Radio & Podcast News – Edmonton Elks and BC Lions make history with Punjabi broadcast

Golden West Broadcasting is seeking CRTC approval to remove the Christian Specialty Conditions of Licence for CJGY-FM Grande Prairie. Golden West says since its launch the stand-alone specialty Christian FM station has been and will continue to be a considerable financial burden to the company. Golden West says in its Part 1 application that removing restrictive conditions “would allow CJGY to operate on a more level playing field with the other mainstream FM operators in Grande Prairie. As CJGY already operates as a full-power commercial FM signal in Grande Prairie, this proposal does not seek to change the existing frequency or alter the signal contours in any way.” The deadline for interventions is Aug. 3.

The Edmonton Elks and BC Lions are claiming a CFL and pro-football first as their July 29 game was broadcast in Punjabi on Sher-E-Punjab Radio CKSP AM 600 in Vancouver and My Radio 580 AM (CHAH-AM) in Edmonton. Hockey Night in Canada: Punjabi Edition broadcasters Harpreet Pandher and Taqdeer Thindal had the call. The Punjabi broadcast marks the Edmonton club’s second history-making radio event in as many years. Last season, the Elks partnered with Windspeaker Media on the first Indigenous-language broadcast in CFL history.

CBC Music (formerly CBC Radio 2) and CBC Listen add Afterdark Sunday to their broadcast schedule, Sundays at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT). Picking up from weekday evening editions of Afterdark, helmed by Odario Williams, the art-pop/avant-garde music show has expanded to Sunday evenings with Vancouver-based host Tariq. The public broadcaster will also celebrate 50 years of hip hop on Friday, Aug. 11 with Manifesto Presents: The Block Party at 6:15 p.m. local time (7:15 AT, 7:45 NT). A collaboration between Manifesto Community Projects and CBC Music’s The Block, the special will feature musical performances live from Toronto’s RBC Echo Beach. Other summer programming highlights include IDEAS – David Suzuki’s Survival Guide: A Retrospective (10 episodes with new episodes released Tuesdays). In 1989, Suzuki hosted climate crisis radio series It’s A Matter of Survival, which struck a nerve across the country and elicited more than 14,000 letters from listeners. Throughout the summer, IDEAS is featuring episodes from Suzuki’s radio archive, including the 1989 series, his 1999 series The Naked Ape, and 2010 series The Bottom Line. Other new podcast offerings include 10 Minutes To Save The Planet (10 episodes), co-hosted by meteorologist and climate reporter Johanna Wagstaffe and beatboxing broadcaster Rohit Joseph, working through the UN’s 10 actions for a healthy planet. CBC Marketplace also makes its podcast debut with eight episodes, hosted by Asha Tomlinson and David Common, based on the long-running TV series.

Lead Podcasting has joined the MET Radio 1280 AM (CJTM-AM) lineup on Toronto Metropolitan University’s newly-rebranded campus and community station with Add This To Your Playlist, which features hand-picked podcast episodes every week. Debuting this week, the show is hosted by TMU student Kendra Seguin and produced by TMU alumnus and Lead Podcasting founder Amanda Cupido, who also doubles as the PD at AM 640 (CFIQ-AM) Toronto.

MTM Junior has released new data indicating one in seven Canadian kids are listening to podcasts. Diving into the podcast consumption habits of those under age 18, the report finds that teens show a greater interest in podcasts than younger listeners. Three in five children who listen to podcasts do so weekly. The report says seven per cent of parents are consuming podcasts while driving with their children, with those in Manitoba and Saskatchewan more inclined to listen in-car. Read more here.

Triton Digital has released the latest Canada Podcast Ranker for the reporting period from May 29 – July 2. The month of June had 14.1M average weekly downloads. The top three Canadian originating English-language podcasts were Front Burner (CBC) at #1, The Current (CBC) at #2, and CBC News: The World This Hour (CBC) at #3. The top Canadian French-language podcasts included Sexe Oral (TPX Podcast Network) at #1, Radiojournal (CBC/Radio-Canada) at #2, and Les chroniques de Pierre-Yves McSween (Cogeco Media) again at #3. Yet again, the top ranked podcast overall was Dateline NBC (NBCUniversal News Group). SiriusXM Podcast Network earned the #1 spot on the Top Networks Report with 4.26M Average Weekly Downloads, followed by Wondery Network again at #2 with 2.83M Average Weekly Downloads, and CBC/Radio-Canada ranking third with 2.24M Average Weekly Downloads. The top ranked Canadian originating English-language debut was CBC’s The Banned Teacher.

Signal Hill Insights and Pacific Content have released new research indicating four in five listeners would skip a radio ad in a podcast. Matt Mise, who heads the Rogers Sports & Media branded content division, writes that a copy and paste approach to audio creative may not be the right one. Testing the impact and appeal of a brand ad intended for use across all audio platforms, the survey found that while the ad generated high recall, it was poorly received in a podcast environment. Less than 29% of respondents liked the ad, and more than half strongly agreed they would skip it. The most common complaint was that it was “too loud” or “jarring” while listening to a podcast. Others complained it lacked the “informative” content of other podcast ads they’d heard.

The Indigenous Screen Office (ISO) has opened applications for its Podcasting Program. Individuals, companies or collectives can apply for a maximum of $30,000 to support the development and creation of podcasts by Indigenous screen-based and audio storytellers. Applicants can access the program to research and develop their project, as well as produce, market and distribute a complete podcast. Applications close Nov. 1.

Radiodays North America has announced dates for its second annual conference, set to take place June 2-4, 2024, in Toronto as part of Canadian Music Week (CMW) at the Harbour Castle Westin Hotel. Learn more about booking group rates in Broadcast Dialogue’s EVENTS section here.

LISTEN: On the Sound Off Podcast: Bryan Goldmark heads up sales at the Locked On Podcast Network. Founded in 2016 by Utah Jazz radio announcer David Locke, the network was sold to Tegna in 2021. Today, it is home to over 200 podcasts and 25 million listeners who want to enjoy a daily podcast fix on their favourite NHL, NFL, NBA, Major League Baseball, and College Football teams. In this episode, Bryan shares what it takes to join Locked On as a content creator, among other insights from his time in radio.

Stingray Advertising and Loblaw Media, the retail media division of Loblaw Companies Limited, have formed a new relationship that expands Stingray’s retail audio advertising network into Loblaw grocery stores. The Loblaw store audio network will span nearly 300 stores, including Loblaws, Zehrs, Real Canadian Superstore, and other retail banners, with campaigns expected to begin mid-August. Stingray says the collaboration provides brands with an opportunity to connect with customers throughout their in-store journey via its proprietary streaming media technology and place-based ad server Hivestack.