As Canucks and Flames fans learned first hand this past week, the broadcasting business can be a cut throat one. In my 40 years of TV and radio, I’ve been a budget cut more than once. It happens for legitimate financial reasons and for ones that make no sense whatsoever. One takes his or her talents, if they have any, elsewhere.
The methodology of this decision to shut down AM650, the home of the Canucks, sucked, but that’s the corporate nature of the business now.
It doesn’t make the higher ups who made the decision the big, bad boogeymen. A loss leader is a loss leader. What they could have done: Given a notice or warning six months ahead and said, “this needs to improve, this needs to change, etc., etc. Be better.” But that’s a throwback concept when quality control was a regular part of the process and content oversight was more hands on.
Instead, we get widespread despair.
Fortunately for a few, they should recover rather quickly.
Oddly enough, I was planning to write a critique of some of the programming in recent days and simply never got around to it. I only listened in my car and it was sporadic at best, but it didn’t take too long to know who should be on the radio and who shouldn’t.
Here’s three unquestionable thumbs up. Two of the items have a direct impact on Canucks fans.
1) The morning show. (Mike) Halford and (Jason) Brough. These guys are excellent. They’re prepared, they’re knowledgeable, and they agreed and/or disagreed effectively. It was respectful, barbs are barbs, but the arguments were legit from what I heard. And their questions didn’t last longer than the answers.
They also would remind you who the guest was once the interview started, as opposed to just at the start. It’s not a podcast, people turn on the radio midstream, they need to know who they’re listening to. Also known as something from radio-101.
If they haven’t already, I’m sure they will plan, sell, and execute a local stream/podcast almost immediately, and they know they’ll do well.
2) Batch. Brendan Batchelor is one of the best radio play-by-play men in the NHL. Simple. What I don’t know, I hope to speak to him, is if the club will carry the games elsewhere in the market. A disaster would be the dreaded TV/radio simulcast where we lose the uniqueness, sounds, and atmosphere of hockey called well on radio. He’s too good for the Canucks not to have him calling the games on his own.
Until that carrier is lined up, I reckon he’ll get involved in some type of Canucks podcast as well. He’ll continue to be a regular guest elsewhere.
3) Well, believe it or not, number-3 has nothing to do with hockey or the Canucks. Tyler Zickel. I found the young gentleman doing the Canadians baseball games to be excellent. I didn’t even know his name until I looked him up five minutes ago, but I would always leave him on for the duration of any evening drive I might be taking. His cadence is outstanding, he lets it breathe at the appropriate times, and he’s extremely well prepared.
I have no idea where he or that broadcast are headed, but I hope it lands somewhere quickly. There’s nothing like a good baseball call on a warm summer evening, and this guy delivers.
It can be a shit business. Just like acting or being a comic or any entertainer, unless you’re a nepo-baby-broadcaster, you’re gonna get kicked in the teeth more than once along the way.
Good luck to everyone moving on and moving ahead.
Earlier Canucks:
— Where’s Waldo, I Mean Whyno? Canucks = PHWA
