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OAB Town Hall Discusses Radio's Changing Audiences

The following is provided by Janik Media President Liz Janik who a great many will remember from her days on-air at CFNY, and as a consultant at Joint

OAB Town Hall Discusses Radio's Changing Audiences

By External Source

The following is provided by Janik Media President Liz Janik who a great many will remember from her days on-air at CFNY, and as a consultant at Joint Communications.  She is also a Rosalie Award winner, celebrating her longstanding commitment to radio in Canada. You can find out more about her career highlights here.


This year’s town hall was lively and more candid than usual. The conversation was masterfully directed by “radio futurologist” James Cridland and covered a range of the issues facing radio. Panelists were Sherry O'Neil, Director, cairns oneil strategic media inc.; Chris Pearson, President, Acadia Broadcasting Limited; Geoff Poulton, President, Vista Radio; Troy Reeb, SVP, News, Radio & Station Operations, Corus Entertainment; and Susan Wheeler, Vice President, Regulatory Media, Rogers Communications Inc.,

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The emphasis throughout the day at the OAB kept circling back to how listeners’ tuning habits are changing, given the wide variety of listening platforms available, including Podcasts, Spotify and talk content on YouTube.  How can radio claim its place in the new universe opened up by social media.  Exactly what is radio? And what is its role? 

Community, Community, Community

The consensus was the secret of successful radio is in its ability to create a sense of community through the use of audio.  Historically, radio built its franchise serving a community formed by geography.  Chris Pearson and Geoff Poulton represented stations whose success is derived by super-serving local markets.

– The story in full can be found in today’s Media Beat column here.

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Lewis Capaldi Donates 734,000 Hours of Free Therapy to Those in Need: ‘This Is My Way of Giving Back’
Leon Neal/Getty Images

Lewis Capaldi performs on the Pyramid stage during day three of Glastonbury festival 2025 at Worthy Farm, Pilton on June 27, 2025 in Glastonbury, England.

Pop

Lewis Capaldi Donates 734,000 Hours of Free Therapy to Those in Need: ‘This Is My Way of Giving Back’

The amount is in reference to the 734 days the "Survive" singer took to focus on his mental health following a difficult 2023 Glastonbury Festival set.

Lewis Capaldi is giving back to his fans in a big way. On Monday (July 7) the “Someone You Loved” singer announced an initiative with the online therapy company BetterHelp to provide 734,000 hours of free virtual therapy to those in need.

“Therapy is the reason why I am able to be a musician again,” the singer says in a video announcing his effort. “In partnership with BetterHealth and to reflect my experience of therapy and the importance I feel it has in my life and other people’s lives, we’re giving away 734,000 free hours of therapy.” The number represents 1,000 hours for every day since Capaldi was last on stage.

This story was first published on Billboard U.S.

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