Media Monday Edmonton: Update #102

Here’s my latest update on local media stuff:

• Here is the first issue of The Pulp, “a cutting edge online magazine that makes the most of pop, quirk, and nerd culture in Edmonton.” They’ve got a pretty attractive website and you can follow them on Twitter at @thepulppress. Congratulations to Cheryl Cottrell-Smith, editor-in-chief, and the rest of the team! They’re looking for contributors too.
• Did you watch The Oscars last night? I’ll admit that I did. According to CTV, more Edmontonians watch The Oscars than The Super Bowl. They called it “the biggest entertainment audience in Canada since 2011.”
• There’s now a campaign on Indiegogo to raise funds for the Canadian University Press. Using the hashtag #keepCUPstrong, the campaign declares: “Canadian University Press is the only organization in Canada with a mission to unite, strengthen and support student press.” The organization is looking to raise $50,000.
• This morning was the first show for Scott McCord and Ryan Bradley on 95.7 CRUZ FM. McCord was last at The Bear here in Edmonton.
• David Howell left his post as City Editor at the Edmonton Journal back in November. Now his Twitter profile says, “looking forward to covering energy beat, starting around March 10.” Mark Iype is now the City Editor at the Journal.
• Want to work at The Gateway? They’re hiring! Applicants looking to join the editorial staff should submit a resume by March 7.
• Global Edmonton’s Su-Ling Goh has dug up a historic ITV poster from 1994. Weatherman Bill and sports guy Darren – I remember watching them all the time.
• A total of 90 finalists have been chosen for the 2014 INMA Awards, for the best work in media marketing. Gastropost Alberta was chosen to be a finalist in the “Best Idea of Innovation to Create New Profit Centers” category.
• Well here’s a use for blogging you don’t see every day! Sarah Vibert wrote a post asking for someone to look after her kids. Not just babysit, but to offer them “a forever home”. Apparently it is a private matter unless the children’s well-being is a concern. Anyway, it was a popular story both on social media and in the traditional media.
• Shawn Waddell, a longtime senior editor at The Canadian Press, died on Saturday, February 22 at the age of 62. He worked at the Edmonton Journal in the early 70s before making the move to CP in 1975.
• CMT was in Edmonton recently shooting an episode of its “Burger Wars” TV show (because burgers are country, I guess). It features The Next Act Pub, Rodeo Burger, and Delux Burger Bar, and will air sometime in the spring or summer.
• There’s a lot of discussion about embargoes in the greater media world, but I haven’t seen too much locally. Premier Redford blogged a bit of a preview of today’s throne speech, prompting Don Braid to ask the embargo question. There are legal reasons some of this stuff is embargoed, but I think Don’s question is fair.
• The next Capital Ideas Edmonton event is coming up on March 19 with a look at how to make social media pay off.
• The next Art of Conversation takes place on March 14 at the Fairmont Hotel Macdonald!
• More than 15 million Canadians watched at least part of the men’s gold medal hockey win over Sweden on February 23rd. CBC also said the Canada-USA semifinal game attracted 625,000 viewers on the web or mobile devices, and that Canadian viewers watched about 14 million hours of online video over the 18 days of the games.
• Apparently CBC news anchor Peter Mansbridge recently gave a paid speech to the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, causing a stir about disclosure and ethics.
• This is a really interesting discussion on Reddit and crowdsourcing the news. “I think the fundamental difference with Reddit (and Twitter for that matter) is that they are far more transparent than any traditional media outlet has ever been, and likely ever will be, when it comes to the editorial process — in other words, deciding which stories run on the front page and which don’t appear at all.”

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.