Media Monday Edmonton: Update #40

Here is my latest update on local media stuff:

• The big news today is that Postmedia is once again making significant cutbacks and this time Edmonton is affected. Effective July 1, the Journal will no longer be publishing a Sunday edition of the paper. They are also dropping TV Times in print, and are evaluating a paywall. Postmedia has also decided to move copy-editing out of its metropolitan newsrooms to a centralized facility in Hamilton, ON. Here’s a note to readers from Journal publisher John Connolly, complete with a FAQ on the changes.
• At the same time as these cutbacks are taking place, the Edmonton Experiment is charging ahead. That’s a good thing. Postmedia’s problem isn’t stemming costs, it is building revenues. And without something new and innovative, that’s not going to happen. As Karen wrote, “The only way out of this is to innovate.” Here’s a clue about what the Edmonton Experiment will focus on.
• A couple of weeks ago I broke the story about the City Market’s proposed bylaw changes. Here’s the right way to chime in, with attribution to the source both in the text and with a link. Here’s the wrong way to chime in, with no attribution whatsoever. Yes I would have preferred that the Edmonton Journal recognize my work – no one had the story until my entry. A simple link would have been more than sufficient. Actually I’d say that in 2012 a link is pretty much expected! I think the Journal did their readers a disservice by not linking, because my entry had a lot more detail that they could have pointed interested readers to. I understand that finding the source for a story is not always straightforward, but in this case I don’t think there was any question that my article was the source.
• Here’s an update from Linda Hoang on her first two weeks as a web reporter at CTV Edmonton. Sounds like she is having fun! Also some big news today from Linda: she’s taking over the Page 6 column in the Edmonton Sun vacated recently by Brittney Le Blanc. Congrats Linda!
• Check out The Unknown Studio’s Edmonton Blog Watch! Every week they’ll link to “some of the interesting, compelling or outstanding blog posts from members of the Edmonton online community.” Here’s the latest edition.
• Here’s a guest post by Richard Liebrecht discussing media coverage of the 2012 Alberta Election. Read the whole thing, but here’s an excerpt: “Had it not been for a blogger talking about conscience rights and the Wildrose, and a P.C.-connected tweeter highlighting gay-damning comments from a Wildrose candidate, the election may have been nothing but a bunch of rehashed press releases and horserace stories.”
• GIG CITY profiles Shine FM: “You have to listen to everything to get a true sense of the reality of any radio station. Shine announcers are uniformly chirpy, the little in-between sermonettes are inspirational without shoving anything down anyone’s throat, and a few of the songs don’t actually suck. This is the highest compliment one can pay any commercial radio station anywhere.”
• Reporter Jenna Bridges joined Global Edmonton last week. She was most recently with Citytv.
• I really like this from the Journal: Highway 63 accident database. Great stuff!
• If your dream is to become a reality TV star like the people on Jersey Shore or Big Brother, here’s your chance: “NORTHSIDERS is a wild, racy, and unpredictable ‘social experiment’, as we throw a group of bona-fide ‘northsiders’ into a run-down house, make them live together for 13 weeks, and see if anyone survives with any dignity intact.” Auditions will be held on Wednesday from 4-8pm. Yes it’s legit. This could be interesting!
• Older news but I wanted to capture it here: AOL Canada and the Huffington Post are expanding to Alberta. Will they end up in Edmonton?
• The Journal has launched an improved mobile website. They say the mobile site was viewed more than 2.8 million times in April.
• Congratulations to the winners of the 38th Annual Alberta Film & Television Awards! Edmonton’s Niobe Thompson won the most awards of the night with 5 for his documentary The Perfect Runner. Here are some photos from the event.
• Here are the finalists for the 30th annual Western Magazine Awards.
• The June edition of Boyle McCauley News is now online!

Breakfast Television Studios!

You can follow Edmonton media news on Twitter using the hashtag #yegmedia. For a great overview of the global media landscape, check out Mediagazer.

So, what have I missed? What’s new and interesting in the world of Edmonton media? Let me know!

You can see past Media Monday Edmonton entries here.