We’ll announce the winners of the 2022 Broadcast Dialogue Canadian Radio Awards at 9 a.m. PT/noon ET today. Head to CanadianRadioAwards.com where we’ll unveil this year’s honourees and their winning audio. Then at 9:15 a.m. PT/12:15 ET, Editor Connie Thiessen will join the Sound Off Media Company’s Matt Cundill on Facebook Live, along with some special guests, to talk more about this year’s winners and submissions.
REVOLVING DOOR:
Vassy Kapelos is leaving CBC to join CTV News, starting Dec. 1, as Chief Political Correspondent and host of CTV News Channel’s daily political program, Power Play, and weekly, Question Period. Kapelos will also host iHeartRadio network program, The Vassy Kapelos Show, weekdays from noon – 2 p.m. ET. Kapelos steps into the role vacated by Evan Solomon, who joined New York City-based foreign affairs news site GZERO Media as publisher in October. Kapelos has been the host of CBC’s Power & Politics for the last five years. Prior to that, she served as the Ottawa Bureau Chief for Global News and host of The West Block. She’s also spent time as a reporter and video journalist in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Read more here.
Jennifer Burke has joined Pivotal Media, the communications firm started by former broadcaster Marisa Thomas, after departing CTV News Channel in August. Burke had been with the network for 13 years, following a media career that started in Vancouver in the late ‘80s with stops at BCTV/Global BC, Rock 101 (CFMI-FM) and 980 CKNW.
Maria Weisgarber Howe has left CTV Vancouver to join Surrey RCMP as Media Relations Coordinator. Weisgarber had been a reporter with CTV News since 2007 and a journalist in the market for more than two decades with stops at News 1130 (CKWX-AM) and Shaw TV.
Hello, it’s me and @CBCNews on TikTok!https://t.co/p1qsScpKJ2 pic.twitter.com/fzrw1aRoAu
— Ashley Fraser (@ashleymfraser) November 2, 2022
Ashley Fraser is the face of CBC News’ new TikTok account. Fraser, a 2020 Joan Donaldson Scholar, has been working as an associate producer with the public broadcaster off and on since 2017 when she started as an intern. Fraser is a 2020 Toronto Metropolitan University Master of Journalism graduate.
Kiah Tucker is joining Rock 101 (CFMI-FM) Vancouver as the station’s new midday host. He’ll be heard starting Nov. 14, weekdays from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Tucker steps into the time slot formerly held by Robin LaRose, prior to Dean Hill’s retirement this summer, which saw LaRose return to afternoon drive. Tucker was most recently heard in afternoon drive on Vancouver’s former KiSS Radio (CKKS-FM).
Soula Zisidis has returned to Evanov Communications as an Account Manager. With JAZZ.FM91 (CJRT-FM) Toronto for the past two years, Zisidis previously worked with Evanov between 2018 and 2020. Prior to that, she was Sales Coordinator at ZoomerMedia for 12 years.
Dave Collier has joined Anthem Entertainment as Vice President, Information Technology. Up until this past June, Collier was Senior Director, Media Engineering, at Rogers Sports & Media. Prior to Rogers, he served as CBC’s Director of Technical Maintenance and Support for more than a decade.
Zoe Rabnett is joining Toronto-based prodco Counterfeit Pictures as Director of Talent and Comedy Development. Rabnett arrives from Montreal’s Just For Laughs where she’s been Director of Festival Talent & Programming for 14 years.
Dorian Rowe is the new Film Commissioner in Edmonton, starting Nov. 23 where he’ll head up the Edmonton Screen Industries Office. Rowe arrives from Atlantic Canada where he held the role of Executive Director/Film Commissioner for the Newfoundland and Labrador Film Development Corporation. He’s also served as co-chair of the National Tax Credit Committee for many years.
Morgan Salter has joined Screen Nova Scotia as Content Creator Fund Manager. Salter was formerly with the FIN Atlantic International Film Festival as the Manager of FIN Partners, programming the Halifax-based festival’s screen industry market.
