In January the Ontario Government announced the Student Choice Initiative, a change in the post-secondary school system that allows students to opt-out of any ancillary fees deemed non-essential. The Student Choice Initiative goes into effect this September, leaving many organizations scrambling to find alternative sources of revenue.
Despite a petition signed by thousands across Ontario to deem campus radio an essential fee, the Provincial Government has to this point responded by denying this ask, which could mean up to 70% of CJAM 99.1 FM’s annual budget will not come through this fall. “If we had more time to prepare for these losses I believe we would be able to keep all of our staff members, but at this point we have eliminated our Music Director position and are holding an emergency fundraising drive to maintain our basic operations. We have to keep costs down as much as possible until we can generate enough revenue on our own to make up for the losses we anticipate,” says Station Manager Brady Holek.
CJAM will be holding an emergency fundraising drive from May 31st to June 7th. CJAM FM will also be unveiling a new advertising and sponsorship package for businesses looking to advertise. “We have the lowest rates in town and all advertising money is going directly to keeping us on the air.”
“We are trying to avoid a full shutdown, or becoming a shell station with one part-time staff, few volunteers, and a much smaller voice in the community. I do not want to see that happen here and CJAM is going to do all it can to survive so we can continue to provide students and the public opportunities to gain experience and skills that lead to job opportunities in broadcasting, journalism, and the music industry.”
CJAM FM recently celebrated 35 years on the FM dial in November 2018. People can donate to the “Save CJAM” campaign now by visiting their fundraising page at www.grouprev.com/CJAMemergency or by calling into the station during the on-air portion of their funding drive May 31st – June 7th. Businesses looking to advertise on CJAM FM or learn more about sponsorship can do so by contacting Station Manager Brady Holek at 519-253-3000 ex. 2525, statcjam@gmail.com or go to www.cjam.ca/advertise.
Check out some articles about the situation below:
Every time you tune in at 99.1 FM you’re hearing a volunteer on the air. Volunteers also help by maintaining our enormous music library, writing radio scrips, producing public service announcements, interviewing cool artists, reviewing music, helping out at festivals & events, updating our social media, and so much more!
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