REVOLVING DOOR:
Dave Budge, VP News & Information at Rogers Sports & Media, is retiring after five decades in broadcast news. Budge spent 19 years as a reporter and senior producer with Citytv Vancouver, followed by stints as News Director at Global and CBC Calgary. He returned to Citytv in 2013 as GM of CityNews Toronto and had been in his current since 2020. Budge will stay on until the end of March to aid in the transition.
Bram Abramson has been appointed Regional Commissioner for Ontario at the CRTC for a five-year term, effective Feb. 15. Abramson, who served as a financial analyst at the CRTC early in his career, has two decades of regulatory experience, most recently serving as Principal in Toronto-based boutique legal, regulatory and policy firm, 32M. He’s also previously worked with Teksavvy as Chief Legal & Regulatory Officer and at McCarthy Tetrault, practicing Technology & Communications Law.
Kelly Latremouille is retiring after 42 years in radio. Currently heard in afternoon drive on WAVE 98.3 (CIWV-FM) Vancouver, Latremouille’s career began at CKKC Nelson in 1980. Stops followed at CHEC Lethbridge, CHAB Moose Jaw, CKDA Victoria, CISS Calgary, and CFUN Vancouver, in addition to a 15-year run hosting the Breakfast Club on C100 (CIOO-FM) Halifax. He returned to Vancouver in 2007 with stints at CKLG-FM, CKCL-FM and CFUN-FM. From 2014 to early 2021, Latremouille helmed mornings on LG 104.3, which was subsequently rebranded as 104.3 The Breeze (CHLG-FM) Vancouver.
Randall Moore has joined Ottawa’s Rebel Rock 101.7 (CIDG-FM), reviving his infamous “Randall’s Rant,” which will air three times a week – Monday, Wednesday, and Friday – during Kornicky in the Morning and The Ride Home with Cub Carson. Moore retired from CHEZ 106, alongside 20-year morning show team Doc and Woody, in June 2019.
Kevin Forget has returned to Citytv Toronto’s Breakfast Television as Supervising Producer. Forget had been working with Destination Ontario as Media Relations Coordinator for the last nine years. Prior to leaving BT in late 2013, he was the Executive Producer of the show for a decade.
Saif Kaisar has joined Global Edmonton as a provincial affairs reporter. Kaisar arrives from a brief stint at CTV where he held the same position. Prior to that, he served as Alberta Legislative Bureau Chief at CityNews Edmonton for three years.
Dan Grummett is leaving Global Edmonton and journalism to pursue a career in communications. Grummett had been a digital journalist with the station for the past year, preceded by a stint as a video journalist with CTV Edmonton, and reporting, producing and anchoring positions with Global Winnipeg, Global Saskatoon, and Rawlco’s CKOM Saskatoon over the last 14 years.
Brendan Ellis is leaving CTV Regina to return to his hometown of Calgary for a new opportunity. Ellis started his journalism career at CTV Regina as a University of Regina Journalism intern in 2018. He’d most recently been in the role of Senior Digital Content Producer.
Claire Palmer is CBC’s new dedicated video journalist in Nanaimo, BC. Prior to joining CBC in October, Palmer was a multimedia editor at Black Press community newspaper The Golden Star in Golden, BC for the last three years.
Emily Haws is joining CBC North in Iqaluit as a reporter. Haws has been with CBC since 2019 as an associate producer assigned to CBC News Network’s Power & Politics. Prior to that, she was a reporter and columnist with The Hill Times.
Lori Ewing is leaving The Canadian Press (CP) after nearly 22 years as an award-winning sports writer. Ewing will be joining Reuters Sports, based in the UK.
Alex Seixeiro has returned to the sports desk on CityNews 680 (CFTR-AM) Toronto, CityNews 570 (CKGL-AM) Kitchener, and CityNews 1310 (CIWW-AM) Ottawa, after undergoing three rounds of treatment for testicular cancer. Seixeiro was first diagnosed last August.
Gillian “Gill” Deacon, host of Here and Now, the CBC Radio One afternoon show heard in Toronto, has revealed she’s been struggling with health issues that have kept her off the air for the past several weeks. Deacon, 56, previously took time off in 2019 to undergo cancer treatment.
