Bad Format.

 Last night I decided to listen to the B.C. Lions-Edmonton Elks game online.  I picked the Lions radio feed to listen to.  While finding out what station to listen to I learned that the TSN station in Vancouver, 1040 khz AM, had switched formats and branding.  It's now Funny 1040, a comedy station.

I think it's possible to have a good comedy format on a radio station.  After all CBC has presented radio comedy shows forever.  But the Funny 1040 format isn't.  It consists of clips taken from the acts of various stand up comedians.  The longest seems to be about 2 minutes.  They're preceded, and sometimes followed, by the name of the comedian.  "Joe Rogan," the canned identification will say.  When the next clip comes along the canned ID will say something like "And here's Bob Newhart."  It's a presentation that strikes me as rather amateurish.  

Other than the requisite station IDs, and commercials, there is apparently no other programming other than these clips.  There isn't even an hourly newscast or indication of weather conditions.  Bell Media, the owners of the station, and the owners of TSN, have gone for as cheap a production as possible.  Once someone chopped enough bits out of recordings of those comedians all they had to do is make sure their randomiser doesn't repeat anything too frequently, which probably isn't hard with enough clips on the library.

I'm not familiar enough with the current comedy scene to confirm this, but one commenter noted that there seemed to be no Canadian comedians in their initial offerings, bringing up the questions of how they meet Canadian comment requirements.  I can think of ways around this, as much of the material may count as "industrially Canadian" depending on the source, even if the comedians aren't Canadians.

How this went down certainly wasn't funny.  Staff at TSN 1040 were given no warning of the switchover.  They, and the rest of their listeners, found out when head office in Toronto remotely cut off the morning show at 9 AM on February 9th.  It was replaced with half an hour of an ESPN feed, before a recorded announcement stated the demise of TSN 1040 due to supposed market conditions, and announcing a new format was imminent.  To add insult to injury Green Day's "Good Riddance(Time of Your Life)" played immediately after the announcement.  The staff was then given 30 minutes to clean out their stuff and leave.  Everyone was let go, not even apparently being given a chance to work at other Bell Media stations in Vancouver and area.

The responses from former TSN 1040 listeners was largely negative.  And it\s probably telling that the official Funny 1040 Twitter account hasn't been updated since April.  Bell Media seem to have little interest in the station themselves.  Perhaps that's because the format been a ratings loser elsewhere.  1060 khz in Calgary has been Funny 1060 since 2013, and consistently sits at the bottom of the ratings. 

The Winnipeg TSN station also suffered the same fate, and is now airing as Funny 1290.

Pity The Call Screener.

Today's edition of CBC Radio One's Cross Country Checkup asked a simple question:  Is it wrong to eat meat?  A simple question, but the kind that will get a lot of people going.  I would hate to have been the call screener today.  I'm sure pro and anti-meat callers of the most unpleasant sort wanted to have their opinions heard. 

Hey, Jack 96.9 FM!

Those ads currently airing during the Blue Jays games are really annoying.  I find it hard to believe those two guys are your top on air talent.

A Possible Solution.

The mess prompted by the revelation that Jian Ghomeshi is apparently a giant creep continues to have effects.  One of them is that CBC has pulled the video versions of his various interviews off of YouTube, and won't use them on Q.  But perhaps there's a solution.  Re-edit the material to remove Ghomeshi.  It would be an audio and video equivalent of Garfield Minus Garfield, where strips are edited to remove the titular cat.  It would be a lot of work, and might not work with some interviews, but it would make for an interesting listening experience.

Rumours Confirmed.

I forgot about it, so I missed the noon hour changeover.  But now we know.  Wired 96.3's replacement, as the rumours suggested, is 96.3 Cruz FM.  The format is "classic hits," apparently ranging from the early '70s to the early 2000s.  Interestingly when I checked their Radio Data System feed a couple of minutes ago they were still IDing as Santa FM.  Their website can be seen here.  Will this new format work?  It seems to have too much overlap with Magic 98.3 and Rock 102 FM to me.  I guess it's a case of stay tuned.

