-AM) Vancouver, and served as a panelist on Shaw TV’s That’s What You Think.
Fred Lee has announced that after more than 15 years, his Stepping Out segment on CBC Radio’s Early Edition in Vancouver has come to an end. Known as Vancouver’s “man about town”, Lee will continue to contribute to the Vancouver Province and Vancouver Magazine. He also serves as director of alumni engagement at UBC.
Tarah Schwartz, who left CTV News Montreal after 18 years at the end of December, has a new job as director of Communications, Media, and Marketing for Plank. Plank is a Montreal-based creative agency specializing in digital projects.
Alex Cooke has joined CBC Nova Scotia as a reporter/editor. Cooke is one of a handful of reporters caught up in layoffs at The Canadian Press in February.
RADIO/AUDIO/PODCAST:
Guy Brouillard, Gerry Forbes, and Brother Jake Edwards are the 2019 inductees of the Broadcast Industry Hall of Fame. They’ll be honoured during Canadian Music Week at the Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Awards Gala Dinner on Thursday, May 9 in Toronto. Guy Brouillard, was music director at CKOI-FM Montreal for over four decades, up until his retirement last August. Gerry Forbes retired last year after 25 years at CJAY 92 (CJAY-FM) Calgary and 43 years in radio. Forbes started his career behind the turntable in 1975 at CHNL Kamloops, moving on to CHAM Hamilton, and then Toronto stations CFTR, CHUM, and CKFM, before landing in Calgary at CHFM and then CJAY. Brother Jake Edwards, of TSN 1040 (CKST-FM) Vancouver, has spent over four decades on-air across Canada including Q104 (CFRQ-FM) Halifax, 92 CITI FM and 97 Kiss FM (CKIS-FM) Winnipeg, and Q107 (CILQ-FM) Toronto, before becoming the morning show ratings leader at Vancouver’s Rock 101 (CFMI-FM) for 17 years. “Bro Jake” joined the TSN 1040 morning show in 2013. He’s also known as the voice behind syndicated radio comedy character “The Champ.” Previously-announced honourees for the 2019 Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Awards include Robbie Robertson, the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award in the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame, and Michael McCarty and Steve Herman in the Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Hall of Fame.
Brad Karp, morning show host at Rogers’ Country 93.3 (CJOK-FM) Fort McMurray, is the 2019 recipient of the Allan Waters Young Broadcaster of the Year Award, in memory of Steve Young. Karp arrived in Fort McMurray in Dec. 2014, starting out as the afternoon news anchor and reporter for Country 93.3 & ROCK 97.9 (CKYX-FM), in addition to handling play-by-play for Fort McMurray Oil Barons (AJHL) games. He’s been host of the Country 93.3 morning show for the past two years. At age 28, Karp has already been named one of Fort McMurray’s Top 50 Under 50, and in 2018 was awarded the Western Association of Broadcasters’ ‘Leader Of Tomorrow’ distinction and was named the ‘Ted Rogers Award Winner’ for his work during the Fort McMurray wildfires. Karp was the first person called following the Humboldt Broncos tragedy when a voice was needed to call the Broncos/Grande Prairie Storm game in Peace River. He’ll be recognized at the Industry Award dinner during Canadian Music Week in Toronto on May 9 and will be presented with his award during the Programming 2020 Masterclass panel earlier in the day. This year’s runners up were Rachel Ettinger of Virgin Radio (CIQM-FM) London, and Lauren Hunter of SONiC 102.9 (CHDI-FM) Edmonton. Read more here.
Carmela Laurignano, vice-president and Radio Group Manager at Evanov Radio Group (ERG), is the winner of the 2019 Rosalie Award. Handed out by the Radio Trailblazers, the Rosalie Award recognizes a Canadian woman who has blazed new trails in radio. Laurignano began her career at CHIN Radio Toronto, serving as sales assistant, sales manager, and later VP of Sales, Marketing and Promotions, becoming the first woman to hold a VP position with a Canadian ethnic broadcaster. In 1993, she joined ERG as VP & Radio Group Manager where she’s helped grow the company and fostered opportunities to acquire and launch new stations. Laurignano is part owner of four ERG radio properties and serves on the company’s board of directors.
