The Weekly Briefing

REVOLVING DOOR:

James Wallace, Director of Digital Strategy for Momentum Media Marketing and Broadcast Dialogue, is leaving the company, effective Jan. 4. Wallace, who has worn many hats over the last 12 years with Momentum – including acting as the Head of Digital for Radioplayer Canada – is joining mid-size Vancouver agency blue/meta as VP of Accounts. Signing on to the Momentum team in the New Year as Director of Digital Media is Jeff Lush, who most recently was Senior Manager, Digital Product & Operations at Rogers Sports & Media. Lush had been with Rogers for the last 17 years and in his current role for the last two and a half. He’ll remain based in Edmonton. Read more here.

Robin Gill, Global National’s weekend anchor and British Columbia correspondent, is moving on from the network after 21 years. Gill is pursuing a new venture as Vice-President of Vancouver public relations agency Talk Shop Media. Her last day on air will be Dec. 19. Gill started her career at BCTV (now Global BC) as a writer and researcher while still studying Broadcast Journalism at BCIT. From there, she did reporting and anchoring stints with CTV Yorkton, CBC Vancouver, and A-Channel (now Citytv) Calgary. She initially joined Global News as a reporter and anchor in Toronto in 2000, arriving in the network’s national newsroom in Vancouver in Dec. 2008.

RJ Broadhead has parted ways with Sportsnet after 21 years. Over that time, Broadhead has contributed to NHL on Sportsnet and Hockey Night in Canada broadcasts, in addition to hosting Sportsnet Connected and anchoring Sportsnet Central, among other roles.

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Life Update… pic.twitter.com/tbpJB1Xpzt

— RJ Broadhead (@BroadheadRJ) December 8, 2021

Gina Martin is leaving CTV News Regina to join CTV Morning Live in Calgary. Martin has been with CTV Regina in various roles since 2017, starting as an associate producer. She’s been an anchor/reporter for the last four years.

Maxime Denis is leaving his reporting position with Bell Media’s Noovo Info after just 12 months to join TVA Quebec as a weekend anchor and reporter. He takes over from Andrée Martin, who is on maternity leave. Denis previously did a brief stint with TVA in 2016 before leaving to join Radio-Canada.

Katarina Szulc has joined the CityNews Vancouver digital team as a web editor and reporter. Szulc is a recent graduate of the BCIT Broadcast & Online Journalism program.

Paul “Mastermind” Parhar is joining VIBE105 (CHRY-FM) Toronto as Program Director and Content Manager. The move marks Parhar’s return to radio following a nine-year stint with FLOW 93.5 FM (CFJX-FM) that ended in March 2020 when the Stingray-owned station made what proved to be a short-lived move to syndicate its morning show. It also sees the influential Toronto hip hop figure return to his radio roots with the station his first introduction to the medium when the frequency was first launched in 1987.  From there, he went on to hosting roles at Energy 108 (CING-FM) Hamilton, Vibe 98.5 (CIBK-FM) Calgary, and Kool FM 101.5 (CKCE-FM) Calgary. Read more here.

Megii (Megan) Pierson has joined Virgin Radio (CIBK-FM) Calgary as a weekend and fill-in announcer. Pierson, who also boasts a large TikTok following, most recently was on-air at Corus Calgary. 

Mookie Wilson has parted ways with 95.9 CHFM Calgary with Billie Jo now hosting the morning show solo. Wilson had been with the station for nearly 11 years. Prior to joining Rogers in 2011, he was heard in mornings at QX104 (CFQX-FM) Winnipeg and The New Country 95.3 (CKWD-FM) Calgary, among other stations.

