Radio Canada International

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Infobox radio tower icon
Radio Canada International
Station logo
Radio station ( public service )
reception analog terrestrial , cable , satellite & web radio
Reception area worldwide
business February 25, 1945 to June 24, 2012 (back in operation)
Broadcaster Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)
List of radio stations
Website

Radio Canada International (RCI) is the international service of CBC / Radio-Canada . He produces an online offer in English, French, Spanish, Arabic and Chinese at the CBC Funkhaus Montréal, which also contains podcasts . The linear radio broadcasts from RCI have been eliminated in 2012 and were later resumed with low power.

History and decline

CBC broadcasting company Montréal, RCI headquarters since 1972

In 1945, CBC began its CBC International Service , initially broadcasting in English, French and German. Between 1946 and 1952 it was expanded to include a number of other foreign languages, some of which were dropped in 1955. In 1970 the service was given the current name Radio Canada International . Two decades of further expansion followed.

A deficit in the Canadian budget in 1989 brought this development to an abrupt end. After initially considering a complete closure of RCI, the international service could only be maintained as a rump offer. On March 25, 1991, the broadcasts in German, Czech, Hungarian, Polish and Portuguese as well as the in-house productions in English and French ended. In 1996, the closure of RCI could only just be averted.

In 2006 there was a drastic change in the range of programs and target groups. With the Internet service RCI Viva and the RCI + channel broadcast via the Sirius satellite radio , RCI sought to address immigrants in Canada itself. At short notice, RCI + also replaced the shortwave offer in English and French that had been widespread in North America . RCI did not provide any explanation of the reasons for this step.

In 2004, RCI restricted its shortwave broadcasting in Europe. In 2008 it was completely omitted for the English and French programs. The RCI + program was discontinued in 2011 after just five years.

At the end of all RCI radio broadcasts, combined with the layoff of two-thirds of the workforce, the Canadian government finally decided to cut the CBC's budget by 10 percent over the period from 2012 to 2015. The CBC decided to spend only 2.3 million Canadian dollars on RCI instead of 12.3 million. RCI thus accounted for a disproportionately large share of the savings measures. RCI's radio broadcasts ended on June 24, 2012, with the last issues being produced on the previous Friday, June 22, 2012.

In the meantime, programs in English and French are being broadcast on shortwave again, this is done via the Kall-Krekel transmitter with an output of 1 kW on the frequencies 6005 kHz and 3985 kHz.

Former transmitter system

The shortwave transmitter RCI was located outside the small town of Sackville in the province of New Brunswick . At the start of the CBC international service, it initially went into operation with two transmitters (carrier power 50 kW each). A significant expansion took place after 1970 with five transmitters with 250 kW each. From 1985 further transmitters with more modern technology followed, initially with 100, from 1993 then again with 250 kW output. Most recently, a fully automated operation was run in Sackville, exclusively with the transmitters installed since 1993.

The Sackville transmission system was supplemented by cooperations through which RCI was able to use the transmission systems of the respective partners. The first such cooperation began in 1966 with the BBC , followed by a cooperation with Deutsche Welle from 1972. The BBC also took over the German broadcast from RCI on its FM frequency in Berlin and thus contributed to its greater popularity.

After the termination of RCI, the CBC still fulfilled the existing broadcasting contracts with its partners and other external customers until October 2012, but had already started dismantling the facilities. The broadcast of a special domestic program for Labrador on 9625 kHz was initially maintained until the new VHF transmitters intended to replace them were operational. When this frequency was switched off on November 30, 2012, broadcasting in Sackville finally ended. The antenna masts were demolished in 2014.

The Sackville transmitter and its demolition are the subject of an experimental documentary film that was shot on 35 mm film and thus, as the author notes, documents a dying medium with a dying medium.

