REVOLVING DOOR:
Mike Sobel, weather specialist and co-host of Global News Morning Edmonton, has announced his retirement after 25 years with the station. His last broadcast will be on Dec. 23. Sobel’s 43-year career in broadcasting began at CFSL Radio in Weyburn, SK in 1979. He went on to stints with CKCK Regina and CFRN Radio in Edmonton before moving into television with hosting turns on ITV’s Disney Afternoons, Four O’ Clock Rock and Jeopardy!-style quiz show, High-Q in the mid-1980s. Sobel also spent a decade on-air with CISN Country 103.9 Edmonton. Global Edmonton will give Sobel a memorable send off during local programming, Dec. 19-23.
Murtz Jaffer has joined Global News as Associate Producer of The Morning Show. Most recently a freelance writer at the Toronto Star, Murtz was formerly a segment producer at Canada AM and a chase producer at CTV News Channel. He was also host and co-creator of Gemini Award-winning reality series Reality Obsessed, which aired on Global and Corus specialty channels.
Kate McKenna is headed to CBC Halifax for the next five months where she’ll serve as the national reporter for Nova Scotia, P.E.I. and New Brunswick. McKenna has most recently been reporting for the public broadcaster in Montreal. She’s also the author of No Choice, a firsthand account of Prince Edward Island’s refusal to bring abortion services to the Island.
Darrell Stranger has been announced as the new permanent host of APTN National News and APTN InFocus. Stranger has been a reporter with APTN for the last three years, after initially interning with the network in 2018 as a NAIT (Northern Alberta Institute of Technology) student.
Glenn Semaniuk has returned to Stingray as part of management restructuring in the Maritimes. Semaniuk takes over as GM/GSM of the company’s Halifax and Kentville, NS operations. Semaniuk was previously an Account Manager with the Newcap team in Halifax from 2004-10, before joining Bell Media as the Retail Sales Manager for Nova Scotia radio, as well as CTV Atlantic. Kenton Dunphy is promoted to Director of Sales for New Brunswick, in addition to his role as GM/GSM of Stingray Moncton and Saint John. Jennifer Evans is promoted to Director of Operations for P.E.I. and New Brunswick. In her new role, Evans will continue to oversee Charlottetown operations as well as support New Brunswick managers in achieving their goals.
Cory Atkins has been named Sales Director, Stingray Advertising, as the team expands. Stingray Advertising operates Canada’s largest retail audio advertising network, delivering digital audio ads to close to 3,000 pharmacy, grocery, and discount store locations. Stingray says Atkins, who spent the last nine years as Senior Director, Media Sales at Cineplex Media, will play an integral role in growing ad revenue across the retail audio advertising network. Prior to joining Cineplex, Atkins was a correspondent and host with CTV Edmonton, A-Channel Ottawa and MuchMusic.
Michel W. Duguay, who had a 25-year run in afternoons at CKOI Montréal and was heard more recently on 94.3 Radio Énergie (CKMF-FM) Montréal, has dropped anchor at online station, CNV Radio Numérique. He’s now hosting Bonjour Samedi, Saturdays from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Operating from studios at DUO Centre Laval, other station voices include former Quebec politician Rémy Trudel, former Montreal Canadiens coach Jean Perron, writer Daniel Daignault, radio personalities Diane Lafrance and Robert Arcand, and sports journalist Luc Gélinas.
Adina Bresge has left The Canadian Press (CP) to join U of T News as a staff reporter. Bresge had been with CP for the last seven years, most recently focused on Lifestyle & Entertainment reporting, based in Toronto. Prior to that, she was a reporter and editor with the Atlantic Bureau in Halifax.
Les Staff, former Director of News and Information at CTV Vancouver, has joined the Coquitlam-based financial planning firm owned by his wife Corry Staff as a Licenced Insurance Specialist. Staff was with CTV Vancouver from 2007 to early 2021 when he was caught up in restructuring at Bell Media. Prior to that, he served as News Director at CTV News Saskatoon.
