People talked, specifically the younger ones: immediately pushing up CFRB’s rating points by 1.9. Passionate callers ranged from the amused to the outraged. The resulting fervent hot debates examined the motivation behind the campaign and truly drove home its effectiveness. Some people didn’t even wait to get on air; airing their opinion right on our signs.

The press also weighed in, interviewing the man on the street, experts on prostitution and homelessness and CFRB spokespeople – keeping the debates alive. Results: over $100,000 worth of free additional media and exposure to nearly four million people in the Greater Toronto Area.Most importantly, the result was a talk radio station that had been perceived as outdated and irrelevant becoming the talk of the town.

So ignorance wasn’t an option, we needed media that was so “in your face”, that it had to stop people in their tracks, force them to talk, draw crowds, drive word of mouth, and force everyone from the man on the street to mainstream media to bloggers and social network junkies to take note and participate in the debate. We wanted to inspire discussion that would take on a life afterwards.We went to the streets, where the issues were and turned them into the media. Prostitutes questioned the legalization of prostitution, while beggars pondered the idea of panhandling, chalk body outlines appeared on streets questioning crime rates and smokers found themselves being called out for puffing away their healthcare benefits. CFRB was everywhere.

Toronto is a big city with big issues. Polite Torontonians prefer to ignore the city’s underbelly, rather than talk about it, let alone voice their opinions in a public forum like CFRB 1010 Talk Radio. Passion about the city’s problems was dwindling, and with it, participation in public discourse.

CFRB 1010 is talk radio, a medium many consider outdated: old people talking about old news. In an increasingly fast-paced and evolving world, the public was inclined to get their news elsewhere. We needed the opportunity to demonstrate that this talk radio station isn’t what they think. We needed to get people tuned into the issues so they would tune into CFRB.While we wanted to resonate with current listeners, we also needed to raise awareness amidst potential listeners – and talkers. The more passion we could incite, the more involved people would get, essentially becoming advocates for CFRB.