The Canadian Music Week (CMW) Broadcast Jury has released the list of nominees for this year’s Canadian Radio Music Awards. The winners of the CRMA’s are chosen by the combined votes of On-Air Staff, Program Directors and Music Directors with online voting now open. This year’s nominees for Music Director of the Year, Major Market include Amy “Race” Ballard, The New Hot 89.9 Ottawa; Matt Berry X92.9 Calgary; Brad Challoner, 103.5 QM-FM Vancouver; Lisa Grossi, CHUM FM Toronto; Julie James, 98.1 CHFI Toronto; Michael Religa, Indie 88 Toronto; Jeremy Slattery, Kiss 92.5 Toronto; Brandy Taylor, Sonic 102.9 Edmonton; Brittany Van Hemert, CFOX Vancouver; and Wayne Webster, Boom 97.3 Toronto. Broadcast Dialogue is also up for an award with our editor Connie Thiessen nominated for Music Journalist of the Year. The awards will be handed out May 9 at Rebel nightclub in Toronto.
Erin Davis has released the audio book version of her Top 10 bestseller Mourning Has Broken: Love, Loss & Reclaiming Joy. The longtime CHFI Toronto host wrote and narrated the book, which features a foreword by Jann Arden. In the book, Davis explores her grieving process following the sudden death of her daughter Lauren, 24, a former CFRA Ottawa news anchor. It also includes anecdotes from Davis’ broadcasting career.
Bob Hunter, the former general manager of CKBB Radio in Barrie, ON, has had a $50,000 donation made in his memory to create a music-themed art installation at Meridian Place on the Barrie waterfront. Hunter, a community staple also known for playing in the Bob Hunter Band and Barrie Concert Band, first joined the Barrie Broadcasting Company in 1952, before leaving in the late 1960s to become Canadian president of the Cooper Tool Group. Hunter passed away in 1999.
SIGN-OFFS:
Bobby Gale, 62, on Apr. 12. Radio and music industry veteran Bobby Gale died Friday night following an accident on his way home from a concert in Montreal. Gale, who had called Prince Edward County, ON home for the last 15 years, had been the host of Sunday Glide on community radio station County FM (CJPE-FM) since 2015. Growing up in Windsor, Gale’s first foray into radio was at CJOM 88 Windsor in 1975. Gale quickly moved on to take on swing at 106 FM (WWWW-FM) in Detroit, where he worked alongside the legendary Howard Stern, Dan Carlisle and Jerry Lubin. Stints at CHIQ-FM Winnipeg, CHOM-FM Montreal and Q107 (CILQ-FM) Toronto followed. In 1980, Gale started a decade-long career as the PolyGram promotions and publicity rep for Ontario and Manitoba. He went on to start his own independent radio promotions company plug (MUSIC) Inc. in 1992, and later Global Live Artist Direction (GLAD), providing artist management, media relations and bookings. Read more here.
André Bureau, 83, on Apr. 12 after a battle with cancer. Born in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Bureau studied at Université Laval and was called to the Quebec Bar in 1959. He later obtained a doctorate in comparative law from the Sorbonne. He started out practicing law in his hometown where one of his clients was the daily newspaper, which was eventually acquired by Power Corporation. He joined Power’s Quebec daily La Presse in 1968 as executive vice-president of Human Resources. He returned to practicing law in 1973 at Bureau, Champagne, Parisien. Telemedia was one of the firm’s main clients and he was appointed EVP at Télémédia Communications in 1976. He became its president in 1980-81, president of Telemedia Ventures from 1981-82, and then president and CEO of Canadian Satellite Communications (Cancom) from 1982-83. He was appointed to a seven-year term as CRTC chairman in 1983, overseeing massive expansion in the Canadian cable, specialty channel and FM radio landscape during his tenure. He returned to law and Montreal firm Heenan Blaikie in 1989, before his mandate was up, and became president of Astral Broadcasting and subsequently chairman of Astral Media. He also served as chairman or sat on the boards of Microcell Telecommunications, AT&T Canada, TELETOON, Family Channel, Radiomédia, Viewer’s Choice Canada, Canal Indigo, MusiquePlus Inc., TV Max Plus Productions and Great Lakes Hydro Fund, and served as president of the Alliance française de Montréal. Bureau received the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from France in 1992; was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1993; inducted into the Canadian Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 2004; and appointed an Officer of the National Order of Quebec in 2012.
