Pressing the pause button on the blog
With all the changes going on inside the CBC this fall, it only makes sense that some changes occur at Inside the CBC.com as well! 
When we launched blog a few years ago, the CBC was just putting its toe delicately into the blog world with a few shows publishing their own (at the time, unofficial) sites to engage more directly with its audience. Since then, the CBC has a channel on YouTube, dozens of fan pages and groups on Facebook, thousands of hours of free podcasts, blog commenting on CBCnews.ca articles, programs for sale in iTunes, blogs for many of our TV and radio shows, and more. Suffice to say, we have kind of dived in lately!
Actually, when this blog started, it was envisioned as a blog for employees to share news about our colleagues, staff changes, and happenings around the various centres. We just figured we’d leave the door open so you could see some of our own chatter.
Well, 1,532 articles and 8,841 comments later, it’s time to evolve again. Within the next week or two, I’ll be transitioning out of the blog editor’s chair to recover from a couple of major health setbacks and to work a bit on some outside projects. But I’m looking forward being back at CBC Radio helping produce the shows you love.
And that brings us to suggestions from you…
What should the future of Inside the CBC entain? What sort of content would you like to see? Should it be hosted interally only for staff to communicate with each other, or remain publicly accessful? Should there be a network of contributors with one editor? Or written by a single author? If you’re a CBC employee, what parts of this blog experiment have you found valuable? Or do you get your news from other sources?
We’d welcome your thoughts here or email kevin.payan@cbc.ca
And thanks for letting me share a part of your screen time the last couple of years.
Tod Maffin
CBC Vancouver
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It should entain a Spell Checker, then it would be more accessful!
Numero Uno, Todd – take care of yourself. No arguments now – go away & don’t think about us til it’s time to return.
Tod, I’m going to miss you. With all the changes going on, the world feels like it’s rocking a bit under our feet. Here’s hoping things settle in a way we will be comfortable with. Take care of yourself.
Tod – First of all, best wishes for a quick recovery.
For my part, I hope this blog will continue, in roughly its present form, and that it will stay open to the outside world. I’ve read it since launch, and I like the insider’s view of CBC.
The employee-specific posts, I pass over. But this blog has been a great source for deeper explanations of CBC decisions – the re-launch of Radio 2, for instance – and I’ve enjoyed the videos you produced showing Master Control and other parts of the CBC plant in Toronto and Vancouver.
I don’t think this blog has to have one voice; it could have multiple writers and an editor. But I think it should continue. It’s a valuable service – one that nicely serves internal and external needs.
Hey Tod, It is sad to see you go and I hope you’ll regain your health soon.
Inside CBC should definitely remain publicly accessible. I think the site should have one responsible and independent editor and possibly additional contributors in special cases depending on the topics.
It is important that this blog is not authored by someone from CBC communications and it doesn’t become a cute way to issue press releases.
Thanks for keep up a nice blog Tod.
Kempton
Take care, Tod! My best wishes to you and yours.
Tod – go outside, take a deep breath and enjoy looking at the sky instead of the screen for a change – get yourself healthy. we’ll still be here whenever you do decide to come back, and in whatever form this blog and your return take.
first and foremost be well.
It’s always nice to hear from you, so I look forward to seeing you again .. in whatever incarnation tickles your fancy
I agree with Todd Mundt. As a non-CBC employee it has been fun to lurk.
Hold on now! There have been too many wholesale changes lately. Let’s go slow.
I found this blog from Tod’s ‘strike-blog’ and felt that I had a bit of a secret. The casual comments and sometimes slightly rough delivery made it feel that I had a conduit to the people behind what I heard on the radio (The CBC for me is on the radio… uh… Radio 1…. oh heck …). Even when there were official announcements Tod was willing to question things. Made me wonder if management knew what was happening here. Don’t let this become the official voice of CBC – let well enough alone. If it takes more than one to do it, you know better than I the time involved, but I was always willing to wait for Tod to return from whatever/ wherever. It was part of the insider mystique. Even the employee only stuff is interesting (‘They have to put up with Groupwise too, eh?) and if Under the Hood went over my head that was okay too.
Thanks Tod for the work. There’s a bunch of people unemployed over at Old Radio 2 that might do well here.
K
Wishing you a speedy recovery Tod. Make sure to take all the time you need to get better.
As for the blog I have enjoyed reading it. As one other poster mentioned I enjoy the extra information provided about the CBC and its programs and decisions. I hope it stays pretty much the way it is. Take care!
[...] CBC blogger Tod Maffin is putting his Inside the CBC blog on ice. [...]
My wife and I are both listeners (but not so much now)
since the changes to programming have begun.
We did wonder what was happening and over the
past few weeks found out.
We live in Barrie and the CBC is our only solace during
the day for news, talk programmes and classical, especially. After 10pm programming which was
Eleanor Whatel and now uninteresting talk.
The radio here in Barrie is all noise and babel, uninteresting to our soft ears.
Dear Tod,
I’m sorry to hear you’ve been having health troubles! Please get well soon!