Gabriela Perdomo is the new Editor-in-Chief of J-Source. An assistant professor of journalism at Mount Royal University in Calgary where her research focuses on anti-media discourse. Perdomo is also the host of Spanish-language podcast Periodémica and an editorial board member of Facts and Frictions. Born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia, her work has appeared in Maclean’s and The Tyee. J-Source’s previous Editor-in-Chief, Toronto Metropolitan University assistant journalism professor Sonya Fatah, continues to support J-Source as a board chair.
Jessica Johnson has stepped down as Editor-in-Chief of The Walrus. Johnson had been in the editor’s position for the last five and a half years. A longtime freelance writer, she’s contributed to The Globe and Mail, Toronto Life, Reader’s Digest, and Elle, among other publications, over the last 25 years.
Kristi Boulton is departing JAR Audio to join Spark Recruiting as Chief Storyteller. Boulton had been with the Vancouver-headquartered branded content studio since late 2021, most recently serving as Audience Growth Manager.
Steph Wiens has been appointed Vice President, Sales for Golden West. Over the last number of months, Wiens has stepped into a larger leadership role overseeing sales and leadership training for the company. She’ll also continue to oversee Homefield People + Strategy (HPS) as well as lead the company’s Employee Experience initiatives. Wiens joined Golden West in 2021 when the broadcaster acquired her company, Summit Organizational Development (now known Homefield People + Strategy).
Aren Prupas has been appointed President & CEO of Muse Entertainment, taking the reins from his father, Michael Prupas, who now assumes the position of Executive Chairman of the Board. Aren has served as SVP, Business & Legal affairs at Muse for the past decade and more recently as its COO.
Saloon Media, a Blue Ant Media company, has promoted Paul Kilback to Creative Director of Factual Programming and Matt Faulknor to Senior Development Producer. As Creative Director, Factual Series, Kilback will take on an expanded leadership role and oversee the creative and editorial direction on Saloon’s factual series, upped from an Executive Producer role at Saloon. Faulknor has been elevated to Senior Development Producer. Prior to joining Saloon, he held production roles at Proof & Concept, CBC and Pixcom Productions.
Jane Tattersall has been appointed Managing Director of Picture Shop and Senior Vice-President of Formosa Group, Streamland Media’s picture and sound divisions. An award-winning supervising sound editor, Tattersall previously founded post businesses, Tattersall Sound and Tattersall Sound & Picture, the latter of which she sold to Sim Post Toronto where she served as SVP from 2016 to 2021 when it was acquired by Formosa.
Jasmine Gard has joined Brain Power Studio as VP, Finance & Operations. Gard previously served as Manager, Production Finance – Animated Series, at Netflix. Prior to that, she spent more than six years with 9 Story Media Group.
Mary DelGrande has been promoted to CEO of vCreative. DelGrande has been with the company since 2019, upped from her previous position of SVP of Sales. Prior to vCreative, DelGrande held sales and affiliate relations positions with Premiere Radio Networks, Westwood One, and CBS Radio. She succeeds Susie Hedrick in the role, who has joined WideOrbit as President and Managing Director, Local Broadcast.
Brad Rumler is joining virtual and augmented reality technology provider Zero Density as Vice-President of Sales & Business Development for the U.S. & Canada. Rumler’s background includes time with Apple and AT&T, in addition to leading sales and business development efforts for Brainstorm, Tools On Air, and Sequin AR. More recently, he’s been consulting under the banner of his virtual production and broadcast technology advisory service, Broadcast Revolution LLC.
Mark Playdon has been appointed Western Regional Sales Manager for Utah Scientific, overseeing sales and customer management in the Western U.S. and Canada. After serving in the British Royal Air Force, Playdon started his career in 1993 as a systems design and installation engineer for FOR-A. Before joining Utah Scientific, he worked for the JVCKenwood Corporation as Director of Broadcast Sales for the Western U.S. region.
RADIO & PODCAST:
Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud is now airing weekdays at 11 a.m. (11:30 NT) on CBC Radio One and CBC Listen, as of Jan. 30 as q with Tom Power moves to a shorter, hour-long format. Featuring a range of panelists, the live, half-hour show presents hot takes, anecdotes and analysis on arts and culture with topics spanning Canadian and international music, film, art, television, style, awards shows, and internet culture. Each Friday, Commotion will feature a wrap panel discussing the biggest pop culture stories of the week. Abdelmahmoud previously hosted CBC Radio’s Podcast Playlist, CBC Podcasts’ series Popchat, and co-hosted political pod, Party Lines, alongside Rosemary Barton.
94.9 The Rock (CKGE-FM) Oshawa morning show Rock Mornings with Craig Venn & Lucky is marking its 10th anniversary. The on-air duo joined the Durham Radio station in January 2013. Lucky (aka Mike Luck) can also be heard on NHL on Sportsnet as a play-by-play announcer on select Ottawa Senators and Winnipeg Jets broadcasts. He’s also called OHL Oshawa Generals games for 15 seasons. “Chemistry is everything and oil and water do mix,” 94.9 The Rock PD Doug Elliot told Broadcast Dialogue. “We have two very different strong personalities with sometimes blended opinion and sometimes very heated arguments. Both interactions make for a great show that make you want to cling to every minute…we’re really proud of what the boys have achieved together.”
Lynn Pickering, host/producer of The County Grapevine (Monday edition) on 99.3 County FM (CJPE-FM) Prince Edward County, will be joined by author, educator and activist Rosemary Sadlier throughout Black History Month. Sadlier, who spearheaded the drive to have the federal government declare February as Black History Month, will host a segment with guests including Toronto Centre MP Marci Ien; Toronto-St. Paul’s MPP Jill Andrew; and Jude Mary Cénat, who holds the Research Chair on Black Health at the University of Ottawa. The series will air Mondays, Feb. 6-27. The County Grapevine is heard weekdays on 99.3 County FM following the news at noon and repeated after the 6:10 p.m. farm report.
Triton Digital has released its Canada Podcast Ranker for December, reflecting the listening period from Nov. 28 – Jan. 1. Yet again, the top three Canadian-originating English-language podcasts are Front Burner (CBC/Radio-Canada) at #1, The Current (CBC/Radio-Canada) at #2, and Ideas (CBC/Radio-Canada) at #3. The top three Canadian-originating French-language podcasts included Sexe Oral (TPX Podcast Network) at #1, Radiojournal (CBC/Radio-Canada) at #2, and Richard Martineau (QUB) at #3. The top ranked podcast overall was Dateline NBC (NBCUniversal News Group). SXM Media earned the #1 spot again on the Top Networks Report with 3.98M Average Weekly Downloads, followed by CBC/Radio-Canada at #2 with 2.16M Average Weekly Downloads, and Wondery Network at #3 with 2.03M Average Weekly Downloads. Top-ranked debuts included Murder & Magnolias (NBCUniversal News Group) and Chasing Life (WarnerMedia).
CBC Podcasts’ Tai Asks Why is among the Canadian podcasts that received Ambies nominations this week. Tai Asks Why was nominated in the Best Podcasts For Kids category. Also nominated is Toronto Star pod It’s Political with Althia Raj, up for Best Politics or Opinion Podcast. Two Pacific Content-produced podcasts are also nominated: Work Check for Best Business Podcast and IRL: OnLife is Real Life for Best Knowledge, Science, Tech Podcast. Find the full list of nominees here. The Podcast Academy will host their third annual Awards for Excellence in Audio at the International Theater in Las Vegas on March 7 and streamed live on Twitch.
Jessi Cruickshank is launching her debut podcast, Phone a Friend, through a new partnership with Acast. Set to premiere Feb. 9, the first episode of the pop culture pod features special guest Dan Levy, her former co-host from MTV’s The Hills: The After Show — marking their first on-air reunion in over a decade. Cruickshank previously hosted Facebook Watch series New Mom, Who Dis? which garnered more than 100 million views. Launch advertisers for Phone a Friend include Peloton.
Corus Radio’s 640 Toronto (CFIQ-AM) is set to launch its first original podcast, Today in TO. Hosted by 640 personality Dani Stover, Corus says it will feature “a succinct overview of the stories that matter most to the GTA.” Stover currently hosts 640 evening show Let’s Talk with Dani Stover, which dives into the major stories of the day, covered on both 640, as well as 980 CFPL London and 900 CHML Hamilton, where the show also airs. Set to debut Feb. 22, new episodes will be released every Wednesday. Read more here.
The Hot Docs Podcast Development Lab is open to applications from Canadian-based BIPOC creators until Feb. 28. The lab will offer eight fellowships designed to provide emerging BIPOC storytellers with non-fiction series ideas in development. Fellows will have the opportunity to develop their podcast ideas and create a proof-of-concept sample to help take their work to the next level. Throughout the fellowship, participants will meet as a group and one-on-one with seasoned audio creators to develop their project ideas and hone their skills. Each project will also receive a $1,500 creator grant.
Nielsen will market Edison Research’s Share of Ear and Edison Podcast Metrics services to advertising agencies. Edison has conducted Share of Ear studies each year since 2014, while Edison Podcast Metrics measures persons-based listening estimates. Edison says its services will be offered as part of Nielsen’s portfolio of audio and podcasting solutions, including Podcast Buying Power and Podcast Ad Effectiveness studies that support investment decisions in the podcast ecosystem.
LISTEN: Paul Jacobs is on the latest Sound Off Podcast discussing this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. Among other topics, he and Matt Cundill touch on AI, the future of AM radio, public radio, and the recession. Listen on your favourite podcast app or here:
SIGN OFFS:
Michael Finlay, on Jan. 31, from medical complications following a random assault in Toronto. A documentary producer and editor with the CBC for more than three decades, Finlay’s radio documentaries aired on numerous programs, including Sunday Morning. Among other shows he worked on were the long-running Dispatches, which featured documentary work from CBC foreign correspondents, in addition to the World at Six where he served as an editor. Finlay retired after 31 years with the public broadcaster in 2010.
TV & FILM:
Quebec English Language Production Council (QEPC) has published a new report, indicating English-language film and television production remains at an all-time low in Quebec. The Canadian Audiovisual Regional Production Report 1996-97 to 2019-20 shows that English-language Canadian content production in Quebec was equal to $166 million in 2019-20, an all-time low of just 7% of the $2.3 billion in total English-language Canadian content production. That number was consistent in three of five years prior to 2019-20, down from a record high of 26% in 1997-98. Based on all languages, the report says Ontario’s dominance of Canadian content production continued, hitting 47% in 2019-20, down slightly from its 2011-12 peak of 49%. Read more here.
Desiree Brightnose has received the inaugural National Screen Institute (NSI) RBC Emerging Indigenous Filmmaker Award. The award supports an emerging Indigenous filmmaker with $7,500 and mentorship from filmmaker and award advisor, Sonya Ballantyne. Brightnose is a Cree filmmaker based in Winnipeg. After studying media production at Assiniboine Community College, she went on to launch her own production company, Tilted Teepee Productions. Her work focuses on Indigenous language revitalization with the goal of providing a learning platform for those looking to delve deeper into their culture. She is an alumna of the 2021 CBC New Indigenous Voices program.
Knowledge Network, in conjunction with the First Peoples’ Cultural Council, is collaborating on a new documentary initiative about First Nations cultural revitalization in British Columbia. The public broadcaster will commission two half-hour compilations, each comprised of 10 short docs that showcase efforts to revitalize First Nations languages, arts, cultures and heritage and its positive impact on communities. Through its relationships with Elders, community leaders, Knowledge Keepers and artists, the First Peoples’ Cultural Council will support storytelling efforts. The deadline for proposal submissions is March 17. The films will premiere on Knowledge Network’s television and streaming platforms in 2024.
Netflix and imagineNATIVE are partnering to award $25,000 grants to five Indigenous filmmakers in honour of late filmmaker Jeff Barnaby. In memory of the Mi’gmaq filmmaker, who passed away in October at age 46, the grant will support five Indigenous film and television creatives developing projects in the horror, thriller and futurism genres. Netflix is contributing $125,000 from its Fund for Creative Equity, with ImagineNATIVE supporting the application, judging and selection process.
Warner Bros. Discovery Access Canada and the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television have announced the return of talent roster initiatives the WBD Access x Canadian Academy Writers Program and WBD Access x Canadian Academy Directors Program for their third and second round of programming, respectively. Applications for both programs are open until Feb. 16. The third iteration of the Writers Program will support up to 10 experienced Canadian writers seeking to advance their careers through the development of a particular project, mentorship and community-building opportunities, with a focus on episodic television. The sophomore edition of the Directors Program will welcome eight Canadian directors from underrepresented communities who have been taking steps in their career to direct television episodic series in any genre.
CBC, BIPOC TV & Film and the Canadian Film Centre (CFC) have announced the participants for the second year of the CBC-BIPOC TV & Film Showrunner Catalyst, an accelerator program supporting the career advancement of senior writers who identify as Indigenous, Black or People of Colour. The six participants for the second year of the program, now underway, are Vance Banzo, Nelu Handa, Amanda Joy, JP Larocque, Robina Lord-Stafford, and Shannon Masters.
FuboTV is launching three Disney channels in Canada as part of its Premium package: Disney Channel, Disney Junior, and Disney XD. The trio of Disney channels come to FuboTV as part of the company’s partnership with STACKTV. Channels already launched on Fubo through the partnership include Global, HGTV Canada, Food Network Canada, W Network, Showcase, Slice, Adult Swim, National Geographic, Lifetime, The HISTORY® Channel, TELETOON, Treehouse and YTV. Channels new to Fubo Canada in late 2022 include The Design Network, World Poker Tour, and food channel, Tastemade.
toober, the Toronto-based live television platform connecting viewers to specialty television from around the world, has launched in-browser viewing, allowing any viewer with a browser-equipped device (computer, tablet or smartphone) to subscribe and watch with no app download necessary. toober also added 10 new channels to its lineup in January, including Serbian-language channel Kitchen TV; Spanish-language news and entertainment kids channel, Vision Latina; Universal Living Faith Network; Coyoteland Media Afro Music Pop; Pakistani Canadian channel, Toronto360; NOW 70s, NOW 80s and NOW 90s music channels; France 24 French HD; and France 24 English HD. toober is available in Canada on Rogers, Shaw, Videotron, Apple TV, Google TV Playstore, Samsung, and Roku, as well as in the U.S. and Mexico via LG, Roku and Apple TV.
The 65th Annual Grammy Awards will air Sunday, Feb. 5 at 8 p.m. on Citytv, Citytv.com, and Citytv+. The lineup has been expanded with the addition of an In Memoriam segment which will feature Kacey Musgraves performing “Coal Miner’s Daughter” in a tribute to Loretta Lynn; Sheryl Crow, Mick Fleetwood and Bonnie Raitt honoring Christine McVie with “Songbird”; and Maverick City Music joining Quavo for “Without You” as they remember Takeoff. Trevor Noah hosts this year’s awards show, live from Los Angeles.
Corus Entertainment’s Séries Plus has acquired the exclusive television broadcast rights for popular drama series, Yellowstone, in French in Canada. Originally broadcast on Amazon Prime in Canada and on the Paramount specialty channel in the U.S., the series has been a resounding success since its debut. Séries Plus will broadcast the complete series, starting in fall 2023 with a special early broadcast of Season 5, starting April 5.
Prime Video is partnering with Corus Entertainment’s Séries Plus to bring back popular murder mystery, Nuit Blanche (8×60). The second season begins production this summer with Quebec’s Pixcom. At launch, Season 2 will be exclusively available on Prime Video and later on Séries Plus in Canada. Season 1 will also be available on Prime. Leading the cast is actress, host, singer, France Castel who reprises her role as LouLou Hébert. Produced by Pixcom in association with Amazon Studios and Séries Plus, the series is part of Prime Video’s continued investment in French language content, joining LOL: Qui Rira le Dernier?, Pour un Soir Seulement, and other Canadian Amazon Originals.
Gusto TV is in production on what the Canadian culinary channel is billing as the world’s first food show featuring on-screen characters generated through Artificial Intelligence (AI) software. Set to air on Gusto TV later this year, The Wizard of Sauce stars Toronto food stylist and TikTok personality Kyle Crawford who shares the tips, techniques and secrets of sauce while referencing pop culture, fashion and lifestyle hot buttons. Shot on a high-concept, non-kitchen set at Gusto TV Studios, the show features three secondary characters: Professor Saussenheimer, Dr. Sauss and Sgt. Sauce-alot. Performed by Crawford in costume and then digitized in post-production and rendered as AI characters, each appears in a 30-second interstitial segment in the average episode. Gusto TV is also casting for forthcoming AI project, Some Assembly Required, which will feature a host chef who’ll speak with an AI creation that appears on set via a giant plasma screen. Read more here.
Blue Ant Media has greenlit three new series set to air in 2023 across its Canadian specialty TV networks: T+E and Cottage Life, and global free streaming (FAST) channels: HauntTV and Total Crime. Following the ratings success of two-part original documentary, Haunted Gold Rush, Blue Ant Media has ordered new six-part series, Haunted by History (w/t)(6×60’; HD), which marks the return of paranormal investigators, Corine Carey, Leanne Sallenback and Kelly Ireland, as they travel across North America and meet with real people who recount their ghost experiences. Also commissioned is new original documentary, A Secret to Die For (2×60’; HD), which investigates how a person’s secret life can end up costing them their own. The first two episodes of the true crime documentary series will make their broadcast debut on T+E in Canada this summer as well as Total Crime in the U.S. New original series Secrets in the Sand (6×60’; HD) will examine curiosities from lost ancient cities to mysterious geological formations, relying on CGI, stock and archival footage, and expert testimony. The six-part series is slated to premiere this summer on Cottage Life in Canada.
Bell Media has confirmed the sale of two seasons of original docuseries Pets & Pickers to Animal Planet. Produced by Tyson Media, the series makes its U.S. debut Feb. 18. Production has wrapped on Season 2, set to launch this spring on Bell Media’s Animal Planet and will also air in the U.S. at a later date. Shot in Richmond, BC, the unscripted series is a look at how the Regional Animal Protection Society (RAPS) Animal Hospital works to offer low-income pet families access to healthcare, funding treatments with their thrift store. Season 1 is available to stream on CTV.ca and the CTV App.
Finding Freedom, a TELUS original documentary, premieres on TELUS Optik TV on Feb. 14. It follows four asylum seekers, who after being detained indefinitely in an immigration detention centre, use smuggled cell phones to document prison-like conditions and expose daily violations to their human rights. Producer Mel D’Souza and director Alan Goldman shed light on the disturbing realities of certain refugee detention centres and the challenges newcomers face even after securing freedom in Canada, among other countries. Beginning March 3, the film will also be available on WaterBear, an interactive streaming platform featuring documentaries dedicated to the future of the planet.
The Canadian Film Centre (CFC) has revived its Black History Month Speaker Series with two CFC Conversations celebrating Canadian Black Excellence, Black Futures and Black Stories. Award-winning actress Amanda Brugel (The Handmaid’s Tale, Kim’s Convenience, Infinity Pool) will take the stage on Feb. 15 from 7 to 8 p.m. at Cineplex Cinemas Varsity and VIP in Toronto. CFC alumnus Clement Virgo will be featured Feb. 22, discussing breaking boundaries and his most recent feature, Brother. Thanks to the support of TD, both events are free of charge and open to the public. Find ticket info here.
ONLINE & DIGITAL MEDIA:
Overstory Media Group (OMG) has made another round of layoffs, focused on Victoria’s Capital Daily. Among those caught up in Monday’s job losses were managing editor Jimmy Thomson, who’d been with the digital publication since 2020; journalist and copy editor Jolene Rudisuela; and reporters Brishti Brasu and Shannon Waters. The cuts come less than two months after an earlier round of layoffs in December. Founded by former Daily Hive Editor-in-Chief Farhan Mohamed and Victoria tech entrepreneur Andrew Wilkinson, OMG launched in May 2021 with a goal to hire 250 journalists in the coming years as part of an ambitious plan for national expansion. Read more here. Amidst this week’s layoffs, a majority of OMG staff have signed union cards with CWA Canada.
Global News has launched a channel on free messaging platform, Telegram, focused on political news. The platform allows users to create group chats for up to 200,000 participants and create channels to broadcast messages to an unlimited audience, among other features. Global says the move is part of the network’s strategy to reach audiences where they are. Telegram boasts 700 million active monthly users, according to corporate figures, up 40% since the beginning of 2021.
REGULATORY, TELECOM & MEDIA:
Rogers, Shaw, the Shaw Family Living Trust, and Quebecor have announced an agreement to extend the outside date of the proposed merger of Rogers and Shaw and the acquisition of Freedom Mobile by Quebecor-owned Videotron, to Feb. 17, 2023. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) must approve the transfer of spectrum licenses from Shaw to Videotron – in connection with the proposed acquisition of Freedom Mobile by Videotron – before the Rogers-Shaw merger can proceed.
Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) will award one of its International Press Freedom Awards to the Ukrainian journalists who documented the Russian siege of Mariupol. The award will be presented at CJFE’s 23rd Annual Gala: A Night to Honour Courageous Reporting on Feb. 15. The Associated Press team of photojournalists Mstyslav Chernov, Evgeniy Maloletka, and field producer Vasilisa Stepanenko stayed in Mariupol after the Russians cut all communication lines to the city and after other international journalists left. They were only able to send out a fraction of what they recorded but the impact was huge. Incensed, the Russians hunted them down, but they made a harrowing escape. As previously announced, CJFE’s other International Press Freedom Award will honour two Iranian journalists imprisoned for reporting on the death and funeral of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, attacked by Iran’s morality police for not wearing her headscarf properly.
RTDNA Canada has extended its awards submissions deadline to this Friday, Feb. 3 at 11:59 PM (PT). Review submission rules and entry guidelines here. The new VJ Award has been added to both Regional and National categories. You must be an RTDNA Canada member to enter the awards.
Staples Canada and Bell have announced a multi-year agreement to sell Bell, Virgin Plus and Lucky Mobile wireless and wireline services to consumers and small businesses through Staples stores across Canada. Staples and Bell will also partner to sell Bell services direct to medium-sized businesses through the Staples Professional sales team, starting later this spring. In-store kiosks will be located in 300 Staples locations, staffed by Staples sales associates. The partnership will see Staples hire 800 full- and part-time employees.
Rogers Sports & Media has partnered with Oongalee to exclusively represent advertising inventory for its tabletop Gateways in bars and restaurants across Canada. The out-of-home (OOH) advertising network’s patented tech is an affordable way for establishments to enhance their guest experience by keeping patrons’ phones charged while providing a high-definition advertising portal for brands to reach those audiences. Restaurants can also generate revenue through advertising and update daily food and drink specials at the touch of a screen. Oongalee currently has an inventory of 7,000 screens, aiming to grow that to 40,000 nationwide by Q2 2023, rolling out in restaurant chains like Boston Pizza, Denny’s and The Canadian Brewhouse.
BROADCAST TECH & ENGINEERING:
LISTEN: Tessa Potter, President of WABE (Western Association of Broadcast Engineers) – the first woman to lead the volunteer organization – joins us on this episode of Broadcast Dialogue – The Podcast to talk about the state of broadcast engineering, the challenges of training the next generation, the importance of industry connection, and plans for WABE’s upcoming conference in Vancouver this fall. Listen on your favourite podcast app or here:
Number 9 Audio Group in Toronto is recovering from a fire in December. Owned by George Rondina, the recording studio has been operating since 1981, working with numerous Canadian artists including David Clayton-Thomas, Amanda Marshall, Natalie MacMaster, Lawrence Gowan, Sarah Polley (“The Sweet Hereafter” soundtrack), and Rufus Wainwright, among others, in addition to acting as a vital source of rental gear to producers and other studios. A GoFundMe has been set up to help Rondina rebuild.
Dejero has made rally car racing broadcast history, in partnership with Professional AV, transmitting live in-vehicle camera feeds from multiple rally cars racing through rural locations to a national TV broadcaster. Jännerrallye, also known as the Internationale Jänner Rallye, took place Jan. 5-7. Winding through the forests and mountains of Freistadt in Northern Austria, organizers found the terrain challenging to find a stable enough signal to be able to broadcast high quality video. Three rally cars were equipped with Dejero EnGo 265 mobile video transmitters for the three-day event; two EnGos were placed at various start and finish lines, and an additional EnGo was connected to a drone. The live camera feeds were transmitted by the Dejero devices over bonded cellular, back to a production hub equipped by Professional AV in Messehalle Freistadt. Two Dejero WayPoint receivers reconstructed the feeds, decoded the HEVC and then outputted them for broadcast to television and streaming channels.
NAB Show, taking place in Las Vegas April 15-19, will feature three new conferences aimed at production and post-production specialists, in addition to Post|Production World (P|PW). They include the Visual Storytelling Conference (April 14-15): a two-day conference for photographers and creators of online video who wish to maximize their creativity and technical skills in storytelling; Remote Production Conference (April 16-17): a two-day, multi-track training event focused on best practices for remote connectivity in media production and entertainment; and Director of Photography Creative Conference (April 18-19): a two-day training event focused on cutting-edge techniques and best practices for cinematographers, camera operators, owner-operators, digital imaging technicians and other camera and sound crew members. Post|Production World, now in its 19th year, is a leading training conference for content creators, designers, producers, and editors of TV, film and video, featuring 150+ live and interactive training sessions.