Corus Radio Kingston has announced three new additions to its team, starting with Sideshow as the new morning show host on 96.3 Big FM (CFMK-FM). Up until last December, Sideshow spent 15 years with Rogers’ K-ROCK (CIKR-FM) Kingston. Joining 104.3 Fresh Radio (CKWS-FM) in mornings is Jesse Reynolds, who’ll co-host the rebranded “Fresh Mornings with Monica and Jesse.” Reynolds previously hosted the morning drive show at JUMP! 106.9 (CKQB-FM) Ottawa. Mary Megahy has also moved into afternoon drive on Fresh Radio and taken on Music Director duties. She was most recently on-air at KiSS 107.7 (CFRV-FM) Lethbridge.

Grame Thomson is moving on from the 94.1 Moose FM (CKNR-FM) Elliot Lake, ON morning show to join the Zed Morning Crew on Zed 98.9 (CIZZ-FM) Red Deer. Thomson, who had been with Vista Radio for just over a year, will take up his new position in the New Year.

Caitlyn Lepp has left K-Rock 105.7 (CIKR-FM) Kingston where she was the producer of The Brock and Dalby Show to return to Alberta and Virgin Radio (CFMG-FM) Edmonton. Prior to moving to Kingston nine months ago, the 2021 SAIT Radio, Television, & Broadcast News grad was on the Bell Media Calgary street team.

Mike Booth has announced he’ll be joining Kraze 101.3 (CKIK-FM) Red Deer as the new Morning Show Host and Assistant Music Director. Booth has been hosting afternoon drive at 2day FM (CKBD-FM) Lethbridge for the last eight months. Prior to that, he was with Harvard Broadcasting in Fort McMurray in various dayparts.

Desi Rosher moves from hosting the morning show at Country 104.9 FM (CKVX-FM) Kindersley, SK to anchoring morning news across Stingray’s stations in Alberta, including Edson, Hinton, Athabasca, High Prairie, Slave Lake, Westlock, and White Court. Rosher, a Western Academy of Broadcasting graduate, had been with Golden West’s Kindersley station since 2019.

 

Sarah Bugden is joining The Canadian Press (CP) as Ontario Bureau Chief. Bugden has been Assistant Managing Editor of the Edmonton Journal for the past two years. Prior to that, she held several digital roles with The Globe and Mail.

Radheyan Simonpillai is now Acting Editor at Now Toronto with the departure of Kevin Ritchie. Most recently Culture and Social Media Editor, Simonpillai has been with the publication for the last 14 years and is also a contributor to CTV Your Morning and CBC Radio. Richard Trapunski takes on the title of Associate Editor overseeing the Food, Music and Local Business sections.

Matthew Berkowitz has been promoted to President of Thunderbird Entertainment, in addition to his current role as Chief Creative Officer (CCO) of the Vancouver-headquartered production, distribution and rights management company, and its Kids and Family Division, Atomic Cartoons. Jennifer Twiner McCarron, to whom Berkowitz will report, remains CEO. Thunderbird has also announced several other promotions and hires. At Atomic Cartoons: Nadine Westerbarkey has been promoted from Head of 2D Animation to Studio Creative Director. Carl Upsdell has been promoted from Series Director to Head of 2D Animation. Andrew Egiziano has joined Atomic as VP of Production, Los Angeles. At Great Pacific Media and Thunderbird Scripted: Tony Chung is promoted from Director of Finance to Senior Vice President, Finance and Corporate Affairs. Lindsay Macadam moves from Head of Scripted Development to Senior Vice President, Content and Business Development, and Ed de Rivaz is bumped up from Creative Director to Senior Vice President, Development. Read more here.

Jennifer Dodge’s role at Spin Master has been expanded from President, Entertainment to adding Sales, Distribution and Outbound Licensing. Dodge has been with the company off and on since 2009, joining Nickelodeon as SVP, Development, Preschool from 2016-17.

Brenda Myers has been promoted to Director of Development at Proper Television, a Boat Rocker company. In her seven years with Proper Television, Myers has helped steer the creative direction of the company’s slate of original series, including Mary’s Kitchen Crush (CTV), Mary Makes It Easy (CTV Life Channel); Proper’s first original series for Netflix, Motel Makeover; and the upcoming Lost Car Rescue (HISTORY). Myers began her career as a story producer and writer working on series like Income Property (HGTV) and Candice Tells All (HGTV/W Network). 

