It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby dial twister » Mon May 25, 2015 10:46 am

kal wrote:Here are a few observations that may generate some discussion...


Best airborne traffic reports, albeit short ones on Global TV: Trish Jewison


Is there really a good reason for traffic reports on a TV station other than the added revenue? How many cars have TVs in them?

As for sirborne traffic reports on radio: Kim Seale on News 1130 was the absolute best. Whatever happened to her, did she go into some type of PR work?

Traffic on News 1130 hasn't been the same since she left.

Last weekend, the traffic reporter on News 1130 informed listeners that the best route to use if you were headed to the States was Point Roberts which only had a 5 minute wait.

Yeah, OK. That's the route I'll take to get to Bellingham.
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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby kal » Mon May 25, 2015 11:36 am

Agreed ... Kim Seale, and before here Bruce Williams, were the absolute best at local traffic reporting. Kim has gone over to CFMI where she was billed as some form of co-host originally but she appears to be handling traffic there on the morning show.

As for the TV traffic reports ... I find them quite compelling when watching from home, even if the "Chevrolet" commercial part is as along as the report itself.
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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby pave » Mon May 25, 2015 12:07 pm

I am sorry to report, kat, that all the positive exceptions will do nothing for what is wrong with the industry - at its base and fundamental levels.

What is worse, is the reality that Talent is not used up to their potentials, appreciated, rewarded or re-educated. And why would they be? Talent has become so suppressed over the last two decades that any improvement in skills would not be implemented to the degree necessary to have a worthwhile impact.

Radio has its back against the wall and management has neither the awareness or the tools to blow out an escape route.
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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby kal » Mon May 25, 2015 12:14 pm

No argument that radio as we know it is going through a transformation ... exactly what we will recognize come another generation, in say 20 y, is difficult to say. We can take in some direction from Europe where AM radio is effectively gone and where some nations, e.g. Norway, are phasing out FM. Might that happen here? I think it well might.
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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby jon » Mon May 25, 2015 12:30 pm

kal wrote:No argument that radio as we know it is going through a transformation ... exactly what we will recognize come another generation, in say 20 y, is difficult to say. We can take in some direction from Europe where AM radio is effectively gone and where some nations, e.g. Norway, are phasing out FM. Might that happen here? I think it well might.

Europe brings up an interesting question: is there a place for OTA Radio in the future? In the sense that Norway is phasing out FM for Digital Radio, which is still OTA (Over-the-air).

I should also add that there is now talk of the future possibility of a "wireless traffic jam" during gridlock in major city rush hours. Will Wireless Spectrum allocation be increased fast enough to satisfy the potential needs of all the vehicles stuck in traffic if Internet-based services completely replace OTA Radio? Assuming they all use Cellular technology, not Satellite or Wi-Fi. Just imagine three kids in the back (on the way home from school or daycare), each watching a different movie, and husband and wife each focused on separate services.
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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby pave » Mon May 25, 2015 1:38 pm

Radio is hardly going through a transformation. Rather, it is going through a disintegration an' it ain't priddy.

Historically, talent enjoyed being on the air much more often and for longer periods. That is not to suggest that all the performers were stellar. Far from it. Most were their own worst enemies and became tune-out factors - all by themselves.

Nevertheless, radio, if it is to continue as a viable medium, must go through, as kat says, a "transformation".

There is no evidence such a process is underway. More the shame on radio, particularly for the talent that is still strolling the hallways - praying for opportunities to perform.
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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby kal » Thu May 28, 2015 2:45 pm

Thought there might be some reaction (agreement, disagreement, alternatives) to the kudos for on-air personalities for various radio outlets posted earlier in this thread.
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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby jon » Thu May 28, 2015 4:00 pm

Well, since you are entertaining discussion of your points, kal, I suddenly find myself asking what is really happening in Norway, in terms of Radio. My guess is that Radio programming has not changed, just the way it is delivered, and even that is still OTA. Certainly less drastic than the AM to FM move that occurred mostly in the '80s.

On the other hand, Netflix really could be signaling the kind of Transformation of Television from a "Real Time" to an "On Demand" service the majority of time that many Viewers are spending "consuming" TV today.

Podcasts offered that for Radio, but never seemed to gain the kind of traction that Netflix and friends are seeing.

Of course, "Real Time" to "On Demand" is not the only possible future for either Radio or Television. There has long been talk of a truly "Interactive" model for both Radio and Television, in the sense of two way communication between the viewer and the Programming Source. The only popular form is Gaming, where input from the "Viewer" determines what is seen by the Viewer, and each Viewer sees something different when playing the same Game.
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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby Tom Jeffries » Thu May 28, 2015 4:30 pm

Jon, I like some of your points.

Radio is the most intimate of mediums, but we have a lack of inspiration and genius, pushing the envelope.

Maybe we got lazy - whatever - but the younger cohort seem to ignore radio....because they have a radio station size library on their portable device....and the blue tooth in the car = bye, bye radio.

It is just the passage of generations.

Televison and MOVIES have been killed by Netflix.

The tip off? In a recent poll - a huge majority of the younger cohort 25-35 said the first thing they do in the morning is grab their smart device of choice.

They don't turn on the radio, except for maybe traffic?

Rogers, NewCap, CORUS (*especially) and other operators are losing a bundle on radio.

The next few years are going to be interesting.
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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby PMC » Thu May 28, 2015 5:16 pm

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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby jon » Thu May 28, 2015 6:16 pm

On a similar subject to PMC, I wonder if anyone has heard anything recently about last year's attempt by SiriusXM, by buying suppliers of automakers' "connectivity electronics", to replace cellular delivery of Internet to vehicles with their own satellites.
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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby Mike Cleaver » Fri May 29, 2015 12:32 am

Interesting to note how the CBC, despite facing massive cuts, is taking over the number one listenership spot in many Canadian cities, including de-throning CJOB in Winterpeg for the first time ever.
The rest of radio has become too repetitive, too cookie cutter, too "entertainment news" oriented with little or no local input either than weather or traffic and all playing what is described by some as limited and same sounding "music."
There are no personalities and those that are left are offered limited breaks per hour with no real creative latitude.
People mentioned earlier in this thread are the last holdouts, the four real pros on News 1130, Walsh, Brenn, Bennie and Dettman.
The rest mostly mumble and stumble and drop "g's" from word endings, slur off the sponsor mentions in traffic reports and talk about 'clisions" and other such nonsense.
Music radio is no better despite high priced and formerly famous morning show hosts.
They're just too limited in what they're permitted to do to make any real impact any more.
Most of the real pros have migrated to the internet.
They may not be making much money yet but at least they're interesting and professional without limits being placed on them.
The expansion of the internet into all vehicles will eventually kill traditional radio and television which rapidly has become a vast wasteland of emptiness.
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54 years experience at some of Canada's Premier Broadcasting Stations
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Re: It sure is quiet in here - what happened?

Postby kal » Fri May 29, 2015 8:47 pm

Netflix most certainly isn't killing the movie industry. In fact the movie industry is coming off on of its most profitable years ever. Recent financials from Cineplex here in Canada tell a similar story; record or near-record profits, admittedly driven by higher revenues from cinema "food" and drinks. So, I am not agreeing with the contention that Netflix is killing the movie industry.

Back to local radio ... a segment I haven't heard before with Willy Percy and Bruce Allen on Rock 101. It may be a recurring segment running at around 7:50 am on Fridays. It was great radio with Allen appearing to be in the studio. I wasn't sure it was in fact him as I'm used to hearing Allen over the phone on 'NW.

I think we have a way to go before radio dies off as it is in Europe.
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