Moses Znaimer
Encyclopedia
Moses Znaimer, M.A.
, O.Ont
(born 1942) is a co-founder and former head of Citytv
, the first independent television station in Toronto
, Canada
, and the current head of ZoomerMedia
.
and relocated to Kulyab
in the Soviet republic of Tajikistan
. Following the war his family landed in a German Displaced Persons camp, ultimately ending up in Montreal
in 1948. He graduated from McGill University
in Montreal with a B.A.
in philosophy and politics (and served as president of the McGill Debating Union
), and from Harvard University
with an M.A.
in government in the mid-1960s.
Znaimer's career in broadcasting began when he joined the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
(CBC) in the early 1960s. He became well-known for his work as host of CBC Radio's Cross Country Checkup
, as well as co-host of CBC Television's Take 30
with Adrienne Clarkson
. After being denied the opportunity to pursue his creative vision at the CBC, Znaimer quit and went into private broadcasting.
television licences in Toronto taken, Znaimer and a partnership applied for and was awarded the city's first UHF
broadcasting license, on channel 79. Citytv
launched in 1972, and changed frequency to channel 57 in 1983. With Citytv, he gradually began to pioneer a distinctive style of broadcasting, inspired in part by Marshall McLuhan
, which emphasized a strongly local, hip and casual format aimed at young audiences.
In 1981, Toronto-based media conglomerate CHUM Limited
purchased Citytv, and Znaimer became vice-president of CHUM and executive producer for all of City's programming. By 1984 Znaimer and John Martin
's vision of a 24-hour music video station was realized with the creation of MuchMusic
. Much like City, MuchMusic emphasized the liveness and spontaneity of television, relying largely on hand-held cameras, and impromptu shots of VJ's taken just about anywhere in the CHUM-City offices. MusiquePlus
, a joint venture based in Montreal and catering to the French speaking audiences of Canada, was launched in 1986. In 1987 CHUM-City purchased a former publishing building in Toronto's downtown west end and renovated it into the CHUM-City Building
, a landmark media centre.
Throughout the 1990s, Znaimer presided over a considerable expansion of the CHUM-City television empire. Bravo! was launched as a new style arts channel in 1995, and Space in 1997. He continued his original vision for television with the launching of Canada's first 24-hour local news station, CablePulse 24
in 1998. Further cable channels included Canadian Learning Television
, Star!, Drive-In Classics
, FashionTelevisionChannel
, BookTelevision
, CourtTV Canada
, SexTV: The Channel
, MuchLOUD
and MuchVibe
. Znaimer also oversaw the launch of Citytv Vancouver
.
Znaimer resigned from his managerial role at Citytv and CHUM Limited in April 2003, but stayed on in certain production roles. He co-founded and for a time served as chairman of Cannasat Therapeutics
, a publicly traded company pioneering a new class of drugs from marijuana; he continues as a shareholder and advisor to the company.
, he executive-produced a television comedy called Rumours
, based on a hit Quebec
television show. The series was cancelled mid-season.
In 2006, he filed an application with the CRTC to acquire CFMX
, a commercial classical music radio station licensed to Cobourg
with a rebroadcaster in Toronto. In 2008 he gained CRTC approval to relaunch the Toronto and Cobourg transmitters as separate stations. The newly licensed Toronto station would use the call sign CFMZ to reflect his initials. In September 2007, he announced a deal to acquire high-power AM station CHWO, a signal widely heard through the Great Lakes region of Canada and the northern United States, which on its acquisition he re-christened CFZM. It is a full-service pop standards station, also offering news and some public-service talk programming, primarily aimed at the Toronto and southern Ontario market region.
He also announced a subsequent deal to acquire web developer Fifty-Plus Net International, with the intention of launching a social networking website similar to MySpace
or Facebook
but aimed at older adults.
In 2008, Znaimer officially incorporated ZoomerMedia
to operate his new media holdings. In June 2009, the company announced a deal to acquire S-VOX
, which operates several channels of religiously
-oriented television programming, for $25 million.
.