Dave Sommer, Head of Politics & Government for Instagram, is among the Canadians impacted by mass layoffs at Meta. With Facebook since 2019 and based in Washington, D.C., Sommer was previously a Deputy Director of Communications with the Prime Minister’s Office. Prior to that, he had a journalism career that included stops as a producer at Sun News Network and CTV Toronto.
RADIO & PODCAST:
Broadcast Dialogue’s Canadian Radio Awards: The Winners Revealed https://t.co/E5FOcS7XxW
— Broadcast Dialogue (@BroadcastDialog) November 10, 2022
Broadcast Dialogue has unveiled the winners of the 2022 Canadian Radio Awards. Rogers Sports & Media led this year’s awards by group with 17 wins, including capturing the Major and Medium Market Station of the Year categories, won by KiSS 92.5 (CKIS-FM) Toronto and CHYM 96.7 Kitchener, respectively. CHYM personality Adele Newton was notably recognized as Best On-Air Solo Host (Music), in addition to winning Best Canadian Multi-Market Program (Medium Market) with co-host Ryan Gosse. Corus Entertainment won 10 awards, including Small Market Station of the Year for 101.5 The Wolf (CKWF-FM) Peterborough and its Program Director Rob Seguin, who secured Program Director of the Year (Small Market). Corus Kingston PD Bob Willette won the Medium Market honour. Bell Media had eight wins with Karen Steele of 99.9 Virgin Radio (CKFM-FM) Toronto named PD of the Year (Major Market). Other multiple award winners include Harvard Media, Stingray, Pattison Media, and Vista Radio. In addition to those listed above, individual stations who won in multiple categories include boom 97.3 (CHBM-FM) Toronto, CHEZ 106 Ottawa, and CityNews 95.7 (CJNI-FM) Halifax. Find the full list of winners, runners-up and their winning audio submissions at CanadianRadioAwards.com.
The Canadian Radio Awards are free to enter thanks to the generosity of our sponsors and supporters. We’d also like to thank this year’s jury for their hard work which included Jean-Marie Heimrath, Tamara Stanners, Randy Reid, Rob Braide, ChiChi Liu, Jeff Rechner, Nancy Brown Dacko, Brother Jake Edwards, and our editor and head juror Connie Thiessen. A special thank you to Matt Cundill of the Sound Off Media Company and Matt Fogarty of Matt Fogarty Voiceovers for going the extra mile to help amplify our message.
Dani Stover is the host of new 640 (CFIQ-AM) Toronto evening show, Let’s Talk with Dani Stover, which made its debut Monday night. Airing weeknights from 7 – 10 p.m., Corus Entertainment says the “best of” show will be a deep dive into major news stories of the day. It will feature clips from 640’s coverage, as well as CFPL London and CHML Hamilton, where the show is also airing. A 2006 Seneca College journalism grad, Stover has been working with Corus Radio off and on since 2008, including stints hosting the midday show on Calgary’s Q107 (CFGQ-FM) and mornings on The Wolf 101.5 (CKWF-FM) Peterborough. After leaving to host weekends on Indie88 (CIND-FM) Toronto and blogTO podcast Only in Toronto, she returned to Corus last year as the producer of the Kelly Cutrara Show. Stover is also set to host an upcoming podcast for 640, the details of which have yet-to-be announced. Read more here.
Hits 100 FM (CKNB-FM) has launched in Campbellton, NB, replacing CKNB 950 AM. The new radio station launched at 8 a.m. Monday morning with an introduction followed by first song, About Damn Time by Lizzo, as voted on by the community. CKNB has served the area since its original launch on Dec. 27, 1939. CKNB-AM will continue to simulcast for up to 90 days. In advance of the launch, Maritime Broadcasting Systems (MBS) says it interviewed over 300 local listeners to determine their preferences for the new FM radio station. The overwhelming response was very high satisfaction levels for CKNB and that listeners wanted the station to stay as is, but on FM. MBS operates 24 radio stations across the three Maritime provinces.
