Media Beat: June 22, 2018

By David Farrell

JAZZ.FM officially announces staff cuts

Charles Cutts, JAZZ.FM91’s Interim Chief Executive Officer, announced JAZZ.FM91 had terminated five full-time staff and two contractors.

“These decisions were taken very seriously by my management team to address competitive and financial pressures,” Cutts stated in news release posted on the not-for-profit station’s website, June 16.

“The station valued the contributions each individual made over the years, and did not make these decisions lightly. Put in context, our actions happened on the same day that Rogers Media terminated one third of its digital content and publishing team. The industry is in challenging times.”

In addition, David McGown has been appointed Chair of the Board. Renah Persofsky, who had served as interim Chair of the Board, has stepped down. Persofsky continues to be a board member. She “needed to step down from her Chair responsibilities due to other professional and volunteer commitments,” Cutts said in the statement.

– More about the cuts and the station can be found on Toronto Mike’s blog.

Canadian winners at New York Festivals’ Radio Awards

NFY’s International Radio Program Awards, honouring the World’s Best Radio Programs, announced this year’s award-winners at the annual Radio Awards Gala in NYC earlier this week.

CBC Radio One and CBC Original Podcasts earned top prizes in multiple categories at the 2018 New York Festivals World's Best Radio Programs.

CBC shows took home 23 awards and three finalist certificates.

The winners were honoured at the June 18 New York Festivals Radio Gala in New York, N.Y.

Eight CBC programs earned gold in several categories.

JAZZ.FM91 took 5 awards and Soulpepper Theatre Co. earned a Finalist Certificate in the Audio Podcast category. The complete list of winners can be found here, and Canada’s winners here.

Bell Media takes home 25 Promax awards

With 25 awards, Bell Media was once again the leading Canadian company at the 2018 PromaxBDA Awards, June 14 in New York City. The global competitions recognise innovation and creativity in entertainment marketing and design.

Bell Media took home 16 Global Excellence Awards (five gold, five silver, and six bronze) and nine North American awards (two gold, three silver, and four bronze), totaling more than three times the number won by all other Canadian companies combined. Additionally, Bell Media was a runner-up for Global Marketing Company of the Year, after receiving its sixth consecutive nomination for the award.

The awards categories include network TV, TV stations, cable networks, cable systems, network radio, radio stations, syndication distributors, interactive media, and the Brandon Tartikoff Award.

Winners in the past have included FX Networks, Showtime, Red Bee Media, HBO, A+E Networks, 4Creative, Les Télécréateurs Paris, Rogers Media and Bell Media.

The PromaxBDA Global Excellence and North America Awards are handed out each year at PromaxBDA's annual conference in June, which alternates between New York City and Los Angeles. The complete list of Bell Media wins can be viewed here.

EU votes for copyright law that would make internet a 'tool for control'

A European parliament committee has voted for legislation that internet pioneers fear will turn the web into “a tool for surveillance and control”.

In a key vote on a draft law to overhaul EU copyright rules, the parliament’s legal affairs committee on Wednesday voted for measures that would require the likes of Google and Microsoft to install filters to prevent users from uploading copyrighted materials – Jennifer Rankin, The Guardian

EU Approves sweeping copyright reform: Big changes ahead for YouTube

Proponents of tackling the so-called "value gap" call the reforms an "important step," while opponents see it as a "dark day for the open web."

User generated services like YouTube will be required to obtain licences and pay rights holders for hosting music and film content under controversial copyright reforms provisionally approved by the European Parliament – Richard Smirke, Billboard

Google music services explained

Google formally launched its YouTube Premium and YouTube Music services in Canada on Monday but understanding what each subscription offers is less than clear.

An $11.99 subscription to YouTube Premium provides users with an automatic subscription to YouTube Music Premium and Google Play Music, however there are some wrinkles in the plans, as Sameer Chhabra explains – Mobile Syrup

What can you do with Apple HomePod in Canada

How to get listed in Google Podcasts

How can you be listed on Google Podcasts, the new podcast app from Google - and on Google Home and other Google Assistant powered devices?

First: you might already be there. Use Google Podcast's Direct Link generator to check whether it's added you already. If not, read on – James Cridland, Podnews

Dr. Luke vs. Kesha case could impact reporting of sexual assault allegations

Dr. Luke is now alleging that statements that essentially echo what was in Kesha's filed complaint are defamatory -- and not just the draft version sent to the general counsel of Sony Music. Indeed, Dr. Luke wants to hold Kesha accountable for media reporting about her lawsuit. According to Dr. Luke, Kesha's public relations agents at Sunshine Sachs game-planned how to achieve negative publicity for Dr. Luke and provided an advance copy of the complaint to TMZ before it was actually filed. Then, her then-attorney Mark Geragos made the media rounds and reiterated many of the statements found in the complaint.

Kesha's side is objecting to how Dr. Luke now seeks to hold her liable for 44 "new" defamatory statements in his bid for $50 million in damages. – Eriq Gardner, Billboard