New Inuktitut radio program broadcasts live in Ottawa

An hour before going live, producer Ipeelie Ootoova was on a video call with Uvagut TV staff, reviewing timing cues for Kitchisipimi Pivalliajut, a new live Inuktitut-language news program broadcasting from CKCU-FM’s studio at Carleton University.

A 20-second transmission delay between Ottawa and Uvagut TV’s network requires careful co-ordination of every segment, Ootoova said. 

Just before 10 a.m., Ootoova began the countdown.

“Five seconds to radio,” he said.

Host Franco Buscemi adjusted his microphone and launched into Tuesday’s community news and events in Inuktitut. 

Kitchisipimi Pivalliajut airs every Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.

It’s a collaboration between community radio station CKCU-FM and Inuk broadcaster Uvagut TV, with production support provided by Ootoova’s media company, O2va Studios.

The six-week pilot series premiered May 19, delivering Inuktitut-language news, interviews, cultural programming and music to live on Uvagut TV or in Ottawa at 93.1 FM.

“Kitchissippi is the Anishinaabe name for the Ottawa River,” Buscemi said of the show’s title, which includes an Inuktitut play on the word.

“And pivalliajut is the news [in Inuktitut],” he said. 

The show grew out of Uqallagvik, a weekly Inuktitut-language program on CKCU-FM co-hosted by Buscemi. 

Earlier this year, Uvagut TV approached the station about expanding Inuit-language media coverage in the capital. 

“It’s an opportunity for people watching up north to have a connection to Ottawa by being able to share their stories back home,” Buscemi said.

“It also shows the strength of Inuktitut in Ottawa, as even though we’re in the city, it’s still a very prominent language spoken.”

Buscemi, who is Inuk from Iqaluit and now lives in Ottawa, hosts the weekly broadcast while continuing his work as Inuit community liaison officer at Carleton University’s Centre for Indigenous Support and Community Engagement.

“Another reason I agreed to do this is because I feel like I’m making a place for Inuktitut programming,” said Buscemi, who hopes Inuit students will be able to host guest episodes in the future. 

Recent episodes have featured an interview with Nunavik singer-songwriter Beatrice Deer and information on youth initiatives, including Broad Reach Canada’s Ship2Shores program.

“The main focus of this is getting the public informed about what’s happening in the city,” Ootoova said. “Not many people can go out in Ottawa, especially if you have to bus to different places or don’t have transportation.”

Whether it’s an upcoming Indigenous art market at the National Arts Centre or even a monster truck show, Buscemi said the program is designed to reflect the interests of the people it serves.

“We’re just curating those interests,” he said.

The pilot project concludes June 23.