The National Community and Campus Radio Association (NCRA/ANREC), in partnership with Abacus Data, has released new polling data that indicates the number of listeners tuning into campus and community radio has increased by over 4.4 million listeners since 2017. The data suggests Canadians are listening to more campus and community radio than ever before with listenership up 14% across Canada over the last five years. The research found 66% of Canadians consume local news through campus or community radio stations. It also found that men are more likely to listen to campus or community radio than women. The survey of 1,500 Canadian adults was conducted from Sept. 29 to Oct. 2 via the Lucid exchange platform. Read more from new contributor, Alex Freedman, Executive Director of the Community Radio Fund of Canada, here.
A Canadian Music Week (CMW) delegation is in South Africa this week with an eye to furthering trade and business opportunities between our two countries. The delegation – which includes CMW President Neill Dixon; Rudy Blair, Rudy Blair Media; Bruce Bradley, Slammin Radio; Tomi Sanni, RnB Radar; Richard Mills, Global Creative Partners; and Julz Ossom, African Music Week – is attending South Africa Music Week in Soweto, Nov. 16-18, building on the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Music and the Arts (CAAMA) “Spotlight” initiative. The group will appear on panels and meet with conference participants who are part of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC). Read more here.
Pauline Dakin’s childhood was marked by unexplained events, a sense of unseen menace, and secretive moves to new cities with no warning. When she finally learned what her family was running from, it turned her world upside down.
This is Run, Hide, Repeat: https://t.co/0KdrJxt5Cd pic.twitter.com/MPbGWHSBNx
— CBC Podcasts (@cbcpodcasts) November 14, 2022
CBC Podcasts has released Run, Hide, Repeat, a five-episode podcast series based on former CBC journalist Pauline Dakin’s real-life childhood spent on the run. Dakin published a memoir of the same name in 2017.
Andy Ross, who stepped away from radio and Harvard Media in October, has formed new company, Friggin’ Noodles Entertainment, and launched the first of a number of creative projects. Scripted podcast Barbara and Walter is loosely based on Ross’ “very Eastern European” parents, Barbara and Jerzy. Ross, who has long held a passion for character voices and comedy, lends his talents to both voices in the podcast which follows a retired couple who, out of boredom, decide to fire up their son’s computer and create a “show.”
LISTEN: Podcast Hall of Famer Evo Terra is ending his Podcast Pontifications show. On the latest Sound Off Podcast, Matt Cundill talks with Terra about what’s next for the host. They also discuss the value of Podcast 2.0, fiction podcasts, audiobooks and narration. Listen on your favourite podcast app or here:
SIGN OFFS:
George Gallagher, 92, on Oct. 30. Gallagher began his career in broadcasting at CJGX Yorkton, SK as a teenager. After a few years as morning announcer, he was given the opportunity to help launch new radio station, CKDM Dauphin, MB. Following a stint at CJOB Winnipeg, he returned to CJGX in 1957 as Commercial Manager and by 1960 had been promoted to Station Manager. In 1966, Gallagher and two other senior staff members bought the station. He became President of Buffalo Broadcasting Co. in 1969 with the purchase of CKRM Regina, which he owned for a little more than a decade before selling to Harvard Broadcasting in 1981. He became sole owner of CJGX in 1989. He also briefly owned CFQC Saskatoon in the early 1990s. Throughout his life, Gallagher was involved in organizations dedicated to creating strong communities. He served a term on Yorkton City Council, in addition to involvement in the Western Association of Broadcasters (WAB), the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB), and was President of the Senior Yorkton Terrier Hockey Club. In the early 2000s, he contributed to the creation of the Gallagher Centre, Yorkton’s sports and entertainment hub.
Garnet Anthony, 87, on Oct. 27. Born in Dartmouth, NS, Anthony started his working life as a commercial pilot. He moved to Edmonton in 1957 where he briefly worked as a crop duster before pursuing a less hazardous career in broadcasting. He began working at CHCA-TV Red Deer in 1958, with a stop at CFRN-TV Edmonton to follow, before going on to a 26-year career with CBC. Working across radio and television, Anthony worked on shows including This Land, Country Canada, and Points West. He retired as co-host of Alberta Today on CBC Radio One in July 1991. His passion for reporting on wildlife, earned him induction into the Alberta Government’s Wildlife Hall of Fame, known as The Order of the Big Horn, with the Garnet Anthony Award of Excellence later founded in his name.