  • Technical building of the Sackville broadcasting station, state 2009

  • Curtain antenna of the Sackville transmitter, state 2009

Individual references / web links

  1. ↑ a b RCI: About us: History. Retrieved July 18, 2015 .
  2. ↑ CBC TV: Radio Canada International cuts language services and staff members in a round of restructuring. (Video) March 22, 1991, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  3. ^ RCI: RCI gets last-minute reprieve. (Audio) March 21, 1996, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  4. ↑ Glenn Hauser: DX Listening Digest 6-175. November 28, 2006, accessed on July 18, 2015 : “Has RCI dumped its usual morning programming and just plugged the RCI + feed into one Sackville transmitter rather than three, on a new announced frequency, without bothering to tell anyone what it is doing? [...] As a consequence of all this, we are witnessing RCI attempting to find a new raison d'être. For now, it appears to be centering on new immigrants, actual and potential. (John Figliozzi) [...] It would be nice to hear from someone in the know at RCI what is going on there! (Sandy Finlayson) Deafening silence (gh) "
  5. ↑ Glenn Hauser: DX Listening Digest 8-106. September 25, 2008, accessed on July 18, 2015 : “Yes, we will be dropping English and French on shortwave to Europe at the end of the A08 season. [...] Bill Westenhaver, Audience Relations / Relations avec l'auditoire, Radio Canada International "
  6. ^ Glenn Hauser: DX Listening Digest 11-12. March 23, 2011, accessed July 18, 2015 : "At the end of Radio Canada International's" The Link "broadcast at 1702 UT today, it was announced that as of April 1, Sirius would no longer be carrying RCI programs (Dean Bonanno ) - Which also leads to the end of the inconsequential SW relays of same at +: 05 off-times past the hour, but constituting what has been left of the RCI USA service (gh, DXLD) "
  7. ↑ Wojtek Gwiazda: RCI jobs eliminated, immigration mandate set aside. May 24, 2011, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  8. ↑ CBC News: CBC budget cut by $ 115M over 3 years. March 29, 2012, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  9. ^ Wojtek Gwiazda: RCI budget slashed 80%, shortwave and newsrooms cut. April 4, 2012, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  10. ^ RCI: Radio Canada International to fall silent. April 5, 2012, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  11. ^ A tearful farewell to Radio Canada International listeners. (Video) Radio Canada International journalist Marc Montgomery broke down in tears during his farewell speech to listeners as RCI ended its 67-year history of shortwave broadcasts yesterday. June 22, 2012, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  12. ^ Wojtek Gwiazda: Last day for many at Radio Canada International, and Russian service. June 22, 2012, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  13. ^ Wojtek Gwiazda: Day 002 at the new (non-radio) Radio Canada International. June 27, 2012, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  14. ^ Shortwave radio broadcast country: Canada. Retrieved July 18, 2015 .
  15. ↑ Jim Hawkins: Photos of the Sackville transmitter from 1996. Retrieved July 18, 2015 .
  16. ↑ Anthony C Davies: Photos of the Sackville transmitter from 2008. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on March 14, 2016 ; Retrieved July 18, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mds975.co.uk
  17. ↑ Unpublished material by media journalist Jörg Wagner.
  18. ↑ Thomas Witherspoon: RCI Sackville to continue relays and their North Quebec service until Oct 31st. June 28, 2012, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  19. ^ Wojtek Gwiazda: Stop CBC from dismantling our transmitters to the world. October 16, 2012, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  20. ↑ Glenn Hauser: DX Listening Digest 12-49. December 6, 2012, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  21. ^ CTV Atlantic: Sackville, NB residents to lose landmark radio transmission towers. February 27, 2014, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  22. ↑ CBC News: RCI towers near Sackville coming down. March 10, 2014, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  23. ↑ Amanda Dawn Christie: RCI towers fall. (Video) 2014, accessed July 18, 2015 .
  24. ^ Wojtek Gwiazda: Experimental film shows life and death of RCI antenna site. RCI, February 26, 2015, accessed July 18, 2015 .