The Weekly Briefing

REVOLVING DOOR:

Michael Melling, former Head of CTV News, who more recently held the title of VP, Shared Services, is among the new names to emerge from Bell Media’s latest round of job cuts. In addition to some of the high-profile departures previously reported, those impacted across iHeartRadio Canada include Virgin Radio syndicated host DJ Starting From Scratch, CHOM host Jason Rockman, Virgin Radio Vancouver (CFBT-FM) personality Angelina Rai, and Move 103.5 (CHQM-FM) Vancouver weekend host Arran Henn. Additional casualties in sports programming include TSN 1260 (CFRN-AM) Edmonton host Dustin Nielson and Assistant PD and on-call television reporter Matthew Iwanyk, as well as Oilers’ pre- and post-game host Tom Gazzola, TSN host/producer Kelcey Brade, TSN ‘Top 10’ specials producer Greg Sands, and CTV Vancouver sports producer and photojournalist Gary Rutherford, in addition to CTV Morning Live Edmonton morning show anchor Ziyah Karmali, among many others. The CTV Vancouver Island newsroom was also hit hard as the bureau moves to a single, weekday newscast, remotely-anchored from Vancouver.

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Navigator is delighted to welcome @chrishallottawa who will be joining our Ottawa office as a Principal.

Chris brings with him a wealth of knowledge after 24 years covering Parliament Hill at CBC, most recently as National Affairs Editor & the host of The House.

Welcome Chris! pic.twitter.com/liQ2TwTOSM

— Navigator (@navltd) June 19, 2023

Chris Hall has joined crisis PR firm Navigator. Hall retired last summer as CBC’s National Affairs Editor and CBC Radio political affairs program, The House, last June after 24 years covering Parliament Hill for the public broadcaster.

Ocean 100 (CHTN-FM) Charlottetown has introduced a new morning show, following the passing of longtime co-host Kerri Wynne Macleod in February. The new show includes Ocean 100 mainstay Scott Chapman, Program Coordinator Darcy Campbell, and newcomer Jill Chandler. Chandler, like MacLeod, has a background as a singer/songwriter and stage performer, in addition to serving as a Councillor for the Town of Stratford. Stingray has also announced the 1st Annual Kerri Wynne MacLeod Women of Impact Awards, a tribute to MacLeod’s legacy and her impact on P.E.I., with nominations to open in September.

Mora Austin is joining Central Ontario Broadcasting in July as General Sales Manager, replacing Brian DePoe, who retires Aug. 1. She’ll oversee Sales for Rock 95 (CFJB-FM) and Kool FM (CKMB-FM) in Barrie and Simcoe County. Austin was formerly General Manager for Bell Media’s Radio & TV stations in Central & Northern Ontario, and prior to that a Vice President and GM with Larche Communications. She’s also a former President of Ontario Association of Broadcasters (OAB). 

Andrew Brennan has moved over to CP24 as an anchor and reporter from his previous role as a video journalist with CTV Toronto. Brennan had been with CTV since 2019 when he joined the Montreal bureau from CityNews Montreal.

Eloise Therien has announced her departure from Global Lethbridge. Therien had been a video journalist with the station since 2020 when she joined Global right out of SAIT’s Broadcast News program.

Jacob New has joined the Global BC newsroom as a writer. New is a 2023 BCIT Broadcast & Online Journalism grad.  

Ben Grant of the Xs and Argos Podcast is joining Mike Hogan on TSN 1050 (CHUM-AM) Toronto Argonauts’ game broadcasts this season as a colour analyst. Hogan heads into his 18th season calling play-by-play for the team.

Eric Chapman has announced he’s been released by Toronto-based turnkey podcast producer Obie and Ax after just six months. Prior to joining the podcast startup in January as a senior producer and more recently VP of Production, Chapman was a community contributor and host at 980 CKNW Vancouver.

Alisha Sawhney has joined Globe Content Studio, the content marketing division of the Globe and Mail, as Podcast Lead. Sawhney, who has been serving in the role of Audience Growth Editor for the last six months, will be overseeing podcast strategy, including revenue initiatives across editorial and branded content. She previously hosted Huff Post Canada’s Born and Raised, before joining the New York Times as a Staff Editor, Opinion.

