CRFC / FCRC

CRTC Decision Provides Boost for Campus and Community Radio, But Work Still To Be Done

Thursday, 22 July 2010 17:42

A First for the Sector: $775K annually from broadcasting industry

Ottawa, July 22, 2010 -- The Community Radio Fund of Canada (CRFC) is pleased to announce that the campus and community radio sector will receive vital funding following the decision released today by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) on the Review of the Campus and Community Radio Policies.

The Commission approved part of the CRFC’s request for mandatory funding from the private broadcasting sector through contributions to the Canadian Content Development (CCD). Once in place, this will mean that the CRFC will likely receive $775,000 annually. This funding will then be distributed through the CRFC’s programs to more than 140 stations and their representative associations.

"This is a encouraging step in funding for the sector,” said CRFC President Ian Pringle. “With this funding, we will be able to begin providing more meaningful support to stations across the country as they work to better serve their communities, tackle the challenges of 21st-century broadcasting in innovative ways and give voice to Canada’s diverse experience where it is the richest – at the local level.”

Since its inception in 2007, the CRFC has already distributed more than $300,000 to support 42 local programming and training initiatives across the country. From youth radio camps, to a series about local history, to training immigrant women to tell their own stories, these projects have had immediate and direct impact for stations and Canadian communities.

The CRFC thanks the Commission for recognizing the importance of campus and community stations, both in the broadcasting system and for Canadians. With this funding, our stations will be able to better serve their local communities by producing strong locally relevant Canadian content.

However, this funding is just a start in helping the CRFC fulfill its mandate. Pringle notes: “We did not get everything we asked for, but this decision remains a step forward in the growth of community programming. There is a lot of work still to be done, and we are ready to take it on.”

The CRFC also believes that this funding will have a significant and meaningful impact on the promotion of local Canadian talent. For decades, our stations have been committed to providing exposure and airplay emerging, independent, local, and/or niche musicians. By strengthening campus and community stations, the Commission and the private broadcasters are also directly contributing to the Canadian music industry.

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Media contacts:

Ian Pringle, President
604-775-8235 or 778-889-4426, president [@] communityradiofund.org

Melissa Kaestner, Executive Director
613-321-3513 or 613-276-7440, m.kaestner [@] communityradiofund.org

$160,000 for Local Community Radio

Thursday, 13 May 2010 10:07

20 Broadcasters Receive Funding from CRFC

Ottawa - The Community Radio Fund of Canada (CRFC) is pleased to announce its second group of funding recipients through two programs launched last year. The CRFC has granted funds to 20 campus and community radio stations under the "Radio Talent Development Program" and the "Youth Internship Program." The list of the recipients is presented below.

"The initiatives we are supporting this year are excellent examples of meaningful activities that will strengthen local programming," says CRFC President Ian Pringle. "We're very pleased to be able to provide funding which will help these stations carry out their mandates and their commitment to their local communities."

The goal of both programs is to develop innovative local interest programming while providing mentorship, education, and training for broadcasters. Each year, $80,000 is made available under each program to the campus and community radio sector.

"This is just the shot in the arm that we need to move the station forward," says Doug Switzer of CJHQ FM in Nakusp, British Columbia, a community station recently licenced in 2005.

"Our project aims at producing some 20 programs on various issues in our community, and it makes a big difference for a regional station like ours. In an ever-more difficult economic context for regional stations, support like this is priceless," says Marie-Hélène Roy, General Manager of CKBN in Bécancour, Quebec.

The CRFC would also like to thank the Selection Committee for their work in assessing the applications:

Kevin Crombie, Manager of Communications, Patented Medicine Prices Review Board
Blythe McKay, Development Communication Coordinator, Farm Radio International
Lois Ross, Acting Director, Communications, Federation of Canadian Municipalities

Blythe McKay, Lois Ross, Kevin Crombie

The Radio Talent Development and the Youth Internship programs are made possible by a contribution of Astral Media Radio through a CRTC contribution mechanism totalling $1.4 million over seven years.

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RECIPIENTS

Radio Talent Development Program:

CFIM 92.7 FM - Cap-aux-Meules, QC: “Nous écouter, c'est vous entendre” $6,647
CFRC 101.9 FM, Kingston, ON: “Below the Line: Stories of Poverty and Struggle”$3,400
CHES 101.5 FM, Erin, ON: “Erin History Project” $10,000
CHLY 101.7 FM, Nanaimo, BC: “CHLY News Program Development Project” $9,017
CHRW 94.9 FM, London, ON: “London Social Cultural Project” $4,950
CHUO 89.1 FM, Ottawa, ON: “Jambo Ottawa” $2,320
CJHQ 101.7 FM, Nakusp, BC: “Valley of Water: The Arrow Lakes & The Columbia River Treaty” $8,016
CKBN 90.5 FM, Wôlinak, QC: “10 émissions intitulées les Loco Local” $7,465
CKDU 88.1 FM, Halifax, NS: “Birthing an Ancient Practice: A Place for Midwifery in Nova Scotia” $2,024
CKIA 88.3 FM, Québec, QC: “Égalité : Genre Féminin” $6,800
CKOA 89.7 FM, Glace Bay, NS: “First Nations, First Music” $10,000
CKUT 90.3 FM , Montréal, QC: “Youth Radio Camp” $4,860

Youth Internship Program:

CFBX 92.5 FM, Kamloops, BC: “Youth Internship Program” $6,509
CFMH 107.3 FM, Saint John, NB: “Saint John Youth Radio” $9,850
CFRT 107.3 FM, Iqaluit, NU: “Radio Iqaluit, reflet de la communauté” $10,000
CFUV 101.9 FM, Victoria, BC: “Women’s Collective Coordinator - Summer Position” $7,560
CIBL 101.5 FM, Montréal, QC: “Stage diversité” $9,350
CITR 101.9 FM, Vancouver, BC: “Live Summer Broadcast Coordinator” $8,795
CJLO 1690 AM, Montréal, QC: “CJLO After School Broadcast Training & Mentoring Program” $6,730
CKDU 88.1 FM, Halifax, NS: “New Roots Radio Project” $9,680
CKOA 89.7 FM, Glace Bay, NS: “Future Broadcasters of Cape Breton” $8,379

The Community Radio Fund of Canada is the national not-for-profit funding body for the growth and sustainability of campus and community radio. More than 140 community-based radio stations across Canada make up the community-owned, volunteer-driven sector of Canadian broadcasting. The CRFC helps develop and enrich this vital broadcasting sector to ensure local, public-access radio for Canadian communities.