Radio & Podcast News – Power 97 now ‘Winnipeg’s Iconic Alternative’

Corus Entertainment has rebranded Winnipeg rock radio staple Power 97 (CJKR-FM) as Power 97 Winnipeg’s Iconic Alternative. Promising to play “the greatest New Wave, Grunge, and Classic Alternative hits,” the format flip is in line with Corus’ move earlier this year to rebrand CFGQ-FM Calgary as 107.3 The Edge, similar to Toronto’s 102.1 The Edge (CFNY-FM). Like The Edge stations, veteran talent Alan Cross will serve an ambassador for the station, accompanied by his long-running musicology series, The Ongoing History of New Music. The Power lineup will be rounded by Power Mornings with Jay Richardson, Middays with Lex, Power Afternoons with Ed Garcia, and Evenings and Weekends with Fearless Fred. Vickie Shae, who was heard alongside Richardson on the morning show, will be moving down the hall to sister station Country 99 (CFPG-FM) to helm afternoon drive. Read more here.

Indie88 (CIND-FM) Toronto has introduced new Sunday night show, Night Music, airing from 8 – 10 p.m. ET, hosted by Toronto radio veteran Dani Elwell. Elwell is also continuing to host JAZZ.FM91 (CJRT-FM) program, Voice Tracks.

SiriusXM Canada is expanding its advertising division, launching SiriusXM Media Canada, which will serve as the company’s exclusive cross-platform ad sales representative, including the SiriusXM Podcast Network in Canada. Operating out of SiriusXM Canada’s office in Toronto, the team will be led by Vice-President of Sales Jon Hales. As of October, SiriusXM’s burgeoning podcast slate, including Smartless with Will Arnett, Jason Bateman and Sean Hayes – one of the most-listened to podcasts in Canada – is exclusively available to advertisers via SiriusXM Media Canada. It will also rep thousands of additional podcasts via the AdsWizz Podcast Marketplace, which includes networks like PodcastOne, Barstool Sports, The New York Times, and the Washington Post. Read more here.

SiriusXM Canada has announced coverage plans for the 2024-25 NHL season, through to the 2025 Stanley Cup Final. Entering its 20th season, SiriusXM NHL Network Radio (ch. 91) is welcoming a roster of former players, including Mike Johnson, Anthony Stewart, Martin Biron, Andrew Raycroft, Mike Rupp, Frankie Corrado, Jason Strudwick, and Carter Hutton. The channel’s regular lineup of experts and analysts also returns, including Gord Stellick, Scott Laughlin, Steve Kouleas, Boomer Gordon, Mick Kern and Linda Cohn. New insider Don Granato, former Buffalo Sabres Head Coach, joins Brian Burke, Elliotte Friedman, Bruce Boudreau, Craig Button, and Dave Pagnotta. 

Signal Hill Insights has released a preview of the 2024 Canadian Podcast Listener results for monthly podcast listening in Canada. It finds that 8.8% of Canadians, 18+, say they now listen to podcasts daily, a notable jump from 7.0% in 2023 and the largest one-year increase seen since the Canadian Podcast Listener began in 2017. Senior Research Director Matt Hird tells Broadcast Dialogue that a lot of that growth has been driven by men (up from 7% in 2023 to 10.5% in 2024). “The overall gender composition of monthly podcast listening in Canada hasn’t really changed, but men are much more frequent listeners this year. We’ll know more when we start taking a look at individual podcast-level results and identify which podcasts or types of podcasts are driving this behaviour,” Hird told us. The full report will be released to subscribers on Nov. 28.

Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) has launched a podcast, hosted by veteran journalist Lisa LaFlamme.The first season is focused on the Philippines, which ranks among the world’s deadliest countries for journalists, hearing from local reporters who faced the Marcos dictatorship in the ‘70s and ‘80s, the deadly anti-drugs campaign of the Duterte administration, and challenges such as red-tagging, low pay, and disinformation in the age of social media and AI.

The Grain is a new podcast project exploring the pleasure and peril of AI and the future of creativity. Hosted by Toronto-based art director, photo editor, teacher and public speaker Ronit Novak, the first four conversations will premiere this month, featuring guests from the photography, advertising, filmmaking and design fields. 

CBC/Radio-Canada and ABC, Australia’s national public broadcaster, are collaborating on a new original podcast exploring the life of acclaimed Anishinaabe artist Norval Morrisseau and how the shocking discovery of thousands of Morrisseau forgeries led to the biggest art crime investigation in Canada, raising larger questions about how Indigenous art is considered and valued. Hosted by Adrian Stimson, a multidisciplinary artist and member of the Siksika First Nation, the story begins as a true crime narrative, opening up into a larger consideration of Indigenous art and artists in Canada, Australia and internationally. Production begins on the podcast later this year, with release targeted for the second half of 2025.

The Signal Awards are now taking votes for the audience-voted Listener’s Choice award. On a mission to recognize podcasts that define culture, among the Canadian series nominated are Canadaland’s Pretendians (General, Documentary) and individual Canadaland episode “Is Jesse a Zionist?” (also nominated for Best Conversation Starter). Pretendians and A Field Guide to Gay Animals (which also has a nod for Best Show Artwork) are up for Best Co-Host Team and Show, Documentary. CBC Podcasts’ Broomgate: A Curling Scandal earned three nods. Other nominees include Radio Canada OHdio’s Croire encore?, Rares : la loterie génétique, Bianca Gervais : Entre mères, Fais un homme de toi : thérapies de conversion, and “Dans le trouble” (In trouble); Curiouscast and Great Pacific Media’s Deadman’s Curse: Volcanic Gold; TVO’s Extradition and The Ultimate Choice; The Globe and Mail’s In Her Defence; and Borders & Belonging, from the Canada Excellence Research Chair in Migration & Integration Program at Toronto Metropolitan University. 

Corus Entertainment’s Curiouscast has partnered with Mastercard to give real-life Canadian cyberattack stories the true-crime treatment. Special episodes of network true crime series Nighttime and Dark Poutine are aimed at helping Canadians better understand cybersecurity risks. “Cyber Crime in Canada” sees Nighttime host Jordan Bonaparte joined by Amisha Parikh, Vice President of Security Solutions at Mastercard, and David Coffey from the Toronto Police Service Financial Crimes Unit, discussing how cybercriminals are exploiting AI and other tech in scams like SIM swap, job fraud, and romance scams. Dark Poutine’s “A History of Cyber Crime & How to Protect Yourself Online,” available Oct. 16, sees Parikh delve into the history of cybercrime.

LISTEN: Longtime CFCW Edmonton/Camrose program director Jackie Rae Greening and creative writer Jo-Anne Christensen, the author of a new book documenting the station’s history, join this episode of Broadcast Dialogue – The Podcast, as Alberta’s Country Legend celebrates 70 years, and coming off a win for Station of the Year (Large Market) at the Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) Awards.

LISTEN: Tony Garcia is on the Sound Off Podcast talking about his journey through the radio industry over the past four decades. This episode is a glimpse into the evolution of syndicated content and the changing landscape of the medium, from Garcia’s early days as an intern at the iconic WNBC in New York in the 1980s, to creating his own syndicated show, “Wave Breaker,” at WNYU, roles at companies like Progressive Radio Network, the Wall Street Journal Report, Dow Jones, and his continued involvement with The Bob & Sheri Show.