TVO has made changes to the structure of its Programming and Content division. Natasha Negrea moves into the newly-created role of Head of Programming, responsible for the overall direction of TVO documentaries and children’s programming. Elizabeth St. Philip joins as Director, Program Development, a new position responsible for charting projects for broadcast and digital platforms. Her immediate responsibilities include The Thread with Nam Kiwanuka, a multi-platform production blending AI polling, online conversation and broadcast. Push Pictures founder and producer Alexandra Roberts joins TVO as Commissioning Editor, Documentaries, overseeing the production of commissioned documentaries, from initial pitch to finished film. Kirsten Hurd, who has been serving as interim Executive Producer of TVOkids, moves permanently into the new role of Commissioning Editor, TVOkids. 

Kate Vollum has been hired as Producer at the National Film Board (NFB) Ontario Studio in Toronto. Vollum’s career with the NFB began in 2007 at Mediatheque in Toronto, where she gave stop-motion and documentary workshops to school groups. Soon after, she began working as a production coordinator, learning the ropes on many of the studio’s most critically acclaimed films, including Sarah Polley’s Stories We Tell. Most recently, she co-produced Ever Deadly, an experimental doc collaboration between filmmaker Chelsea McMullan and artist/activist Tanya Tagaq, which premiered at TIFF.

Shane Smith will be departing Hot Docs after eight years spearheading the curatorial vision for the annual Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival. While his final day will be June 30, he’ll remain involved as a consultant through the transition period with the search for his successor to begin this month. Smith joined Hot Docs in 2015 as programming director, overseeing curation of Hot Docs Festival, the national Docs For Schools education program and other initiatives, including the long-running Doc Soup screening series. Last year, he was named artistic director and assumed oversight of year-round programming at Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema.

Dawn Chubai, who departed Rogers Sports & Media after 19 years last month, has launched Live Selling School, a program catering to brand ambassadors and influencers. Drawing on her more than two decades in broadcasting, most recently at TSC (formerly The Shopping Channel), Chubai says the course will cover everything from on-camera presence to livestream sales strategies.

 

RADIO & PODCAST:

580 CFRA Ottawa staff have signed union cards with CWA Canada, amidst the layoff of six per cent of Bell Media’s workforce. The union filed for certification Friday with the federal labour board, a little more than 48 hours after Bell announced the layoff of 1,300 workers and the abrupt shuttering of six of its AM radio stations. The group, which includes a majority of non-unionized hosts, producers, writers and technicians at the heritage news/talk station, said in a mission statement that the company’s cost-cutting mandate “has caused a swift decline in staffing” and created “an ever-growing workload.” CWA said once formally unionized, the workers will form a unit within the Ottawa Newspaper Guild (CWA Canada Local 30205), which already represents employees at Bell Media-owned CTV Ottawa. Read more here.

Numeris’ latest insights release for Spring 2023 indicates AM/FM tuning is stable across both traditional tuning and those streaming radio. AM/FM radio is reaching 86% of Canadians, A12+, weekly in metered markets (Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal). Tuning was highest in Franco Montreal at 91%, followed by Calgary and Edmonton (87%). Numeris says 64% of listening was done outside the home with A25-54, with drive and daytime securing the highest share of out-of-home tuning at 74% and 72%, respectively. AM/FM’s live streaming share remained stable at 10%, with two percentage point gains in Vancouver and Franco Montreal. Read more here.

Radiodays North America left those in attendance with renewed optimism for the future of audio, amidst looming AI disruption, changing consumer habits, and the challenges facing terrestrial radio. Those were just a few of the hot topics that repeatedly arose during the two-day conference that took place during Canadian Music Week in Toronto, an extension of the Radiodays Europe event, which annually attracts roughly 1,200 delegates from the audio, radio and podcasting space. Futuri CEO Daniel Anstandig kicked off the conference presenting on RadioGPT, the first 100% AI-driven localized radio content solution, currently being beta tested by Rogers Sports & Media and Alpha Media in the U.S. Futuri’s research indicates of 20,000 North American radio stations, less than 30% or three in 10, have more than one live and local daypart. Anstandig believes AI opens the door for a local content “renaissance” that could help grow audiences. AI was a consistent theme weaving its way into almost every discussion, juxtaposed by the message that authenticity will always win with listeners. Read more here.

National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has launched a new AM radio campaign, highlighting the importance of AM radio in the car for news, community engagement, and vital public safety information. NAB says about 225 broadcasters from 33 states traveled to Washington last week for a two-day conference and lobbying effort urging lawmakers to support the AM for Every Vehicle Act which would require carmakers to maintain AM in new vehicles at no additional charge. Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA) officials are also backing the bill.

