Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

STEVE JONES (Stingray Radio): As an AM undertaking, CHNL is not required to broadcast any local programming specifically

In early November I contacted the Canadian Radio and Television Commission (CRTC) with concerns I had regarding what was becoming an increasing lack of ‘local’ programing being broadcast on radio stations.  While not exclusive to radio station CHNL 610 in Kamloops (owned by Stingray Radio), I used them as my reference.

Following several emails back and forth to the CRTC, they advised they had informed Stingray of my concerns, and that they were directing them to respond to both myself and the CRTC about them.

I also expressed my concerns through a blog post I shared on December 4th entitled, “Without a strong local presence, there is NO reason for anyone to tune in to local(?) radio” which you can read here.

This morning Steve Jones (President of Stingray Radio) responded to me with the following …

I leave it up to you as to what you think about what they had to say, so please feel free to leave a comment.  For myself, I’ll have a response to share either later today, or early tomorrow:


Dear Mr. Forseth,

Thank you for the opportunity to address the concerns expressed to the CRTC via email and forwarded to Stingray Radio on December 9, 2024. As suggested by the Commission, I am copying them on this reply to you.
 
CHNL-AM/Kamloops operates under the CRTC’s Radio Regulations, the Revised Commercial Radio Policy, and under Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2009-62 as amended by Broadcasting Regulatory Policy CRTC 2022-334.
 
With respect to local programming, Condition of Licence 8 set out in the Appendix to Broadcasting Regulatory Policy 2009-62 points out that only commercial FM radio stations are subject to a standard condition of license requiring that at least one-third (42 hours) of their programming in the broadcast week be devoted to local programming, which can include both spoken word and music content, in order for them to solicit or accept local advertising.
 
As an AM undertaking, CHNL is not required to broadcast any local programming specifically (italics and Bold font added by me).

Despite having no regulatory obligation to do so, CHNL maintains a local newsroom staffed by three people and provides hourly news updates throughout the broadcast day.

In addition, CNHL continues to provide coverage of the Kamloops Blazers hockey games, a key part of the Kamloops community. We also locally staff our two FM stations in Kamloops throughout the day, allowing for breaking news and urgent information to be broadcast on CHNL at any point, despite the station relying heavily on syndicated programming.

Those measures, along with our inclusion in the national emergency alert program, ensure that CHNL listeners will never be left in the dark.
 
In your November 12, 2024, email to the CRTC you point out that CHNL “once boasted the largest hard-hitting newsroom in BC, outside of metro Vancouver”. Unfortunately, that is an accurate statement and reflects changing times, demographics, and listener behaviour. While AM radio was once a primary source of information to towns and cities across Canada, audiences have migrated to FM stations and now to digital platforms. The stark reality is that many once-powerful AM radio stations have completely shut down.
 
In August of 2024, Corus Entertainment shut down CHML-AM in Hamilton, a radio station with a nearly-100-year history of providing news and information for the Hamilton region. Closer to Kamloops, Bell Media recently shut down two AM stations in Vancouver, including CFTE-AM, once known as the legendary 1410 CFUN. They also shut down stations in Edmonton, Calgary, London, Windsor, Winnipeg, and Hamilton.

Not only have listeners and many advertisers migrated to FM radio stations, but the equipment required to maintain an AM operation is extremely expensive. Broadcast companies are finding it impossible to make a business case to continue operating AM radio stations, especially when equipment reaches end-of-life.
 
Stingray Radio struggled to keep CHNL alive in the news/talk format, despite significant financial losses, for several years. To our knowledge, Kamloops was the smallest city in Canada maintaining a news/talk format. It is the most expensive radio format to operate, and we did our very best to make it viable.

Ultimately, this fall we made the difficult decision to streamline our operations so that CHNL could avoid the fate of the stations noted above. Thanks to these programming changes, we hope to keep CHNL on the air and a vibrant part of the Kamloops community for many years to come.
 
In closing, Mr. Forseth, I share your concerns. They are legitimate. However, the economic realities we face in our industry are real. Staring down the option of shutting off CHNL completely or making these necessary changes to ensure its survival, I believe we made the right decision and remain proud of CHNL’s ability to serve Kamloops while many AM radio stations across Canada cease to exist.
I am grateful for the opportunity to speak to your concerns.
 
Thank you for making your voice heard with the CRTC and Stingray Radio. I wish you the best this holiday season and remain available to answer any questions you may have.
 
Steve
 
Steve Jones (he/him)
President, Stingray Radio


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

FORSETH -- If having three un-happy MLA’s leave the party, is what it takes to have unity within caucus, then I say, “Fine; let it be so”

Regrettably, in recent days, issues within the Conservative Party of BC have come to the surface resulting in one member being removed from Caucus (Dallas Brodie) and the party, and two others (Tara Armstrong and Jordan Kealy) leaving of their own accord. As of this morning (Saturday March 8th) all three are now sitting as independents in the BC legislature. So, what does that mean? In the last twenty-four hours social media feeds have lit up with support for leader John Rustad, while others have been negative, accusing the party, and Rustad, of being bullies and not standing up for conservative values. Ryan Painter, who has personally worked with John Rustad, had this to say: Since the beginning, he's had one target: the BC NDP. He knows that British Columbians deserve a government that works for them, delivers on their promises, and doesn't tax them into poverty. He believes in his team and the power of a focused opposition. He knows who the enemy is. He knows BC deserves ...

WARD STAMER: “Hopefully he’s actually listening to what people have to say, and not just showing up for a photo op”

In his latest travels across the province, BC Forest Minister Ravi Parmar touched down in the Okanagan. A trip essentially, he said, to be on the ground meeting industry people. I read what he had to say, and about how he has been tasked with getting more timber to market. Let me start by saying, “ He hasn’t been tasked. He and Premier Eby guaranteed 45 million cubic metres of available wood fibre – they guaranteed that .” BC Timber Sales is a government agency within the provincial forest’s ministry, which is responsible for managing a portion of the province's Crown timber; specifically, 20 percent of the province's annual allowable cut. Unfortunately, BC Timber Sales did not provide anywhere near that amount last year, it was just 12.2 percent. Three years ago, BC mills cut 52 million metres of wood, bringing in nearly $2 billion dollars to the provincial treasury. That figure doesn’t include the taxes from 55,700 people directly employed in the industry, nor from the tens o...

Conservative Opposition demonstrates focused and policy-oriented approach in first four weeks of the legislative session

In the first four weeks of the legislative session, the Conservative Official Opposition has scored significant policy wins as it proves every day that the Conservative team has fresh ideas and real-world experience to bring to the table. At the same time, the NDP government has been listless, struggling to find a policy agenda that addresses the problems that British Columbians are facing. “This NDP government led by David Eby has tried to do everything under the sun to distract from their disastrous fiscal record and the fact that they are utterly out of ideas,” said Conservative Opposition Leader John Rustad. “They’ve tried to use the U.S. President to deflect from their eye-popping $11 billion deficit, the worst business confidence in the country, and the fact that they’ve created almost zero private sector jobs. This is no way to run a province or an economy.” Since the legislative session started on February 18th with the Throne Speech, the opposition...

Labels

Show more