Jack Farr, 81, Oct. 17, in Windsor, ON. Born in Winnipeg, “Captain” Jack Farr earned a law degree at Osgoode Hall Law School, before following friend and fellow lawyer Danny Finkleman to the CBC. Farr appeared on Finkleman’s Saturday Morning Show and This Country in the Morning with Peter Gzowski, before going on to host national Saturday afternoon program, The Radio Show, produced out of CBC Winnipeg from 1983 to 1992. Initially a summer replacement for CBC Radio’s Metropolitan Opera broadcasts, by the program’s third season it was airing year-round. Known for his surreal, off-beat sense of humour, The Radio Show would take on topics from champion pumpkin growing to ongoing news spoofs. Contributors that got their start on Farr’s show included Bob Robertson and Linda Cullen, who were later given their own program, Double Exposure, in addition to comedy troupe, The Arrogant Worms.
TV & FILM:
Thunderbird Entertainment Group has “set the record straight” regarding an assertion by Voss Capital, LLC that its play to replace the company’s board of directors has the support of director and shareholder Frank Giustra. Thunderbird confirms Giustra, who owns 12.8% of issued and outstanding shares, intends to stand for re-election as part of the Vancouver-headquartered company’s slate at the next Annual General Meeting of shareholders. Voss Capital, Thunderbird’s largest shareholder (13.3%), believes there is a “crucial need” for the company’s board to be “reconstituted to include directors with both the skills and experience needed to create value and an understanding of their duties to the company’s stakeholders – qualities that we have found to be severely lacking on the current board.” “Recent engagements with the board have clearly demonstrated to us that it has lost sight of its responsibilities and has no credible plan to create value,” Voss continued in a statement. “Instead, we have witnessed the Board engage in a disturbing pattern of actions, which appear aimed at avoiding being held accountable to Thunderbird’s shareholders…” Thunderbird’s consolidated revenue increased by $18.0 million (69%) to $44.1 million and $37.5 million (34%) to $149.0 million for the three months and year ended June 30, compared to $26.1 million and $111.5 million year-over-year.
Blink49 Studios, backed by Fifth Season (formerly known as Endeavor Content) and Vanguarde Artists Management, have partnered to launch a joint venture to develop and produce content for the global market. The joint venture brings together Vanguarde’s access to creative talent and IP to develop and produce original projects with Blink49’s studio, production and distribution infrastructure. Under the joint venture, Blink49 will also provide development funding to build a slate of projects with Vanguarde and its clients. Blink49 and Vanguarde will serve as co-producers on all projects developed and produced through the deal, with Fifth Season having a first look on international distribution rights. Vanguarde recently tapped playwright and television creator/showrunner Adam Pettle as in-house Executive Producer of its newly-formed content label Vanguarde Pictures. Alongside Co-Heads Tina Horwitz and Jay Horwitz, Pettle will develop scripted content for podcast, broadcast, cable, premium cable, and streaming under the new banner.
TSN is now available on Roku streaming players and Roku TVs as part of an ongoing partnership with Bell Media. Canadian Roku users will now have access to live and on demand programming from TSN, including the CFL season; IIHF Women’s and Men’s World Championships and the World Juniors; coverage of the Toronto Raptors and NBA; regional NHL broadcasts; FIFA World Cup; live coverage of the NFL; golf Majors and tennis Grand Slams; plus MLS, F1, NASCAR, UFC, and NCAA March Madness. To access, users can sign in to TSN on the Roku platform using their existing TSN login credentials, while new users can sign up directly via Roku Pay.
OUTtv is launching new FAST channel OUTtv Proud in the U.S. Fuse Media will distribute the channel as part of its suite of DEI FAST (diversity, equity and inclusion, free ad-supported streaming television) channels in 2023. It will offer viewers a collection of more than 400 hours of OUTtv original series, documentaries, films and specials. OUTtv says the new channel builds on the success of its SVOD offering OUTtv.com that has seen year over year double-digit growth since launching in 2016. Other DEI-focused FAST channels include Shades of Black, Latino Vibes, and Backstage, spotlighting diverse music artists.