An avid collector of vintage television sets, including the set David Sarnoff
presented at the 1939 World's Fair, his MZTV Television Museum moved to a new home on Queen St. East in 2007. He is in a long term relationship with actress Marilyn Lightstone. His sister is broadcast journalist Libby Znaimer, who has worked for Citytv, CablePulse 24 and Report on Business Television, and now serves as news director at CFMZ.
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
, O.Ont
Order of Ontario
The Order of Ontario is the most prestigious official honour in the Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier David Peterson, the civilian order is administered by the Governor-in-Council and is intended to...
(born 1942) is a co-founder and former head of Citytv
Citytv
Citytv is a Canadian English language television system owned and operated by Rogers Communications under its Rogers Broadcasting Ltd. division...
, the first independent television station in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and the current head of ZoomerMedia
ZoomerMedia
ZoomerMedia Limited is a group of Canadian media operations controlled by Moses Znaimer. According to Znaimer, these media outlets primarily target what he calls "zoomers" or "baby boomers with zip", defined as people in their 50s, 60s and 70s who want to remain socially and culturally engaged and...
.
Early life and career
Znaimer was born to Polish and Latvian Jewish parents who had fled the Nazi invasion of the Soviet UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and relocated to Kulyab
Kulob
Kulob , also Kulab or Kulyab , is a city in Kulob district, Khatlon Province, Tajikistan. Located 203 km south-east of the capital Dushanbe on the Yakhsu River , it is one of the largest cities in the country Kulob , also Kulab or Kulyab , is a city in Kulob district, Khatlon Province, Tajikistan....
in the Soviet republic of Tajikistan
Tajikistan
Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....
. Following the war his family landed in a German Displaced Persons camp, ultimately ending up in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
in 1948. He graduated from McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
in Montreal with a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in philosophy and politics (and served as president of the McGill Debating Union
Canadian University Society for Intercollegiate Debate
The Canadian University Society for Intercollegiate Debate is the national organization which governs all competitive university debating and public speaking in Canada. It sanctions several official annual tournaments and represents Canadian debating domestically and abroad...
), and from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
with an M.A.
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in government in the mid-1960s.
Znaimer's career in broadcasting began when he joined the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
(CBC) in the early 1960s. He became well-known for his work as host of CBC Radio's Cross Country Checkup
Cross Country Checkup
Cross Country Checkup is a Canada-wide open-line radio show that airs Sunday afternoons on CBC Radio One.Every week, host Rex Murphy presides over a lively discussion on an issue of national interest or importance and invites listeners to call in with their opinions and thoughts. The topics are...
, as well as co-host of CBC Television's Take 30
Take 30
Take 30 was a Canadian television newsmagazine series, which aired on CBC Television from 1962 to 1983...
with Adrienne Clarkson
Adrienne Clarkson
Adrienne Louise Clarkson is a Canadian journalist and stateswoman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 26th since Canadian Confederation....
. After being denied the opportunity to pursue his creative vision at the CBC, Znaimer quit and went into private broadcasting.
Citytv
With all of the VHFVery high frequency
Very high frequency is the radio frequency range from 30 MHz to 300 MHz. Frequencies immediately below VHF are denoted High frequency , and the next higher frequencies are known as Ultra high frequency...
television licences in Toronto taken, Znaimer and a partnership applied for and was awarded the city's first UHF
Ultra high frequency
Ultra-High Frequency designates the ITU Radio frequency range of electromagnetic waves between 300 MHz and 3 GHz , also known as the decimetre band or decimetre wave as the wavelengths range from one to ten decimetres...
broadcasting license, on channel 79. Citytv
CITY-TV
CITY-DT, Channel 57 , is a television station based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada owned and operated by Rogers Media...
launched in 1972, and changed frequency to channel 57 in 1983. With Citytv, he gradually began to pioneer a distinctive style of broadcasting, inspired in part by Marshall McLuhan
Marshall McLuhan
Herbert Marshall McLuhan, CC was a Canadian educator, philosopher, and scholar—a professor of English literature, a literary critic, a rhetorician, and a communication theorist...
, which emphasized a strongly local, hip and casual format aimed at young audiences.
