Cape Breton rocking with new radio stations

Cape Breton rocking
with new radio stations

ANDREW ROBINSON
The Burnside News
July 2, 2008

Radio listeners in Cape Breton have more options to turn to thanks to three new stations that have hit the airwaves in the last few months.

The Giant (CHRK 101.9 FM) and The Eagle (CKCH 103.5 FM) broadcast out of the same building in Sydney River, while community station The New Coast (CKOA 89.7 FM) is based in Glace Bay. Burnside’s NewCap Radio, a division of Newfoundland Capital, is the sole owner of The Giant and also holds a 29.9 per cent stake in The Eagle, with Barry Martin serving as that station’s majority owner.

NewCap’s Chief Operating Officer David Murray says Cape Breton is a market of great interest to his company, which operates 76 radio stations across Canada. They had no stations in the area prior to receiving a new commercial licence for The Giant in July 2007.

As Cape Breton’s first hits station, David Newbury says The Giant is well positioned to become popular with local radio listeners. The station’s manager says that since the first broadcast on May 27, it has pushed a format aiming to entertain its listeners while also keeping them connected to the community.

Newbury, a veteran of the radio industry with 25 years of experience, says the challenge of starting a new station is a wonderful experience. He says the local audience’s hunger for new radio makes his job a lot easier.

“The thing I found about Cape Breton right from the moment I got here was how engaged people were with the idea of getting a new radio station.”

At the CRTC hearings last July, Newbury says residents of the area expressed their desire for more radio options in Cape Breton, something the CRTC had to take into account when awarding licences to the new stations.

“When the CRTC issues multiple licenses in an area, they don’t take that decision lightly. They do that because there’s a perceived need for change in the area,” he says.

The station targets women ages 18 to 49, a demographic that Newbury refers to as “power shoppers.” He says these are the listeners advertisers want to reach because they tend to control the shopping habits of a family unit. By providing entertaining radio, Newbury is confident The Giant will be able to please everybody.

“We have to give both the listeners and the advertisers what they want. Advertisers want more sales and listeners want to be entertained. If we do those two things, we’ll be fine.”

There are 26 full-time employees and 19 part-timers at the building, which operates as the base for both The Giant and The Eagle. Newbury says The Eagle, which launched on June 20, has a distinct competitive advantage as Cape Breton’s only country station on the FM dial.

New radio stations popping up in the region indicates good times ahead according to the president of the Sydney and Area Chamber of Commerce. Owen Fitzgerald says despite the hardships experienced in recent years, the new stations are just one of the many reasons for Cape Bretoners to be optimistic about the future.

“We’re working very hard to try and build a stronger economy. With the new radio stations operating here, I think that’s another sign that we’re starting to have some success,” he says.

NewCap’s David Murray says the success of his radio stations won’t be fully realized until BBM Canada releases new ratings on listenership in December. Until then, he’s hopeful The Giant and The Eagle will benefit both listeners in Cape Breton and NewCap’s coffers.

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