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Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Radiowiz wrote:
Jody Thornton wrote:
But I don't think it would be too classy of me to divulge inner working of an organization hat allowed me plenty of on-air exposure.
More of a helmet, no?

Sigh! It was a spelling error. Should have been "that"

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Thanks Dial Twister. I know I've always been curious on the inner workings of CHUM, CKOC and CFTR (even Rock 102 and TM Stereo Rock's relationship), but those are in the past, and divulging any of that is more intriguing, rather than revealing. I feel a bit of hypocrisy on my part, because I would eat that stuff up, so I get others wanting to know about what happens behind the scenes.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Respectfully, I'm going to decline to answer that RA. Doing so may/may not be disrespectful to others who make this their current livelihood, since I'm speaking on their behalf, without permission. If they wish, they can volunteer what they'd like. But I don't think it would be too classy of me to divulge inner workings of an organization that allowed me plenty of on-air exposure.

I hope that's understood. I don't wish to be difficult. I understand the curiosity.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Dial Twister wrote:
When will some here realize where this is going? Already he's threatening Canada's sovereignty. Will we wait until U.S. agents are banging on our doors?

As wonderful as SOWNY is, AND IT IS, you can bet that all Southern Ontario and Western New York radio, TV and Internet will be drastically affected if this buffoon isn't brought to heel soon. Then where will you post?

I FULLY agree with the sentiment of posting about this subject. This is TOO serious of a situation developing, and I want to know what all people of all communities think and feel about it.

I am still a wee bit miffed that I was chastised by Forward Power (and a few others frankly, who agreed with his take) for recently criticizing a media person for being an outright Trump supporter. I was criticized for making the persons' political stance have anything to do with their work. However, it's not even about politics. It's about having class. When you support a convicted rapist and misogynist - EVEN as a means to an end, then that speaks volumes about you as a person. I should never have to apologize for saying that. Somebody who think Trump or far-right wing politics has any place in a healthy society needs a head check.

Whew! Good to say that!

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

I say that .. I say that Foghorn Leghorn was always my favourite Looney Tunes character. Mel and June (the voice of the female characters) deserve tons of credit.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

g121 wrote:
paterson1 wrote:
A disappointment were "radio guys" John Moore and Bill Carroll and their segment. Neither of them really added anything to the broadcast and seemed a bit out of their league.
I really like John Moore on radio .. on TV, not so much ..

paterson1 wrote:
CBC's David Common was excellent. That interview with Jamil Jivani was well done. Why? Common had the sense to be quiet and let Jivani let fly on Doug Ford.
*smh* everything about Jamil rubs me the wrong way ...

I was going to further corroborate that, but I got flogged for painting former media types with political brushes, that I'll just keep anything further to myself. I'm glad you said it though.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

RadioActive wrote:
I agree, but the point remains: TV audio does not work on the radio. Never has, never will. If you're going to do coverage - even for a small audience - they deserve to be able to follow what's going on. Otherwise, why bother?

I'll be honest RA. I've been watching CTV's coverage over YouTube, often with my back to the screen. Only every so often do I hear the analysts say that they're pointing to something on a screen. Even then, the analysts explain clearly what they intend to describe, so I'm not at a deficit.

Most will know they are listening to CTV's coverage over the radio. Even on the weekend, when CP24 audio is carried, most of the time it sounds fine, and is easy to follow. I know it's sad, compared to when I was working at CTN back in 2014, when Newstalk 1010 was carrying the mayoral election, and I was waiting to see if further 1010 traffic reports were going to be needed. CFRB was really sounding like they were at the pulse of things, but listenership was waning even then on AM radio. The election coverage was probably WAY TOO expensive to devote time to on AM radio. Now radio sounds like a placeholder.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Chrisphen wrote:
Evidently you're not a Doors fan.

Radio edits are a hair above the hack jobs K-Tel would do to cram as much content as possible on their crummy compilations. On par with record company re-sequencing albums for cassette editions that use as little tape as possible.

If it wasn't good enough for the album then it's not good enough for the airwaves.

Nah! Not the biggest. Touch Me, Love Her Madly and Crystal Ship are great. Back to radio versions, sometimes they are different mixes in addition to edits. There are times where stuff is actually added to the LP version. Anyway, we'll agree to disagree. K-Tel edits are quite a grade below, but radio versions were sometimes more to the point.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Chrisphen wrote:
I may have stated this before but the sentiment bears repeating: radio edits are for housewives and little girls.

Beg to differ. I want to hear how the song was played during its chart run. That's how it's remembered. Listen the LP version of Simple Minds' "Don't You Forget About Me". It's just added fluff. Here especially, editing is favourable to the song.

Besides, what does gender have to do with anything? Sheesh!