Thanks for all your work on the blog. It’s been a good forum.
I have some suggestions, but will have to post them later, just wanted to wish you well!
Warmest regards,
Jasmin
Tod’s approach to this blog set the tone. I hope his successors stick with that approach. The honesty here has been its best strength.
I think it still needs to be at arms length from the CBC to have any value to the public – Inside the CBC but outside direct editorial control otherwise it might as well be internal.
Is Tod going on stress leave?
Sorry to hear of your health problems. You look far too young on your web site to be hitting that, yet. Get well soon. I appreciated your technology pieces on R1.
As an outsider, I found this to be a rare place where I could post a comment or make a rhetorical bet about the CBC and sometimes get a reply back from somebody who works there. Ditto on keeping CBC communications or Audience Relations out of this.
I especially appreciated the obituaries. For example, I grew up listening to Jim Kearney and was touched by the piece on him. The names of many of the people who have passed are familiar to me from past progam credits.
The only improvement I can see would be to have more coverage of other regions outside of BC. But, it might be tricky to do that and still maintain a personal feel to the site.
Regards,
Peter Brandon
Edmonton
Thanks everyone. And Raul, it’s not stress leave. Consider me on sabbatical until at least the Spring. It’ll be neat to see how this blog evolves or what CBC chooses to do with it.
Hi,
still adapting to the changes,it will take time.I would like to ask why CBC-2 is not part of the XM radio service and only available on Sirius? Thanks,tony
p.s Tod,take care of yourself!
I’ve really enjoyed this blog – as a CBC Fanboi / CBC geek, I’ve found the insider bits to be very interesting, and it’s nice to actually have a source of information ABOUT the CBC itself, instead of just the plain old Corporate webpage and earning reports or whatnot. I’d love to see the blog continue in a similar vein – behind the scenes, CBC news and discussion. I’d be very sad if it went internal only, as I’ve not, despite trying, managed to score a job at the place I enjoy so much.
Best wishes! So long, and thanks for all the fish.
Tod, all the best for your return to health.
As a CBC radio listener, I read this blog for an inside take on some of the personalities, machinations and changes. I think this blog provided a nice little window into the Corp and its people. That’s a good thing for outsiders – and stakeholders – to see.
Yes, the CBC does have many pages and group on Facebook.
I wonder why the Facebook group for the New Radio 2 has under 200 members, but the one called “Save Classical Music at the CBC” has 16,300.
I like this blog. It’s great how people can voice their opinions on it, when there’s so many other places that they can’t.
Not surprised this is shutting down. All the negative comments regarding the new programming…not good for newcomers to see.
Sorry thats my cyncial corporations be damned viewpoint.
Randall,
The reason I am stepping away from the blog is to get better.
No conspiracy. No side deals. In fact, my decision came somewhat as a surprise to the CBC.
To say that I am taking the blog down because I want to somehow stifle conversation is untrue and personally offensive.
I talked the CBC into launching this blog here to collect feedback in the first place. I have personally approved more than 8,000 (!) comments on this blog — many of which were quite critical about the CBC’s direction or decisions.
To say that I’m now “shutting down” the blog because, in fact, I DON’T want to see opinions expressed is mind-boggling.
Tod
Tod, best of luck in your new endeavours and in getting a break from comment approval.
I am wondering however if the blog post on Jian taking over the the SLC slot not having the ability to leave comments is due to your leaving? or a glitch? I just heard about it and wanted to drop a comment.
Sorry to hear the news and hope someone at the CBC presses the play button real soon.
Im very sorry to have to add my voice to those who publically share their dismay and distress about the recent changes to CBC programming. As a life long listener, I was saddened to tears to see my favorite hosts and shows go – but fully prepared to give the new 2 a chance – change can be positive.
First off , let me say that I am in the age demographic that is evidently being targeted and I listen to and enjoy many other genres than classical, including indie and contemporary rock. So I start with no classical- or- bust predjudice. I do however, have a quality -or bust predjudice.
I did my best , but after two weeks, I cant stomach it any more. Im sorry to say, the new 2 is dumber, flatter, and an infinintely poorer substitution for the intelligence, the insight, the breadth, the richness, the QUALITY of CBC past. The baby has gone out with the bathwater.
CBC of yore, Jurgen, Erik, et al, you were more than radio to me, Not only did you keep me company, you taught me, delighted me, challenged me, inspired me. In my travels, I always was home when I found you. Your quality was a solace in a sea of blandness.
The intelligence, of those voices, the richness of that programming was part of how I defined my country. I will miss you.
Do take care, Tod. Come back when it’s right or if it’s right or move on to something else.
Take care Tod! You were a real visionary (one having unusual foresight and imagination dixit Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary). Now it’s time to rest, and you deserve it!
I’ve been very happy with the way it has been recently – an insider’s view, but not a CBC publicity organ. Which means it can be in-depth and critical at the same time, which is what we need.
Why isn’t this on the regular blog and only on this /pause special?