Huffington Post Canada to Expand to Alberta and BC Fall 2012
Weeks away from celebrating the one-year anniversary of the Huffington Post Canada, AOL Canada and the Huffington Post Media Group (HPMG) announce today a regional expansion that will include HuffPost British Columbia and HuffPost Alberta. The sites will feature HuffPost’s signature mix of news, blogging, community, and social engagement, to capture the unique cultures of both provinces, with regional editorial teams leveraging the power of the HuffPost platform to deliver the most important and most entertaining local stories. HuffPost British Columbia and HuffPost Alberta will bring HuffPost’s blogging platform to the Western Canadian media market, not only connecting readers with the news they most care about, but inviting them to tell their own stories. Read more 
State of the Digital Publishing Industry in Alberta
Digital Alberta engaged in one of the industry’s most exciting discussions at the State of the Digital Publishing Industry on March 28, 2012 with notable panelists, Guy Huntingford, CEO and Publisher of the Calgary Herald and Doug Lacombe, Communications specialist and founder of communicatto. Panelists were hosted by President of Digital Alberta, Michelle Sklar who moderated the panel. The panelists gave their perspectives on the current state of the publishing landscape, challenges publishers and other content creators face, Citizen Journalism and what the future of publishing looks like. What was clear was the importance of recognizing that publishers need to publish for a broad range of audiences, and that going where there are eyeballs is key to connecting with readers. Read more
Calgary-born Venture Communications CEO and co-star of CBC’s Gemini award-winning Dragons’ Den Arlene Dickinson to Receive Inaugural Award.
Alberta Women Entrepreneurs is recognizing the progressive and impactful contributions of female business-owners with the creation of the prestigious new Celebration of Achievement award; the only award of its kind in Alberta. The first recipient is Arlene Dickinson, CEO of Venture Communications and co-star of CBC’s Gemini award-winning Dragons’ Den. The award ceremony will take place on Thursday, May 3, 2012 at the Fairmont Hotel McDonald. Read more
Bell Media Acquires Montreal-Based Astral Media for $3.38 Billion
Bell Canada, the country’s biggest telecommunications company, has agreed to buy Montreal-based Astral Media Inc. for $3.38 billion, giving the company more control over content for its cellphone, internet and land-line services. The company has pledged to pay $50 per share for Astral, a 40 per cent premium from the $36.25 level that Astral Media shares closed at on the TSX on Thursday. Astral owns radio stations and television properties and has an advertising division that operates billboards across the country. Bell’s owner, BCE Inc., made the purchase announcement Friday morning, March 16. Read more
Keep Canada Connected: Stop Severe Cuts to the CBC
At this pivotal moment in our history, Canadians are coming together to “Reimagine the CBC” to help it connect Canadians and realize the opportunities of a digital era.The Reimagine CBC community’s ideas are from the heart, distinctly Canadian and often inspiring. But just as a community is coming together around new opportunities for the CBC, a few MPs have singled out the CBC for severe cuts in the impending budget. These cuts threaten many key CBC services, like those in rural and remote regions, and they will damage our digital economy. We have to let the government know that these severe cuts are unacceptable. They will destroy the opportunity for the CBC to connect all Canadians with new ideas and services that can stop us from falling behind in a new era of news and culture. Read more
Calgary’s Jann Arden Bares All for her 50th Birthday for Canada’s Zoomer Magazine
Jann Arden is said to be one of the funniest women alive. In addition to her significant musical talents, she’s got insight and honesty that thrills. This month, in her bare-all tradition the soon to be 50 year-old singer-songwriter goes nude on the cover of Zoomer magazine, in a photograph taken by Canadian rock legend Bryan Adams. Jann on why she chose to do a shoot in the nude: “It appealed to my sense of frustration with body image in mainstream beauty and fashion, something I have always been passionate about: the fact that most of us normal women are marginalized and set aside for not looking a certain way. Doing a nude shot would make a huge statement. So, for the first time and perhaps the last, I took my duds off. Scared? Yes, but somehow relieved to be able to say, “Hey, women of the planet Earth. Love thyself right now. Don’t wait until it’s too late!”
