TORONTO – Talks between the CBC and its union, the Canadian Media Guild, broke off at around 10:30 tonight (Sunday), with no new negotiations planned.
A message on the CMG hotline from bargaining committee member Barbara Saxberg announced “with considerable regret,” that no deal could be made by the 12:01 a.m. Monday August 15th deadline.
This means no Peter Mansbridge, no CFL football (although the Corp. may try to broadcast the games with fill in camera operators and no announcers or replays), and some kind of national radio feed which has yet to be determined (look for something music-heavy)….
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TORONTO – Late yesterday, the CBC gave its union, the Canadian Media Guild, a 72 hour lockout notice, meaning that if the two sides can’t somehow come to an agreement by Sunday night, 5,500 English TV and radio workers across the country will be locked out Monday morning.
"We are disappointed to have to take this action," said Richard Stursberg, executive vice-president of CBC Television. "However, after 15 months of negotiations, our key issues remain unresolved – issues which are crucial to CBC’s success as a national public broadcaster and as a well-managed company in a competitive media marketplace."
"We…
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VANCOUVER – As Internet-using Canadians spend more and more of their time online, it appears as though radio listenership is suffering the most because of that, according to a recent report from Ipsos Reid.
Internet-using Canadians averaged 12.7 hours per week on the web in 2005 (up 46% from 8.7 hours in 2002). The increase appears to have come at the expense of radio, primarily, as the typical Internet-using adult reports spending 11 hours per week listening to the radio, down from 16 hours per week in 2002, says the survey results.
While weekly Internet usage has surpassed radio…
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TORONTO – Unless things start happening very soon, like today, 5,500 CBC TV and radio employees could be off the job Monday, affecting dozens of hours of programming.
The CBC says the union quit the bargaining table on Monday and has yet to return. “Monday night the union walked away from the table and since, we’ve been ready, willing and able to negotiate with them,” CBC spokesman Jason MacDonald told www.cartt.ca.
The strike/lockout deadline is midnight Sunday. “At 12:01 Monday morning there could be a strike or lockout,” added MacDonald, who declined to say whether or not CBC would…
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WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN to TV News?
Two stories this week prompted that question: the death of the excellent Canadian-born ABC anchor Peter Jennings; and www.cartt.ca’s own feature on the first baby steps of Independent World Television News.
Obviously, very little will happen to TV news in the short term. The world (not to mention the newsrooms of broadcasters) is still so full of baby boomers and others a little older and a little younger who can’t remember – or envision – a TV world without the six o’clock and eleven o’clock news that nothing is going to…
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TORONTO – CBC Radio One 99.1 and its drive show Metro Morning, hosted by Andy Barrie, “continued its dominance of morning radio in Toronto,” says a CBC press release issued with the release of the Summer BBM ratings.
“Metro Morning (weekdays, 6-8:30 a.m.) maintained its position as the No.1 morning radio show in Toronto; over the last book there as been a two point jump in market share to 12.6%. Metro Morning has increased its audience by 22% to reach 428,100 listeners. BBM results also indicate that more people listen to CBC News both local and network (World Report…
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TORONTO – The Donald and The Hair may have sold media buyers on the continuing strength of The Apprentice when Mr. Trump made an entrance at Global’s 2005 fall launch, but even he couldn’t convince them to buy Global’s overall fall lineup over CTV’s. Meantime, the gargantuan re-entrance of NHL hockey at CBC has brought with it some new marketing strategies at the Corp.
The 2005 upfront sales market was gentler than the mad zone two years ago, with inflation pushing prices higher by an average of 5%-10%, according to some, and as little as 3% according to others….
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GETTING A NEW TV CHANNEL off the ground is an enormous challenge. Getting a news channel going is even bigger.
But getting one up and running strictly on donations? That’s ambitious.
But, that’s what Canadian producer Paul Jay and his supporters are working on: The launch of Independent World Television News.
Jay was creator and executive producer of CBC Newsworld’s debate program counterSpin, which has since been cancelled. He is also an award winning documentary filmmaker and founding Chair of Hot Docs!, the Canadian International Documentary Film Festival.
But the state of TV journalism is irksome to him and…
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OTTAWA – Vincent Carlin has been appointed as ombudsman for its CBC/Radio-Canada’s English services. He begins his five-year term in January 2006.
“The ombudsman’s office plays a vital role at CBC/Radio-Canada and reflects our commitment to accuracy, integrity and fairness in our journalism,” said Robert Rabinovitch, president and CEO, CBC/Radio-Canada in a statement. “With his extensive background as one of this country’s leading commentators on the business and practice of journalism, broadcasting and media ethics, Mr. Carlin is uniquely qualified to take on this role.”
Most recently, Carlin spent six-plus years as chair of the School of Journalism at…
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TORONTO – The Canadian Media Guild didn’t like the latest contract offer from the CBC.
In a release today, CMG said “CBC management tabled a so-called comprehensive proposal late yesterday that is neither comprehensive nor a proposal. It is little more than a compilation of language rejected by the Guild bargaining committee and by our membership during the strike vote.”
CMG says the offer “includes the offensive language on employment status that, despite claims to the contrary, makes no commitment to maintain permanent staff but actually provides the ability to make virtually every future hire a contract employee,” says…
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