Shaw Communications has announced the launch of Disney+ on Shaw TV and Shaw Stream, giving Fibre+ Internet customers the ability to watch Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic and Star content through one integrated in-home platform. The integration of Disney+ into Shaw TV and Shaw Stream’s interface means that every available movie and episode of a show can be found in one place. For a limited time, customers on select Fibre+ Internet two-year ValuePlans bundled with Shaw TV or Shaw Stream, can watch Disney+ at no extra charge, for up to 24 months.
The Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) has unveiled the nominees for its annual Indiescreen Awards. Recognizing excellence among independent feature film producers, this year’s Established Producer Award nominees include: Sylvain Corbeil (Metafilms) – Falcon Lake; Damon D’Oliveira (Conquering Lion Pictures) – Brother; Terry Greenlaw (Picture Plant Limited) – Bystanders; Jamie Manning (Night Market) – Rosie; and Michael Peterson (Peterson Polaris Corp) – Dark Nature. Kevin Tierney Emerging Producer Award nominees are: Katie Bird Nolan, Lindsay Tapscott (Babe Nation Films) – Alice, Darling; Sara Blake, Magali Gillon-Krizaj, Tyler Hagan (SSMT Productions) – Until Branches Bend; Norm Coyne (Barker Street Cinema) – The Way to the Heart; Shant Joshi (Fae Pictures) – Framing Agnes; and Alexandra Roberts, Danny Sedore (Push Pictures) – Soft. The recipients will be announced at the Whistler Film Festival on Dec. 2.
The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) and CBC have announced that Nickelback will be inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame as part of the 2023 JUNO Awards. Taking place in Nickelback’s home province of Alberta on March 13, the ceremony will appear on the JUNO Awards Broadcast, produced by Insight Productions. It will also stream live at 6 p.m. MT/8 p.m. ET on CBC TV, CBC Gem, CBC Radio One, CBC Music, CBC Listen, and globally at CBCMusic.ca/junos and CBC Music’s Facebook, YouTube and Twitter pages. Since winning their first JUNO in 2001 for Best New Group, Nickelback has won a total of 12 awards spanning seven categories including Album of the Year, Rock Album of the Year, JUNO Fan Choice, Single of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, Producer of the Year and Group of the Year. Also performing will be Calgary native and four-time JUNO nominee, Tate McRae. Country music manager and promoter, Ron Sakamoto, has been announced as the recipient of the Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award.
Emmy- and Canadian Screen Award winner Tatiana Maslany is being inducted to Canada’s Walk of Fame. Known for her work on Orphan Black and on the heels of a starring role in Marvel’s “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,” Maslany joins previously-announced 2022 Inductees, including late athlete and politician Lionel Conacher; R&B songstress Deborah Cox; the Canadian comedy institution Just For Laughs; businesswoman Heather Reisman; broadcasting legend Barbara Frum; iconic rock band and humanitarians The Tragically Hip; and music video director, Director X. The 2022 Allan Slaight Music Impact Honour will be awarded to eight-time JUNO Award-winning rock group, Arkells. The Canada’s Walk of Fame Gala returns to Toronto on Dec. 3. Celebrating Greatness: Canada’s Walk of Fame 2022 airs Dec. 17 at 7 pm ET/PT on CTV, CTV.ca, and the CTV app.
CBC/Radio-Canada and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) have announced that two projects from the Kindred ABC/CBC Animation Collaboration have been given co-production development deals with ABC Kids and CBC Kids: My Shadow is Pink, a preschool series for kids, ages 3 to 7, from Headspinner/Sticky Pictures and created by Scott Stuart and Ken Cuperus, based on Stuart’s best-selling book; and The Eerie Chapters of Chhaya, a series for tweens, 10 to 14, created by Suren Perera, Georgina Love and Thomas Duncan-Watt. The national public broadcasters also announced the continuation of their creative and commercial collaboration, originally signed in June 2019, which will allow ABC and CBC to continue co-developing dramas, comedies, factual content, children’s programs, and podcasts, increasing reach and impact.
