Rogers Sports & Media has announced the closure of six radio stations in four Canadian cities, resulting in the elimination of 230 jobs. Stations in Vancouver, Calgary, Halifax, and Kitchener are affected by the cutbacks.
The shuttered stations will directly impact 80 employees, while an additional 150 jobs in corporate functions such as sales, marketing, and a few positions in TV and radio will be affected. The decision to close these stations was described as difficult but necessary after a comprehensive review of the company’s radio stations nationwide.
In Vancouver, the closure includes Sportsnet 650 and News 1130, while in Alberta, 660 NewsRadio Calgary and Sportsnet 960 are affected. Listeners in Vancouver were greeted with a recorded message on News 1130 and re-runs on Sportsnet 650.
NewsRadio Halifax and NewsRadio Kitchener will also cease operations. Alexander Carrigan, a traffic reporter for News 1130, expressed surprise upon learning about the closure while driving to work and hearing the announcement on air. B.C. Premier David Eby lamented the closures, highlighting the importance of local news outlets.
Jeffrey Dvorkin, former director of the journalism program at the University of Toronto, noted that the media landscape is shifting towards enhancing shareholder satisfaction. Rogers cited declining audience and revenue as reasons for the closures, with low listenership reported for sports radio stations in Vancouver and Calgary.
April Lindgren, co-director of the Local News Research Project, emphasized the impact of these cuts on local news availability, describing it as “news poverty.” The trend of diminishing news outlets in Canada has raised concerns about its implications for democracy and public information.
Rogers announced that radio production of Canucks games in Vancouver will be transitioned to another owned station, while production of Calgary Flames games for radio will not proceed. Despite the closures, Sportsnet 590 in Toronto and 44 other radio stations across Canada will continue to operate under Rogers.
These closures follow Rogers Communications’ acquisition of full ownership of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, the parent company of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto Raptors, for $4.35 billion.