Terry Hargreaves, 82, on Apr. 5 in Victoria, BC. Born in Glastonbury, England, the youngest of seven children, Hargreaves moved to Canada following WWII with his family and settled in Windsor, ON. Hargreaves started in radio as a weekend newsreader in a volunteer position in Leamington. He would go on to become the CBC’s first Parliamentary Bureau Chief and later led Radio Canada International, the CBC’s shortwave service. In retirement, he lived in St. Petersburg, Russia; Kazakhstan and Mongolia as the spouse of Canadian diplomat Anna Biolik.
TV/FILM/VIDEO:
Global has struck a new multi-year broadcast partnership with the Canadian Country Music Association® (CCMA), starting with the 37th annual CCMA Awards on Sunday, Sept. 8. Set to be broadcast live from Calgary’s Scotiabank Saddledome, ET Canada will produce a live, 30-minute red carpet show that will stream live on multiple platforms. The special will be hosted by ET Canada’s Cheryl Hickey and The Morning Show’s Jeff McArthur.
ONLINE/DIGITAL:
GENERAL:
Quebecor CEO Pierre Karl Peladeau told a CRTC hearing Wednesday that it had no alternative but to pull TVA Sports from Bell TV last week as a carriage dispute between the two parties drags on. The CRTC called Groupe TVA to the hearing to show cause why the commission should not issue a mandatory order requiring it to comply with Discretionary Services Regulations after it pulled TVA Sports’ signal for Bell TV customers Apr. 10, just as the NHL playoffs were getting underway. Bell is calling for revocation of TVA Sports’ licence, or alternatively a suspension until the end of the playoffs in June. Peladeau told a news conference that a suspension could pave the way for the end of the French-language sports channel. The CRTC says it will issue a decision “shortly.”
RTDNA Canada has released the list of finalists for its National RTDNA Awards of Excellence,recognizing the best journalists, programs, stations and newsgathering organizations in radio, television and digital. National winners will also be announced during the RTDNA Canada 2019 National Conference & Awards Gala, May 10-11 in Toronto.
Charnel Anderson and Logan Perley are the recipients of this year’s CJF-CBC Indigenous Journalism Fellowships. The award allows two early-career Indigenous journalists the opportunity to explore issues of interest while being hosted by CBC News for one month at its Indigenous Centre in Winnipeg. Anderson, a member of Kiashke Zaaging Anishinaabek in northwestern Ontario and a Toronto-based freelance journalist, plans to examine Indigenous-led policies—including the First Nations Lands Management Act—that allow First Nations some exemptions from the Indian Act and help other communities in their pursuit of self-determination. Perley is Wolastoqew from Tobique First Nation, NB, and is in his final year of journalism and native studies at St. Thomas University in Fredericton. He will mark the UN’s International Year of Indigenous languages by exploring education initiatives aimed at revitalizing the endangered Wolastoqew language, which has fewer than 100 fluent speakers. The story or series resulting from the fellowship experiences will be considered for publication or broadcast by CBC News.
RTDNA Canada will posthumously recognize Joe Schlesinger with its highest honour, a Lifetime Achievement Award. A prolific foreign correspondent, Schlesinger played roles at CBC both behind the scenes and in front of the camera, including executive producer of The National and later, chief political correspondent. The award will be presented during the RTDNA Gala in Toronto May 11.
The Western Association of Broadcasters (WAB) will recognize those with 25 and 50 years of service to broadcasting at the upcoming WAB Conference, June 5-6 in Banff. Applications for the Broadcast Order of Achievement are accepted following one’s 25th or 50th year of service. Registration for the 85th annual WAB conference is now open.
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