RADIO & PODCAST:
The 2022 Canadian Podcast Awards have been announced with Radio-Canada’s portrait of addiction, Relation toxique: portraits d’une dépendance, winning a leading three awards, including Exceptionelle Francophone Series, Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics for a Series, and Outstanding Main Title Theme Music for a Series. Other podcasts with multiple wins include Sonar Network’s You Made Me Queer, which picked up Outstanding Debut for a Series and Outstanding Personal Series. Horror fiction pod Parkdale Haunt won The People’s Choice Award, open to the top-nominated podcasts across all categories, in addition to Outstanding Production for a Series. The Walrus Was Paul, hosted by former Hockey Night in Canada and TSN broadcaster Paul Romanuk, won Outstanding Music Series and Outstanding Artwork for a Series. Sonar’s The Pick Up WNBA podcast, helmed by comedians Cathryn Naiker and Freddie Rivas, was recognized as both Outstanding Leisure Series and Outstanding Sports Series. Paul Bates, host of comedic history podcast, The Dubious Book of Famous Deeds, won Best Host in a Series. Find the full list of winners here.
Hawa Kassam from the United Kingdom is the winner of the RadioStar ‘22 international radio talent search. Judged by an international panel of radio programmers and talent, the final five finalists included Canadian Sean Shapiro, the face and voice of Toronto Police Traffic Operations (aka “The TikTok Cop”), who placed third in the final scoring. Watch the result here.
SiriusXM is launching new original comedy channel, Team Coco Radio. Executive produced by Conan O’Brien, the channel will feature exclusive audio content as well as select Team Coco podcasts, including the popular Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend. Team Coco Radio will debut Nov. 15 exclusively on SiriusXM channel 106. Available 24/7, programming will also include interviews and stand-up moments from Conan’s TBS show with fresh commentary as he recalls behind-the-scenes stories and other entertaining anecdotes. SiriusXM acquired Team Coco in May.
LISTEN: On the Sound Off Podcast, voiceover artist and 99.9 Virgin Radio (CKFM-FM) Toronto weeknight host Tessa Malisani. You might also know her as the host of the backstage lounge at the iHeartRadio MMVA’s or for her time with CTV and MUCH. In this episode, she discusses her career path, plans for the future, leveraging your skills, and keeping your options open. Listen on your favourite podcast app or here:
SIGN OFFS:
Andy Walsh, 90, on Nov. 5 from cancer. Walsh started his radio career in 1951 after dropping out of high school to work for an advertising company in his hometown of Montreal. While working there, he had the opportunity to meet radio and television personalities, which helped spur his interest in becoming a broadcaster. His first radio job was at small 50-watt station CKSF-AM in Cornwall, ON. Born Andy Woloshen, it was there that it was suggested his name was too difficult to pronounce and he became Andy ‘Walsh’ on air. He moved on to CJIC-AM Sault Ste Marie and CFRA-AM Ottawa before he was offered a position at CJAD Montreal in 1954. After 15 years with CJAD, he applied to CHQM-FM Vancouver where he served as the station’s news director until 1993. Walsh went on to become the voice of weekend news on News 1130 (CKWX-AM) Vancouver (now CityNews 1130) for nearly 20 years. He retired in February 2017 at age 85. Known for his warm, yet authoritative delivery, he was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award from the RTDNA in 2004 and was inducted into the Canadian News Hall of Fame in 2012. Read more here.
René Proulx, 73, on Oct. 27. With the public broadcaster for more than 35 years, Proulx started his career with CBC Vancouver. He went on to work as an editor for CBC National News, before eventually moving over to the Parliamentary Bureau in Ottawa. He retired in 2011.
TV & FILM:
The Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) presented the 2022 DGC Awards on Saturday evening in Vancouver at the first-ever West Coast Awards Gala, hosted by actor/comedian/screenwriter Brent Butt. Selected from over 450 submissions this year, winners included Rice Boy Sleeps director Anthony Shim, who accepted the Jean–Marc Vallée DGC Discovery Award; David Cronenberg, who received the Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film honour for Crimes of the Future; and Madison Thomas, who was recognized with the Allan King Award for Excellence in Documentary for Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On. Guillermo del Toro’s Nightmare Alley picked up a leading three awards in the feature film categories, including Best Production Design (Tamara Deverell), Best Picture Editing (Cam McLauchlin), and Best Sound Editing. On the television side, The Porter, The Handmaid’s Tale, and The Hardy Boys each earned two awards, with Charles Officer recognized with Outstanding Directorial Achievement in a Dramatic Series for The Porter and Melanie Orr recognized with the same award in the Family Series category for The Hardy Boys. Find the full list of winners here.