RADIO & PODCAST:

The Numeris Fall 2021 Radio Diary ratings have been released, covering the listening period from Nov. 2020 to Nov. 2021, as the measurement agency transitions to the exclusive use of online diaries. David Bray offers a breakdown of the ratings for Ottawa, Hamilton, Halifax, Winnipeg, and Victoria.

 

Buffalo Toronto Public Media has launched new community-supported alternative music service, WBFO The Bridge, broadcasting on WBFO 88.7 HD2 and available to stream via the WBFO The Bridge app, website, and TuneIn. Dubbed “College Radio For Adults,” WBFO describes its playlist as “groundbreaking, alternative and occasionally idiosyncratic music of today alongside beloved classics.” Among its staple bands are Nirvana, Nathaniel Rateliff, Death Cab for Cutie, The Tragically Hip, Goo Goo Dolls, Arcade Fire, Mumford and Sons, U2, The Record Company, Black Keys, Elvis Costello, and Pixies.

HFX Broadcasting and parent company Evanov Radio Group have lost a bid to have allegations of sexual harassment removed from a constructive dismissal suit filed by a former employee of Live 105 (CKHY-FM) Halifax, according to a Saltwire report. The suit was filed by Lindsay Cochrane, who co-hosted the alt rock station’s morning show, starting in Jan. 2017 and later afternoon drive, before leaving the station in August 2018. It alleges she endured inappropriate comments about her appearance and other sexualized exchanges from the station’s former program director. CKHY-FM (now Surge 105) and CKHZ-FM (Hot Country 103.5) have since been acquired by Acadia Broadcasting.

Power 97 (CJKR-FM) Winnipeg claimed the Arkells as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ good luck charm in Sunday’s Grey Cup, embarking on a marathon of the Canadian band’s tunes which played in back-to-back blocks from Monday through Wednesday afternoon. Arkells, who were formed in Hamilton in 2006, led Sunday’s Grey Cup halftime show in their hometown, accompanied by special guests The Lumineers, K. Flay, and Northern Soul Horns. The Bombers went on to defeat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 33-25 in overtime. Read more here.

The 6th annual Bayshore Broadcasting/97.9 The Bruce “Light The Way Radiothon” in support of the Saugeen Memorial Hospital Foundation on Dec. 9 raised $251,000 in 12 hours, exceeding its goal of $200,000. This was the first year of the event under the stations’ new rock format with the theme “Bring Tom To Town,” raising funds for a much needed CT Scanner at the Southampton Hospital, that will benefit all of Bruce County. Dozens of listeners and local celebrities and volunteers contribute annually to the event, which has now raised more than $800,000 over the last six years.

Fairchild Radio’s fundraising event for The Princess Margaret Cancer Centre’s Cancer Experience Program raised over $340,000 on Dec. 2. The Radiothon, which aired live from 7 a.m. – 6 p.m., drew donations from across Canada and even overseas.

Evanov Communications’ Winnipeg stations Energy 106 (CHWE-FM), Hot 100.5 (CFJL-FM) and 92.7 CKJS raised over $75,000 in cash and food donations for Harvest Manitoba on Dec. 10 with Energy 106’s “Wheeler in the Morning,” Mark and Dilly from Hot 100.5, and Chester and Donna from “Good Morning Philippines” on 92.7 CKJS, participating in the 12-hour radiothon. Proceeds go directly to Harvest Manitoba, which will help feed over 80,000 Manitobans this holiday season. The donation comes as increasing food prices have resulted in a 76% increase in demand for food support over this same time last year.

99.3 County FM Prince Edward County is once again partnering with Bloomfield United Church and 17 other local congregations to broadcast a Christmas Eve program. With churches at limited capacity and without the usual singing and pageantry, Celebrate Christmas aims to bring the spirit of the holiday into the lives and living rooms of County residents. The broadcast is also intended to appeal to those without internet or limited bandwidth in parts of the county, unable to stream local services. The program of Christmas scripture readings and carols will be broadcast on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. 

