Merging the resources of Radio and TV is not a new concept in Montreal

It’s strange how things seem to come full-circle sometimes. It hasn’t taken long for effects of Bell’s acquisition of Astral Media to become evident to radio listeners. Aside from the unfortunate recent job cuts, the one thing most listeners will notice is the convergence of the resources of what had been outlets that were independent of each other.

What this essentially means is that you will now hear people from TSN 690 on CJAD and vice-versa, as well as having CTV Montreal people appear on the airwaves of the local Bell-owned radio stations. In essence, they are supposedly now one big happy family. It's therefore easy to figure out that the sharing of resources will lead to the redundancy of some jobs.

It is ironic that CTV Montreal is now once again intimately connected with radio entities. As the 80s drew to a close, CFCF Inc. was still a local media giant. And for the longest time, housed in that now forgotten impressive complex on Ogilvy Avenue was both CFCF TV, CFCF 600 AM and eventually CFQR 92.5 FM. Through the 1980s, it was commonplace to hear CFCF TV people appear on the radio, especially on 600. Pulse sport anchors like Dick Irvin and Ron Reusch would frequently deliver sportscasts on the radio.

As the 1990s arrived, CFCF wanted out of the radio business and sold both CFCF Radio and CFQR. As part of the deal CFCF 600 was forced to change its call letters to avoid any confusion. It became CIQC, which it remained until becoming CINW nearly a decade later. Ironically, CIQC for a time, would broadcast the audio of Pulse News at 6 PM. CFRA in Ottawa, also owned by Bell, now broadcasts the CTV Ottawa (CJOH) 6 PM newscast on their airwaves. Can we expect a similar simulcast to start up in Montreal any time soon? We’re hearing more and more audio feeds of TV shows on CJAD, so maybe that prospect isn’t so inconceivable.