CBC Radio Nerdz VII

Well I was great tonight.

Matt Galloway isn't bad - he's not as chatty as Andy Barrie, and tends to let the people he interviews talk more, which I prefer.  My quibble with him is he likes sports (Andy didn't), and has lots of interviews with sports folks, which is something you get more than enough of on the commercial stations, IMO.

Today is Barbara Budd's last day on the job. 
Former host Mary Lou Finlay doesn't sound that happy about it:
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/life/dance+portion+over/2959103/story.html
And did anyone notice a leaked internal poll from the national radio reporters who said they were entirely dissatisfied with the direction of CBC news and their place in the structure?
The Ceeb has been taking hits from all sides, and inside, over its current direction.
And now to the good side: summer is nearing, and that hopefully means Ghomeshi will be taking an extended vacation. What an utter waste of air time for a public broadcaster.

Well, he would certainly save the CBC from Conservative charges of behaving dangerously outside the box of rigidly suppressed thought.

Robert Fisher will never be found guilty of wandering from the news script. But, then, perhaps I should not have listened to Barbara's last program and her final "thank you."  And I was perhaps influenced by Gable's cartoon in the Globe (I think it was the same day) of a Harper "knight" figure, lance raised, thundering down on a CBC target. 

And I just can't figure your fondness for Fisher :)

I thought Enright's guest at the end was fascinating.  In her discussion about the movies made by M-G-M, she mentioned two good pictures that the company produced following its heyday, Blackboard Jungle and Cabin in the Sky.

Maybe it's that Sheilagh has a different time slot...not 3 p.m. Sunday ..and whatever other day for Writers and Company? And books are good any old time.

I don't normally like the drama programs that run at 11:30 am on Thursdays, but I've thoroughly enjoyed all eight episodes of Backbencher, written by former NDP MP Wendy Lill. That's probably mostly because I'm a political geek.

But, I'll start reaching for my off button again next week, when the gawdawful jingoistic explosionfest known as Aghanada (sample dialogue: "Get Down!") returns to the air.

And Obama does not have the answer for stopping oil leaks at a depth of 1 mile?  Whatever is the presidency coming to?  Just heard CBC radio reporting that BP now holds out no hope for stopping it before the second hole is complete...in August. 

It's kinda late, but a Saturday Globe story head says the industry "will be operating in a far more regulated and costly environment when exploratory drilling begins again."

Why wasn't the U.S. government more involved in the past?  Well, Halliburton Co. was working on the BP well that blew, if  Bush/Cheney can be substituted for Bonnie and Clyde.  And by golly, Halliburton stock value fell 8 per cent on Friday. And, you know, there is a connection between market valuation and the obscenities that occur south of the 49th...and everywhere else.  Oh, I know, a living, breathing human being like the president is easier to identify as "the enemy".  But that, really, only diverts our attention from where we should be focused, that very, very complex system of investments on which we ALL depend for our inter-connected living.

To paraphrase Kennedy, ask not what your country can do for you...  Obviously, people have never stopped asking just that, and have never begun questioning the source of all that largesse. Blindness prevails. 

As Raj Patel says in his The Value of Nothing":

"But here's the darker part of the story. The people under those governments, you and me, are also part of the market society. There is no position from which, untainted by the world around it, some everlasting truth can guide us to a brighter future...There can be 'community failure' just as there is market failure, in which minorities risk persecution or worse. The recent rise of far-right parties around the world - from India to Europe to the United States - can also be understood as the second part of a double movement. In the United States, Louis R.Andrews, chair of the National Policy Institute - an advocay group for white people - hoped to see 'the Republican Party destroyed, so it can be reborn as a party representing the interests of white people, and not entrenched corporate elites. Which, says Andrews, is why he voted for Obama."

Radio has that timeless quality.  It's not affected by style and trends as much as tv or writing.

Too bad the current CBC radio is not up to former standards. 