Signal Hill Insights latest blog post dives into an uncomfortable truth for podcasters and publishers who have built their business on downloads — that more than one-in-four monthly podcast listeners (27%) name YouTube as the platform they use most often. That’s up four points over last year even as Joe Rogan left YouTube for his $100 million exclusivity deal with Spotify, affirmed by the recently-released 2021 Canadian Podcast Listener study. Signal Hill founder Jeff Vidler says podcasters should use their YouTube presence as an opportunity to feed their strategy and drive listening to other podcast platforms. Read more here.

Pacific Content’s annual podcast predictions are out, based on the future musings of 75 industry thought leaders. Among them are that paid podcast subscriptions will fall flat with most listeners, however some apps will continue to draw in an audience behind their paywalls with exclusive content. Industry leaders also predict that marketing and audience development will become more important as “cutting through” proves harder amidst more content and bigger platforms. There are also predictions that the big networks, studios and streamers will push more aggressively into the podcast space.

LISTEN: Tom Bedell, longtime afternoon drive host at Q104 (CFRQ-FM) Halifax, is on the latest episode of the Sound Off Podcast. Bedell, whose career started in the late ‘80s in Saint John, NB at the legendary CFBC, has been driving Metro Halifax home since 1998. On this episode, Bedell dives into some of his early career stops and the history of Q104 – one of North America’s premiere rock stations.

LISTEN: On the latest episode of Broadcast Dialogue – The Podcast, we talk to Twitter Canada “tweeps” Conor Clarance, Head of Sports Marketing, and Shay Thiyagarajah, Partnerships Manager, on the big year that was 2021 for the social platform, including a raft of product updates, how Canadian media is leveraging Twitter for live events, and tips for getting that elusive little blue “verified” checkmark. Listen on your favourite podcast app or here:

SIGN OFFS:

Serge Plaisance, on Dec. 12, after a battle with cancer. Originally from Ville de Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Plaisance’s radio career began at CFLV-1370 Valleyfield and went on to include on-air and programming stops at Montreal stations CJMS 1280 AM, 96.9 CKOI, CKVL 100,1, CKAC, and Planète Jazz. He was perhaps best known for his run on CHOM from 1974-80. More recently, he had held various roles at Montreal French-language station Radio Ville-Marie (CIRA-FM) and Evanov’s AM 980 (CHRF-AM). Plaisance also lent his voice to numerous commercials and television programs, including Surprise sur prize, Action-Réaction and Double jeu.

TV & FILM:

Canadian Heritage Min. Pablo Rodriguez plans to hold a two-day national summit Jan. 31 and Feb. 1 with the arts, culture and heritage sectors at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa. Rodriguez, who’ll also consult virtually with stakeholders in Vancouver, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto, Montréal and Halifax in January, wants to discuss long-term trends emerging in the Canadian cultural ecosystem and solutions for sustainable recovery, including how to bring back and create new audiences, the role of digital platforms, and the contribution of cultural sectors to reconciliation and a more inclusive society. The summit will take place in a hybrid format with the in-person component dependant on evolving public health guidelines. 

Telefilm Canada has released its 2020-21 Annual Report. Overall, $173.5M in COVID-19 relief funding was administered by Telefilm with projects covered by the Short-Term Compensation Fund (STCF) representing more than half a billion dollars in Canadian production budgets, supporting approximately 4,500 full-time equivalent jobs. To support an industry on hold due to the pandemic, Telefilm redirected funds to finance all eligible projects submitted to the Development Program. Its budget was increased to support 607 projects for $11.5M. The inaugural Development Stream for Racialized Persons (now Black and People of Colour) saw over $2.5M invested in 143 projects from 93 companies. Telefilm will hold its annual public assembly via videoconference, Jan. 21 at 1 p.m. ET on its Facebook page where the Board of Directors and Executive Leadership Team will discuss results as well as priorities going forward.