A 96.3 Update.

This afternoon I spotted an ad on a bus shelter for the upcoming replacement for Wired 96.3.  The sign gave no clue as to what the new format will be, merely indicated the planned debut at noon on Boxing Day, December 26th.  If there aren't some already I would imagine we'll see large ads on some of the many advertising billboards in Saskatoon in short order.

It would be interesting to know how long the changeover has been in the works,. and why the Wired on air staff was let go.  I would guess the latter is to give the new station a fresh start, and perhaps we'll see an older group of DJs more in keeping with the rumoured oldiers/classic hits format.  One or more veterans of the Saskatoon radio scene, perhaps?

My previous posts on the demise of Wired 96.3 can be read here and here.  Harvard is currently running the transmitter on 96.3 megahertz as Santa FM, so if you're a |DXer that's why you're hearing nonstop Christmas music if you've got your Yagi aimed this way.

Wired Update.

Here's a followup to my post from earlier today about the demise of Wired 96.3.  Owners Harvard Broadcasting have announced the station will begin broadcasting in a new format  at noon on December 26th.  Presumably Harvard has already hired a new on air staff for the new format, as a little bit over a month would seem a rather tight timeline to launch and complete a successful search for new employees.  Of course this being the 21st Century it is possible that there won't be any local on air personalities, that the station will present programming from elsewhere, controlled by computer.  What will it be?  As I said in my previous post I'm not sure what might be a viable replacement format, so we'll just have to wait and see.

Addenda:  Just after posting this I did a bit of looking around to see other reactions about Wired's demise.  Apparently there are rumours floating around that the new format may be classic hits or oldies under the name Cruise FM, or Cruz FM.    

UnWired.

The Saskatoon radio scene has taken a hit.  FM station Wired 96.3 closed up shop yesterday.  The staff was let go, and the station will play Christmas music for the remainder of the year as Santa FM, when owners Harvard Broadcasting will decide what to do with the transmitter.  Ironically this is the same format the station used when it was doing its final tests before officially hitting the air in July of 2008.

I was skeptical when the station opened that there was enough listenership, and hence ad revenue, to support another contemporary pop station.  It would seem I was right, unfortunately.  I think it's telling that the station would fire its staff with more than a month to go until Christmas, instead of waiting until year's end.        I'm guessing the station's revenues weren't covering its staff costs, and it was losing too much money to continue operating even a few weeks longer.

Next July would have been the station's fifth anniversary.

What format might Harvard replace Wired with?  I really don't have an idea.  We have 2 country stations, one each on AM and FM, so that seems unlikely.  A rock station?  Competing with Rock 102 FM might not be a much better idea that competing with C95 was in the current format.  I can't imagine a news/talk station, as that would seem to be a waste of an FM stereo transmitter, and the format is already served by CKOM and CBC Radio One.  Even a Christian music format would have competition in the form of Free 100.3, although the tiny Free would likely be the loser in that kind of battle.  Would an oldies format work here?  Perhaps.  There is an AM oldies station easily heard in this market, Melfort's CKJH on 750 khz AM, but a stereo FM format might take much of their Saskatoon listernship, whatever it might be.

Here Come The Kookies.

If you're a night owl and like kooks you're in luck if you live in Saskatoon.  I just heard an ad on CKOM for Coast To Coast AM, the talk show formerly hosted by Art Bell.  It apparently will be debuting Tuesday at 1 AM. Given the local air time I assume you won't be hearing it live.  I'm pretty sure it aired in the past in Saskatoon, but I can't remember what station it was on.  Presumably CKOM figures that the listeners it attracts will be worth the cost of buying the show, instead of playing repeats of their own programming.  I personally won't be tuning in, as I can get my weirdo fix from other sources.

Hey, CJYM.

Please fix your automation equipment, or whatever is currently not working right.  Hearing a commercial, your promo announcement, and the Blue Jays game coming back up all at the same time is really annoying.