The CRTC has approved an extension until September 2024 for Vernon community radio station, Valley FM (CFAV-FM), to get its transmitter operational. The station board of directors says it’s still committed to getting the station transmitting as soon as possible, citing delays compounded by the resignation of former president Gord Leighton in November to spend time with his wife, who is living with Stage 4 brain cancer. The station has been streaming since Feb. 1 and has signed a lease on office space as it seeks more volunteers. The society says a one-year extension will allow it to fundraise towards the purchase of an antenna and transmitter. 

Pattison Media’s 1050 CJNB North Battleford, SK is back up and running at full power after suffering transmitter failure following lightning storms in early June. Program Director Nic Fransoo told Battlefords Now an immense power surge essentially “cooked many different dependent parts.”

Vista Radio’s CJSU 89.7 Duncan, BC has returned to its SUN FM branding, dropping the former Juice FM moniker it had carried since 2014. The station, which was formerly branded as SUN FM for 14 years, starting in 2000 when it launched on FM, is continuing to play a Classic Hits/Variety format.

Sonar Network’s Summer Camp: The Case of the Phantom Pooper debuted this week. Based on a true story, the podcast follows camp director Mookie as he struggles to solve a string of smelly pranks at a Canadian summer camp. Blending true crime, mystery, and investigative reporting, Summer Camp: The Case of the Phantom Pooper was written, recorded and produced by Jeremy Enns (The Open Road Podcast) and filmmaker Jordan Stothers (Buzzfeed). The seven-part series also features authentic audio and interviews with campers and counsellors, and music by Matt McGinley (Serial, S-Town, This American Life).

UnScene Podcast is a recently-launched offering from Toronto-based screenwriters Jeremy Friedmann and David Tobiasz, talking to Canadian creatives about their best unmade/unmakeable TV & film ideas. Among those who’ve appeared on the podcast to date are Anthony Q. Farrell, Mark Little and Gail Renard. Chris Locke (Run the Burbs, What We Do in the Shadows), actor and comedian Colin Mochrie, and comedian/writer Mary Houlihan are scheduled to appear in the coming weeks.

LISTEN: Jenny West, one-half of the afternoon drive show on Pattison Media’s The Zone @ 91-3 (CJZN-FM) in Victoria, is this year’s Allan Waters Young Broadcaster of the Year, annually presented in memory of late programmer Steve Young. West joined us on Broadcast Dialogue – The Podcast in advance of Canadian Music Week in Toronto where she received her award during Radiodays North America. In this episode, we cover everything from her podcasting and charity endeavours – which happen to intersect, to the importance of mental wellness, and why she believes we’re in control of the future of radio.

LISTEN: Charles Adler returns to the Sound Off Podcast as he gets set to launch his own podcast, The Charles Adler Show, on Dean Blundell’s Crier Media network. The former longtime Corus Radio network talk host discusses the direction of his new show, his transition to digital and his love-hate relationship with social media, and unsurprisingly gets political. Listen on your favourite podcast app or here:

SIGN OFFS:

Russ McCloud. McCloud’s radio career began at CKPG Prince George and CKOV Kelowna in the early 1970s. He joined CFUN Vancouver in 1976, before being drafted by CHUM Toronto in 1984 where he is thought to hold the record for the longest, uninterrupted stint in nights on the station – from ‘84 to ’93 – before moving into afternoons. Known for his energy and enthusiasm, McCloud was on-air at CHUM for nearly 17 years, also working with AM sister station 1050 CHUM as host of the nationally syndicated “Canadian Countdown” show. He went on to host middays on CINW AM 940 Montreal, until the station went dark in January 2010.

TV & FILM:

The Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) and Bell Media have announced a new broadcast and content partnership, which sees the awards show leave Global TV. Under the partnership, CTV becomes the exclusive broadcaster of the 41st Annual CCMA Awards, live on Sept. 16, with the first round of performers announced including Dean Brody, Carly Pearce, The Reklaws, and emerging artist Josh Ross. The partnership will include multi-platform coverage and content featured across broadcast, radio, digital, and social media properties including, CTV Your Morning, ETALK, The Social, Bell’s iHeartRadio Canada stations, including Pure Country, as well as MuchMusic. As part of the content partnership, Pure Country will launch a National Flyaway Contest which will send listeners to Country Music Week where Pure Country will also present “The Legends Show.” Read more here.