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Paul Jeffries wrote:
=12pxIt could be that you and your friends had copies of a version that was in a short run but then later substituted? As I never had the actual 45, I can't say for sure, although I do remember having a Canadian copy of Daryl Hall & John Oates "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)" and it was actually the LP version. Looking through Discogs.com, this version does not appear to exist, but I know I'm not dreaming that I had it!...lol.

You could be certainly correct on some flip-flop aspects. The Pink Floyd/Wall example was during the hit run. Now CHUM usually did play LP versions. Doug Thompson might be able to confirm this, but perhaps in January of 1980, they carted the promo version, but then just slip cued an LP in 1982, when it was played as a gold selection. Just a guess.

Now I have two single versions of Hall and Oates "I Can't Go For That". During the hit run, there was an edit of the remix (which most memorably halved the final chorus). CKOC played that one for example. Then there was an LP edit which most countdown shows, CFTR, and WBEN-AM (yes, as in 930) played. So you're very much correct that sometime two stock/retail 45-rpm versions existed. CHUM did play the full LP version here.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Paul Jeffries wrote:
Jody Thornton wrote:
Just one other thing that irks me, so Classic Rock stations which have Pink Floyd's "... Brick in the Wall" on their system: please source the single version (you can get it from "... Collection of Dance Songs" easily enough). Then you can tack on the LP version ending using your editing system. Now you'd have a track that wouldn't sound cludgy on the start of the vocal. The single intro is not on the Wall of course, so it sounds horrible on the radio.
100% Agree.

1050 CHUM used to play the very tail end of "The Happiest Days of Our Lives" segueing into "Another Brick in the Wall, Part II" back in the day. Boom 97.3 plays that exact same edit (and so do I on ClassicHitsOnline.com )

Just a footnote: the version on "A Collection of Great Dance Songs" isn't the official single version. Although that version starts the same, it goes longer than the single version, which fades during the closing guitar solo before the old man starts screaming about meat and pudding. (I actually just discovered this myself a few months ago).

Another one that bugs me is "Jet Airliner" by The Steve Miller Band. Most stations appear to be playing it from Steve Miller Band's Greatest Hits 1974-78, and you can hear the few remaining notes from the previous segueing track, "Threshold". It takes only a few seconds to do a nice clean edit of that song, but I guess a lot of stations can't be bothered.

PJ

Just to debate a couple points Paul ... lol (weird isn't it, because we're actually in agreement on this point ...lol)

1050 CHUM played what you are calling the single version, which was actually a US promo version. The guitar fades out during the sustained two second note at around ten measures before the "wrong ... do it again" routine. Rock 102 (actually TM Stereo Rock) and CHUM were the only ones I ever heard

…

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

I would love to hear lesser played stuff from otherwise overplayed artists. But these songs don't test well. I would love some of these alternates:

Simple Minds ... how about Promised You a Miracle or Alive and Kicking
Eagles ... I Can't Tell You Why
Lionel Richie ... hmmm ... Running With the Night
Rod Stewart ... give Maggie May a rest and play You Wear It Well -or- Passion
Blondie ... maybe Rapture or Atomic. Anything else besides Heart of Glass, Tide Is High or Call Me
The Cars ... Touch and Go, Hello Again or Living In Stereo
Aerosmith ... Last Child

Anyway, you get the idea. These will always be rejected in favour of the overplayed songs we've already mentioned. Sigh!

Just one other thing that irks me, so Classic Rock stations which have Pink Floyd's "... Brick in the Wall" on their system: please source the single version (you can get it from "... Collection of Dance Songs" easily enough). Then you can tack on the LP version ending using your editing system. Now you'd have a track that wouldn't sound cludgy on the start of the vocal. The single intro is not on the Wall of course, so it sounds horrible on the radio.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Sweet Home Alabama - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Don't You Forget About Me - Simple Minds
Let the Good Times Roll, You Might Think - The Cars
Dream On, Sweet Emotion - Aerosmith

Over on AC and Classic Hits, we have the same pop gold problem with:

What's Love Got To Do With It - Tina Turner
Hungry Eyes - Eric Carmen
Heart of Glass - Blondie
All Night Long - Lionel Richie

... I'll be honest that most Classic Rock and Classic Hits Formats overplay stuff, thanks to auditorium testing. I'm glad it works for them, but sheesh, is it ever bland and predictable.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Easily Amused wrote:
Binson Echorec wrote:
If I win, can I choose the cash equivalent of John Moore and Deb Hutton instead?
Fitty cent. 🤨

I better be careful. I got banned from Radio Discussions dot com yesterday...🤔😁

What for?

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

RadioActive wrote:
(Yes, I'm aware they're not the same person. But what a coincidence!)

Your Rome sold ... guarateed

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Binson Echorec wrote:
Also haven't seen any streeters yet. They had them last night.

Mr. Singh is starting to antagonise.

Apparently, he complained that on the French debate, he not allowed as much time as the others, and was quite pissy about it. I'll have to see a replay of the debate/

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Radio Bob wrote:
How do hey pronounce Etobicoke? Or Bruce Cockburn's last name?

That's "coe", as far I recall.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

deLaat wrote:
Roncesvalles?

Now see, I always thought that the ending "S" was silent, but now I tend to hear it pronounced otherwise. Should the "S" at the end be pronounced?

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

paterson1 wrote:
Can't speak for Jody, and I do intend to try, but not "Til I am Myself Again"...

"How Long" do you think that will take?

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

paterson1 wrote:
Yes, the impact of this new stamp "Hasn't Hit Me Yet..."

Haaaaa! :D

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Multiple items with this postage stamp might get "lost together" in the mail

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

paterson1 wrote:
With no SCTV the list has no credibility. A major error IMO.

Especially since it aired late nights on NBC over the weekend.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

RadioActive wrote:
They really do need to change the rules here. Either allow the commercials to say what the drug is for or don't promote it. As it currently stands, it's a waste of airtime that doesn't deliver the message it was created to do. Not sure about you, but I don't go to my doctor to ask about some random pill or shot when I have no idea what it's for.

Add to that, the sped up tag lines at the end of spots for car dealerships, Princess Margaret Lottery, and the like. Usually there are conditions that the advertiser is required to tell you, but they do no want to say, so it's sped up and crammed in. Right there, that tells me that the advertiser aspires to deceive in some way or the other. So the content should be read at proper speed so it's clearly audible. I also think that extra time should be allowed for it the tag line, beyond 15, 30 or 60 seconds that is not billed to the ad client, since this is a requirement, and therefore takes away from how the air time was desired to be used.

Does that make sense?

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

RadioActive wrote:
To be fair - and I'm not defending Lanstman per se - all politicians of all parties do this. They're taught very early on: "Answer the question you wish you'd been asked."

That's why it's so frustrating to talk to any of them. Sometimes I wonder why reporters even bother.

Bang on RA! I wish that it would be illegal for politicians to hire strategists and the like, or to stick to talking points as a means of deflecting questions. If you're serving the public, answer the darned question you're asked.

Of course, for this to be more effective for creating mutually beneficial discourse, the general public would also need to hear beyond headlines and sound bites.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

RadioActive wrote:
I fear there's not enough HD penetration or even knowledge of it amongst the public for that to work. In fact, the stations themselves no longer promote HD at all on air. They seem to be totally ignoring it. So that may not be the best business decision in my humble opinion.

I hear you on the HD factor. I threw that in as a bonus. I was really thinking more streaming though. Read my response to RadioAaron, and pipe in to that one if you want RA

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

RadioAaron wrote:
The challenge then is selling without ratings. Keeping the AM keeps the HD and streaming rated. Still need that currency in large markets.

However, cannot streaming provide more granularity in its statistics pertaining to who is tuned in (or connected)? Therefore ratings for on air listening would be meaningless anyway. I would also assume that larger national buys are just going with the strongest terrestrial performers, and spending the rest (I would think the majority of their ad budget) on digital platforms, as it stands. No?

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

RadioActive wrote:
Whatever you think of the constant references to streaming, it is one way they've differentiated themselves from their competition. You don't get more radio-referenced than either "AM640" or "640 Toronto."

CFRB mentions their call letters only at the top of the hour and the frequency only during the throw to "NT1010 Timesaver Traffic." Otherwise, it might as well be streaming only.

Well this was what I wondered about, since RadioAaron was citing that HD Radio was not yet regulated, and streaming should be outside the purview of the CRTC, these AM talkers should turn in their licenses for the AM signal. Perhaps Bell and Corus could reorient their sales teams to selling streaming content versus on-air, in a way that convinces prospective clients of their improved reach over AM.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

Chrisphen wrote:
Rather surprising for a Convoy-coddling goose-stepper (and former CFRB asset).

I'd like to agree, but Thornhill has been pretty blue and pro-Lanstman for a LONG time. Bringing this back to radio, I've been streaming the 1010 roundtables from the podcast section, and it seems she hasn't been there for a long time. 1010 needs a better set of guests, as the pundits are all the same ones on the same days of the weel.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

paterson1 wrote:
These animated shows must be cheap to produce or Fox has a co-production partner to pick up some of the tab. Interesting that they all got 4 year renewals when the ratings are so bad on Sunday for all of them.

My understanding is that American Dad is also (or already has) been coming back to Fox, from TBS. I suppose it must be cheap enough to air or produce.

Jody Thornton · SOWNY

mace wrote:
Could it be that those two sites only discuss specific Buffalo and Detroit media issues. While SOWNY's primary focus is on Southern Ontario and Western New York, the discussion sometimes touches on television ratings and media in general from around the world if the story is unique or a bit bizarre.

Actually Radio Discussions have regional boards for the whole USA, and subforums for International topics, including Canada. The Bufallo/Rochester forums is but one subforum.