Boat Rocker has announced that its sci-fi drama series Invasion has been renewed for a second season at Apple TV+. The renewal of the series, from Academy and Emmy Award-nominee Simon Kinberg (X-Men, Deadpool, The Martian) and David Weil (Hunters) arrives ahead of the final episode of Season 1, which premiered globally Dec. 10. Set across multiple continents, Invasion follows an alien invasion through different perspectives around the world. It stars Golshifteh Farahani, Shamier Anderson, Shioli Kutsuna, Firas Nassar, Billy Barratt, Azhy Robertson, Tara Moayedi, Daisuke Tsuji and Sam Neill.

Oxford Economics has released new data demonstrating the economic impact of Warner Bros. Television’s DC drama series Superman & Lois in British Columbia, with over $95 million spent in-province on the first season alone. Their analysis estimates just one season of production stimulated a total of 1,220 jobs in B.C., including 630 direct jobs created on the show. The series is estimated to have contributed approximately $137 million to the provincial GDP in 2020-21. The DC Super Hero drama, based on iconic characters Superman and Lois Lane, is filmed in Surrey, Richmond, and Delta. Read the complete report here.

 

Cascadoo Films and Give a Hoot Productions have announced that award-winning director Camille Hollett-French is set to shoot SPARK in Vancouver. The short film, which goes to camera in January, received the highest grant possible from the Canada Council for the Arts and will run a paid mentorship program sponsored by TELUS Storyhive for nine mentees. Participants will also receive a professional package including a headshot, industry-specific resume writing, anti-bias training, interview prep and a guided facility tour of William F. White. Hollett-French, whose film FREYA recently won five Leo awards, is directing and producing the film, written by Christina McInulty. McNulty will also star as Roxanne, a disillusioned senior care home worker implicated in the disappearance of lonely scientist Harold – a cantankerous, assisted living resident obsessed with fixing a mysterious machine to find his missing wife. SPARK is being made with the support of Seniors Come Share Society where the film will be shot with a province-wide casting search undeway for the role of Harold. Learn more at sparkshort.com. 

DOC Institute has announced the 8th annual DOC Institute Honours Award winners. Tamara Mariam Dawit, an Ethiopian-Canadian filmmaker and creative sector policy advisor, is the recipient of the DOC Vanguard Award. The Vanguard Award is reserved for mid-career creatives who demonstrate a keen artistic sensibility and forward-thinking approach to the craft and show the potential to lead the next generation of doc-makers. Sylvia D. Hamilton is the recipient of the DOC Luminary Award, given to an individual who embodies the creative spirit of the Canadian documentary tradition and displays generosity by supporting the next generation of doc-makers. Hamilton is an independent filmmaker, professor emeritus at the University of King’s College School of Journalism in Halifax, and a founding member of the DOC Atlantic chapter. Read more here.

Global has announced new series joining its winter programming lineup. Beginning in January, the network welcomes the debut of new medical drama Good Sam (Jan. 5 at 10 p.m. ET/PT), historical drama limited series Women of the Movement (Jan. 6 at 8 p.m. ET/PT), and Global’s latest comedy Abbott Elementary (Jan. 5 at 9 p.m. ET/PT). New seasons of returning hit competition series I Can See Your Voice (Jan. 5 at 8 ET/PT) and Celebrity Big Brother (Feb. 2 at 8 p.m. ET/PT) also join the schedule.

CTV kicks off 2022 with a primetime schedule featuring six new series and a roster of returning hits. The network’s first block of mid-season premieres includes crime drama The Cleaning Lady (Jan. 3), starring Elodie Yung (The Hitman’s Bodyguard) and Adan Canto (Designated Survivor), as well as comedy Pivoting (Jan. 9) with Eliza Coupe (Happy Endings), Ginnifer Goodwin (Once Upon a Time), and Maggie Q (Designated Survivor). Three unscripted series also join the midseason schedule: Gordon Ramsay cooking competition Next Level Chef (Jan. 2); Judge Steve Harvey (Jan. 4), a new one-hour courtroom comedy where real-life people with present cases to Harvey; along with Joe Millionaire: For Richer or Poorer (Jan. 6), based on the original dating series.

