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July 21, 2020 9:29 am  #1


Ex-Bell Media Radio Morning Hosts Rip Their Former Employer

You’ve probably never heard of Frank Depalo and Natasha Gargiulo. But radio listeners in Montreal have. They used to be the morning show hosts at Bell-owned Virgin Radio in that city, until they were unceremoniously dumped without any warning last summer.
 
They’ve kept quiet about it all this time, but have broken their silence on what happened to them. And they’ve either gotten even or completely destroyed their future chance at landing another gig. You decide.
 
Depalo remembers the day it happened.  They'd just finished their shift when they were called into a meeting and summarily told that was their last day on the job.
 
“There was no press release, no internal memo, no thank you for all those years that we were there and worked really hard for them and did charity events,” he’s quoted by the Montreal Gazette. “There was no just cause … they said it was corporate restructuring.
 
“… They never gave us a reason. They never told their audience they care so much about…They erase you and you don’t exist. To me it was just unbelievable that they would do it that way, without even a chance to say goodbye.”
 
“There was a perception out there that Frank and I did something terribly wrong and that’s damaging to our reputation,” Gargiulo said. “And they did nothing to clear that up.”
 
They have a hearing against the company for wrongful termination and while Bell has responded in the most general way when asked for comment, the corporate-speak coming out of their spokesperson’s mouth is simply unbelievable - but not surprising.
 
You can read more about the former on-air pair’s vitriolic reactions here.

 

July 21, 2020 10:08 am  #2


Re: Ex-Bell Media Radio Morning Hosts Rip Their Former Employer

Freeway Frank? The same Freeway Frank from the Mix 999 days? That's too bad. 
Sounds like Bell is a good company to stay away from.
They gave the same treatment to the Virgin radio morning show here not long ago.
That same morning team is now on the new Energy 95.3 in Hamilton. (or wherever it's supposed to be broadcasting to...lol)
 


RadioWiz & RadioQuiz are NOT the same person. 
RadioWiz & THE Wiz are NOT the same person.

 
 

July 21, 2020 2:49 pm  #3


Re: Ex-Bell Media Radio Morning Hosts Rip Their Former Employer

just my opinion (not that it matters) but I read the article and did not find their comments to be caustic or malicious at all.... 

 

Last edited by Glen Warren (July 21, 2020 4:49 pm)

 

July 21, 2020 4:08 pm  #4


Re: Ex-Bell Media Radio Morning Hosts Rip Their Former Employer

Glen Warren wrote:

just my opinion (not that it matters) but I read the article and did find their comments to be caustic or malicious at all....  

I'm wondering if this meant to read "read the article and did not find their comments to be..."?

 

 

July 21, 2020 4:43 pm  #5


Re: Ex-Bell Media Radio Morning Hosts Rip Their Former Employer

Yes, I agree with you, I think there may have been a word left out. 

     Thread Starter
 

July 21, 2020 4:53 pm  #6


Re: Ex-Bell Media Radio Morning Hosts Rip Their Former Employer

ooops!  my bad!...   correction made....   need the glasses more and more these days.....

 

July 21, 2020 11:02 pm  #7


Re: Ex-Bell Media Radio Morning Hosts Rip Their Former Employer

i'm feeling my age. i remember when "suing the company" = "black balled".
 

 

July 21, 2020 11:22 pm  #8


Re: Ex-Bell Media Radio Morning Hosts Rip Their Former Employer

Definitely heard of Freeway Frank.  He was on FM in this city and is therefore unknown to many here.

 

July 22, 2020 7:02 pm  #9


Re: Ex-Bell Media Radio Morning Hosts Rip Their Former Employer

Prod Guy wrote:

Definitely heard of Freeway Frank.  He was on FM in this city and is therefore unknown to many here.

I f memory serves, he did a stint in Vancouver at one point so he's been on the country's three largest markets. 
While I don't find any caustic overtones, I do sense a touch of naivete on their part. Being hauled into the office and told you just did your last shift with no further explanation is the norm these days in the corporate operations. It is rare that someone is given a chance to say goodbye on air if their departure is the company's decision. One of the very few in recent memory who did get the chance was Andy Frost who seems to have gone underground in the last couple years. But Corus has been just a brutal as Bell when they purged several on air talents in their Toronto cluster in the last few years including the almost comedic practice of serial firings of morning shows at The Edge.

 

July 22, 2020 7:44 pm  #10


Re: Ex-Bell Media Radio Morning Hosts Rip Their Former Employer

This is the stuff that keeps labour lawyers busy,