Once On The Dial.

I had a nice surprise today.  During my travels I came across a mailbox with a "Radio 600 CFQC Saskatoon" sticker on it.  I'm sure I haven't seen one of those in twenty years or more.  I really should have taken a picture.  Fortunately I came across a photo of it at the Radio Sticker of the Day blog.   It's the style at the top of the post.  Of course the one in the photo is much nicer looking than the faded example I saw.  Several decades on a mailbox will do that to an image.

My family were consistent listeners to CFQC in the '70s.  However we eventually began to listen to CBC for some reason.  Perhaps we just changed our tastes, I really can't remember.  CJWW currently holds the station's old 600 khz frequency assignment, while the callsign lives on via the local CTV station.

This Post Includes Offensive Content.

If you haven't heard about it already you're likely to over the next few days.  The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council wants Canadian radio stations to stop playing the unedited version of Dire Straits' 1985 hit "Money For Nothing."  The problem is the use of faggot in the lyrics.  This story will of course prompt a bunch of yelling about government censorship.

But wait a moment.  It's not the government who wants the song removed.  The CBSC is run by the broadcast industry, not government.  The industry is policing itself.  And let's not hear any "slippery slope" arguments either.  Canadian radio stations already play versions of current hits where words many find offensive, like nigger, are edited out.  So removing one word from one verse of "Money For Nothing" is more a nuisance than anything else.

How offensive language should be dealt with is a question with no easy answers.  Unlike other media music on the radio has the problem that it's not really practical to warn for content on a specific basis.  Compare this with TV or the movies, which can warn in advance for offensive words in a specific piece of content.  It is also easier for viewers to realise that the words a character uses don't necessarily reflect the beliefs of the performer than it is in a song, where the tendency is often to assume the singer of a song and the persona in the song are the same. 

And let's also not forget that the song is still available for anyone to listen to in its original form on CD etc.  If not hearing one word ruins your enjoyment of a piece so much perhaps you shouldn't be listening to music on radio, which often airs versions of music shortened for one reason or another.

Naughty CJYM.

Guys, I do appreciate you since you play Blue Jays games. But I also have to give you a slap on the wrist for having a morning horoscope. Pushing woo is not a good thing.

Old Days Radio.

Driving along tonight I had Ninety by 808 State playing. The final cut on side one of the cassette is "Pacific 202." As I listened to it I realised the first place I heard that tune was on CBC FM as end of the hour music on one of their late night programs. I think it might have been Nightlines. I listened a lot to CBC FM late night in the late '80s and early '90s, and the music on Nightlines and Brave New Waves no doubt shaped my musical tastes. I'm sure that's where I first encountered Nomeansno, Change of Heart, and Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet. That was a great period in radio, with Brent Bambury hosting Brave New Waves before he went on to the neutered world of CBC TV's Midday. Dave Bidini of the Rheostatics sat in at times and made a good host. Then there was Nightlines on Saturday nights, hosted for by David Wisdom for the last 10 years of its 15 year run. I personally think the name Wisdom is a great name for someone hosting a radio show that took advantage of his extensive knowledge of pop music and his gigantic collection of singles, showcased for years via the feature "10 Singles in Alphabetical Order." Nightlines came to an end in 1997, and I never really got interested in the various replacement series that CBC FM carried afterwards. I'd guess I stopped listening to Brave New Waves sometime around the mid '90s, but I'm not really sure. CBC finally brought it to an end last year in March.

Off The Dial.

A long chapter in Canadian radio ended today. The callsign CFQC left Saskatoon's radio airwaves as Hot 93 FM, the current holders of the callsign, became 92.9 The Bull under the call letters CKBL. The original CFQC hit the air on the AM band in the 1920s, broadcasting on 600 khz until February 6th, 1995, when it became Hot 93 on the FM band. CFQC will continue in use on television as the callsign for the local CTV affiliate, which retained them even after the ownership of the radio station changed in the 1980s.