Basically I listen to The Current, As It Happens, occasionally Sunday Edition, and the various newscasts.  The cultural programming is grim.  Age of Persuasion is starting to bug me with its monotony.  I get it already - it's about advertising.  Who knew an advertising consultant would suggest such a thing! 

Spark is pointless.  DNTO is so bad that it really needs to be knocked on the head to stop the misery.

I loathe Q 90% of the time.  I don't think the fault is with Ghomeshi.  He's decent.  The content of the show is disgustingly pop culture.  Hey, let's toss up whatever band just released an album (which Ghomeshi instantly says is "very strong"), or whatever writer is touring through Toronto, or whatever American cultural story can be found.... and promote this stuff on Canadian public radio without an ounce of analysis or discussion.

And of all the things the CBC could concentrate its coverage on currently.... we get blanket world cup nonsense??

Ah, thanks for reminding me about that show, GV.  I heard a promo interview with Suzuki about it, then promptly forgot it was a summer show.

Radio is doing a poor job of advertising the summer shows.  There is, apparently, a show about divorce, another about the immigrant experience, Suzuki, and another round of Revision Quest.

Sub-Nerdz thread topic.

As It Happens will be replacing a host soon.  By late fall, at latest, I would suspect a permanent replacement for Barbara Budd - and that's from a commentary Fisher read in the early days following Budd's departure.

So far I have to say Chris Howden, the main writer for the show apparently and an occasional fill-in, is the best.  Fisher was too stiff and wasn't suited to the spot. 

One of the criticism about Budd, from what I read, was based on her non-journalist background (and degree).  I assume her role will be filled by a "journalist".  Awesome.  And if the show sucks because of that there can be only the management to blame. 

I don't know Howden's background, but AIH plays some awesome quips from him.  And he delivers them well.  It's almost like he's giving a big Fuck You to the Ceeb management.  He's been writing some pretty cutting comments, for a flagship CBC show. 

This link might help explain.  I note that the writer dumps on Peter Armstrong as a new reader.  I agree.  But he's co-hosting AIH right now with Howden and he's good in this role.  Or, better, I should say.   

http://wayoutinthemargin.blogspot.com/2010/04/media-cbc-fired-barbara-bu...

Who have you liked so far, GV?

Didn't catch that one, but I recall her position as largely liberal...if hardnosed.

A CBC interview that stands out from that time, and which I heard, was Peter Gzowski with Noam Chomsky.  Gzoski was totally unfair after being shown the contradictions in his Liberal positions.   He apologized the next day ...for unfairness, without admitting the failure of his political position.  

Who've I "liked" in the new batch, Fp?  Afraid I'm just an Enright/Suzuki fan on Sunday mornings so far, and they aren't so new, eh!  I'm always looking for less "balance", more ba..s.    Your nominees in that category?

GV, sorry, I meant who have you liked as co-host since Budd was kicked to the curb.  Howden gets my vote, but he's also the show's main writer and the radio cost-conscious Ceeb (vs the disgusting waste of TV and the net) seems to want to squeeze one of radio's best shows with its penny pinching stupidity. 

I think Peter Armstrong is a poor news reader.  But he was good filling in for Off this week on AIH.  He's married to Pia Chattapatti (sp err likely), who was filling in on The Current.  She needs to get off radio, I think.  I hate how the new CBC is shoehorning these TV clowns onto radio and expects good results.   

I need to listen to the Suzuki show. 

While driving chickens to the processor last night I happened to catch a half hour show called, This and That.  I had no idea this show existed.  And, I gather, it's supposed to be comedy.  Consisting of made up news and interviews, and hosted by squeeky voiced dudes, I was not impressed.

Yeah, I hear you.  I was listening the night she announced she was leaving the show.  I was not pleased, because clearly there was something going on behind the scenes.  Still, the show must go on... and hosts do need to be refreshed from time to time. 

The show, This and That, originates in Vancouver.  So you were close, GV.