Warner Media and Netflix, together, shot more television in Canada than all Canadian networks combined, according to the first-ever DGC Director Statistics Report, released by the Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) this week. The report is a comprehensive look at the engagement of Canadian directors by both Canadian and international producers, studios and networks during 2021, breaking down stats by region, gender, production type and those commissioning film & television production. It found that 75% of all episodic work in Canada is from U.S.-based studios and networks, with Canadian broadcasters making up just 25% of TV shot across the country. Canadian directors, on average, directed 41% of U.S.-financed television episodes across the country. While low budget U.S.-based series hire Canadians the majority of the time, high budget series only hire Canadians for 25% of total episodes, the DGC report found. It also found regional imbalance domestically with only 6% of episodes for scripted television series on CBC and CBC Gem produced in British Columbia, despite Vancouver being the country’s largest overall production centre for screen-based content. Only 4% of all productions in B.C. were funded by a Canadian studio or network. Read more here.
The Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) has announced dates for Prime Time’s in-person return, Feb. 1-3 in Ottawa. The media production and broadcast conference, set to take place at the Westin Hotel, promises to include its largest-ever market access program. Learn more here.
Global News is airing two special presentations, Canada Remembers hosted by Dawna Friesen and No Stone Left Alone, helmed by Farah Nasser. For the 12th consecutive year, Global News has partnered with the No Stone Left Alone Memorial Foundation on the special broadcast to air Nov. 11 at 10 a.m. PT/CT/ET, 11:30 a.m. MT and 11 a.m. AT. The half hour broadcast will feature interviews and highlights from student ceremonies across the country. Friesen will host one-hour special, Canada Remembers, Nov. 11 at 7:30 a.m. PT, 8:30 a.m. MT, 10:30 a.m. ET/CT (repeated at 10:30 a.m. in Edmonton) and 11:30 a.m. AT, which will take viewers live to the Remembrance Day ceremony at the National War Museum in Ottawa and feature interviews with Candy Greff, this year’s Silver Cross Mother, among others.
WildBrain says WarnerMedia has confirmed the new Degrassi series announced in January will not debut on HBO Max as planned. The new series – a reprisal of the original teen drama set in Toronto – was to consist of 10 hour-long episodes and was expected to debut in the U.S. in 2023. It was being produced by WildBrain Studios. Back in September, when WildBrain announced its full year and fourth quarter 2022 financial results, the company indicated production had been paused. The 14-season library of Degrassi: The Next Generation continues to stream on the HBO Max platform.
The Canadian Film Centre’s Media Lab (CFC Media Lab) has announced the five founders and companies selected to participate in the fifth cohort of Fifth Wave Labs, a four-month business bootcamp for women-owned/led businesses, a component of the larger Fifth Wave Initiative, Canada’s first feminist business accelerator. Cassandra Rudolph, founder of Lucky One Projects, will serve as the guest Entrepreneur-in-Residence for Cohort 5. The founders and companies selected include: Christy Pettit, Pollinate Networks; Jenn Hazel, Curate Concierge; Keda Edwards Pierre, True2Soul Network; Kristine Beese, Untangle Money; and Melanie Grad and Ruth Wylie of Perspective Squared.
Jason Priestley will receive Whistler Film Festival’s Founders Award. Named for Shauna Hardy and Kasi Lubin who founded the festival in 2001, the Founders Award celebrates a Canadian whose creative and industrious accomplishments have contributed to advancing screen-based arts and culture in Canada. Priestly has worked for more than three decades in all aspects of film and television as an actor, director and producer, amassing an extensive list of credits and accolades that include being inducted into Canada’s Walk of Fame. Best known for Beverly Hills, 90210, Call Me Fitz and Private Eyes, Priestley delivered his feature film directorial debut Cas & Dylan at the festival in 2013, and is returning with his directorial documentary debut, Offside: The Harold Ballard Story. Industry veteran Peter Leitch will be the inaugural recipient of WFF’s Industry Champion Award, celebrating an outstanding member of the B.C. entertainment industry, who has shown extraordinary leadership in and promotion of the sector. Leitch is being recognized for his time serving as President of North Vancouver’s North Shore Studios and Burnaby’s Mammoth Studio, and Chairman of the Motion Picture Production Industry Association of B.C.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be among the guests making special appearances on new Crave Original series, Canada’s Drag Race: Canada vs. The World. Premiering Nov. 18 at 9 p.m. ET. Guest judges will include Indo-Guaynese JUNO Award-winning singer/songwriter Anjulie; producer and author Gary Janetti; Canada’s Drag Race choreographer Hollywood Jade; fashion icon and journalist Jeanne Beker; style expert Joe Zee; Rupaul’s Drag Race Season 10 queen Monét X Change; Canada’s Drag Race Season 1 winner Priyanka and broadcaster and filmmaker Sarain Fox. The nine international drag queens set to compete are: Anita Wigl’it; Icesis Couture; Kendall Gender; Ra’Jah O’Hara; Rita Baga; Silky Nutmeg Ganache; Stephanie Prince; Vanity Milan; and Victoria Scone.
