A Canadian media watchdog group claims that the CBC will propose shutting down CBC Radio 2 at its June Board of Directors meeting.
Friends of Canadian Broadcasting states that the national AAA/Classical/Jazz network could convert to an online operation among other budget cuts to resolve loss of funding from advertising drops and the loss of Hockey Night in Canada. Friends of Canadian Broadcasting accuses the the cutting of services as part of a plot by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservative Party to bring the CBC more closely aligned with the party. The CBC quickly responded to the claims as “speculation, inaccurate and misinformation”
The Canadian Press report states that Friends of Canadian Broadcasting has been proven correct on other predictions regarding the CBC including the announcement of 657 job cuts in April.
Radio 2 operates on 14 signals in the biggest Canadian markets and numerous rebroadcasters throughout the country. The primary signals are: 102.1 CBR-FM Calgary, 90.9 CBX-FM Edmonton, 102.7 CBH-FM Halifax, 93.5 CBM-FM Montreal, 103.3 CBOQ-FM Ottawa, 96.9 CBK-FM Regina, 106.9 CBN-FM St. John’s, 90.1 CBBS-FM Sudbury, 105.1 CBI-FM Sydney, 101.7 CBQ-FM Thunder Bay, 94.1 CBL-FM Toronto, 105.7 CBU-FM Vancouver, 89.9 CBE-FM Windsor, and 98.3 CBW-FM Winnipeg. It is not known what would happen to the signal should the network sign-off the terrestrial signals, but it is likely the licenses could be turned in and then opened up by the CRTC for new applicants.
Joseph_Gallant 
coughitup 
Mark 
RBRadioWaves
Wasn’t the CBC asking the CRTC to allow it to sell commercials on CBC Radio Two??
One mother problem is that were CBC radio Two to shut down, classical and jazz would vanish from over-the-air radio in most of Canada.
I say that CBC Radio 2 should stop airing its current mixed up format and go back to what it does best-classical music during the day and evening with jazz overnights and on weekends. And it can open a third channel for contemporary and world music.
And have an audience of 65-to-death–especially when it’s the network that’s asked to do advertising?
One license CBC probably won’t give up if Radio Two gets shut down is that for CBC Radio Two outlet CBL-94.1 in Toronto.
In that case, CBC would probably turn-in the license for French-language CJBC-860 instead and move Radio-Canada’s “Premiere Chaine” to FM and to 94.1.
Or, instead of turning-in the licenses of CBC Radio Two stations it no longer needs, perhaps CBC can [b]sell[/b] them, meaning they would get some compensation whereas if they turned-in the licenses, they’d get no compensation.
I’m all for CBC Radio 2 banishing the last vestiges of it’s classical format to attract a younger audience. I say pull a BBC Radio 2: make it Adult Contemporary-ish during the day, with somewhat more eclectic music in the night.
I like jazz, and it will be a shame for Radio 2 to end it’s classical music, but if you’re looking for ad revenue, you’ve gotta make tough decisions.
You know Friends of Canadian Broadcasting will be defecating in their pants if that ever happens.
It seems to me that there’s only one classical station in Canada outside of Radio 2 and that’s in Toronto. The community licensees have either taken the more mass appeal-ish route of community radio in the UK or Australia or the Pacifica-ish route of U.S. community radio, neither of which are particularly friendly towards classical music these days. And college radio in Canada is just like college radio in the U.S.–mostly indie rock.