Sunday, February 07, 2010
The radios who are silent, by Francis Chartrand
Corus Entertainment silenced two of its radio stations. AM Info690 Montreal and AM940 Montreal's Greatest Hits ceased operations Friday night at 19 pm
For Corus Entertainment, "it is clear that stations Info690 and AM940 are not viable". The company claims to have lost one million dollars per year for the past eight years, with two radio stations.
The broadcaster said this decision despite the fact that "Corus Quebec and its employees have invested time and energy to revive these units".
This decision affects 10 private broadcaster posts in total. These are positions of journalists, columnists assigned to traffic as well as operations staff.
However, Corus will retain eight of the ten affected employees: Five journalists and three columnists to traffic will be diverted to other stations in the group, such as CKOI and 98.5 FM.
Corus news does not cease to exist because it will serve all our partners, such as Radio North, and will be present in our network is in Quebec City, Trois-Rivieres, Saguenay, Ottawa short, everywhere where they broadcast.
- Annick Bélanger, spokesman for Corus Quebec
The CRTC will recover the operating licenses of the two AM stations.
Info690 station whose call letters are CINF was began broadcasting in December 1999. She took over from CKVL present in the radio world Montrealers since 1946.
Info690 was owned by Metromedia CMR, which subsequently sold its radio holdings to Corus Entertainment. The company employs 466 people in Quebec. The direction of Info690 had already eliminated 12 jobs in the newsroom in February 2009.
A changing media landscape
Let's recall that the CBC had sought, with the CRTC, a license to launch its own news channel on the 940. This frequency was also the former frequency of CBC on the AM band, before the CBC does not migrate to FM 88.5.
But ultimately the project of the CBC had not been retained by the CRTC.
Radio-Canada.ca with the Canadian Press.
Well, my comment now.
Info 690 in Montreal and 940 News were in service since December 1999, when CKVL 850 was spent at 690 and CIQC 600 was spent on 940. Why? Because radio frequencies are allocated to consortia. And that CBC and Radio-Canada had no more their AM stations. CBF had increased to 690 and 95.1 CBM 940 was passed in 88.5.
The management of Corus (CKOI, CFQR, CKVL, CIQC) wanted to acquire two radio channels of all news, as Bloomberg Radio WBBR 1130, WCBS 880 or WINS 1010 New York stations that can sometimes catch a vehicle in the Montreal area. What was to be a first in Canada.
At the same time, the same project surfaced in the management of the CBC. And they are Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa for their pilot project, a "RDI" and "Newsworld" on the AM with the local traffic to 10 minutes, the national weather for 13 minutes and a reminder of the headlines 15 minutes.
Project Name: Info Express and News Express. In Montreal, the CBC is still the owner of AM frequencies 690 and 940. The solution: take them back. Anyway the CBC were other ambitious projects: the TV Arts (now ARTV), Bande à part, which would see the day to 104.5 as CBC Radio 3 which would see the day 91.9 and Sports Extra in French on the AM frequency 900 and in English on AM frequency 650.
If all the projects had emerged, we would have in Montreal: the First Channel 95.1, Espace Musique at 100.7, Bande a part at 104.5, Info Express 690, Sports Extra, 900 CBC Radio 1 at 88.5, CBC Radio 2 to 93.5, CBC Radio 3 to 91.9, Express News Sports Extra 940 and the 650. That's a lot of radio stations with our taxes, you say. But what does think the CRTC?
The CRTC had therefore asked the SRC to determine in its many projects. And while Corus would recycle its 2 stations, and CKVL CIQC, then cut the CRTC to move forward in granting a all news license. And refusing to be beaten by the CBC, Corus plans to move its frequency to those who belonged to the CBC. CKVL passed to the former CBF and CIQC went to former CBM.
Then came the 2000s, a decade when people became more and more followers of MP3s, listen to more music. People let go of the format "talk radio", always more and more disgusted by the current international, political correctness, the sports disappointments Montreal (Canadiens less present in the playoffs, the Expos between life and death), and the consequences of September 11 leaves a climate of fear which does taste more people to learn. Finally, the era of "I don't wanna know" and "I don't give a fuck" begins for a decade.
Even the station attracted more than 1 300 000 listeners in 1995, CKOI, falling to 600 000. People have CD players in vehicles. CD engraved replace MP3 MIX 96, CKOI, CKMF, CHOM. The sports websites replace the sports programs at CKAC and CKGM short, the website will play a major role in the future of radio, as well as other forms of media.
Then came the 90s, where the failures of the Canadian and Quebec society are felt. The Oka Crisis, the failure of the Meech Lake Accord, the referendum failed about Charlottetown Accord, the first Gulf War. People are moving away from more information and more.
We go to merge the two largest networks of private talk radio, Radiomutuel and Telemedia. In Montreal, Quebec, Chicoutimi, Hull, Sherbrooke and Trois-Rivieres, stations will close in 1994 as CKLM 1570 in Laval. CJMS 1280 Radiomutuel to merge with Montreal CKAC 730 of Telemedia, CJRP 1060 Radiomutuel to merge with Quebec CHRC 80 of Telemedia, CJMT 1420 Telemedia to merge with Chicoutimi CKRS 590 Radiomutuel in Jonquiere, 970 CKCH Telemedia merged with Hull CJRC 1150 Radiomutuel in Gatineau, CJRS 1510 Sherbrooke Radiomutuel to merge with CHLT 630 Telemedia and CJTR 1140 Radiomutuel at Three Rivers merged with CHLN 550 of Telemedia.
