Radio & Podcast News – Terry DiMonte to be inducted into Canadian Broadcast Industry Hall of Fame

Canadian Music Week (CMW) has announced that Terry DiMonte will be a 2021 inductee of the Canadian Broadcast Industry Hall of Fame. DiMonte has had a more than four-decade career in radio, announcing his retirement from the CHOM 97.7 Montreal morning show last week. This year’s Music & Broadcast Industry Awards (MBIA) will take place online May 19 at 4:30 p.m. ET, hosted by Darrin Rose. Read more here.

The CRTC has denied Byrnes Communications’ request to amend its broadcast licence so that its Fort Erie station, CFLZ-FM, is no longer bound to broadcast a minimum of three hours of news programming per week, of which 30% must be devoted to local news relevant to the Niagara Region. Byrnes asserted challenges faced in meeting the condition of licence during statutory holidays, staff illnesses, and a global pandemic and submitted that it is unduly bound by regulatory inflexibility and a lack of competitive parity since the condition of licence places CFLZ-FM at a competitive disadvantage to stations with no similar requirement. Durham Radio submitted an intervention arguing that if the application were approved, CFLZ-FM would not have a local presence in Fort Erie and would essentially become a repeater of Byrnes’ second station, CJED-FM Niagara Falls.

Mohawk Multi Media in Kanesatake/Oka, Quebec has had its application approved to acquire the assets of low-power English- and Mohawk-language Indigenous radio station CKHQ-FM and to obtain a new broadcasting licence to continue operation of the station. The station, which was founded in 1988 by CKHQ United Voices Radio, owned by local resident James Nelson, had been struggling. Mohawk Multi Media will operate as a non-profit.

Maritime Broadcasting System (MBS) has had its application approved for a broadcasting licence to operate an English-language commercial FM radio station in Digby, NS to replace CKDY-AM Digby, which had its station transmitter destroyed by copper and equipment thieves in late February. The station has been operating a temporary low-power FM transmitter to remain on-air.

The CRTC has approved the application by International Harvesters for Christ Evangelistic Association for a broadcasting licence to operate an English-language specialty (Christian music) FM radio station in Scarborough. The station would operate at 105.3 MHz (channel 287A1) with an average effective radiated power (ERP) of 89 watts (maximum ERP of 150 watts, directional antenna with an effective height of the antenna above average terrain of 90.7 metres).

The CRTC will hold a hearing July 8 to consider an application by Gulf Islands Community Radio Society to operate a community FM station on Salt Spring Island. The station would operate at 107.9 MHz (channel 300A) with an average effective radiated power (ERP) of 313 watts (maximum ERP of 850 watts with an effective height of the antenna above average terrain of 219.8 metres). A rebroadcasting transmitter would operate at 102.1 MHz (channel 271A) with an average ERP of 4 watts (maximum ERP of 18 watts with an effective height of the antenna above average terrain of 635.4 metres). The applicant proposes to broadcast 126 hours of programming per broadcast week, of which a minimum of 105 hours would be devoted to local programming.

Dean Blundell.com and Matt Cundill’s Sound Off Podcast Network have announced a partnership that will see their respective communities of independent video and podcast creators merge and share resources. Cundill’s network, which the former Corus Winnipeg program director founded in 2015, collaborates with shows like The Inner Circle with Carrie Doll, Jeff Woods’ Radio, Records and Rockstars, and Marla Barr’s Your Wellness Journey. Dean Blundell, former morning show host on 102.1 the Edge(CFNY-FM) and Sportsnet 590 The Fan (CJCL-AM), has more than 60 podcast collaborators under his umbrella, including The Dean Blundell Show; the Toddcast Podcast, hosted by former CFOX personality Todd Hancock; and The Dangerous Darrin Show featuring TS, helmed by Darrin Pfeiffer of Goldfinger. The merger will see the two entities share resources across analytics, marketing, and monetization with an eye to creating new programmatic advertising opportunities and audience growth. Read more here.

Canadian Broadcast Sales (CBS) has announced the launch of AudioVelocity, a new digital platform that will serve ads to connected audiences of broadcasters like Pattison Media, Rogers Sports & Media, Cogeco, and CBC. Gerry MacKrell, President of Canadian Broadcast Sales, says with the consumer migration to connected listening, the platform will complement the existing strengths of over-the-air radio by offering advertisers the ability to target listeners streaming AM/FM radio or podcasts. Advertisers will be able to book campaigns through CBS, targeting key demos by interests and other behavioural metrics. CBS is currently in the process of onboarding more broadcasters with confirmed partners including Corus Entertainment, Vista Radio, Radioplayer Canada, Golden West Broadcasting, Blackburn Radio, and MBS Radio, in addition to the aforementioned Pattison, Rogers, Cogeco and CBC. Read more here.