The Canadian Football League (CFL) will welcome country crooners Jordan Davis, Tyler Hubbard of Florida Georgia Line, and Burlington, ON native Josh Ross to the stage at the 109th Grey Cup on Sunday, Nov. 20. The trio’s special collaboration has been made possible through the CFL’s ongoing partnership with Universal Music Canada. The 109th Grey Cup will be played in Regina at Mosaic Stadium with kickoff slated for 5 p.m. local/6 p.m. ET. The sold-out game and Twisted Tea Grey Cup Halftime Show will be broadcast live on TSN and RDS. The 2022 Grey Cup Festival, a province-wide celebration of the game, opens on Tuesday, Nov. 15 in Saskatoon before moving to Regina from Wednesday to Saturday.
TSN is now available on LG Smart TVs. LG Smart TV owners with models from 2018 and later can now access TSN on the TV’s webOS platform by opening the TSN app using their remote or when available, by saying “TSN” into their LG Magic Remote. Customers that have purchased select LG televisions between Nov. 4 and Dec. 15 of this year and are new TSN subscribers, can receive five months free on LG.
ONLINE & DIGITAL MEDIA:
Twitter has laid off its Director of Public Policy for the U.S. & Canada, among other Canadian staff, as the platform undertakes mass layoffs under new owner Elon Musk. Ottawa-based Michele Austin had held the role for the last five years. Paul Burns, Managing Director of Twitter Canada, has also confirmed his exit on social media, as has Cam Gordon, Head of Communications for Canada. Read more here. Meanwhile, worldwide layoffs at Meta on Wednesday also impacted an unknown number of Canadian staff.
MuchMusic has officially surpassed more than two million followers on TikTok. Since teaming up with TikTok in July 2021, Bell Media says @much has received more than 95 million likes and more than one billion views of the #MuchLove hashtag on the platform. Among the highlights of the brand’s digital re-envisioning are a reboot of seminal concert series Intimate & Interactive, which has featured Coi Leray, GAYLE, Johnny Orlando, and Tate McRae, in addition to feature interviews with Canadian artists like Tegan and Sara, Nickelback, Brett Kissel, Jesse Reyes, Arkells, AR Paisley, JP Saxe, and Loud Luxury.
A Nanos Research Poll commissioned by the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB), suggests the majority of Canadians support encouraging Google and Facebook to negotiate with Canadian news organizations for fair payment. According to the survey, about four in five Canadians support (52%) or somewhat support (25%) the measure, while four in five oppose (60%) or somewhat oppose (20%) Google and Facebook paying nothing to Canadian news organizations for the value of their news content. Close to two in three Canadians are confident (17%) or somewhat (46%) confident that Canadian news organizations, including broadcasters and newspapers, work in the best interests of Canadians, while over four in five each say they are not confident or somewhat confident in Google (57% not confident, 25% somewhat not confident) as well as Facebook (71% not confident, 20%somewhat not confident).
REGULATORY, TELECOM & MEDIA:
The 2022 Webster Awards, recognizing excellence in journalism in British Columbia, were announced Thursday evening during an online event hosted by CTV Vancouver anchor Mi-Jung Lee and Tina House, a Vancouver-based video journalist with APTN. Journalists were recognized across 14 categories including print, radio/podcasts, television and online media. The Tyee led winners by outlet with four of its journalists picking up prizes, including Steve Burgess who captured the Commentator of the Year honour or “City Mike Award.” Find the full list of winners here.
BCE Inc. has reported results for Q3 2022, recording an operating revenue increase of 3.2% over Q3 2021 to $6,024 million, driven by strong wireless and residential internet growth as well as higher year-over-year business wireline data equipment sales. Media operating revenue of $719 million was unchanged compared to Q3 ’21 as higher subscriber revenue was offset by lower year-over-year advertising revenue. Ad revenue was down 2.3%, reflecting softer TV advertiser demand and slow radio recovery from COVID due to the current macroeconomic backdrop. That was partly offset by improved year-over-year out of home performance as well as continued digital growth. Subscriber revenue increased 2.2%, due mainly to Crave streaming direct-to-consumer growth, with digital revenues up 40% and increased bookings from Bell Media’s strategic audience management (SAM) TV media sales tool. Total Crave subscriptions increased 7% from last year to approximately 3.1 million subscribers.