Global has announced more network premieres joining its summer schedule, including Season 5 of competition series Tough As Nails, airing in a two-hour premiere on July 2, and the return of Big Brother for a milestone 25th season, with a special 90-minute premiere on Aug. 2. Also joining the lineup is new Dick Wolf docuseries LA Fire & Rescue, which premiered June 21, and new fan-based competition series Superfan on August 9.

Bell Media, Jessie Films and PaNik Fictions are working on adapting the BON COP, BAD COP feature films into an original series. Patrick Huard is heading up a team of writers which includes Éric K. Boulianne, Suzie Bouchard, Benoît Chartier and Sébastien Ravary. Huard and Colm Feore are reprising their respective roles in this scripted series, which is currently under development. Inspired directly from the BON COP, BAD COP films, the eight one-hour episodes will follow the adventures of Martin Ward (Feore) and David Bouchard (Huard), who once again join forces, this time, teamed with a new generation of cops just as unorthodox as they are.

CaribbeanTales Media Group founder and CEO Frances-Anne Solomon’s award-winning film: “Hero — The Extraordinary Life Of Mr. Ulric Cross” is airing on BBC Two in the UK this week and will continue to be available for online streaming on the BBC Two Player. The film is also available to stream on Amazon Prime in the U.S. and UK, and Cineplex Canada. Documenting the life of the Trinidadian diplomat, who is recognized as the most-decorated West Indian of WWII, the film stars Trinidad’s Nickolai Salcedo in the title role, supported by Peter Williams (Stargate SG1), among others.

Pluto TV in Canada is streaming all six Mission: Impossible movies free all summer long on two new dedicated FAST (free, ad-supported television) channels, Mission: Impossible Movies and More Mission: Impossible Movies, featuring the first six films while also hosting a Mission: Impossible channel featuring the original TV series. The programming stunt is running now through Aug. 15. Since launching in Canada last December, Pluto TV says it has grown viewing time by 74%, with time-spent having more than doubled. It says total minutes viewed on kids content has increased three-fold since launch with hit shows like Max & Ruby and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Disney+ has put a hold on original commissions in Canada until at least the end of the year, Variety reports. The streamer, which launched in Canada in November 2019, has yet to commission any Canadian content but last year hired former Telefilm exec Stephanie Azam as Director of Content for Canada. Variety speculates that Bill C-11 could be factoring in to Disney’s decision as the full policy implications of the Online Streaming Act are fully hammered out, in addition to internal layoffs amounting to 7,000 employees.

Blink49 Studios has announced a partnership with North American literary management company Transatlantic, to develop and produce original content for the international marketplace. The agreement gives Blink49 access to Transatlantic’s roster of book authors and IP to develop and produce original projects using Blink49’s studio, production and distribution infrastructure. Blink49 and Transatlantic will serve as co-producers on all projects developed and produced through the deal. Blink49 will serve as lead studio and have first-look international distribution rights, alongside Fifth Season. Blink49 Studios entered into a similar joint venture agreement with Vanguarde Artists Management last year. 

BrawlStars made its debut earlier this year on Bell Fibe TV with producers telling Broadcast Dialogue it’s grown to become one of the channel’s most-watched series. Featuring a cast and crew of Toronto and Durham-based filmmakers and celebrities, the show was created by and stars Benjamin Blais (The Ninth, Murdoch Mysteries, Two Deaths of Henry Baker), John Fleming (Murdoch Mysteries, Frankie Drake) and Jeff Hanson (ActionCAN Films), in addition to Olympic medalist Elvis Stojko, Birds of Bellwoods frontman Stephen Joffe (Fargo, Alias Grace, Slasher), improv veteran Kat Letwin (BadDog, Second City), as well as Canadian stunt stalwarts DL MacDonald (Reacher, Letterkenny, What We Do In the Shadows), and Julia Dyan (The Boys, Private Eyes, Awake). In the style of Comedy Central’s “Drunk History,” each episode re-enacts a real-life fight, punched up with movie magic. 

The Canadian Film Centre (CFC) has announced the 2023 cohort of the Norman Jewison Film Program, an accelerated professional film program for emerging to mid-level Canadian directors, writers, producers and editors. Eighteen storytellers from across Canada have been selected for the 2023 program, which gets underway on the CFC campus in Toronto on July 10 and runs until Dec. 14. Read more about this year’s cohort here.