In 1981, Toronto-based media conglomerate CHUM Limited
CHUM Limited
CHUM Limited was a media company based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada from 1945 to 2007. Immediately prior to its acquisition, it held full or joint control of two Canadian television systems — Citytv and A-Channel — comprising 11 local stations, and one CBC Television affiliate, one...
purchased Citytv, and Znaimer became vice-president of CHUM and executive producer for all of City's programming. By 1984 Znaimer and John Martin
John Martin (Canadian broadcaster)
John Martin was a Canadian broadcaster, credited with "almost single-handedly" creating music television in Canada.-Early life and career:...
's vision of a 24-hour music video station was realized with the creation of MuchMusic
MuchMusic
MuchMusic is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Bell Media. MuchMusic is dedicated to music-related programs, pop and youth culture.-History:...
. Much like City, MuchMusic emphasized the liveness and spontaneity of television, relying largely on hand-held cameras, and impromptu shots of VJ's taken just about anywhere in the CHUM-City offices. MusiquePlus
MusiquePlus
MusiquePlus is a Canadian French language Category A specialty channel owned by Astral Media operating from Montreal, Quebec.MusiquePlus is devoted to music and music related programming from various genres including pop, rock, RnB and focuses on a younger demographic than its sister station, MusiMax...
, a joint venture based in Montreal and catering to the French speaking audiences of Canada, was launched in 1986. In 1987 CHUM-City purchased a former publishing building in Toronto's downtown west end and renovated it into the CHUM-City Building
CHUM-City Building
299 Queen Street West, also known as Bell Media Queen Street, is an office and studio complex located at the intersection of Queen Street West and John Street in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Currently the corporate head office of Bell Media the building previously served as the headquarters...
, a landmark media centre.
Throughout the 1990s, Znaimer presided over a considerable expansion of the CHUM-City television empire. Bravo! was launched as a new style arts channel in 1995, and Space in 1997. He continued his original vision for television with the launching of Canada's first 24-hour local news station, CablePulse 24
CablePulse 24
CablePulse24 ' is a Canadian English language Category A specialty news channel owned and operated by Bell Media. Based in Toronto, it focuses on local news from the Greater Toronto Area and Southern Ontario, although it also covers national and international news...
in 1998. Further cable channels included Canadian Learning Television
Canadian Learning Television
Oprah Winfrey Network is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Corus Entertainment. OWN is a specialty television service targeted to women, offering a blend of lifestyle, information, and entertainment programming....
, Star!, Drive-In Classics
Drive-In Classics
Sundance Channel is a Canadian English language Category B specialty channel owned by Corus Entertainment. Sundance Channel airs programming focused on independent films, documentaries, music-series', dramas and more.-As Drive-In Classics:...
, FashionTelevisionChannel
FashionTelevisionChannel
FashionTelevisionChannel is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Bell Media. The channel broadcasts programming related to fashion, modelling, photography, art, architecture and design...
, BookTelevision
BookTelevision
BookTelevision is a Canadian, English-language, Category A specialty channel that broadcasts programming relating to books, literature, and various media...
, CourtTV Canada
CourtTV Canada
Investigation Discovery is a Canadian English language Category B specialty channel. Investigation Discovery primarily features programming related to crime and justice....
, SexTV: The Channel
SexTV: The Channel
W Movies is a Canadian English language Category B specialty channel which focuses on films and film-related series aimed at women. It is a spinoff channel of W Network and is owned by Corus Entertainment.-As SexTV: The Channel:...
, MuchLOUD
MuchLOUD
MuchLOUD is a Canadian English language Category B specialty channel owned by Bell Media. The channel broadcasts rock, modern rock, alternative, punk, and heavy metal music programming primarily in the form of music videos with other programming including concerts, interviews, and more...
and MuchVibe
MuchVibe
MuchVibe is a Canadian English language Category B specialty channel owned by Bell Media. The channel broadcasts urban music programming such as rap, hip hop, r&b, and reggae. Programming is primarily in the form of music videos with other programming including concerts, interviews, and more...
. Znaimer also oversaw the launch of Citytv Vancouver
CKVU-TV
CKVU-DT is a television station based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Owned by Rogers Media , it was the second station to become part of the Citytv system in Canada.-History:CKVU's history dates back to 1975, when Western Approaches Ltd...
.