Although I didn't listen to Hot 93 it's sad that CFQC has been replaced. One of the earliest Canadian radio callsigns is now gone, assuming of course someone doesn't attempt to have it reassigned to them, although I would suspect if it is reused it may not be in the Saskatoon market.

I'm Surprised They Played It.

Before he became famous for charity Bob Geldof was the singer of the group the Boomtown Rats. Their best known song, at least in North America, is "I Don't Like Mondays," written in response to a 1979 shooting by Brenda Ann Spencer. While standing in a store today I was surprised to hear the song playing on Saskatoon's Magic 98.3 FM. I would assume playing it was a deliberate response to Monday's tragedy, but I'm not sure whether it was appropriate or not. While some might see it as a fitting tribute others might not, especially those not familiar with the background of the song. It wouldn't surprise me if some stations pull the song from their playlists for the time being, just as some stations pulled songs like the Tragically Hip's "New Orleans Is Sinking" in the days after the Hurricane Katrina disaster.

Sad news to report for Toronto Blue Jays fans. Tom Cheek, long serving voice of Blue Jays radio broadcasts, has died of cancer at 66. Cheek started his career as Blue Jays broadcaster with the team's first game in April of 1977. He would announce every game until June 3rd, 2004 when he took time off after the death of his father, a streak of 4,306 regular season games and 41 post season games. Cheek was diagnosed with a brain tumour soon after. He would be healthy enough to broadcast several games after his diagnosis and treatment in 2004, but hopes that he might broadcast some of the 2005 season were not to be.

Part of Saskatoon's broadcast history disappeared this week. CKOM's old home on 8th Street near Acadia Drive has been demolished. For several decades the building housed CKOM 650 khz, and later several other radio stations owned by Rawlco Radio, including C95 on 95.1 mhz FM. The building has sat empty for several years since Rawlco built a new headquarters for its Saskatoon stations on Saskatchewan Crescent. The distinctive radio mast that topped the building for as long as I can remember was removed a couple of years ago. The demolition of the old building is something I've been expecting for a while now. Given what the interior of the building would have been like given that it housed several radio stations at one point it would have needed heavy renovations to make it usable for some other project, and so it likely would have been easier to just build a new purpose built building. It will be interesting to see how long it takes for a new tenant to appear and what it will be. At one point just after Rawlco began the process of building its new building there were rumours the nearby McDonald's, located in the parking lot of Wildwood Mall a block away, would build a new restaurant on the land. A small strip mall containing a Moneymart, a Vern's Pizza(a popular local chain) and a hair salon sits next door, so perhaps its days are numbered as well. Its not hard to imagine someone wanting that space as a parking lot for their new building next door if its expected to generate a lot of traffic.

I'm currently listening to CKOM, 650 kHz. Its ridiculous how long their ad breaks go. I think the current one has been running close to four minutes. It really makes me appreciate having no commercials on CBC Radio.

A Vatican document released on Friday says that Catholic women should seriously consider not marrying Muslim men because of Islam's supposed weakness on women's rights. However the document apparently says nothing about Catholic men marrying Muslim women. Perhaps they assume Muslim women will meekly go along with what their Catholic husbands say. One wonders if they have, or will, put out similar warnings about Catholic women marrying members of certain Fundamentalist Protestant sects, who might believe that women are to be seen and not heard. Or for that matter some of the fringe Catholic groups whose ideas of women's rights might not jibe with what the Vatican agrees with.

On an entirely different note I sure find the CITY92 FM ads currently playing during Toronto Bluejays games on Sportsnet annoying. You get supposed "ordinary people" mouthing silly cliches, like the girl babbling about the station playing "killer deep cuts," "deep cuts" being a current radiospeak term. Or the guy going on about how the station, "doesn't tell you what's good music, they just play good music." Umm, no, dopey, the station is telling you what's good music. They have a playlist of what they think they should be playing, they're not using some mystic method to read your mind and play what you want to hear.