Host Paul Arcand, who will officially leave the airwaves of 98.5 FM in a few months, will join the team of The Press as a collaborator in the coming months. After more than 30 years on morning radio, the main person does not hide the fact that he wanted to push himself out of his “comfort zone”.
“I never really dabbled in print media. I’ve done TV, cinema, radio, but not that. It is a complex exercise, which takes time. This is perhaps the case that stresses me the most, because I am not in my comfort zone at all,” explains Mr. Arcand, who announced the news to his listeners on Thursday morning, in an interview.
He will sign a weekly text which will allow him to write on current topics that interest him. Paul Arcand will also continue every morning of the week on the platforms of The Press and from Cogeco his traditional commented press review, which he currently presents at 5:30 a.m. on 98.5 FM. The host also wants to develop audio content in podcast format.
When he was approached to write in The Press, the experienced man admits to having been “a little surprised”. “Quickly, however, I told myself that I wanted to try that, that it was an interesting challenge. I already read this newspaper a lot, which makes an important contribution to the debate,” he says. And for the rest, “I’m going to listen to the advice I’m given and I’m going to reread it 46 times,” he laughs.
I don’t want to make it an editorial, I mainly want to tell stories in my own way and highlight certain situations, like I do on the radio. All that remains to be determined, but I know that I don’t want to stick to one style. It won’t just be a political column.
Paul Arcand
In the short term, Mr. Arcand will begin signing his first texts starting in the summer season, then will do so regularly, on a weekly basis, starting next September.
A strong voice
The vice-president of information and deputy editor of The Press, François Cardinal, said he was “very proud to welcome” Mr. Arcand to the team. “Paul is a strong voice of information in Quebec, a necessary voice, which will further diversify the opinions expressed in The Press », indicated Mr. Cardinal.
He assured that the new collaborator “will have carte blanche and will thus be able to express himself on all current issues”. “Endowed with clear judgment and a mind that is both brilliant and pragmatic, Paul Arcand will be able to reach Quebecers both through this new written column, and through his commented press reviews, which we will broadcast on our various platforms” , persisted the deputy editor.
The man nicknamed the king of the airwaves must officially retire from hosting 98.5 FM next June. As soon as the school year begins this fall, journalist and columnist Patrick Lagacé, who currently hosts the late afternoon show at 98.5 FM, will replace him permanently.
A few months before this important change, he says he feels “very good”. “I have no regrets. On the contrary, a mandate that lasts 34 years in the morning is a good mandate. I now wanted to do things that I never have time to do now, or that I always have to put off. »
“What is certain is that I will miss the direct contact with the listeners, the colleagues with whom I have developed chemistry. The closer we get to the date, the more it will be a good dose of emotion, but at the same time I do not regret my decision for a second,” concludes Mr. Arcand.