Leduc to Launch a New Radio Station in Alberta at 93.1 FM
On February 22, 2012, the CRTC approved the application of Mark Tamagi for a commercial FM radio station in Leduc at 93.1 on the FM dial. The new station is called The One-FM, Leduc’s Best Country. The new station would offer a country music format with 126 hours of local programming per broadcast week, including 6 hours and 31 minutes of news. Local programming would include local newscasts, weather, local sports, an arts and cultural show, as well as a swap and shop feature that would provide listeners with an opportunity to buy, sell or trade items on the air. The station will target adults between the ages of 25 and 54. The station is the first local radio service for this region of Northern Alberta. The broadcast area encompasses the City of Leduc, the towns of Devon, Beaumont and Calmar as well as the Villages of Thorsby, New Sarepta and Warburg as well as hundreds of rural hamlets, farms and acreages. No launch date announced yet.
CBC Launches CBC Music – Canada’s Free New Digital Music Service
CBC today launched CBC Music and the CBC Music App – a free new digital music service designed to connect Canadians to the music they love. With a choice of 40 different web radio stations, 14 distinct genre-based communities, and music from nearly 1,000 major and independent music companies, CBC Music provides listeners with access to the very best Canadian and International music. Featuring original content from the most knowledgeable and experienced music personalities and programmers from across the country, hundreds of concerts, features, blogs, playlists, and more, the new music service is a place for music lovers to explore, discover and connect with other music fans. Canadians can experience CBC Music now at cbcmusic.ca. Read more
CRTC to Hear Applications for New Calgary Radio Stations in Calgary on February 6, 2012
On Monday, February 6, the CRTC will hold public hearings on fourteen applications for new radio station licences in Calgary. Five applications are proposing an ethnic format, four for FM licences and one for an AM licence. Bell Media is proposing a Rythmic Contemporary Hit format, Clear Sky out of Lethbridge is proposing a 90s Country format, Saskatchewan-ased Harvard Broadcasting an Adult Contemorary format, Saskatchewan-based Rawlco a Hit Music format, and BC-based Jim Pattison an Adult Alternative format. Hearings typically take three or four days and the public is invited to attend. They also provide a live feed of the hearings at www.crtc.gc.ca. Read more
Shaw Media, Astral and CBC Launch New On-demand Digital Music Services in Canada
Online platforms that allow users to discover and share new music, and create new business opportunities for advertisers, are seen as a growth market by broadcasters and music publishers alike, reported Mediacaster Magazine today. Canadian Music Week sponsor Slacker, as well as Rdio, Spotify, Pandora and Jango are just a few of the unaffiliated new streaming music services available in Canada; now, leading broadcasters are joining the game and launching their own music brands online. Astral Radio is leading the way among radio broadcasters in Canada with confirmation of its plans to launch a new on-demand music and music video streaming service. CBC has already announced its plans for the launch of a new digital music service, with online programming and on-demand services, based on recent agreements AVLA, the International Audio-Video Licensing Agency. Shaw Media recently made its own online music announcement, as well. Read more
MediaCamp Edmonton at the World Trade Centre on February 4, 2012
MediaCamp Edmonton is a one-day conference aimed at getting journalists and other storytellers together with technology developers to learn new skills, understand more about each other’s worlds, and find ways to work together. Brought to you by Edmonton Economic Development Corporation, Edmonton Journal, Yelp Edmonton, Global Edmonton, MacEwan University and Calder Bateman. Read more
The 2012 Corus Entertainment Distinguished Lecture “Stories about Storytellers” Edmonton, March 2, 2012
Prepare to meet Alice Munro, Pierre Trudeau, Robertson Davies, Alistair MacLeod, Mavis Gallant, Hugh MacLennan, Peter C. Newman, Brian Mulroney, Morley Callaghan, John Kenneth Galbraith, Paul Martin, James Houston, Peter Gzowski, W.O. Mitchell, and many more. MacEwan’s School of Communications invites you to hear Douglas Gibson, the 2012 Corus Entertainment Lecturer. This free public event is scheduled for March 2, 2012 in the Haar Theatre at the Centre for Arts and Communications at MacEwan University. The address is 10045 156 Street. There will be a reception at 5:00 p.m. with the lecture at 6:00 p.m. and dessert and networking to follow. Admission is free. There is no need to RSVP. Read more
Marilyn
Jones is a corporate and social media advocate for individuals, small businesses
and nonprofit organizations in Alberta. She lives in Edmonton, Alberta,
Canada and is the proprietor of RiverCity Productions. You can contact her
by phone at 780-695-5675 or by email at marilyn@mediamag.ca.