The TVO Today Short Doc Contest, celebrating excellence in short documentaries by Ontario filmmakers, has named Riel Flack and her film “They Can’t. So I Must: The Orlando Bowen Story” as the winner of this year’s contest. The film was also named the People’s Choice Award winner after receiving the most online votes during a three-week period. Flack’s film is a portrait of Orlando Bowen, the former CFL player whose career was cut short after a beating by Peel Regional Police in 2004. He is now executive director of One Voice, One Team, a charity he founded to support youth leadership. Flack will receive $3,000 in cash prizing, passes to Hot Docs and the Reel World Film Festival, plus a pitch session with TVO Today Docs. All finalists for the People’s Choice Awards will appear on TVO and the TVO Today Docs YouTube channel.

The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) has opened applications for the 2023 VIFF Amp Music in Film Summit. Taking place during the 42nd Vancouver International Film Festival, Oct. 3-7, VIFF encourages songwriters, composers, music supervisors, music coordinators, sync agents, managers and other music entrepreneurs to apply for the five-day summit that will explore the essential role of music and sound in film, television and new media. Through taking part in Amp, the cohort (both new and alumni) have made connections that brought professional opportunities at production companies including Disney Features, Sony Pictures Television, DreamWorks, Fox, Starz/Lionsgate, Neophonic/HBO and more. Applications close July 30.

ONLINE & DIGITAL MEDIA:

Media Technology Monitor’s (MTM) latest report indicates three in 10 online Canadians are actively avoiding news content. The report, gauging Canadian perspectives towards news and journalism in general, indicates that news avoidance is more common among younger Canadians, women and English-speakers. Anglophones are more likely to say they avoid news because of its negative impact on their mental health, while Francophones were more likely to cite negativity and a lack of solutions offered to the issues being reported on. Read more here. 

Vizrt has released new research on sports viewer engagement suggesting the future of sports consumption is digital, revealing drastically different habits for younger audiences. While over 76% of respondents’ top choice for watching sports content is still on television, over half of Gen Z (67%) – those born in the late 1990s to early 2000s – prefer consuming sports content on their phones while on the go (vs. 54% of millennials and 23% of Gen X). Overall, 30% of respondents stated they watch sports on their mobile phones regardless of demographic. Viewers are also watching on digital channels more than ever before with nearly 60% of all respondents, and 74% of Gen Z, sharing that they use social media to catch up on sports, indicating a further decline in traditional sports viewing experiences. The report says full-game viewing experiences are becoming rarer, as the younger generation prefers highlights and catch-up options. Only 58% of Gen Z watch sports live from start to finish, emphasizing the need for shorter, more condensed content.

REGULATORY, TELECOM & MEDIA:

Loyalist College has suspended applications to its Broadcasting – Radio program, citing low enrollment. The Belleville, ON college says the program is currently under review and that Loyalist hasn’t “taken an institutional stance on the program’s future.” Loyalist is just the latest post-secondary institution to announce the suspension of a media program as the broadcast and journalism sectors are faced with mass layoffs, spurred by changing consumer habits and under the looming shadow of uncertainty around AI and the impact other technological advances will have on the industry. Mohawk College in Hamilton has announced it won’t be accepting applications for its advanced three-year Journalism diploma, due to falling enrollment. Humber College announced suspension of its Journalism degree program last November, while the University of Regina has also suspended admission to its Bachelor of Arts in Journalism, Bachelor in Journalism, and Masters of Journalism programs for the 2023-24 academic year as it moves to overhaul its offerings with a digital reset in line with the needs of modern newsrooms. Read more here. 

The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) has found TVA’s failure to clearly disclose sponsored content on its public affairs program Salut Bonjour, amounts to a Code of Ethics breach. The CBSC decision concerns the morning show’s recurring segment “C’est bon à savoir” (“Good to Know”). Hosted by Jean-François Baril, TurboTax was featured on Feb. 20, sponsored by the company, in which the software was presented as “the #1 tax software in Canada for more than 25 years.” A viewer complained the segment was an advertisement for TurboTax, but was misleadingly presented as a neutral tax advice segment. The CBSC Panel found that while TVA disclosed the segment as promotional content on its website, it should also have clearly done so during the on-air broadcast. Read more here.