TSN and CTV have announced broadcast details for FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, featuring complete tournament coverage of all 64 games beginning Sunday, Nov. 20 through to the final on Sunday, Dec. 18. The Canadian Men’s National Team is competing in the tournament for the first time since 1986, kicking off their campaign Nov. 23 against Belgium at 11 a.m. ET on TSN, CTV, TSN.ca, CTV.ca, and the TSN and CTV apps. Beginning Nov. 18, TSN.ca and the TSN app also feature a 24/7 live streaming channel including pre-game, post-game, and live game coverage of every match. Coverage will be led by on-location hosts James Duthie, Luke Wileman, and Lindsay Hamilton; studio host Kelcey Brade; on-location analysts Steven Caldwell, Julian de Guzman, Kevin Kilbane, Janine Beckie, and Tosaint Ricketts; studio analyst Carmelina Moscato; on-location reporters Matthew Scianitti and Daniel Zakrzewski; social media reporter Corwin McCallum; and rules expert Joe Fletcher.
CTV’s new cake competition series, Cross Country Cake Off, is set to make its debut Dec. 4 with four holiday-themed episodes. Hosted by cookbook author and multiple Canadian Screen Award-winner Mary Berg, along with pastry chef Andrew Han, the CTV Original series airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT, featuring the country’s best cake makers as they bake to claim a $50,000 prize. During three regional qualifying rounds, eight bakers in each of the host cities – Vancouver, Toronto, and Halifax – present their creations to the judges with the Top 2 bakers representing each region moving on to compete in the finale.
The 118th Original Santa Claus Parade returns to the streets of Toronto and exclusively to CTV, CTV.ca, and the CTV app on Dec. 3 at 7 p.m. ET/PT. Produced by Bell Media Studios, the 90-minute special will include performances from John Legend and Preston Pablo. Returning to anchor North America’s longest running children’s parade are The Social’s Melissa Grelo, CTV Your Morning’s Kelsey McEwen and ETALK’s Tyrone Edwards. This year’s parade will feature 27 floats and 18 marching bands.
Canada Post has issued a commemorative stamp celebrating Quebec’s grande dame of stage and screen, Monique Mercure. Mercure, who passed away in 2020, had a six-decade career performing in more than 100 classical and contemporary plays in North America and Europe and over 80 films and TV productions, including Mon oncle Antoine (1971); J.A. Martin photographe (1977), which earned Mercure Canada’s first Festival de Cannes award for best actress; Naked Lunch (1991) and The Red Violin (1998). She also appeared as a regular in popular French-language TV series Providence (2005-11) and Mémoires vives (2013-16). She joins her peers from the performing community that Canada Post has honoured with stamps, including Fay Wray, Mary Pickford and Christopher Plummer.
Netflix and Amazon Prime Video toggle between first and second position in Ontario and Quebec, according to the latest VAM (Video Audience Measurement) insights released by Numeris. In Ontario, Prime Video has the edge over Netflix for total hours tuned, A18+, while Disney+ is a distant third. Netflix leads share of audience in Franco Quebec, followed by Prime Video and Disney+. Netflix is in the lead for both regions, with adults 25-54. In terms of weekly reach, Prime Video leads Netflix in Ontario across all demos, except teens, ages 12-17. Netflix typically outpaces Prime’s weekly reach in Franco Quebec, with the exception of the A50-64 and A65+ demos.
Media Technology Monitor (MTM) has launched its second annual MTM Newcomers study, focused on those who’ve arrived in Canada within the past five years. It finds newcomers are 42% less likely to own a TV set than Canadian-born individuals (64% vs 91% respectively) and 52% less likely than those born in Canada to subscribe to a paid TV service, such as cable or satellite. However, they are more likely to fall under the “TV My Way” category and watch TV content online. 88% of newcomers subscribe to at least one Subscription Video On Demand (SVOD) service, such as Netflix or Amazon Prime Video. Close to one in 10 subscribe to a foreign-language SVOD, such as Hotstar, iQiyi or Shahid. Newcomers are much more likely to consume a variety of audio online rather than on traditional platforms. 80% of newcomers listen to music on YouTube versus 49% of Canadian-born respondents. Newcomers are also more likely to use music streaming services like Spotify and listen to podcasts.
