Radio Trailblazers have announced veteran Toronto radio personality Maie Pauts as the recipient of the 2023 Rosalie Award. Recognizing Canadian women who’ve blazed new trails in radio, the award was established in 2005 and is named for legendary CKLW Windsor Music Director Rosalie Trombley, who passed away in November 2021. Pauts has been on-air for over 40 years, currently heard in middays on Stingray’s boom 97.3 (CHBM-FM) Toronto. After graduating from the Radio and TV program at Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson), Pauts landed in middays at CKMW 790 Toronto in 1983. She moved on to CFNY-FM in 1987, co-hosting the nightly, Live in Toronto, before eventually returning to middays from 1993 to 2001. Pauts joined CHUM-FM as a swing announcer in 2002. She’s been with boom 97.3 since 2010. Read more here.
Ford Canada has confirmed that it’s transitioning away from AM radio in all of its vehicles globally, including those destined for the Canadian market. The revelation follows word last month, the automaker was on track to drop AM radio from all vehicles manufactured in the U.S., beginning in 2024, following the lead of Volvo, and in addition to BMW, Mazda, Polestar, Rivian, Tesla, and Volkswagen, who with Ford, have already removed AM from their electric vehicles due to drivetrain interference. “Ford will continue to offer internet streaming through mobile apps, FM or digital options for customers to hear their favourite AM radio programming as the global transition away from AM radio continues,” a Ford Canada spokesperson told Broadcast Dialogue, in an emailed statement. Canada is still served by more than 180 AM stations, with the bulk of those in B.C. and Ontario. Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) President Kevin Desjardins says the factor that automakers aren’t taking into consideration is that in a country as geographically broad as Canada, being able to reliably stream radio can’t be taken for granted. Read more here.
Luminate, the entertainment data and insights company that fuels the Billboard Charts, revealed that global music On-Demand Audio streams crossed the one trillion mark on March 31, making 2023 the first year for that milestone to be reached in just three months. The news follows Luminate’s 2022 Year-End Report data that showed a +22.6% growth in On-Demand Audio streams year-over-year from 2021. The Top 5 most-streamed songs, globally, in 2023 so far are: Miley Cyrus – “Flowers” (1.16B on-demand global audio streams in 2023 so far); SZA – “Kill Bill” (885M); The Weeknd – “Die For You” (629M); Bizzarap & Shakira – “BZRP Music Sessions #53” (627M); and Rema & Selena Gomez – “Calm Down“ (601M). Global music listeners have spent roughly 960,000 years streaming music in 2023 so far.
Canadian Music Week (CMW) is inviting nominations for the Allan Waters Young Broadcaster of the Year Award, in memory of Steve Young, until May 12. Nominations for the 14th annual award, recognizing a young Canadian broadcaster, must come from another individual working in the industry. Candidates must be under 30 years of age as of Dec. 31, 2022; must work in the programming department (On-Air, Programming, Promotion, Production or Creative); and must have made a significant, documented contribution to the community they serve, the radio industry or their craft. Read more and find a link to the submission form here.
Tom Poleman, Chief Programming Officer and President of National Programming, iHeartMedia will be at Radiodays North America and Canadian Music Week for an exclusive one-on-one interview. An influential programmer, Poleman changed the trajectory of New York City’s Z100 when he introduced Elvis Duran in mornings, brought back the mainstream Top 40 format, and created the Jingle Ball concert that has become a nationwide tour. He’s also developed iHeartMedia’s music discovery and emerging artist initiatives, including the Artist Integration Program and On the Verge program that has helped grow the careers of Doja Cat, Olivia Rodrigo, Post Malone, H.E.R., and Sam Smith. Check out the list of confirmed speakers and panels here.
Hot Docs has announced the return of its Podcast Festival Showcase, May 4-7, with a lineup featuring WYNC Studios’ Radiolab, New York Magazine contributing editor and podcast host Kara Swisher in conversation with Lilly Singh, and a live episode of The Happiness Lab featuring host Dr. Laurie Santos with podcaster Gretchen Rubin. Other sessions include: Crossing from Docs to Pods with Tanya Talaga, Connie Walker and Michelle Shepard; Intimate Epics: A Storytelling Master Class with This American Life’s Nancy Updike and Oscar nominee Nicole Newnham; and Non-Fiction Without Borders: A Co-Production Case Study with The LA Times and CBC Podcasts.
Kijiji has launched a five-month long stunt podcast, Wait-listening, highlighting the average wait time for factory-ordered vehicles in Canada. Powered by ChatGPT and using text-to-speech AI voice tech, the stunt is being used to promote Kijiji Autos. The podcast, available in both English and French, covers a variety of automotive-themed topics from electric vehicles to the history of car manufacturing.
Corus Radio’s 640 Toronto (CFIQ-AM) has launched its first beer, Breaking Brews! Named by listeners, who voted on the official name, Breaking Brews was created by Great Lakes Brewery and can be purchased for a limited time at the GLB Brewpub (tap and store), located at 11 Lower Jarvis Street in Toronto, through its online shop, or via Uber Eats or Doordash.
LISTEN: Corey Dylan, morning show host at 100.7 BIG FM (KFBG-FM) San Diego, returns to the latest episode of the Sound Off Podcast. Corey and Matt Cundill discuss resiliency, the right attitude when looking for work, and keeping yourself adaptable to the ever changing wants of programmers. Listen on your favourite podcast app or here:
