REVOLVING DOOR:
Rob Brimacombe has joined Momentum Media Marketing, the parent company of Broadcast Dialogue and its sister publication, Cartt.ca, as VP, Sales & Partnerships. Up until last spring, Brimacombe spent the last eight and a half years with Corus Entertainment as Manager of Sales for the B.C. Market, working as part of the Corus Radio Vancouver and Global BC management teams. Prior to Corus, he was the General Sales Manager at Rogers Sports & Media for seven years, preceded by six years with Corus as Manager of Local Sales. He’s also the Past President of the B.C. Association of Broadcasters (BCAB). Read more here.
Casey-Jo Loos, afternoon host at 102.1 The Edge (CFNY-FM) Toronto, is among those parting ways with Corus Radio, as part of another round of efficiency cuts impacting both the audio division and Global News. Those departing the company include Sue Deyell, who had co-hosted Mornings with Sue and Andy on Calgary news/talk station 770 CHQR for the last six years, and Darryl Law, the longtime morning show host at 107.5 Dave Rocks (CJDV-FM) Kitchener, who had been with Corus for 24 years. Behind-the-scenes staffers leaving the company include Kelsey Campbell, Senior Manager, Network Radio Programming & National Client Integrations, who had been with the company since 2016, starting as an on-air host at Edmonton’s CISN Country, in addition to Amanda Sittrop, Executive Assistant, Global BC, who had been with Corus for the last seven and a half years. Read more here.
Travis Dhanraj’s lawyer has addressed the journalist’s quiet disappearance from CBC News Network last year. As the network ushers in the debut of new primetime Ian Hanomansing vehicle, Hanomansing Tonight, renewed questions were raised about what had become of Canada Tonight with Travis Dhanraj, which launched in the same 7 – 9 p.m. ET time slot in January 2024. Dhanraj’s lawyer Kathryn Marshall issued a statement this week saying her client had been “compelled to step away for a time” due to “ongoing systemic issues” at the public broadcaster. Read more here.
Belle Puri has officially retired from CBC Vancouver after 48 years as a journalist. Puri had been with CBC since 1991, holding roles from serving as the B.C. Legislative Bureau Chief to business reporting for Newsworld, and more recently contributing to CBC Vancouver’s Impact Team, highlighting stories impacting those in the local community.
Matt Marshall is leaving CTV Edmonton after more than two decades to run his boxing gym, Marshall Boxing Club, full-time. Marshall has worked at CTV Edmonton in various capacities since 2002, starting out as a floor director, robotic camera operator, and live truck operator, before getting out in the field as a ENG news shooter and photojournalist.
Emily Haws is leaving CPAC to join the Globe and Mail’s Ottawa bureau as a reporter. Haws had been the producer of Primetime Politics with Michael Serapio for the past year. She’s previously held roles as a reporter, editor and producer with CBC News in Nunavut and Ottawa.
Stephanie Gosine has joined Stingray as Manager, Content Operations, Stingray Business. Gosine was Corus Entertainment’s Program Manager, Content & Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Lead, up until last April. She’s also held roles with CBC, Rogers Sports & Media, WildBrain, and Blue Ant Media, and teaches part-time in Humber College’s Faculty of Media, Creative Arts & Design.
David Van Poppel has joined B.C.’s Knowledge Network as its new Senior Manager of Primetime Programming and Acquisitions. He’ll lead strategic sourcing, acquisition and scheduling of Canadian and global content for adult audiences on Knowledge Network’s broadcast channel and streaming service. He arrives from Spafax Canada, where he was the In-flight Entertainment Content Manager for Air Canada, and more recently, Lufthansa group. He succeeds the retiring Lawrence Tapley.
Duncan Kinney, Executive Director and Editor of Alberta’s Progress Report, is stepping away after nine years. Kinney has returned to school at Grant MacEwan University where he’s training to be a psych nurse. He discusses his departure from the publication here. Hijal De Sarkar has taken on the role of Director of Operations at the employee-run non-profit.
The Canadian Film Centre (CFC) has announced the appointment of three new members to its Board of Directors: Toronto City Councillor Rachel Chernos Lin; Magali Simard, Cinespace Studios’ Director of Industry & Community Relations; and Owen McCorquodale, Head of Communications for Prime Video in Canada. They join recently appointed board member, Academy Award-winning director Guillermo del Toro.
Dylan Lalonde has taken on a new role with RODE Microphones and Mackie Audio, as part of the Freedman Group, as Production Validate & Field-testing Engineer. A new division of the company, Freedman Group is responsible for designing and manufacturing audio equipment across a number of brands. Lalonde, who also is the lead at Ottawa-based Lydian Studios, was formerly a radio and audio producer for Rogers Sports & Media stations in Ottawa, London, Victoria and Kitchener.
RADIO & PODCAST:
The CRTC has approved Vista Radio’s purchase of 21 Bell Media radio stations, including 27 regional repeater transmitters in British Columbia. The acquisition encompasses all Bell Media radio stations in B.C. the company plans to divest, with the exception of those in Vancouver and Victoria, including CHOR-FM Summerland, CJAT-FM Trail, CKKC-FM Nelson, CKGR-FM Golden, CKXR-FM Salmon Arm, CKCR-FM Revelstoke, CJMG-FM Penticton, CKOR-AM Penticton, CJOR-AM Osoyoos, CICF-FM Vernon, CHSU-FM, CILK-FM and CKFR-AM Kelowna, CKNL-FM Fort St. John, CHRX-FM Fort St. John, CJDC-AM Dawson Creek, CKRX-FM Fort Nelson, CFTK-AM and CJFW-FM Terrace, CHTK-FM Prince Rupert, and CKTK-FM Kitimat. Read more here.
Sportsnet delivers Spring Training coverage from Dunedin, beginning Feb. 22, airing 23 games, including all 16 home matchups. On the Sportsnet Radio Network, Ben Shulman has the call, alongside analyst Chris Leroux. Shulman will also call select Spring Training games on TV. Blair & Barker (Jeff Blair and Kevin Barker) return to break down the latest storylines weekdays (Sportsnet 590 The FAN, Sportsnet 360, Sportsnet+). Blair and Barker also return with Jays Talk for post-game breakdowns, with contributions from Sho Alli, in addition to Jays Talk Plus, hosted daily by Blake Murphy and Julia Kreuz throughout the regular season. Jays podcast At the Letters also returns, featuring Ben Nicholson-Smith and Arden Zwelling. On TV & Sportsnet+, Dan Shulman delivers play-by-play, with analysis from Buck Martinez and Joe Siddall. Jamie Campbell leads Blue Jays Central, joined by analysts Siddall, Caleb Joseph, and Madison Shipman for pre-, mid-, and post-game coverage, while reporters Hazel Mae and Zwelling bring the latest updates from the clubhouse and dugout.
Vancouver Co-op Radio (CFRO 100.5 FM) has launched a fundraising campaign in recognition of its upcoming 50th anniversary celebration. Since 1975, the community station has been delivering 140 hours of original programming each week in over 10 languages. This April, the station is planning to mark its milestone anniversary with a celebration and live broadcast event featuring live music performances from local artists, however it is staging the event without the grant funding it had hoped to secure to compensate those performers. The station has a goal to raise $6,000 in support of the event.
The Podcast Academy’s 5th annual Ambies Awards have announced this year’s nominees. Among the Canadian podcasts nominated across 28 categories are BBC / CBC co-production Who Replaced Avril Lavigne? Joanne McNally Investigates (Best Comedy Podcast); CBC Podcasts and NPR’s Tested (Best Documentary Podcast); CBC Podcasts’ Kid Nation (Best Entertainment, Best History Podcast); BBC / CBC co-production Hollywood Exiles (Best History Podcast); CBC World Report (Best News Podcast); and CBC’s Broomgate: A Curling Scandal (Best Sports Podcast).
CBC Podcasts has announced its new winter/spring slate of original podcasts, highlighted by a deep dive into “Who Broke The Internet?” and broadcaster Arlene Bynon’s jailhouse phone interviews with child serial killer Clifford Olson. Read more here.
Spotify says video consumption and payouts to creators are up, following the launch of its Spotify Partner Program last month in Canada, the U.S., UK and Australia. The streamer says its video podcast consumption is up more than 20% since the program’s launch, with payouts to creators in January increasing by 300% year-over-year. The company said hundreds of creators surpassed $10,000 in monthly revenue on Spotify, with the top earners crossing well into six figures in the first month alone. Read more here.
Rachel Gilmore has launched new podcast, Bubble Pop with Rachel Gilmore. The weekly podcast promises to break down the headlines, with its first episode tackling Canada’s “broligarch” problem with tech journalist Paris Marx.
Amber Mac is launching a new weekly, one-hour show on SiriusXM Canada (Ch. 167). The AmberMac Show will air every Tuesday at 2 p.m. ET, with the podcast version to be available the next day. She’ll co-host alongside Jeff MacArthur, interviewing guests across tech, media and business.
NYthespirit.com has announced a new “Memories with Pete & Geets” segment, featuring the Toronto radio legends, that will be woven through the online radio service’s playlists. Pete & Geets, who were heard for decades on CHUM-FM and CFNY-FM, will pop-up in the streamer’s weekday programming. The project is the result of nearly two years of work, made possible with the support of David Haydu (Geets Romo), Dylan Griffin (son of the late Peter Griffin), Kevin O’Leary (producer of the CFNY-FM Pete & Geets Show) and Andrew Palidwor, along with Doug Thompson and Igor Loukine. Celebrating its 11th year, NYthespirit.com’s lineup of DJs includes All Night Andre, Earl Jive, Ivar Hamilton, James New Music Show, Rob Stuart, Scott Eagleson and David Marsden.
LISTEN: CBC News launched a new primetime program this week in the midst of an unprecedented news cycle that has sparked a surge in demand for Canadian news. Veteran anchor Ian Hanomansing is helming Hanomansing Tonight – live from the West Coast – from 7 – 9 p.m. ET on CBC News Network and CBC Gem. Ian joins Broadcast Dialogue – The Podcast to give us a preview of the new program, and share his thoughts on the future of broadcast news, fighting public cynicism, and more.
LISTEN: Marc Scott knows voiceover, and how to market voiceover. He’s on the latest Sound Off Podcast, talking about his early fascination with radio and how he got his start in the industry through a high school co-op, before working at various radio stations across Ontario. Scott pivoted to voiceover in 2011 after being downsized and outlines his four-year trajectory from making $15,000 a year to moving to 6 figures by making some smart decisions.
SIGN OFFS:
Ben Babchishin, 64, on Feb. 10. Babchishin graduated from Mount Royal University’s Radio and Television Broadcasting program in 1981, and started his career working at television stations including CHAT-TV Medicine Hat, along with stops in Prince George, Lethbridge, and London, ON. He joined Global Regina as Creative Director in 1989, before an eight-year run in the same role at CTV Edmonton, starting in 1991. In 2000, he reinvented himself as a full service video producer, writer and director, launching Big Picture Productions and later Hired Gun Films. In addition to commercial projects, Babchishin produced web series, shorts and documentaries, including feature TV movie, “The Kois: Fish Out of Water,” which was shot in and around Edmonton and made its broadcast debut on Super Channel. Babchishin’s “Breakout of the Masala Kid” was selected for the Edmonton Short Film Festival’s Red Carpet Gala and won Best Dramatic Production Under 60 at the 2009 Rosies, recognizing the best of Alberta film and television.
TV & FILM:
Roku has announced a partnership with Fremantle that will bring Season 8 of American Idol live to The Roku Channel, in its first single-territory live and simulcast deal, along with AVOD (advertising-based video on demand) digital exclusive rights to the series. Season 8 will air on ABC on Sundays and Mondays and next day on Hulu in the U.S. with a simulcast on The Roku Channel for free in Canada, streaming the next day on-demand on The Roku Channel. A special preview of the music competition series will air Sunday, March 2, ahead of the new season premiere on March 9.
The New Wave of Standup is set to return to CBC Gem for a sixth season. A 2024 Canadian Screen Award nominee for Best Comedy Special, The New Wave of Standup combines stand up sets with a behind-the-scenes look at each artist. Being filmed during Just for Laughs Vancouver at Guilt & Co. this week, Season 6 features Tim Blair, Raajiee Chelliah, Adrienne Fish, Nathan Hare. Wassim El-Mounzer, Randee Neumeyer, K.C. Novak, Callum O’Neil, Bree Parsons, Hassan Phills, Olivia Stadler, Henry Sir, Alain Williams, and Isabel Zaw-Tun.
Longhope Media and CBC have announced that Season 2 of CBC Gem original comedy series You’re My Hero will launch with all six episodes Friday, March 14 in recognition of National Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month. Created by and starring Sean Towgood, You’re My Hero is a comedy series that shakes up prevailing views on what it means to be living with a disability in the 21st century. The six-part, 18-minute per episode season is about Ian Fletcher (Towgood), an angsty 20-something with cerebral palsy dealing with the pressures of adult life in a world not designed for wheels.
Ghosting with Luke Hutchie and Matthew Finlan (8×30) is back for a second season of investigations into the most allegedly haunted locations in Canada. The unscripted paranormal comedy from Blue Ant Studios, in association with Luke Hutchie Productions, follows Hutchie (EZRA) and Finlan (Orphan: First Kill, Hell of a Summer), two actors known for their work in the horror genre, as they step off script and into their own real-life thriller. Season 2 premieres Friday, March 21 with all episodes available on CBC Gem. Veronika Slowikowska (What We Do in the Shadows), Joel Oulette (Trickster), Percy Hynes White (Wednesday), Humberly Gonzáles (Tarot, Ginny & Georgia), Krista Nazaire (The Hardy Boys), Nikki Roumel (Ginny & Georgia), Jordan Connor (Riverdale), and Priyanka (Canada’s Drag Race) round out this season’s celebrity guests.
Accessible Media Inc. (AMI), in partnership with FRANK Digital, has announced the Season 5 return of Dish with Mary on AMI-tv and AMI+ that sees Mary Mammoliti—a home cook and culinary content creator who has low vision—cook alongside renowned Canadian chefs. Season 5 of Dish with Mary debuts Wednesday, Feb. 26, and will feature Chef Carlo Guzzi of Carlo’s Cucina; Chef Tracy Little of Sauvage; and Chef Fabrizio Rossi of Vida Cucina, among others.
Blue Ant Studios is heading to London TV Screenings this month with a wide-ranging slate of programming, including more than 40 new and returning series as well as documentaries produced both in-house and by leading independent producers. Key titles in the crime genre this year include Never Get Busted!, executive produced by Chris Smith (Tiger King) and John Battsek (Wham!, Beckham, Elton John), which premiered last week at Sundance Film Festival, and Matthew Perry: A Hollywood Tragedy (original broadcaster: Peacock), which looks at Perry’s death and those charged.
Fifth Season has secured a raft of global sales across Seasons 1 and 2 of crime procedural Wild Cards, from Blink49 Studios, Front Street Pictures and Piller/Segan, in association with The CW for commissioning broadcaster CBC. Starring Vanessa Morgan (Riverdale), Giacomo Gianniotti (Grey’s Anatomy) and Jason Priestley (Beverly Hills 90210, Private Eyes), deals for both seasons have been secured with Talpa TV (Netherlands), STAR Life (Portugal), Mediaset España (Spain), TV JOJ (Slovakia), Warner TV (France, Belgium, Switzerland, Africa), NBCUniversal International Networks & Direct-to-Consumer (Africa), Now TV (Hong Kong), WOWOW INC. (Japan), Mediacorp TV (Singapore), Nine Network (Australia), Warner Bros. Discovery (New Zealand), and yes and Hot (Israel). Further deals have been inked for Season 1 with Play Media (Belgium), ProSiebenSat.1 Media SE (Germany), The Walt Disney Company Bulgaria, Disney Middle East and Quebecor Content (French Canada).
The 13th Annual Toronto Black Film Festival (TBFF), which took place Feb. 12-17, honoured legendary actor Ernie Hudson with the 2025 Career Achievement Award. Known for his iconic role in the Ghostbusters franchise, Hudson was recognized for his significant contributions to film and television, showcasing his versatility across a wide range of roles, including Quantum Leap, The Crow, and The Hand That Rocks the Cradle.
ONLINE & DIGITAL MEDIA:
Statement Worldwide, the Canadian brand incubator and management group, has launched POP! Canada, a new digital media outlet “dedicated to celebrating and amplifying Canadian voices in music, film, television, arts, culture and experiences.” The outlet will initially roll out content on a monthly basis, with a vision to evolve into an alternative weekly publication.
REGULATORY, TELECOM & MEDIA:
The Public Policy Forum (PPF), in partnership with the Rideau Hall Foundation (RHF) and Michener Awards Foundation (MAF), has released The Lost Estate: How to put the local back in local news, proposing urgent recommendations to revitalize the industry. The report is supported by new Ipsos polling of Canadians living in smaller communities. It found that 87% of Canadians believe local news is important to a well-functioning democracy, and they trust local newspapers and radio (85%) over national newspapers (71%) and international online news sites (55%). The report says public policy must not seek to preserve media as we have traditionally known it but rather focus on innovation including employee-owned media, non-profits and startups. Read more here.
Algonquin College is considering suspending 37 academic programs this fall – including Broadcasting – Radio & Podcasting – as the Ottawa institution grapples with a projected $60 million dollar loss in 2025-26, amidst the new federal cap on international students and tuition freezes. The college is looking at pausing 16% of all programs. Among the courses for suspension consideration in the Faculty of Creative Arts & Media are: Brand Management, Creative Industries Management, Performing Arts, Photography – Content Creation, Professional Writing, Scriptwriting, and Visual Development for Entertainment.
