June 14, 2017
Winnipeg, Manitoba –First Peoples Radio Inc. (FPR), a non-profit corporation established by Aboriginal Peoples Television Network Inc. (APTN), has been granted licences to operate English and Indigenous-language Type B Native FM radio stations to serve the urban Indigenous communities in Ottawa and Toronto. The decision granted earlier today, Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2017-198, comes with some disappointment to FPR who had applied for the five licences in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Toronto and Ottawa, with the goal to create a national radio network. The CRTC was faced with strong applications in all markets, so this final decision could not have been arrived at easily.
“Although the organization will not operate in three of the five markets, we are happy to accept this decision as an initial step toward building a national presence in radio for Urban Aboriginal Peoples. We expect to launch the Toronto and Ottawa stations within the next 8-10 months. Within that time, we will focus on training and provide opportunities to new creative talent,” says Jean La Rose, APTN Chief Executive Officer.
FPR will hold true to its original inspiration –to fill the gap for Urban Aboriginal Peoples who feel that existing stations don’t reflect their presence in the community. Furthermore, Aboriginal voices and creative talent are marginalized in popular culture and non-Aboriginal media in Canada. The intent is to offer programming that reflects the broader range of experience and concerns of Aboriginal Peoples in these communities –and that highlights the growing pool of exceptional Aboriginal musical talent, which now receives little to no airplay. FPR looks forward to launching the new radio stations in these markets and will also endeavour to work with the other successful applicants to see how we can collectively serve our communities together.
For further information contact:
Lisa Squire
Director of Marketing, APTN
(204) 947-9331, ext. 491
[email protected]