Tuesday marked a stunning day in the Vancouver media landscape, with the closure of two well-known radio stations, one of which has been serving residents for over 30 years.
And it wasn’t the video that killed the radio star; it was Rogers Sports & Media, claiming it was necessary for business. The “necessary” move leaves hundreds of people without jobs, and there aren’t many stations left to rescue them in Vancouver.
We learned yesterday that both Sportsnet 650 and News 1130 were shutting down, and the reactions poured in from listeners and residents online.
Even B.C. Premier David Eby chimed in.
“We all benefit from having local news outlets, and this is a blow for British Columbians. Journalism > Profits,” he shared in a post on X, adding, “B.C. is going to miss Sportsnet 650 and AM 1130. I’m thinking of all their staff, producers, and journalists today.”
Daily Hive received information from a Rogers Sports & Media spokesperson about the massive shakeup, which also impacts stations outside of B.C.
In total, 230 jobs were impacted across Rogers Sports & Media across the country, and 80 of those were associated with the radio closures.
“The media business continues to face headwinds driven by declining advertising revenue and changing audience habits. These changes are part of our plan to focus our investment in areas that will drive growth long-term,” a statement from Rogers said.
“After a thorough review of our radio stations, we have made the difficult but necessary decision to close six radio stations in four markets due to declining audience and revenue trends — we will continue to own and operate 44 radio stations in nearly 30 communities across the country and to invest in local news in the impacted markets,” it added.
Reaction loud as the station goes quiet for good
News 1130/YouTube
Many residents shared how important local journalism is to a healthy, functioning democracy. Some of the reactions came directly from former staff.
A sad day for broadcasting in #Vancouver as #News1130 and Sportsnet 650 have been shutdown. My heart goes out to all of my colleagues. We had a good run ! pic.twitter.com/lh5w9tkXzt
— Ryan Lidemark 📻 🎙️ (@RyanLmark) July 7, 2026
“Thanks for tuning in. Thanks for all the loving. Thanks for the appreciation,” said Alex Carrigan in a social media post. Carrigan is a popular traffic reporter who was working at News 1130, previously with Corus.
Daily Hive caught up with Carrigan for more of his thoughts in the wake of being let go.
“It’s devastating for a lot of people. For the traffic side, we picked up a lot of listeners and responsibility when AM 730 went down. And as much as we think about our colleagues, your heart goes out to the people who relied on the traffic updates as well,” he said.
“We reached people in their vehicles as they were moving from point A to point B, and I was always surprised at how expansive our reach and audience were.”
Carrigan told Daily Hive about the outpouring of messages and how much people will miss it. He said it led to the realization of what the work of these reporters meant.
“Of course, it hurts that it was a decision made from Toronto, just a short while after Rogers announced all of that with the purchase of MLSE. It’s such a shame that Vancouver news and sports suffer because of accounting in Toronto.”
“I’ll always be proud of what I do and the service I provide,” Carrigan said, adding that he doesn’t know if he’ll ever come back to radio, but “never say never.”
We also heard from Sidney Parker, a well-known voice in traffic reporting in Vancouver for several years.
“It’s come as such a shock, and I am really disappointed that I no longer get to work with this amazing group of people to provide the best live news coverage in Vancouver, including the underrepresented voices that we were able to uplift daily,” Parker said. She also spent time at Corus and was affected by the AM 730 layoffs as well.
“I worry about the future of radio in Vancouver as workforces are cut and more stations are taken off the air,” she said, adding that she’s proud to have been a part of a legendary staple for news in Vancouver.
Drex, who also worked under the Rogers banner in the past with JackFM, also chimed in on the air at his current station, the Edge. He offered condolences to his former colleagues.
“It is absolutely tough in this business,” he said. He added that the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) needs to figure out a way to let media companies do what they do.
A large part of the reaction to the Vancouver radio station closure was from listeners reflecting on how traffic reporting in Vancouver has essentially been gutted with the loss of 1130 and, prior to that, AM 730, a former Corus all-traffic radio station. CKNW has since taken over the AM 730 signal, abandoning the iconic AM 980 signal and brand.
I listened to 650 every single day and would pop over to 1130 for traffic and news. It was brutal losing 730 for traffic and now we no sports, no traffic, no news. This is pretty devastating
— Hockey Gal (@petey2debrusk) July 7, 2026
Bruce Claggett, a well-known name in the industry, also reacted.
My heart goes out to those who currently work at 1130 as well as those who made it great over the years.
— Bruce Claggett (@bruceonair) July 7, 2026
Daily Hive readers had a lot to say about the once iconic Vancouver radio station.
“This really is brutal to hear. News 1130 was a traffic/news staple for thousands of British Columbians. Meanwhile, Rogers making record profits,” one person commented on the original article.
Another listener claimed they witnessed the death of the station live as it happened.
“I listened to the radio for the first time in months this morning (I saw a massive house fire as I was driving and wanted to know if there was anything about it on the news), listened to 1130 AM for 15 minutes and then it went silent,” they said.
“Not every day that you happen to catch the sudden death of a radio station.”
Another Daily Hive reader said, “I’m very sad to hear they’ve shut down because of declining audience numbers and advertising revenue. Sadly, this is a trend we’re seeing all over the world.”
You can also check out our story on the reaction to the Sportsnet 650 closure.
For years, we’ve been watching the slow, painful death of radio at the hands of the corporations that own the medium, but this might be the most brutal kill yet.