Thus is born the network Radiomédia, born of the merger September 30, 1994, a network that Astral Media will own, in addition to Rock and Relaxation Radiomutuel on FM Radio which will become Energy (CHIK 98.9 in Quebec City, IGBC at Three Rivers, CIKI 98.7 in Rimouski, Sherbrooke CIMO 106.1, 94.5 CJAB in Jonquière, Drummondville CJDM 92.1, 99.1 CJMM in Rouyn-Noranda, CJMV 102.7 in Val-d'Or, CKMF 94.3 to 104.1 CKTF Montreal and Gatineau), to become Energy from 2001 to 2009, eventually becoming NRJ in 2009, curiously the extension of a network with the same name, but in France. While his station anglophone Montreal Astral, Virgin Radio, is also an extension of a network with the same name, but in the United Kingdom.
We come back to talk radio. CIEL 98.5 FM closed its doors in 2000, Corus (an Alberta company buys the frequency to a sister station to CKOI; CKOO aka COOL 98.5, an alternative rock station (which I loved to listen for that matter) who undertook format every year. In 2001 it became a modern rock station, becoming in 2003 a classic rock station, and January 5, 2004, becomes CHMP (Le FM parlés de Montréal).
The first shot of the station is going to look for hands CKAC (Astral) the morning man Paul Arcand, Gilles Proulx for the issuance of the return and it will be the broadcaster of the games of the Montreal Expos in their last season. CKAC is found in the morning with Mario Langlois morning, Jean Lapierre in the morning, Pierre Mailloux in the afternoon, sports fans to return to 4:00 PM, Canadiens games and Alouettes, Ron Fournier, Jacques Fabi to the night and Serge Plaisance and Roger Drolet during weekend.
However, having a high quality radio entertainment, this is where everything is upsetting. Astral Media talks to sell the 6 stations Radiomédia but wants to keep CJAD 800. The future of the station has been questioned in recent years due to the decline of AM radio in Quebec, while in recovery throughout the rest of Canada.
Quebecor wanted to buy the station, but this offer was blocked by the CRTC to avoid excessive media concentration. A consortium comprised of Radio North Genex and then offered to buy the station, but has since withdrawn the offer. In 2004, Corus Entertainment has offered to buy CKAC and other Astral stations for the price of eleven million dollars. The CRTC approved the transaction in January 2005. But it will not be without consequences.
The intention of Corus was initially to close the newsroom of CKAC to redirect content to sports and health. This has angered a wide audience perceived the traditional content as a cultural institution in Quebec.
And there begins a hell in which Corus sailed with both feet, as Corus owns 3 stations "talk radio" in Montréal, 98.5 FM Parlé, CKAC, and in english, 940 Montreal (Info690 being that of all news radio). On September 14, 2005, the format of continuous disclosure of 940 becomes 940 News Montreal, format "talk radio" to compete on CJAD, still owned by Astral and his rivals in the ratings with Joe Cannon in the morning, Jim Duff return (sometimes I listened), Charles Adler, in the afternoon on all the stations "talk radio" Corus across the country, and Coast to coast, the "talk radio" live during the night.
An appeal was launched to the Canadian federal government to cancel the purchase of Corus, but the newsroom was officially closed May 30, 2005. Recently the station has been criticized for his columns on sex in prime time. On 1 March 2007, CKAC announced that effective April 2, 2007 the station broadcasts only sports news and concentrate only on the sports field. Yes, it closes the famous newsroom CKAC, operating since 1922.
Then Corus gets in trouble because of financial difficulties led them to turn 940 Montreal to AM 940, an oldies station, June 6, 2008.
Corus is not his first killing. On April 16, 2007, CKRS 590 Saguenay passes to 98.3, CJRC 1150 Gatineau passes to 104.7. On August 20, 2007, CHLT 630 Sherbrooke passes to 107.7 and CHLN 550 Trois-Rivières passes to 106.9. CJTR (later CHLN) had a sister station in Shawinigan, CKSM 1220. Not having been in the transaction to Corus station died June 30, 2007. On March 28, 2009, its stations "talk radio" will all members of a new network: Memories Guaranteed, a competitor to Boom FM, another network of Astral Media. On 1 May 2009, their old AM frequencies are finally dead.
Then these 2 stations who die in Montreal. CHRC 80 has escaped this fall, becoming independent. This station is now called Quebec 800.
Yes, the future of talk radio darkens. And it scares me. Because radio stations where there are open lines where people can express themselves remain one of the vertebrae of our democracy. But if I wanted to censor, keep the public in ignorance, attack the knowledge and information, I would not take otherwise. I would cut off the microphone to all these leaders open lines and I would put some music, and some sleepy music.
Sleep, public asleep.
Because a listened radio by a radio audience is healthy.
Francis Chartrand
Labels: Francis Chartrand, Freedom of expression, Media, Québec
# posted by Francis Chartrand @ 1:09 AM 
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