REGULATORY, TELECOM & MEDIA:
Aldo Di Felice, President of TLN Media Group, is among those recognized by the Canadian Ethnic Media Association (CEMA) at the organization’s 44th Annual Awards for Journalistic Excellence. Di Felice is the recipient of this year’s Sierhey Khmara Ziniak Award, named for CEMA’s founder and executive director, “for unswerving dedication to multiculturalism and its affirmative expression through media.” Other winners included Franklin Rodriguez, host of CHIN Radio Ottawa’s The Spanglish Hour and Fairchild Television Executive Producer Ada Luk. Read more here. The CEMA awards webcast will stream Thursday, Nov. 17 at 7 p.m. ET, co-hosted by Karen Johnson and Pauline Chan.
RTDNA Canada has opened nominations for its 2023 Lifetime Achievement Awards. The awards recognize individuals who have distinguished themselves through outstanding service and continued excellence during the course of their career in audio, digital and/or video journalism. The award is for lifetime achievement rather than for a single contribution. View past honourees here.
The Sidney Hillman Foundation is now accepting nominations for the 2023 Canadian Hillman Prize honouring excellence in investigative journalism in service of the common good. The Hillman Prize celebrates print, digital and broadcast reporting that exposes social and economic injustice and leads to meaningful public policy change. Entries must have been published or broadcast in 2022 and made widely available to a Canadian audience. Nominated material can be submitted here until Jan. 15. There is no fee to enter. The Canadian Hillman Prize winner(s) will be awarded a $5,000 honorarium and certificate at a March 30 celebration in Toronto as well as travel to New York City to be a guest at the U.S Hillman Prize ceremony. Previous winners include The Walrus, Globe and Mail, Crackdown podcast, CBC’s fifth estate, and TVO. This year’s Canadian judges are documentary filmmaker Neil Docherty, arts journalist and broadcaster Garvia Bailey, and documentary and news producer Bonnie Brown.
The Canadian Association of Community Television Users and Stations (CACTUS) and the Fédération des télévisions communautaires autonomes du Québec (the Fédération) have expressed concern that Bill C-18, the Online News Act, does not include small, not-for-profit news organizations like community broadcasters. The two associations say based on the implementation of similar legislation in Australia, community media will likely be left out of the news compensation scheme unless amendments are made, noting a brief submitted to the Heritage committee by the National Community and Campus Radio Association (NCRA) and the Community Radio Fund of Canada (CRFC) that indicates of 452 community radio stations in Australia, fewer than a dozen have been able to negotiate any compensation for their online news from Google or Facebook. Read more here.
BROADCAST TECH & ENGINEERING:
Rogers Sports & Media (RSM) has launched self-serve advertising platform, RSM Ad Manager. The platform automates the ad buy process, offering advertisers and businesses of all sizes one stop where they can choose a target, set a budget, upload their ad creative and then monitor the progress of their campaign in real time. Developed by DanAds, the platform offers advertising across RSM streaming and digital properties starting with budgets as low as $350.
Rise, the advocacy group for gender diversity in the media technology sector, has announced Daniella Weigner, co-founder and Managing Director of Cinegy GmbH, as the 2022 Woman of the Year. She’ll receive her award during the Rise Awards ceremony Nov. 30 in London and streamed live on the Rise YouTube channel. The award is open to any woman from across the sector, at any level, anywhere in the world. Earlier this year when the Ukraine war broke out, British-born Weigner and members of the Cinegy management team travelled to Ukraine to bring staff and their families back to Munich. Together with Sonya Chakarova and Phillip Covell, she brought together more than 400 broadcast and media companies and individuals to provide resources, solutions and hardware to Ukrainian TV channels and media outlets to ensure they could stay on-air amid ongoing conflict. The winner of this year’s Student of the Year award will also be announced during the ceremony with the shortlist including Humber College student Deepa Bhat.