CTV presents Celebrating Greatness: Canada’s Walk of Fame 2021, premiering Friday, Dec. 17. Co-hosted by actor and 2010 inductee Eric McCormack and ETALK’s Traci Melchor, the one-hour special honours exceptional Canadians with distinctive accomplishments in philanthropy, advocacy, and contributions towards the greater good. McCormack and Melchor will co-host the broadcast overlooking the Vancouver skyline, with presenters including Carrie-Anne Moss presenting to her Matrix co-star Keanu Reeves; Chris Jericho honouring wrestling champion Bret “Hitman” Hart; 2003 Inductee Robbie Robertson presenting to iconic actor Graham Greene; and Barenaked Ladies celebrating Canadian music legend Bruce Cockburn. The special will be available to stream on Crave, starting Dec. 18.

CTV welcomes the arrival of its new original comedy Children Ruin Everything, airing Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CTV, CTV.ca, and the CTV app, beginning Jan. 12. Created by Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winner Kurt Smeaton (Schitt’s Creek, Kim’s Convenience), the series follows parents, Astrid (Meaghan Rath, Being Human) and James (Aaron Abrams, Blindspot), as they raise their two young children in the city and struggle to hold on to their pre-kid life. Filmed in Toronto and Hamilton, the first season consists of eight half-hour episodes. As previously announced, Children Ruin Everything joins the Roku Originals programming slate on The Roku Channel in the U.S. in 2022.

CTV Original drama Transplant returns for its second season Mondays at 10 p.m. ET/PT, beginning Jan. 3. Season 2 is produced by Sphere Media in association with CTV and Universal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group, with the translated French version, Transplanté, joining Noovo’s lineup in 2022. Filmed in Montréal, Season 2 consists of 13 one-hour episodes. Joining Season 2 in recurring roles are Gord Rand (Chapelwaite, Orphan Black) and Nora Guerch (Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, Zoe), as well as series cultural consultant and actor, Ahmad Meree.

FEATURE: Fairchild Television is celebrating its recent Canadian Ethnic Media Association (CEMA) Award win in the Best Television category. Weekly current affairs program, Media Focus, and producer Steve So were recognized for the show’s coverage of a York University study highlighting pandemic racism targeted at the Asian community. Read more here.

Eastlink says its community fundraising partnerships helped raise over $1 million for communities and non-profit organizations this holiday season through local telethons broadcast by Eastlink Community TV in 11 communities across the country. Michael Smith, VP, Eastlink TV, says in spite of challenges presented by COVID-19 “cancelling these telethons simply wasn’t an option. We knew we had to find a way to continue to make these happen, however modified they needed to be.”

REGULATORY, TELECOM & MEDIA:

The British Columbia Association of Broadcasters (BCAB) has released its full list of 2021 Awards of Excellence winners, which recognize the “Best in Province” for radio and television commercials, station imaging, community service and news reporting. Among this year’s winners are Keith Baldrey, Global News’ Legislative Breau Chief in Victoria, who was named Broadcast Performer of the Year. Kevin Gemmell, General Manager of Pattison Media’s Prince George Operation, was named Broadcaster of the Year, while CHEK News reporter Jasmine Bala was recognized with the Broadcast Performer of Tomorrow Award. CHEK-TV also won for Best Station Imaging – TV – Small Market and Best Commercial Creative – TV – Small Market. Find the full list of winners and their winning submissions here.

