Star Choice has decided to drop yet another channel in its lineup in addition to CBC Saskatchewan — it has now dropped RDI, the CBC French news channel, in all Anglophone markets.

The CBC launched another formal complaint with the CRTC this week. RDI is on a very small list of channels that all providers are required to carry with their basic package, and the CBC argues that Star Choice is now in violation of its broadcast licence.

Earlier this week, five local news channels, including CBC Saskatchewan, were replaced by specialty channels like MuchMusic and Teletoon Retro by Star Choice.

Perhaps they got rid of RDI because they needed room for the Golf Channel?

Their loss, our gain…

The Bureau of Broadcast Measurement’s spring ratings are out - and ratings are up for the Montreal newscast by 28%; 22% of those are new viewers.

This article speculates that some of those viewers may have jumped ship with Frank Cavallaro, an award-winning Weather Specialist who just joined the CBC earlier this year when the CTV news team did not renew his contract. Cavallero was voted the World’s Top Weather Presenter at the International Weather Festival held in Paris in 2002, and has been forecasting since the late 1980’s.

Incidentally, if you’ve always wanted to be a weather forecaster on the CBC and live in Calgary, that very job just got posted on the CBC jobs site this morning.

Yes, the rumours are true. Ian Hanomansing is an android with super-human anti-aging properties. How else do you explain this clip of him anchoring the Sunday Report nearly 20 years ago, in which he looks and sound nearly identical to today?!

CBC News Sunday co-host Evan Solomon has written a piece in the National Post about his favourite Toronto neighbourhood haunts.

The Irrelevant Show is set to debut on CBC Radio One on June 26. This Edmonton-based show will showcase local talent and offer listeners Pythonesque sketch comedy that shows that Alberta is about more than oil sands and cowboys.

The show has commissioned 120 sketches, which calls for a lot of funny from Edmonton’s hottest comics and sketch comedy writers. It will air Thursdays at 7:30pm.

The CRTC has approved CBC/Radio-Canada’s application operate nested FM transmitters in Windsor. The CRTC received several favourable interventions regarding the application, and that it rejected oppositions filed by Neeti Ray and CTVgm. The CBC has two years to get the transmitters in order. (Hat tip to Gary.)

Long-time CBC Television reporter David Roegele died late last week.

Born in 1923 in Saskatoon, he served in the Navy aboard a minesweeper before beginning his varied careers in truck driving, sales and his favorite, broadcasting for both radio and television.

His media career began in 1948 when he joined CKOK Radio and CHBC-TV, Penticton. In 1950, while continuing his work with CKOK and CHBC, Dave took on additional responsibilities as a Stringer for the Vancouver Sun and at the same time was Sports Editor and Columnist for the Penticton Herald newspaper.

He held several jobs with TV stations throughout B.C. and Washington state until he joined CBC Vancouver staff as a teporter in the TV Newsroom in 1966. He became a Journalistic Editor there in 1975 and continued in that role until his retirement in January, 1984.

From the NW Broadcasters’ obit article:

Dave was a member in good standing of the TV Newsroom Old Guard and like all of them, delighted in telling stories of the good old days in their cramped but happy quarters at 1200 West Georgia…. His family remembers that Dave was never at a loss for words, or without a joke to share.

Dave is survived by his wife of 64 years, Beverly, and several children. Memorial Services will be held Friday, May 16, 2008, 10:00 a.m. at Victory Memorial Park Funeral Centre, 14831 28th Ave. Surrey, BC. In lieu of flowers, Memorial contributions in Dave’s name may be made to your favorite charity.

Is this even legal?

CBC reporters have been denied access to any embargoed media events held by the Alberta Legislature until after next year’s budget is handed down. So says government p.r. director Roxanna Benoit

Benoit says a CBC reporter “breached the trust” of the legislature’s budget lock-up system by talking about embargoed budget info before Finance Minister Iris Evans began her legislature speech.

In a letter to CBC regional director Don Orchard, Benoit wrote that “All CBC personnel are immediately denied access to embargoed media relations events by the Alberta government.

Coverage of former cabinet minister Ernie Fage’s fender-bender and the drug crime scene in Cape Breton have netted CBC Nova Scotia journalists three Atlantic Journalism Awards. [details]

The CBC will dramatically increase resources devoted to covering local and national news in Alberta generally and Calgary and Edmonton in particular.

Saying it’s moving to fulfill a commitment to local newsgathering announced nationally last year, CBC News will be doubling the number of newsgathering resources in Alberta by adding approximately 25 new assignments for television journalists based in Calgary and Edmonton to focus on local and national stories originating in Alberta.

At the same time, however, the CBC said it would move to Toronto the two hours of programming for CBC Newsworld, which are currently being produced in Calgary.

Actually, no, the CBC didn’t actually say it would “move” the programming from Calgary. The news release actually said it would “reconfigure to Toronto.” Wha?! “Reconfiguring” is the new corp-speak for “move?”

I guess it’s the same as executives not being able to ever say a show was “cancelled,” when, in fact, it was. The closest they seem to come up with is “Moved off the schedule.”

Really, who the hell is writing this stuff?!

CBC Radio Two listeners opposed to the changes to the network, specifically the reduction of classical music, are planning to march on the CBC Vancouver building Tuesday morning.

On Friday morning, a similar group is planning to protest at Maison Radio-Canada, the CBC Montreal building.

“The CBC has been taken over by a group of people dedicated to removing nearly all Classical Music,” the Vancouver group’s description reads. “They feel it is old fashioned and irrelevant to the ‘new demographic’ that they wish to attract. We feel this is misguided at best, suicidal at worst.”

Another group has been started to launch an email campaign campaign.

UPDATE: It is reported that the Music School at UBC is asking faculty to cancel classes and go with their students to the demonstration.