RTDNA Canada has announced its 2023 Regional Lifetime Achievement Award honourees. This year’s Central Region recipients include CityNews Toronto veteran Cynthia Mulligan; 580 CFRA Ottawa host Bill Carroll; Ken MacDonald, former Vice-President and General Manager of Discovery Channel Canada and former National VP, News and Information Programming, Global TV; and Tina Cortese, Station Manager and News Director at 105.9 The Region (CFMS-FM) Markham, and the former GM and VP of News at Citytv. In the West Region, CFJC Kamloops anchor Bill O’Donovan is being recognized. East Region honourees include Global National Atlantic correspondent Ross Lord; NTV St. John’s anchor Toni-Marie Wiseman; and long-serving NTV director and news cameraman Tony Barrington. On the Prairies, late CBC Edmonton reporter Janice Johnston is being recognized posthumously, along with Global Calgary reporter Gil Tucker; Global Regina cameraman Adrian Raabar; CTV Regina assignment editor Nelson Bird; CTV Calgary video journalist Kevin Green; and CTV Lethbridge weather specialist Dory Rossiter. RTDNA has also announced Regional Award winners for the Central Region, West Region, East Region and Prairies Region. Read more here.

Media Girlfriends co-founder and broadcaster Garvia Bailey and CBC Quebec AM host Julia Caron are among the 2023-24 William Southam Journalism Fellows at Massey College. Fellows are outstanding Canadian journalists in mid-career who are invited to spend a year at the graduate college within the University of Toronto. The program offers journalists an opportunity to broaden their horizons by studying in a university setting.

Jason Gregor (Radio and Television – Radio ’01), is among those receiving honorary degrees from NAIT during this year’s convocation ceremonies. A host on TSN 1260 (CFRN-AM) Edmonton for almost two decades, up until getting caught up in layoffs last week, Gregor quit his oilfield job in the late ‘90s to pursue a career in sports radio. Along the way he has used his platform to raise more than $3 million for local charities and created the Gregor Community Foundation, which provides a suit, shirt, tie and shoes for high school grads who can’t afford it and funds an annual bursary for students in the radio stream of NAIT’s Radio and Television program. Gregor is receiving an Honorary Bachelor of Technology degree. 

Marisa Wyse, Chief Legal and Regulatory Officer and Corporate Secretary at Rogers, has received the 2023 Canadian General Counsel of the Year award. Wyse has been with Rogers for more than nine years in progressively senior leadership roles and played a key role across several mergers and acquisitions. Most recently, she was instrumental in the Rogers-Shaw merger, the largest telecommunications deal in Canadian history. 

Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) has released a report on the economic impacts of privatizing Manitoba Telecom Services (MTS) and its subsequent acquisition by Bell, indicating that within a year, 1,350 workers had been laid off and phone rates skyrocketed 37%. For Whom the Bell Tolls: the Privatization of Manitoba Telecom Services and its Impacts, authored by Doug Smith, dives into the privatization of the 90-year provincial crown corporation in 1997, with a promise that the company’s headquarters would remain in Manitoba. When MTS was purchased by Bell in 2016, it pledged to make Winnipeg the Western Canadian headquarters. The report says not only has that promise not been realized, but the company’s Manitoba workforce has shrunk by over 800 positions since 2015.

BROADCAST TECH & ENGINEERING:

Meta AI researchers say they have achieved a breakthrough in generative AI for speech with Voicebox, the first model that can generalize  speech-generation tasks it was not specifically trained to accomplish with state-of-the-art performance. Able to create outputs from scratch as well as modify a sample it’s given to produce high-quality audio clips, the model can synthesize speech across six languages, as well as perform noise removal, content editing, style conversion, and diverse sample generation. Meta says it recognizes the tech brings the potential for misuse, which is why it’s also built a classifier that can distinguish between authentic speech and audio generated with Voicebox to mitigate possible future risks. Because of those risks, it’s not making the Voicebox model or code publicly available at this time. Read the whitepaper here.

Logitech’s Streamlabs has launched its AI-assisted Podcast Editor that allows users to find clip highlights, cut unnecessary filler words like “oohs” and “ums,” and remove awkward pauses within seconds, trimming hours off of total editing time. Podcast Editor joins Streamlabs existing suite of eight creator tools on Streamlabs Ultra. Users can subscribe to the premium version or access the free version here. 

Triton Digital has acquired Paris-based Manadge, an advertising intelligence platform specializing in programmatic advertising. Manadge will enable Triton Digital publishers and partners to see advertising-related data and analyze performance in real time via an intuitive analytics platform. Triton says the acquisition diversifies its portfolio as Manadge offers analysis and comparison dashboards and KPIs for programmatic market participants as well as direct orders, integrated with over 60 Supply Side Platforms (SSPs) and ad servers, As part of the acquisition, the Manadge team will join Triton Digital’s team.