Community Media Advocacy Centre (CMAC) has issued a call for proposals for five regional one-day events it’s planning to hold in 2022 in cities across Canada, including Montreal, Vancouver, Halifax, Calgary and Winnipeg. Building an Anti-Racism Strategy for Canadian Broadcasting: Conversation & Convergence will explore racism as a barrier to achieving cultural diversity in media and confront barriers experienced by racialized Canadians (including Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour) in media access, representation, and employment-related practices. The process is aimed at developing an anti-racism strategy. Supported by Canadian Heritage, the regional gatherings will culminate in a national two-day conference in Ottawa in November. Each proposal submitted should make at least two recommendations for building an anti-racism strategy for Canadian broadcasting. The deadline for submissions is Feb. 9.

CBC/Radio-Canada has launched its 2022–25 Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Plan. The new three-year plan, Progress in Progress, builds on the national public broadcaster’s 2018–21 plan and June 2021 update. Highlights of the public broadcaster’s expanded commitment include: Evaluating content it produces and commissions to ensure a diversity of opinion and perspectives, and to accurately reflect the experiences of audiences; Accessing a wider range of experts who are Indigenous, racialized, living with a disability, or part of LGBTQ2+ communities, and who can offer perspectives on a wide range of topics, not just those related to their identities; Diversifying the talent pipeline across the country via fellowships, internships, and collaborations with industry partners and allies; and Connecting with underrepresented communities to better understand what they expect of the public broadcaster and ensure their realities are reflected in CBC content.

The Canadian Journalism Foundation (CJF) is launching a new Black Journalism Fellowship opportunity in partnership with the Investigative Journalism Bureau (IJB). The fourth CJF award for Black journalists, the fellowship will bring a Black journalist – with one-to-10 years’ experience – to the IJB to work for six months on an ongoing investigative journalism project under the guidance of the bureau’s editors and senior reporters. CJF has also announced a new $5,000 bursary for BIPOC Journalism Students, funded by Toronto-based communications firm Media Profile. Open to a BIPOC student in their final year of a Canadian undergraduate journalism program, it’s designed to support students who have demonstrated strong engagement with the BIPOC community and a commitment to high journalistic standards. The CJF is now accepting entries for its 2022 awards and fellowships program until Jan. 14.

 

Julie Adam, President, News & Entertainment, at Rogers Sports & Media, has self-published new leadership book Imperfectly Kind: Why Kindness is the Must-Have Superpower You Need to Lead. Described as a collection of thoughts, ideas and tips to improve building and coaching skills, including giving feedback, making tough decisions and having difficult conversations. Learn more here.

 

 

BROADCAST TECH & ENGINEERING:

Humber College is leading development of the country’s first Broadcast-Broadband Convergence B²C Lab exploring multi-sectoral data delivery applications enabled by the new Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) 3.0 television broadcast standard, set to replace the current ATSC 1.0 standard in North America. Funded through a $4.5 million joint NSERC/CFI College-Industry Innovation Fund grant, Humber’s B²C Lab will be the first industry research lab in North America equipped with both an ATSC 3.0 broadcast system and 5G core network, including an RF antenna test chamber supporting over-the-air testing of a wide range of wireless devices and prototypes. Supported by a team of faculty researchers and students, the lab will foster partnerships with both the private and public sector to enable tech and business innovation at the local, regional and national level, illustrating how the broadcast industry can support the digital transformation of other industries. Lab Director Orest Sushko said although the 3.0 standard has yet to be formally adopted in Canada, there is a growing appetite to learn more about the standard and its extensive capabilities as an IP-based data delivery network. Read more here.

Harmonic is partnering with Rogers Communications to power the company’s next generation multi-gigabit broadband services using Harmonic’s CableOS®. Rogers is deploying the platform in a distributed access architecture (DAA) with virtualized CMTS software and the Ripple Remote-PHY (R-PHY) node. The CableOS Platform can support converged cable and FTTH, DOCSIS 4.0 technology and other advanced services including edge cloud. Rogers is using the tech to fully converge its data, voice and video services in the IP domain, which will bring benefits including faster speed, higher availability for its customers, and a reduction in space, power and cooling costs to support its growing network.