Radio & Podcast News In Brief – Stingray syndicates mornings across its Real Country and boom stations in rural Alberta

Stingray has moved to syndicate the morning shows across its Real Country and boom-branded radio stations in rural Alberta, leading to the elimination of 14 on-air positions. The Real Wake Up with Vinnie & Randi, which originates from Real Country 95.5 (CKGY-FM) Red Deer, launched on 15 stations Monday, including Real Country 93.3 (CKSQ-FM) Stettler; Real Country 105.7 (CIBQ-FM) Brooks; Real Country 94.9 (CJPR-FM) Blairmore; Real Country 910 (CKDQ-AM) Drumheller; Real Country 97.7 (CHSP-FM) St. Paul; Real Country 97.9 (CKWB-FM) Westlock; Real Country 93.5 (CKVH-FM) High Prairie; and adult hits stations boom 101.1 (CIXF-FM) Brooks; boom 92.7 (CHSL-FM) Slave Lake; boom 96.7 (CFXW-FM) Whitecourt; boom 104.9 (CFHI-FM) Hinton; boom 101.9 (CKKY-FM) Wainwright; boom 103.5 (CILB-FM) Lac La Biche; boom 94.1 (CKBA-FM) Athabasca; and boom 95.3 (CJXK-FM) Cold Lake. Dalen said the local news, as well as local breaks, are still being done by an announcer in each market, who will then host from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Additionally, the stations will have local voice tracking on the weekends. Stingray is also expanding the footprint of the Katie & Ed morning show, out of 90.3 AMP Radio (CKMP-FM) Calgary, which will now be heard on Hot AC stations Kool FM (CJEG-FM) Bonnyville and Wayne FM (CKWY-FM) Wainwright.

Joee Adams firing from Q93 (CHLQ-FM) Charlottetown last week has spurred an online petition that’s been signed by more than 3,000 listeners calling for the morning man’s reinstatement. The host of Joee Adams and the Unbalanced Breakfast for the last four years, Adams was bounced by MBS Radio on Jan. 17 for inappropriate on-air content, including a recent “Q of the Day” segment about things people shouldn’t do in public. Adams told the Journal Pioneer, he gave examples from listeners such as “shaving your private parts at a PTA meeting” or “watching porn in a library.”

Corus Radio Edmonton’s 20th annual Stollery Radiothon raised $1,565,455 last Wednesday and Thursday, with live broadcasts on CISN Country 103.9 and 630 CHED from the lobby of the Stollery Children’s Hospital. Global Edmonton also brought two newscasts to the venue, during which $70,000 was pledged. Starting in 1999, the annual fundraiser has raised over $23 million for the hospital.

Canadian Music Week (CMW) has announced that Robbie Robertson will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award in the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame. Born in Toronto, with roots in both the Mohawk community at the Six Nations Reserve and the Jewish enclave of the city’s downtown, Robertson is best known for his work with The Band and his five solo albums, with a sixth to be released later this year. Robertson has previously received the Grammy’s Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as lifetime awards from the National Academy of Songwriters and the Native American Music Awards, in addition to inductions into the Canadian Songwriters’ Hall of Fame, Order of Canada, and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, alongside the Band. He joins previously announced 2019 inductees Michael McCarty, SOCAN’s Chief Membership & Business Development Officer, and Steve Herman, SVP, Touring, Live Nation. Tickets for the Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Awards are available via the CMW website here.

Pinna, a commercial-free podcast streaming service for kids has launched in Canada and the U.S. What began as a Panoply Media pilot project in 2017, now includes pods, audiobooks, and music for $7.99/month or $79.99/year. Pinna is launching with a catalog of more than 1,000 audio shows and podcast episodes, audiobooks and songs. Its programming partners include Scholastic, Highlights, and American Public Media.

Vividata’s Winter 2019 Study looking at consumer media habits, indicates one million, or seven per cent, of Canadian households now own a voice-activated smart speaker such as Amazon Echo or Google Home. Five per cent of those households bought their smart speaker in the last 12 months, with another 720,000 households indicating they intend to purchase one in the next year. When it comes to how Canadians are consuming content, 37 per cent of Canadian adults agreed with the statement, “online TV streaming services have changed the way I watch TV.” Nearly 50 per cent of those respondents said because of TV streaming services, they now watch more TV than they used to. One in 10 listen to radio/audio content while on public transit, with 52 per cent using a free audio streaming service. Read more here.

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