The NL Broadcasting centre in downtown Kamloops.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/Google Maps
September 24, 2024 - 11:20 AM
Four staff members in a news-talk radio station's newsroom in Kamloops were fired Tuesday.
Members of the newsroom at RadioNL were terminated today, Sept. 24, according to a social media post by employee Brett Mineer.
His initial social media post said the "entire" newsroom was terminated, but the company responded to iNFOnews.ca to say three employees will remain in the newsroom. Four others were terminated, according to news director Paul James.
"The station is not shutting down, is not for sale, and no other Stingray stations are impacted at all. No partnerships are impacted," company president Steve Jones said in a written response.
Jones wouldn't comment on who will remain at the station, but iNFOnews.ca has confirmed that the roster includes news director Paul James, morning show host Jeff Andreas and sports reporter Jon Keen, whose work is done in partnership with the Kamloops Blazers.
It appeared to be a surprise move at CHNL and the news programming was operating as normal Tuesday morning until the station suddenly cut to music.
Around 11 a.m., what was supposed to be the syndicated Mike Smyth Show was replaced with classic rock. The station was broadcasting brief The Canadian Press news updates.
Radio station 610 AM has been broadcasting in the Kamloops area since 1970, and was owned by NL Broadcasting Inc. until 1993. Newcap Broadcasting bought the station until it was sold to Stingray Group Inc. in 2018.
Premier David Eby was among those mourning the dwindling of RadioNL's newsroom on social media Tuesday morning. He said it's "just bad for local journalism."
"(RadioNL) has long been a trusted source of information for the community, and (Brett Mineer's) voice has been a steady presence in their lives," he said on X.com.
Stingray Group, which owns several other FM radio stations around Canada, said it still believes in AM radio and its role in Kamloops, noting that several AM stations have closed around in the country in recent years, particularly those in smaller markets. The station will reduce its newscasts to include "a mix of music, news, sports, and community information," a statement read.
"Today some changes were made at Radio NL in Kamloops to ensure the radio station’s long-term viability and commitment to the community," the statement read. "As a result of this difficult decision, some positions were impacted in news and programming. Our remaining news team at Radio NL will continue to provide the most local newscasts throughout the day reflecting all that is important in our community."
The company's most recent quarterly report to shareholders, published last month, does not mention any issues or impending cuts to its Kamloops newsroom. What it does say is that that company revenues "soared" with a nearly 13 per cent increase over the same quarter last year. From April to the end of June, the media company raked in $89 million in revenue, according to the report.
Its news division represents a very small fraction of the media company and wasn't mentioned in the report.
— This story was updated with a social media statement from David Eby and with information from a Stingray Group Inc. shareholder report at 11:40 a.m., Sept. 24, 2024.
— This story was updated with a response from Stingray president Steve Jones at 1:43 p.m., Sept. 24, 2024.
— With files from The Canadian Press
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