Bermuda Broadcasting
Encyclopedia
The Bermuda Broadcasting Company is the largest broadcasting company in Bermuda
. Sometimes abbreviated locally as "BBC", it is not related to the BBC
in the United Kingdom
. A commercial, for-profit broadcasting company since its beginning in the 1950s, the chairman is Fernance B. Perry
.
The Bermuda Broadcasting Company owns radio stations and TV stations using the call letters "ZFB" and "ZBM". The ZBM callsign in particular is one of the oldest in Bermuda - this callsign has been used since 1953 for an AM radio station, since 1962 for an FM radio station, and was also used, beginning in 1958, for the first Bermudian television station, which gave Bermudians their own TV station after years of watching a TV channel intended for American servicemen stationed at Kindley Field
. ZFB was originally the callsign for the radio and TV stations of the Capital Broadcasting Company from 1965 to 1984. The BBC also maintained a website,http://www.bermudabroadcasting.com , but it is no longer online.
In 2008, in the wake of labour unrest and amidst a staff shake-up at the broadcasting company, Fernance Perry told the Royal Gazette
that the firm's future outlook is "bright". The following year, a strike by 40 unionised employees in April, 2009, halted all programming at the company's radio and television stations for four days. Perry said that changes in work rules and staff pay were needed "to help a financially ailing company". The work stoppage was settled and normal operations resumed on April 21, after government mediation.
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
. Sometimes abbreviated locally as "BBC", it is not related to the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. A commercial, for-profit broadcasting company since its beginning in the 1950s, the chairman is Fernance B. Perry
Fernance B. Perry
Fernance Bento Perry, MBE, born in 1922, is a Portuguese-Bermudian entrepreneur and business leader, who has had a prominent role in the economy of Bermuda since the mid-20th century. Originally from the Azores, his professional career has spanned such diverse fields as retail supermarkets,...
.
The Bermuda Broadcasting Company owns radio stations and TV stations using the call letters "ZFB" and "ZBM". The ZBM callsign in particular is one of the oldest in Bermuda - this callsign has been used since 1953 for an AM radio station, since 1962 for an FM radio station, and was also used, beginning in 1958, for the first Bermudian television station, which gave Bermudians their own TV station after years of watching a TV channel intended for American servicemen stationed at Kindley Field
Kindley Air Force Base
Kindley Air Force Base was a United States Air Force base in Bermuda from 1948–1970, having been operated from 1943 to 1948 by the United States Army Air Force as Kindley Field.-World War II:...
. ZFB was originally the callsign for the radio and TV stations of the Capital Broadcasting Company from 1965 to 1984. The BBC also maintained a website,
In 2008, in the wake of labour unrest and amidst a staff shake-up at the broadcasting company, Fernance Perry told the Royal Gazette
The Royal Gazette
The Royal Gazette, founded in 1828, is the only daily newspaper in the island nation of Bermuda. It is published Mondays through Saturdays; there is no Sunday edition....
that the firm's future outlook is "bright". The following year, a strike by 40 unionised employees in April, 2009, halted all programming at the company's radio and television stations for four days. Perry said that changes in work rules and staff pay were needed "to help a financially ailing company". The work stoppage was settled and normal operations resumed on April 21, after government mediation.
Radio
- Bermuda Spirit , formerly ZFB-AM, on 1230 kHz (transmitter powerNominal powerNominal power is a measurement of a mediumwave radio station's output used in the United States. AM broadcasters are licensed by the Federal Communications Commission to operate at a specific nominal power, which may be different from the transmitter power output.* For non-directional stations,...
: 1 kW), local, religious, adult contemporary mix - ZFB-FM (as "Power95 Stereo FM") on 94.9 MHz (ERPEffective radiated powerIn radio telecommunications, effective radiated power or equivalent radiated power is a standardized theoretical measurement of radio frequency energy using the SI unit watts, and is determined by subtracting system losses and adding system gains...
: 1 kW) since 1971, adult contemporary format - ZBM-AM on 1340 kHz (transmitter power: 1 kW) beginning in 1953, mostly news/talk format, with some music programming
- ZBM-FM (as "FM89") on 89.1 MHz (ERP: 15 kW) since 1962, predominantly adult contemporary format.
Television
- ZFB-TVZFB-TVZFB-TV is a television station serving Hamilton and the British territory of Bermuda. It is owned by Bermuda Broadcasting Company and is an affiliate of United States television network ABC and the British global television network BBC World News...
, VHFVery high frequencyVery 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...
ch. 7, is the affiliate station for ABCAmerican Broadcasting CompanyThe American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
; however, when ZFB used to be part of the Capital Broadcasting Company (no relation to the owners of WRAL-TVWRAL-TVWRAL-TV, virtual channel 5 , is a television station in Raleigh, North Carolina. WRAL-TV has been the flagship station of Capitol Broadcasting Company since its inception, and is currently the CBS affiliate for the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill/Fayetteville area, known collectively as the Triangle...
in Raleigh, North CarolinaRaleigh, North CarolinaRaleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
), the TV station broadcast on ch 8. - ZBM-TVZBM-TVZBM-TV is a television station serving Hamilton and the British territory of Bermuda. It is owned by Bermuda Broadcasting Company and is an affiliate of United States television network CBS...
VHF ch 9, is the affiliate station for CBSCBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
; however, when ZBM originally began broadcasting in 1958, it used to be on ch. 10. Both channels are carried on Bermuda cable television.