The Southern Ontario/WNY Radio-TV Forum » Bizarre Moment On Jerry Agar Show After Law Governing Radio/TV Passes

RadioActive · June 20, 2024 3:14 pm

A new law that says employers working under federal jurisdiction cannot hire replacement workers if one of their unions goes on strike will soon be in effect. It essentially bans scabs, a proposition that has overjoyed unions and angered company owners. And since radio and TV employees fall under federal laws, it affects many on this board.

All of which is background for a very odd inside baseball discussion CFRB's Jerry Agar was having with Blacklock's Reporter managing editor Tom Korski on Thursday. When Agar reminded his guest that this new law would affect radio - though he's not currently a union member - he asked him what it would do to his show on CFRB, if he and his collective colleagues ever did walk out on strike. The answer was somewhat surreal.

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Agar: Would this particular piece of legislation make it such that, if I and my union got in a fight with my radio station, and I walked off, the station would go dark from 10-noon?

Korski: You cannot have replacement workers. They can bring in managers, but that's only going to last so long...

Agar: As you were talking I just thought, "Oh that's right they could bring in management to do the show. I'd tune in!...We have one management person that could do it, but he can't do ALL the shows. Either that, or it's going to be the Robert Turner station!

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The odd thing is, I'd probably listen to that over what's on there now most days!

I suppose there's nothing to stop them from airing rerolls of the talent that would be on strike, but if it's prolonged, that wouldn't be a very practical solution for a news/talk format in the long run. You can't help but speculate what the consequences of this new law will be for both radio and TV should it ever comes to that. Let's hope it never does.

Binson Echorec · June 20, 2024 4:02 pm

RadioActive wrote:
Agar: the station would go dark from 10-noon?

Don't give Bell any ideas around a new ratings strategy!

newsguy1 · June 20, 2024 4:11 pm

Maybe I'm misinformed, but I thought hosts like Agar, John Moore etc were on contracts and not in a union, which would mean they would not be part of a strike, but they would have to cross picket lines in order to work.

pinto · June 20, 2024 4:40 pm

In my union/management days, you had to have someone manage some kind of budget to be kept out of the union and still be able to go on air. No idea how it's changed.

RadioActive · June 20, 2024 4:49 pm

newsguy1 wrote:
Maybe I'm misinformed, but I thought hosts like Agar, John Moore etc were on contracts and not in a union, which would mean they would not be part of a strike, but they would have to cross picket lines in order to work.

As noted in the post, Agar admits he's not part of a union at the moment (although he has been in the past, likely when he was working in the medium in the U.S.) but he was using it as a hypothetical.

cash · June 20, 2024 4:59 pm

I would have thought John Moore would have insisted on being in the union.

RadioActive · June 20, 2024 5:10 pm

cash wrote:
I would have thought John Moore would have insisted on being in the union.

I have no idea what Moore's status is. It was Agar who confirmed on air he was not presently in a union. That said, I believe Moore is a member of ACTRA and frequently appears in bit parts in movies and TV shows. But I don't believe that affects his work on the radio.

Saul · June 20, 2024 5:58 pm

Binson Echorec wrote:
RadioActive wrote:
Agar: the station would go dark from 10-noon?
Don't give Bell any ideas around a new ratings strategy!

Great idea. An all 1010-WINS format... ratings would climb!

BowmanvilleBob · June 20, 2024 7:20 pm

RadioActive wrote:
The odd thing is, I'd probably listen to that over what's on there now most days!

This brings up a question in my mind, RA. I hope you'll provide an answer.

You've made it clear in previous postings that you don't listen to much of Toronto-area radio (no complaints there, neither do I), except for CFRB and 640. Yet you, and a few other like-minded people, spend a great deal of time complaining about the quality of the on-air staff at a pair of low-rated right wing talk radio stations and seem to actively dislike a number of the on-air hosts.

My question is: why do you listen?

I mean, it's not as if there aren't other options available. Podcasts, Youtube and a host of other outlets are available for people in a wide range of political stripes that offer no commercial interruptions and provide opportunities for interactions both live and online. Yet you choose to listen to two stations that seem to set your teeth on edge in one form or another at least a few times a week.

It can't simply be nostalgia for what radio used to be, particularly at RB, which once had a full newsroom and a wide range of programming to satisfy a variety of audiences. Those days, as we've seen in recent months, are clearly dead and gone.

Enlighten me, please.

Last edited by BowmanvilleBob (June 20, 2024 7:22 pm)

RadioActive · June 20, 2024 7:44 pm

It's simple - I'm an old fashioned listener. I'm just not into podcasts for some reason. They're just too much trouble for me to find, download and deal with. I know that will sound insane to most here, and you'd be right, but I just simply cannot be bothered. I've tried but they don't hold my attention for some reason.

Whereas with a radio, when I walk the dog, it's simply turn it on and it's there. If I don't like what I hear, I can go somewhere else instantly. It's live in most cases and it's immediate and can report on breaking news and weather, which no podcast can possibly do. Plus, music radio has long since ceased to be terribly relevant to me, although I occasionally tune in just to see what the big guys are up to. I'm quickly really bored and soon gone.

And I'm not sure I'm as hard on the two talkers as you seem to think. Some of my comments are meant to stimulate conversation here. There's no SOWNY without contributors. I'm OK if people disagree with me, as long as we can keep it civil.

