1 of 1- RadioActive
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Canadian Radio Owner Fills Gap Left By Dying Local Newspapers
Remember last year, when the Star's Metroland Media shut down all of its local weekly newspapers? So far, nothing has emerged to really replace them
But now Pattison Media, which owns 50 radio stations out west, has decided to step in and fill the gap by starting its own hyper local news sites, separate from their stations, to serve the communities that have lost access to things like happenings at city hall and other issues that no longer get noticed.
"Pattison Media’s hyperlocal news sites cover the everyday goings on at city council, and in local sports but haven’t shied away from bigger stories, such as the wildfires and evacuations that plagued western Canada."
It's a great idea, doesn't cost them much and gives them a greater presence that directly targets their markets. While Toronto is still pretty well served, that's not the case in smaller places. It's a good idea, but now all they have to do is convince their listeners to visit them on a regular basis.
With Local News Sites, These Radio Companies Are Helping Fill The News Void – And Turning a Profit
- RadioAaron
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Re: Canadian Radio Owner Fills Gap Left By Dying Local Newspapers
I know this one's been brought up before, but it's a great local example:
And this one from COB in Barrie:
- newsguy1
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Re: Canadian Radio Owner Fills Gap Left By Dying Local Newspapers
And Vancouver still has a couple of really fine hard copy newspapers in The Georgia Straight and over the inlet, The North Shore News.
Georgia Straight started out as a hippie paper that mainly dealt out sex and drugs and rock and roll.
It evolved into a news and entertainment paper with emphasis on local Vancouver news and politics.
North Shore News covers events in North and West Vancouver and does it very well.
Both publications are free.
BTW my first major market radio gig was with Jim Pattison's talk and news powerhouse, CJOR
- RadioActive
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Re: Canadian Radio Owner Fills Gap Left By Dying Local Newspapers
newsguy1 wrote:
BTW my first major market radio gig was with Jim Pattison's talk and news powerhouse, CJOR
Here's an ad for them back in 1955 - which I'm 100% sure was well before your time!
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Thread Starter- BowmanvilleBob
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Re: Canadian Radio Owner Fills Gap Left By Dying Local Newspapers
I know this one's been brought up before, but it's a great local example:
Durham Radio News is good enough at what it does, which is to provide police updates and information on local construction problems, along with some CP copy for Ontario and national stories. Where it's less successful is covering municipal governments and their spending in Durham Region and fact-checking claims made by local MPs and MPPs of all parties. But since the Metroland papers in our local communities have disappeared, this is about the best we can get locally, apart from a few independent outlets in Oshawa and Whitby, which are still trying to find their audience.
- paterson1
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Re: Canadian Radio Owner Fills Gap Left By Dying Local Newspapers
I think local radio (especially community stations) put some of the weekly papers out of business. My hometown had a vibrant weekly paid paper called the Fergus-Elora News Express that had been around in various forms since the mid 1850's.
The paper became a shadow of itself soon after the local radio station, The Grand went to air in 2011. The Express became a free publication but eventually closed the doors after more than 160 years in business.
The local radio had ads on the air from day one, even getting into on location broadcasts from local merchants in Fergus/Elora/Elmira and Guelph. Alarming for the paper was when national auto advertising started to appear on the radio and no longer in the weekly.
The area still has a local paper which covers all of Wellington county and this free circulation tabloid is still flourishing.
- DX
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Re: Canadian Radio Owner Fills Gap Left By Dying Local Newspapers
I know this one's been brought up before, but it's a great local example:
Durham Radio News is good enough at what it does, which is to provide police updates and information on local construction problems, along with some CP copy for Ontario and national stories. Where it's less successful is covering municipal governments and their spending in Durham Region and fact-checking claims made by local MPs and MPPs of all parties. But since the Metroland papers in our local communities have disappeared, this is about the best we can get locally, apart from a few independent outlets in Oshawa and Whitby, which are still trying to find their audience.
While print weekly editions have ceased and flyer distribution has been discontinued, Metroland continues to cover municipal government and political issues in Durham Region through its online site:
Last edited by DX (March 12, 2024 4:13 pm)
- BowmanvilleBob
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Re: Canadian Radio Owner Fills Gap Left By Dying Local Newspapers
Nope.
Since the demise of the print edition, Metroland's coverage of Durham Region is a shadow of its former self. It now consists of reprinted news releases from various local municipalities and the regional government, along with DRPS media releases and advertorials for local businesses. The kind of in-depth analysis of issues such as homelessness, the local cost of living and the state of local schools is only done when Toronto Star reporters swoop in for quick hit-and-run coverage, which is then reprinted by the local Metroland outlets.
Last edited by BowmanvilleBob (March 13, 2024 8:09 am)
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Re: Canadian Radio Owner Fills Gap Left By Dying Local Newspapers
Speaking of dying newspapers, more are in trouble. In this case, it's SaltWire, which is the main newspaper owner in the eastern part of Canada. It filed for protection from creditors on Tuesday, definitely not a good sign for readers in that part of the country.
"SaltWire publishes four daily newspapers: the Chronicle Herald in Halifax; the Cape Breton Post in Sydney, N.S.; the Guardian in Charlottetown and the Telegram in St. John’s, N.L. — as well as 14 weekly publications in every Atlantic province except New Brunswick."
SaltWire’s money woes a sign of bigger problems in the newspaper business: experts
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Thread Starter- mace
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Re: Canadian Radio Owner Fills Gap Left By Dying Local Newspapers
Back in the early 1960's, when Oakvillle had a whopping population of roughly 11.000 citizens, the town had two! newspapers. The Oakville Record Star [founded 1887] and the Oakville Trafalgar Journal [founded date unknown]. Both were broadsheet daily papers. The two papers merged in 1962 to become the Daily Journal Record, renamed the Oakville Journal Record in 1974. It ceased publication in early July 1981. Several weeks later the Oakville Beaver was born.
- Walter
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Re: Canadian Radio Owner Fills Gap Left By Dying Local Newspapers
Back in the early 1960's, when Oakvillle had a whopping population of roughly 11.000 citizens, the town had two! newspapers. The Oakville Record Star [founded 1887] and the Oakville Trafalgar Journal [founded date unknown]. Both were broadsheet daily papers. The two papers merged in 1962 to become the Daily Journal Record, renamed the Oakville Journal Record in 1974. It ceased publication in early July 1981. Several weeks later the Oakville Beaver was born.
Not exactly accurate. The Oakville Beaver (named for another paper owned by the founder, the Napanee Beaver) was published, in competition with the Journal Record, since 1962. By 1981, the Journal Record was owned by Metrospan (Torstar), and the Beaver was owned by Inland Newspapers (the Basset family). When Metrospan bought Inland in 1981, everybody assumed the Journal Record would survive in town, but the reverse happened because the Beaver was more ad-heavy and profitable. The merged company became Metroland, and flourished until the internet slowly killed it from the 90s to the present.