Znaimer resigned from his managerial role at Citytv and CHUM Limited in April 2003, but stayed on in certain production roles. He co-founded and for a time served as chairman of Cannasat Therapeutics
Cannasat Therapeutics
Cynapsus Therapeutics Inc. is a specialty clinical development pharmaceutical company targeting diseases of the brain. Based in Toronto, Canada. Formerly named Cannasat Therapeutics they changed their name to Cynapsus Therapeutics in 2010. -Company Overview:...
, a publicly traded company pioneering a new class of drugs from marijuana; he continues as a shareholder and advisor to the company.
ZoomerMedia
In May 2005, Znaimer re-emerged from a few years of virtual exile to head up a series of media ventures. For CBC TelevisionCBC Television
CBC Television is a Canadian television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster.Although the CBC is supported by public funding, the television network supplements this funding with commercial advertising revenue, in contrast to CBC Radio which are...
, he executive-produced a television comedy called Rumours
Rumours (TV series)
Rumours was a Canadian television sitcom, that aired on CBC Television. The show starred David Haydn-Jones and Amy Price-Francis as Ben Devlin and Sarah Barnaby, co-editors of a women's magazine in Toronto. The cast also included Sadie Leblanc, Jennifer Dale, Stephanie Mills and Lucinda Davis.Based...
, based on a hit Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
television show. The series was cancelled mid-season.
In 2006, he filed an application with the CRTC to acquire CFMX
CFMX-FM
CFMZ-FM is a Canadian radio station, that broadcasts classical music at 96.3 FM in Toronto. The station is branded as Classical 96.CFMZ first aired in 1988 as a rebroadcaster of Cobourg's CFMX, with the call sign CFMX-FM-1. The station was originally licensed to Mississauga, the transmitter...
, a commercial classical music radio station licensed to Cobourg
Cobourg, Ontario
Cobourg is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in Southern Ontario 95 km east of Toronto. It is the largest town in Northumberland County. Its nearest neighbour is Port Hope, to the west. It is located along Highway 401 and the former Highway 2...
with a rebroadcaster in Toronto. In 2008 he gained CRTC approval to relaunch the Toronto and Cobourg transmitters as separate stations. The newly licensed Toronto station would use the call sign CFMZ to reflect his initials. In September 2007, he announced a deal to acquire high-power AM station CHWO, a signal widely heard through the Great Lakes region of Canada and the northern United States, which on its acquisition he re-christened CFZM. It is a full-service pop standards station, also offering news and some public-service talk programming, primarily aimed at the Toronto and southern Ontario market region.
He also announced a subsequent deal to acquire web developer Fifty-Plus Net International, with the intention of launching a social networking website similar to MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
or Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
but aimed at older adults.
In 2008, Znaimer officially incorporated ZoomerMedia
ZoomerMedia
ZoomerMedia Limited is a group of Canadian media operations controlled by Moses Znaimer. According to Znaimer, these media outlets primarily target what he calls "zoomers" or "baby boomers with zip", defined as people in their 50s, 60s and 70s who want to remain socially and culturally engaged and...
to operate his new media holdings. In June 2009, the company announced a deal to acquire S-VOX
S-VOX
S-VOX Foundation is a Canadian non-profit media organization dedicated to producing content on faith and spirituality.The organization is the successor to the non-profit entity that operated VisionTV, and later other related Canadian specialty channels, from 1988 to 2010...
, which operates several channels of religiously
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
-oriented television programming, for $25 million.
Personal life
In 2006, he was made a member of the Order of OntarioOrder of Ontario
The Order of Ontario is the most prestigious official honour in the Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier David Peterson, the civilian order is administered by the Governor-in-Council and is intended to...
.
An avid collector of vintage television sets, including the set David Sarnoff
David Sarnoff
David Sarnoff was an American businessman and pioneer of American commercial radio and television. He founded the National Broadcasting Company and throughout most of his career he led the Radio Corporation of America in various capacities from shortly after its founding in 1919 until his...
presented at the 1939 World's Fair, his MZTV Television Museum moved to a new home on Queen St. East in 2007. He is in a long term relationship with actress Marilyn Lightstone. His sister is broadcast journalist Libby Znaimer, who has worked for Citytv, CablePulse 24 and Report on Business Television, and now serves as news director at CFMZ.