There are certain hosts or guests on RB who set my teeth on edge, but I quite like John Moore and Vassy Kapelos. And Shane Hewitt is growing on me in the afternoons, although he's still a "guest host." I'm not a Jerry Agar hater like most here, but he does seem extreme at times. I have never understood the appeal of Jim Richards, who seems to get a lot of stuff wrong and just sloughs it off with a laugh, which doesn't help his credibility.

As for 640, Greg Brady is OK at times, but doesn't have Moore's polish. I very much enjoy Alex Pierson, but that may be because I once worked with her. Kelly Cutrara is OK, but I'm not a frequent listener mainly because I'm usually busy when she's on. Oakley has been annoying me since they started with the empty Happy Talk, but it's frequently better than nothing. I find Dani Stover's show unlistenable, although I'm sure they put a lot of work into it. And Ben O'Hara-Byrne may be a great journalist, but his on-air delivery and his show is like watching (listening to?) paint dry.

So old habits die hard. Maybe one day I'll get into podcasts. For now, they're just too much trouble and live radio is a lot easier. I don't know if that answers your question, but for what it's worth - and admittedly, that's not much - there it is.

mace · June 21, 2024 8:28 am

Saul wrote:
Binson Echorec wrote:
RadioActive wrote:
Agar: the station would go dark from 10-noon?
Don't give Bell any ideas around a new ratings strategy!
Great idea. An all 1010-WINS format... ratings would climb!

Agreed. But would they challenge 680? Bell investing money to beat a Rogers station? Hmmm.

BowmanvilleBob · June 21, 2024 8:47 am

RadioActive wrote:
So old habits die hard. Maybe one day I'll get into podcasts. For now, they're just too much trouble and live radio is a lot easier. I don't know if that answers your question, but for what it's worth - and admittedly, that's not much - there it is.

Might I suggest you give this podcast a listen. Former CFRB host Dave Trafford and a group of former hacks turned flacks offer their perspective on the news of the week. Who knows, it could become essential dog walking listening for you.

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/now-and-next/id1436509533

RadioActive · June 21, 2024 8:57 am

My problem with podcasts - and even live radio - is they don't tend to hold my interest for long. I listen on headphones because I would otherwise drive people around me crazy with my endless dial switching. I like to hear a little of everything. So I'm not sure I'd have the patience to sit through Trafford's efforts. But I will give it a try. Thanks for the suggestion.

paterson1 · June 21, 2024 11:01 am

The only problem with podcasts is that many of them are too long. Who has an hour and thirty minutes to listen unless the topic, host and guest are really engaging. Most podcasts have too much needless chit chat about nothing or get way off topic and start to meander.

I have heard podcasts where even the set up with the mic is left in. Take all of this out and shorten the length. I hate having to zip through to find when they get back on topic. All of the set up and unrelated jibber jabber should be edited out. I have heard too many hosts interrupting the guest with stories of their own that really don't have anything to do with the topic. Stick to the guest and theme of the podcast.

ig · June 21, 2024 11:02 am

Nothing would give me more pleasure than Bell adding control room LAWO and WO access to my VPN connection. I would have no issues setting up a KVM system, operating it, and producing my own shows from home and those of anyone else who asked.

And no, I'm proudly not part of the union.

ig · June 21, 2024 11:10 am

Zoom, Comrex, Opal, Teams..... No they wouldn't.

newsguy1 wrote:
Maybe I'm misinformed, but I thought hosts like Agar, John Moore etc were on contracts and not in a union, which would mean they would not be part of a strike, but they would have to cross picket lines in order to work.

RadioActive · June 21, 2024 11:25 am

paterson1 wrote:
The only problem with podcasts is that many of them are too long. Who has an hour and thirty minutes to listen unless the topic, host and guest are really engaging. Most podcasts have too much needless chit chat about nothing or get way off topic and start to meander.

I've never listened to it, but former CP24 contributor Stephen LeDrew does a podcast called "The Three Minute Interview." It mostly sticks to that promise and it's almost over before it begins. I guess that's the other extreme of the tendency to go long.

RadioActive · June 24, 2024 10:30 am

paterson1 wrote:
The only problem with podcasts is that many of them are too long. Who has an hour and thirty minutes to listen unless the topic, host and guest are really engaging. Most podcasts have too much needless chit chat about nothing or get way off topic and start to meander.

I have heard podcasts where even the set up with the mic is left in. Take all of this out and shorten the length. I hate having to zip through to find when they get back on topic. All of the set up and unrelated jibber jabber should be edited out. I have heard too many hosts interrupting the guest with stories of their own that really don't have anything to do with the topic. Stick to the guest and theme of the podcast.

Still not a podcast fan, per se, but here's one you may not know about - it stars a veteran L.A. radio personality and Jason Alexander, aka George Costanza from Seinfeld. Appropriately, it appears to be a show about nothing - and everything. For those who may be interested.

"...topics along the way have included talking dogs, competitive eating, space junk, drunk stoners, AI, noise pollution, the Museum of Failure, secrets to happiness, the secret lives of rats, TikTok, a store that sells items found in lost luggage, sleep tourism, and my personal recent favorite, “The Shocking Power of the Placebo Effect.”

‘Seinfeld’ star Jason Alexander and radio’s Peter Tilden team up on podcast