I heard a promo for another summer show, by Khalil Aktar, on food.  Can't remember the title now, but Aktar puts together some decent food related stuff from his office.  I resent the fact that CBC radio has all these food experts and authors and so forth on, without any passable reporting on agriculture business\lifestyle\politics, but Aktar's show will likely be good listening.  There's all sorts of wierd niche farming going on in the western provinces and I hope he checks into some of that.

As It Happens is put together very well, and I don't miss the slower paced Carol Off...have yet to decide on the politics.

Quote:

I heard a promo for another summer show, by Khalil Aktar, on food.  Can't remember the title now, but Aktar puts together some decent food related stuff from his office.

I heard this show the other day.  The guy was talking about cilantro while I was washing a bunch of cilantro! He said cilantro is an ethnic food that one likes only if one has grown up eating it. I have to disagree with him on that, as I had never encountered cilantro until about 8-9 years ago. I didn't care for it much at first, but now I really like it. My backyard is full of volunteer cilantro at the moment.

I was makjing cilantro chutney while listening to that programme. I put a jalapeño pepper, some cumin, lime juice, a tomato and a bunch of cilantro into the chopper and let 'er go. It's as good as the store-bought stuff, yet doesn't have the weird chemicals and dyes that come with commercial chutneys.

I hope some others have been able to listen in to Michael Enright's old interview with Oscar Brand this a.m. (on right now)   Just heard Jonni Mitchell  singing under her first moniker, Joan Anderson.

David Suzuki's The Bottom Line to follow at 11 a.m.

AND the late Saul Bellow is heard from an old interview on Writers and Company at   3 p.m.    today.

@ thorin_bane

There's that.... and if they are going to do a puff piece on festivals why do they wait until the summer is half over, when most of the big ones (out west, anyway) are over already. After all, they do a book thing every year before the start of summer, and unlike festivals, books don't have an expiry date.

' "Introducing" classical music to kids'

http://www.cbc.ca/radio2/programs/2010/08/introclassical.html#more

'People sometimes talk about "introducing" classical music to children, as though it was medicine. Wrong, all wrong. Why not just play great music (of all kinds) for kids? That seems to work well. (Speaking from personal experience.)

'Although it's true that if you are a composer you have an added advantage. You can write music you think will particularly charm and entrance children. For instance Claude Debussy wrote music for his daughter, Claude-Emma, nicknamed Chou-Chou. (Not much is cuter than that.)

'Today Tempo's featuring the "Children's Corner" suite, the music big Claude wrote for little Claude. It's where the wonderful Golliwogg's Cakewalk comes from. ("Golliwogg" being perhaps second only to "Chou-Chou" in terms of words that are fun to say.) ...'

Agreed...I enjoy classical, thanks bugs bunny and my grandfather. It wasn't till I was in my 20s that is was important to me, but at least I turned the corner. Still dislike modern jazz(sounds like a piano falling down a staircase), though big band is good.

@george I have noticed that our federal cons have used this tactic a lot. A lot of times they are unavailable for comment or decline etc. On p&p evan will then "to be fair" ask questions or defend the governments position. I say tough luck. If you can't be bothered to at least put forward a statement or to debate at all. Then the opposition should get free reign period. No need to be fair if they can't even be bothered to respond. Its not like a one edition a week paper from a small town we are talking about(which you could still leave a comment) its the national broadcaster. Just another stonewalling tactic on information from our accountable and tranparent conservatives.

GV's wishes become reality:

http://www.cbc.ca/arts/media/story/2010/08/06/richard-stursberg.html

Stursberg (partner of Carol McNeil) is gonzo. The man who reportedly called news and current affairs programming "the black hole" has left Fort Dork. I can only imagine what he thought of CBC radio, with no chance at ad dollars or American programming (outside of the continually absurd Q).

Unfortunately, he's being replaced in the short term by Kirstine Stewart, who's main claim to fame, from what I understand, is The Strombo Show.