Rogers Communications has announced unaudited financial and operating results for the third quarter ended Sept. 30. Total revenue and total service revenue increased by 2% and 3%, respectively, in the quarter, driven primarily by growth in Wireless and Media. Excluding the impact of the July network outage, total revenue and total service revenue would have increased by 6% and 7%, respectively. Wireless service revenue increased by 3% in Q3, primarily as a result of higher roaming revenue associated with significantly increased travel and a larger postpaid mobile phone subscriber base, partially offset by credits granted to subscribers related to the July network outage. Cable service revenue decreased by 4% in Q3, primarily related to subscriber outage credits, partially offset by service pricing changes in Q1 and increases in retail Internet and Video subscriber bases. Media revenue increased by 12% in Q3 as a result of higher Toronto Blue Jays revenue, due to the increase to full audience capacity at Rogers Centre, offset by lower Today’s Shopping Choice revenue. Media adjusted EBITDA was up by $43 million year-over-year.
Quebecor Inc. has reported consolidated financial results for the third quarter of 2022, consolidated with those of its Quebecor Media subsidiary. Quebecor recorded consolidated adjusted EBITDA of $518.0 million, a $2.3 million (-0.4%) decrease, and revenues of $1.14 billion, a $4.5 million (-0,4%) decrease compared with the same period of 2021. Videotron increased its revenues from mobile services and equipment by $30.7 million (12.1%) and from internet access by $13.6 million (4.5%), due in part to the acquisition of VMedia Inc. Revenues decreased in Media ($20.5 million or –10.8% of segment revenues) and increased in Sports and Entertainment ($8.3 million or 16.9%) and Telecommunications ($2.7 million or 0.3%). Adjusted EBITDA decreased in Media by $18.6 million or –50.8% of segment adjusted EBITDA.
Stingray Group has announced its financial results for Q2 2023, reflecting the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2022. Revenues increased 9.8% to $77.6 million from $70.7 million in Q2 2022 primarily due the acquisition of InStore Audio Network. For the quarter, revenues in Canada improved 1.2% to $47.2 million from $46.7 million in the same period in 2022, attributed to growth in Radio based on the gradual easing of COVID-19 restrictions and a return to normal commercial operations. Revenues in the U.S. surged 69.2% year-over-year to $18.4 million in Q2, mainly due to the acquisition of InStore Audio Network. Broadcasting and Commercial Music revenues grew 17.0% to $44.9 million in the quarter from $38.4 million in Q2 2022, driven by the acquisition of InStore Audio Network. Radio revenues improved 1.3% to $32.7 million in Q2 2023 from $32.3 million in the same period in 2022.
Xplore has announced that rural and remote regions will have access to download speeds up to 100 megabits per second (Mbps) and more data on the company’s next-generation satellite service, starting next summer. In 2019, Xplore entered into a lifetime agreement with Hughes Network Systems, LLC (Hughes) for substantially all of the Canadian satellite broadband capacity on the Hughes next-generation JUPITER™ 3 Ultra High Density Satellite, expected to be the world’s largest commercial communications satellite when it launches in the first half of 2023. The satellite is designed to provide coverage to 90% of Canada’s population.
CBC/Radio-Canada has scheduled 20 engagement sessions to hear from Canadians with disabilities to better understand their expectations of the public broadcaster. Offered in English, French, ASL (American Sign Language) and LSQ (Quebec Sign Language) between November 2022 and January 2023, topics will include how persons with disabilities are portrayed in the media, the barriers they face when consuming content, and ways in which CBC/Radio-Canada can improve its relationships with their communities. Offered in-person and virtually, find more info here.
BROADCAST TECH & ENGINEERING:
The 2023 NAB Show is now open for registration. Taking place April 15-19 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, the event marks NAB Show’s 100th anniversary. Organized around three areas representing key stages in the content lifecycle — Create, Connect and Capitalize — a fourth area, Intelligent Content, will examine the impact of data, AI and automation on all aspects of the content lifecycle. Specialized conference programs and workshops will include the Devoncroft Executive Summit, Post|Production World, Streaming Summit and NAB Show Conference, featuring the Broadcast Engineering and Information Technology (BEIT) conference and Focus on Leadership Speaker Series. The deadline for submission of speaker and panel proposals, as well as technical papers for the BEIT conference, has been extended to Nov. 18.