The Canadian Podcast Awards have released their list of 2021 nominees across 30 categories. Among those with multiple nominations are Global’s Crime Beat, which earned nods in both the True Crime and Documentary categories; This Time It’s Different with Peter N’ Chris, which was nominated for Outstanding Artwork, Production, Comedy, and People’s Choice; and Toronto Star limited pocast, Hustled, which was nominated for Outstanding Production, Business Series, Documentary, and People’s Choice. D&D podcast Dwarven Moss leads the nominations with nods in Outstanding Fiction Series, Leisure, Outstanding Debut for a Series, Original Music, Production, and People’s Choice.

AdLarge has partnered with Sounds Profitable to launch Up Next – A Podcast UpFront. Up Next uses the podcast format to promote podcasting with FRQNCY Founder/CEO Michelle Khouri, and Edison Research SVP Tom Webster hosting. The series is designed to showcase multiple facets of the podcast industry including publishers, networks, and content producers. AdLarge’s premiere episode focuses on the power of podcast advertising with future episodes to sample podcasts like Crime Junkie, Swindled, The Hey Girl Podcast, The Trip, and Kill Me Now with Judy Gold.

SiriusXM Canada has announced that Seth Rogen will launch his first podcast with its subsidiary, Stitcher. Rogen’s podcast, described as “a series of personal stories produced with a rich sound design,” is expected to debut later this year. Each week, the actor and writer will invite a range of guests to share a single story that will be brought to life with supporting interviews and archival tape. The as-yet-untitled project will be available via Stitcher’s comedy podcast network, Earwolf, and major podcast listening platforms. Rogen’s new podcast is being developed and produced by Richard Parks III of Richard’s Famous Food Podcast, who is known for his collaborations with The Flaming Lips, humour website McSweeney’s, and KCRW. Point Grey Pictures’ Frida Perez and Earwolf’s Colin Anderson will serve as Executive Producers. 

The SOCAN Awards are recognizing 24 CanCon visionaries, including former CRTC chair Pierre Juneau, and Juno Awards co-founders Walt Grealis and Stan Klees. They’ll be awarded the SOCAN Guardian Award for their efforts in preserving and boosting Canadian culture. The 2021 SOCAN Awards marks the second year the event will be held virtually. During the week of May 24, more than 50 SOCAN awards will be presented to the year’s most successful music creators and publishers.

Shulman & Partners LLP has launched new radio program Family Law Insider, airing every Sunday from 4 – 5 p.m. on Newstalk 1010 (CFRB-AM) Toronto. Hosted by Shulman & Partners Family Lawyer Laura Paris, the show will address issues like separation and divorce, and pre-nuptial and co-parenting agreements, among other topics. Since the start of the pandemic, Shulman & Partners says it’s experienced a 40% increase in calls from couples seeking to end their marriages. 

Evanov Communications’ Winnipeg stations Energy 106 (CHWE-FM) and Hot 100.5 (CFJL-FM) hosted its first Radiothon during the Canadian Mental Health Association’s 70th annual Mental Health Week. The 12-hour event raised a total of $104,000 for Kidthink Children’s Mental Health Centre, a mental health treatment centre and outreach program that focuses on child therapy and well-being for kids in Manitoba, aged 12 and under. Over and above the Radiothon, the radio stations provided listeners with information about available resources and action plans for anyone in a situation looking to get help. 

Pattison Media’s stations in Prince George held their annual Spirit Day in support of the Spirit of the North Healthcare Foundation on May 6. 99.3 The Drive (CKDV-FM) and 101.3 The River (CKKN-FM) broadcast the event live from the Prestige Hotel and Conference Centre as pledges were called in. The 12-hour fundraiser brought in a record $123,000 in donations. 

99.3 County FM (CJPE-FM)  is working with over 45 Prince Edward County, ON musicians on Radiothon 2021, set to take place June 3-6. The annual Radiothon raises funds to keep the non-profit, volunteer-driven community station on-air. Among those confirmed to perform are Justin Rutledge, Instant Rivalry, Miss Emily, Cue The Funk, Norris and Jones, Tony Forbes, The Wakami Wailers, Greg Hinde & Friends, Mike Farrell, Tom Leighton, and Danielle Edwards.

LISTEN: On the latest Sound Off Podcast, Matt Cundill reconnects with Sheri Lynch from the Bob & Sheri Show to discuss leaving WLNK Charlotte, the success of the syndicated show, and why taking the show independent was the right business move back in 2017. Listen on your favourite podcast app or here: