CKGM (AM)
Encyclopedia
CKGM branded on-air as TSN Radio 990 is an English language
Canadian
radio station
located in Westmount
, Quebec
but licensed in Montreal
. Formerly an affiliate of Team sports radio
network, it was one of three stations to retain the sports format after the network folded in 2002.
The station broadcasts on 990 kHz with a power of 50,000 watt
s as a class B station, using a directional antenna
which is slightly directional during the day and extremely directional at night to protect clear channel (class A) stations CBW
in Winnipeg, Manitoba
and CBY in Corner Brook
, Newfoundland and Labrador
.
The station has an all-sports
format
since May 2001 and was previosuly known as The Team 990 until it switched to the TSN Radio
branding as TSN Radio 990 in October 2011, but is best known for having been a legendary and influential top 40 station in its heyday from 1970 to 1986.
, The Tieman Show with Randy Tieman, The Montreal Forum, a hockey show with Tony Marinaro, and The Morning Show with Elliott Price
and Shaun Starr. These shows are mainly focused on Montreal Canadiens
analysis but also offer significant content about other North American professional sports. TSN Radio 990 airs in-depth coverage of the Montreal Canadiens, featuring pre and post-game coverage of every game and analysis on the team.
TSN Radio 990 is the official broadcasting partner of the Montreal Impact
(soccer) and carries exclusive coverage of the NFL, MLB, NASCAR
and some NHL playoffs. The station also carries some ESPN Radio
programming.
The station was also part of Canada's Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium
TSN Radio 990 also has rights for the golf's The British Open, The U.S. Open, EURO 2012 EURO 2016, 2011 NBA Playoffs, and Sunday Night Football as part of TSN's broadcasting rights for the events.
On June 22, 2011, Bell Media announced it had signed a deal with the Montreal Canadiens
to become the Canadiens official English language radio broadcaster for the next 7 seasons.
TSN Radio 990 also features live coverage of the following:
Shaun Starr
Tony Marinaro
Sean Campbell
Randy Tieman
Mitch Melnick
Rod Francis
Mitch Gallo
John Bartlett
Sergio Momesso
Bobby Dollas
Conor McKenna
Jessica Rusnak
Simon Tsalikis
Noel Butler
Moe Khan
Dave Simon
Kevin McKough
Nick Murdocco
Gary Whittaker
Amanda Stein
Sean Coleman
Matthew Ross
and opened on December 7, 1959. The station was then on 980 kHz with a power of 10,000 watt
s fulltime as a class B station, using a directional antenna
with different patterns day and night (the nighttime pattern being somewhat tighter). The 980 kHz frequency had been previously occupied by CKVL. While most of the station's programming was devoted to music (playing Top 40 hits), the station also had a number of open-line talk
shows.
An FM sister station, CKGM-FM (later known as CHOM-FM
starting in 1970) was opened on July 16, 1963. After a few weeks of simulcast
with CKGM, the FM station adopted a beautiful music
format
on September 1.
In 1963, a molotov cocktail
was thrown through a window, but was faulty and did not ignite inside the studios.
In 1965, CKGM hired open-line host Pat Burns
, famous for his controversial opinions, especially on language issues. Known in particular for featuring prominently on his show Francophone
s who were proud of being bilingual or of being assimilated
to the Anglophone community (again, depending on the point of view), Burns would remain on the air until early 1969, only being driven out of Montreal after a boycott campaign targeting the station's advertisers was launched. Burns was sufficiently controversial to be publicly denounced by Quebec Premier Daniel Johnson Sr., and the station received numerous bomb threat
s during the late 1960s. The station had already a history of bombing.
In 1968, CKGM moved from 1455 Drummond
in downtown Montreal
to 1310 Greene in Westmount.
CKGM became the Montreal Expos
' flagship
for their first season in Montreal in 1969. (Baseball would move to CFCF the following year.)
, also a full-time Top 40 station, in the Fall 1970 BBM
ratings. CKGM would quickly become one of North America
's legendary AM
Top 40 stations.
Legendary morningman Ralph Lockwood, formerly of CFOX, made his debut on CKGM on October 2, 1972. He would remain with the station until late 1981.
In 1975, CKGM introduced "La Connection Française", referring to a trio of bilingual personalities (Rob Christie, Marc Denis and Scott Carpentier) which used both English and French on the air and played songs of both languages. As CKGM remained an English-language station, this resulted in French-language stations complaining to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and even refusing to observe quotas of Francophone music. On-air bilingualism would remain a distinctive CKGM feature until stringent CRTC regulation forbidding it (and also enforcing quotas on the Francophone side) went into effect on January 1, 1980.
CKGM got a record-high number of listeners among English-language stations in Montreal according to the Fall 1976 BBM ratings that were released on December 13 of that year, thanks in part to the large numbers of Francophones who listened to the station (almost 40% of CKGM listeners were French-speaking).
. CKGM switched its format to Adult contemporary music
under the "Lite Rock, Less Talk" moniker a few months later, on January 15, 1986.
The station returned to a Top 40 format on February 10, 1989, changing its call sign
to CHTX in an attempt to distance itself as far as possible from its earlier days as a Top 40 station that even included adopting a new phone number. CHTX identified itself on-air as "980 Hits", and also infamously identified itself as "the station that plays the most music allowed by law" (in reference here to CRTC regulations that limited hit music on FM
stations). Anecdotal evidence suggests that at least some listeners wondered if there was in fact a legal limitation on the number of songs radio stations can play.
On September 14, 1990 at 5 PM, CHTX moved to the adjacent 990 kHz frequency, increasing its power to 50,000 watts fulltime from a new transmitter site located in Ville Mercier
, and converting itself to AM stereo
. The switch occurred one week later than initially scheduled, on orders from the federal Department of Communications, due to the "tense security situation" (the Oka Crisis
) in the neighbouring Indian reserve of Kahnawake.
Another format change occurred on May 24, 1991, with the new format being oldies
, although the station would also air Dr. Laura's open line show. The station changed its call sign to CKIS and identified itself as "Oldies 990".
The station returned to its original CKGM call sign on January 15, 1996, as the station moved to a talk radio
format known as "Talk Radio With Attitude" which included a low amount of locally-produced programming. For that reason, the station got abysmally low ratings, with less than 100,000 listeners. The CKIS calls moved to a Calgary
radio station formerly owned by Rawlco, and as of 2009
, are now used in a Toronto
radio station
.
When the 1998 Ice Storm took place, CKGM continued to rely on automation
, making few efforts to broadcast adapted emergency information. On January 9 of that year, competitor CJAD
lost its broadcast towers due to the accumulation of ice. After that station moved temporarily to 1410 kHz using the former facilities of CFMB
, CKGM leased its signal to CJAD on a temporary basis, starting on January 22, 1998. (Technically CKGM left the airwaves and was replaced on 990 kHz by CJAD.) CJAD returned to its assigned frequency of 800 kHz on May 29, 1998, and after two weeks of simulcast, CKGM returned on June 12, 1998 at noon. The station took the opportunity to re-launch itself as a largely automated oldies station, again using the "Oldies 990" as its moniker (but keeping the CKGM call sign).
to Standard Broadcasting
(which already owned two stations in Montreal) in exchange for CFWM-FM
in Winnipeg
(a market where CHUM already had two stations). This move allowed Standard to acquire Winnipeg
's CKMM-FM
(Hot 103) & CFQX-FM
(QX104.1).
However, a few months later, the CKGM portion of the deal was cancelled. The company immediately announced that CKGM would be added to the list of CHUM-owned AM stations switching to an all-sports
format on May 7, 2001, joining the new "The Team" network and identifying itself as "Team 990". CKGM became the radio flagship of the Montreal Expos
a few days later, marking a return of baseball on English-language airwaves. The station would broadcast the last Expos' games as a Montreal franchise in 2004.
Even in the very last days before the switch to the new format, the largely automated CKGM continued to air a promo criticizing "those talk stations" (in addition to always playing the same songs in the very same order).
While most Team stations returned to music programming (generally oldies) on August 27, 2002, CKGM was one of the few stations where the all-sports format survived, and locally-produced programming was increased.
The Team 990 is anchored by the 3pm-7pm drive show with Mitch Melnick. It's morning show features veteran broadcaster Elliot Price and Shaun Starr (Denis Casavant left in November 2011 to pursue his career at RDS television). Former NHLer PJ Stock hosted his own program daily 1-3pm. Stock, during 2010
-2011
was part of the morning show at CHOM.
Other popular programs include the Delmar Cargo Habs Post Game show, which comes on after each Montreal Canadiens game.
Currently, CKGM has the broadcasting rights to the Montreal Juniors of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, as well as NFL football (through Priszm Radio
) and Sunday night baseball. CKGM also broadcasts home games of the Montreal Impact of the United Soccer League.
In the summer of 2007, Matthew Ross, host of Game Points, set The Team 990 station record by hosting a 10.5-hour marathon program.
purchased CKGM and most of the other assets of CHUM Limited following approval by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, while the Citytv
stations were sold to Rogers Communications
.
.
On November 21, 2011, CKGM's relocation from 990 to 690 was approved by the CRTC; after the move is made, Evanov Communications will be assigned the 990 frequency for a francophone LGBT
-based radio station, which they originally applied for 690.
in Winnipeg) under the new TSN Radio
banner, thus becoming known as TSN Radio 990 effective October 5, 2011,
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
located in Westmount
Westmount, Quebec
Westmount is a city on the Island of Montreal, an enclave of the city of Montreal, in southwestern Quebec, Canada; pop. 20,494; area 4.02 km²; population density of 5,092.56 inhabitants/km²....
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
but licensed in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
. Formerly an affiliate of Team sports radio
Sports radio
Sports radio is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A popular format with an almost exclusively male demographic in most areas, sports radio is characterized by an often-boisterous on-air style and extensive debate and analysis by both hosts and...
network, it was one of three stations to retain the sports format after the network folded in 2002.
The station broadcasts on 990 kHz with a power of 50,000 watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s as a class B station, using a directional antenna
Directional antenna
A directional antenna or beam antenna is an antenna which radiates greater power in one or more directions allowing for increased performance on transmit and receive and reduced interference from unwanted sources....
which is slightly directional during the day and extremely directional at night to protect clear channel (class A) stations CBW
CBW (AM)
CBW is the callsign of the CBC Radio One station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The station broadcasts at AM 990, and this frequency functions as a Class A clear channel under former North American Radio Broadcasting Agreement allocations.-History:...
in Winnipeg, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
and CBY in Corner Brook
Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador
Corner Brook is a city located on the west coast of the island of Newfoundland in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada....
, Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
.
The station has an all-sports
Sports radio
Sports radio is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A popular format with an almost exclusively male demographic in most areas, sports radio is characterized by an often-boisterous on-air style and extensive debate and analysis by both hosts and...
format
Radio format
A radio format or programming format not to be confused with broadcast programming describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and constantly evolve...
since May 2001 and was previosuly known as The Team 990 until it switched to the TSN Radio
TSN Radio
TSN Radio is a semi-national sports radio network in Canada carried on AM radio stations owned by Bell Media's Bell Media Radio division. The TSN Radio brand, and much of the network's content, is partially shared with Bell Media's television sports channel, The Sports Network...
branding as TSN Radio 990 in October 2011, but is best known for having been a legendary and influential top 40 station in its heyday from 1970 to 1986.
Current programming
Local programming on the station includes Melnick in the Afternoon with Mitch MelnickMitch Melnick
Mitch Melnick is a radio sports broadcaster in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.A 30-year veteran of radio in Montreal, Melnick is a star of Montreal’s English all sports radio station, Team 990 and can be heard providing insight and analysis every weekday from 3pm-7pm as host of Melnick in the Afternoon;...
, The Tieman Show with Randy Tieman, The Montreal Forum, a hockey show with Tony Marinaro, and The Morning Show with Elliott Price
Elliott Price
Elliott Price is a Canadian sportscaster who currently hosts the morning show for CKGM radio in Montreal.A graduate of John Abbott College, Price started his radio career in 1982 at CJAD in Montreal. At CJAD, he did play-by-play for the Montreal Alouettes in 1986 and was the Montreal Expos pre- and...
and Shaun Starr. These shows are mainly focused on Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
analysis but also offer significant content about other North American professional sports. TSN Radio 990 airs in-depth coverage of the Montreal Canadiens, featuring pre and post-game coverage of every game and analysis on the team.
TSN Radio 990 is the official broadcasting partner of the Montreal Impact
Montreal Impact
Montreal Impact was a Canadian professional soccer club based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1992, the team played in the North American Soccer League , the second tier of the American Soccer Pyramid until the 2011 season. The owner Joey Saputo now operates the MLS team Montreal ImpactThe...
(soccer) and carries exclusive coverage of the NFL, MLB, NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
and some NHL playoffs. The station also carries some ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio is an American sports radio network. It was launched on January 1, 1992 under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN." ESPN Radio is located at ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut...
programming.
The station was also part of Canada's Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium
Canada's Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium
Established in 2007, Canada's Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium is a joint venture set up by Canadian media companies Bell Media and Rogers Media to produce the Canadian broadcasts of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games and the London 2012 Olympics Games...
TSN Radio 990 also has rights for the golf's The British Open, The U.S. Open, EURO 2012 EURO 2016, 2011 NBA Playoffs, and Sunday Night Football as part of TSN's broadcasting rights for the events.
On June 22, 2011, Bell Media announced it had signed a deal with the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
to become the Canadiens official English language radio broadcaster for the next 7 seasons.
Live sports
TSN Radio 990 is the flagship station for the following teams' radio broadcasts:- Montreal CanadiensMontreal CanadiensThe Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
(NHL) - Montreal ImpactMontreal ImpactMontreal Impact was a Canadian professional soccer club based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1992, the team played in the North American Soccer League , the second tier of the American Soccer Pyramid until the 2011 season. The owner Joey Saputo now operates the MLS team Montreal ImpactThe...
(USLUSL First DivisionThe United Soccer Leagues First Division was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico....
soccer)
TSN Radio 990 also features live coverage of the following:
- MLB BaseballMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
(select games, including some from the Toronto Blue JaysToronto Blue JaysThe Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....
and Washington NationalsWashington NationalsThe Washington Nationals are a professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals are a member of the Eastern Division of the National League of Major League Baseball . The team moved into the newly built Nationals Park in 2008, after playing their first three seasons in RFK Stadium...
) - NFL FootballNational Football LeagueThe National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
(select games) - IRL Racing (auto racing)
- NHL PlayoffsNational Hockey LeagueThe National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
hockey
The Team Members
Elliot PriceShaun Starr
Tony Marinaro
Sean Campbell
Randy Tieman
Mitch Melnick
Rod Francis
Mitch Gallo
John Bartlett
Sergio Momesso
Bobby Dollas
Conor McKenna
Jessica Rusnak
Simon Tsalikis
Noel Butler
Moe Khan
Dave Simon
Kevin McKough
Nick Murdocco
Gary Whittaker
Amanda Stein
Sean Coleman
Matthew Ross
Early days
CKGM was founded by Geoff StirlingGeoff Stirling
Geoffrey William Stirling is a Canadian businessman. Stirling, along with other members of his family, owns several media outlets in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador under the corporate brand Stirling Communications International...
and opened on December 7, 1959. The station was then on 980 kHz with a power of 10,000 watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s fulltime as a class B station, using a directional antenna
Directional antenna
A directional antenna or beam antenna is an antenna which radiates greater power in one or more directions allowing for increased performance on transmit and receive and reduced interference from unwanted sources....
with different patterns day and night (the nighttime pattern being somewhat tighter). The 980 kHz frequency had been previously occupied by CKVL. While most of the station's programming was devoted to music (playing Top 40 hits), the station also had a number of open-line talk
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
shows.
An FM sister station, CKGM-FM (later known as CHOM-FM
CHOM-FM
CHOM-FM is an English language radio station located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Owned and operated by Astral Media, it broadcasts on 97.7 MHz from the Mount Royal candelabra tower, with an effective radiated power of 41,200 watts using an omnidirectional antenna.The station has a mainstream rock...
starting in 1970) was opened on July 16, 1963. After a few weeks of simulcast
Simulcast
Simulcast, shorthand for "simultaneous broadcast", refers to programs or events broadcast across more than one medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at the same time. For example, Absolute Radio is simulcast on both AM and on satellite radio, and the BBC's Prom concerts are often...
with CKGM, the FM station adopted a beautiful music
Beautiful music
Beautiful music is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in American radio from the 1960s through the 1980s...
format
Radio format
A radio format or programming format not to be confused with broadcast programming describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and constantly evolve...
on September 1.
In 1963, a molotov cocktail
Molotov cocktail
The Molotov cocktail, also known as the petrol bomb, gasoline bomb, Molotov bomb, fire bottle, fire bomb, or simply Molotov, is a generic name used for a variety of improvised incendiary weapons...
was thrown through a window, but was faulty and did not ignite inside the studios.
In 1965, CKGM hired open-line host Pat Burns
Pat Burns (broadcaster)
Patrick "Pat" Burns was a radio talk show host and newspaper reporter. He was born in Montreal, Quebec, but began his radio career in England with the BBC as a sports reporter covering the world hockey championships in London in 1949...
, famous for his controversial opinions, especially on language issues. Known in particular for featuring prominently on his show Francophone
Francophone
The adjective francophone means French-speaking, typically as primary language, whether referring to individuals, groups, or places. Often, the word is used as a noun to describe a natively French-speaking person....
s who were proud of being bilingual or of being assimilated
Cultural assimilation
Cultural assimilation is a socio-political response to demographic multi-ethnicity that supports or promotes the assimilation of ethnic minorities into the dominant culture. The term assimilation is often used with regard to immigrants and various ethnic groups who have settled in a new land. New...
to the Anglophone community (again, depending on the point of view), Burns would remain on the air until early 1969, only being driven out of Montreal after a boycott campaign targeting the station's advertisers was launched. Burns was sufficiently controversial to be publicly denounced by Quebec Premier Daniel Johnson Sr., and the station received numerous bomb threat
Bomb threat
A bomb threat is generally defined as a threat, usually verbal or written, to detonate an explosive or incendiary device to cause property damage, death, or injuries, whether or not such a device actually exists...
s during the late 1960s. The station had already a history of bombing.
In 1968, CKGM moved from 1455 Drummond
Drummond Street, Montreal
Drummond Street is a north-south street located in downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Spanning a total of 1.2 kilometres, it links Doctor Penfield Avenue in the north and De la Gauchetière Street in the south. Drummond Street opened in 1842 and owes its name to Jane Drummond , wife of Montreal...
in downtown Montreal
Downtown Montreal
Downtown Montreal is the central business district of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is nearly enitirely located at the southern most slope of Mount Royal and is approximately bounded by Sherbrooke Street to the north, Papineau Avenue to the east, Guy Street or until Shaughnessy Village to the west,...
to 1310 Greene in Westmount.
CKGM became the Montreal Expos
Montreal Expos
The Montreal Expos were a Major League Baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec from 1969 through 2004, holding the first MLB franchise awarded outside the United States. After the 2004 season, MLB moved the Expos to Washington, D.C. and renamed them the Nationals.Named after the Expo 67 World's...
' flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
for their first season in Montreal in 1969. (Baseball would move to CFCF the following year.)
Top 40 era
On January 1, 1970, CKGM changed its format to become a full-time Top 40 station. Success was immediate, as CKGM managed to beat direct competitor CFOXCFOX (AM)
CKO/CFOX was an English language Canadian AM radio station located in Pointe-Claire, Quebec from 1960 to 1989. The station's callsign was CFOX from 1960 to 1977 and it later operated as CKO, the Montreal station of the news network of the same name, from 1977 until 1989.-History:With studios based...
, also a full-time Top 40 station, in the Fall 1970 BBM
Bureau of Broadcast Measurement
BBM Canada, also known as BBM, is an audience measurement organization for Canadian television and radio broadcasting.BBM was established on May 11, 1944 as a division of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters. The organization was originally known as the "Bureau of Broadcast Measurement", and...
ratings. CKGM would quickly become one of North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
's legendary AM
AM broadcasting
AM broadcasting is the process of radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation. AM was the first method of impressing sound on a radio signal and is still widely used today. Commercial and public AM broadcasting is carried out in the medium wave band world wide, and on long wave and short wave...
Top 40 stations.
Legendary morningman Ralph Lockwood, formerly of CFOX, made his debut on CKGM on October 2, 1972. He would remain with the station until late 1981.
In 1975, CKGM introduced "La Connection Française", referring to a trio of bilingual personalities (Rob Christie, Marc Denis and Scott Carpentier) which used both English and French on the air and played songs of both languages. As CKGM remained an English-language station, this resulted in French-language stations complaining to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and even refusing to observe quotas of Francophone music. On-air bilingualism would remain a distinctive CKGM feature until stringent CRTC regulation forbidding it (and also enforcing quotas on the Francophone side) went into effect on January 1, 1980.
CKGM got a record-high number of listeners among English-language stations in Montreal according to the Fall 1976 BBM ratings that were released on December 13 of that year, thanks in part to the large numbers of Francophones who listened to the station (almost 40% of CKGM listeners were French-speaking).
Sale to CHUM Limited
On August 20, 1985, CKGM and sister station CHOM-FM were sold to CHUM LimitedCHUM Limited
CHUM Limited was a media company based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada from 1945 to 2007. Immediately prior to its acquisition, it held full or joint control of two Canadian television systems — Citytv and A-Channel — comprising 11 local stations, and one CBC Television affiliate, one...
. CKGM switched its format to Adult contemporary music
Adult contemporary music
Adult contemporary music is a broad style of popular music that ranges from lush 1950s and 1960s vocal music to predominantly ballad-heavy music with varying degrees of rock influence, as well as a radio format that plays such music....
under the "Lite Rock, Less Talk" moniker a few months later, on January 15, 1986.
The station returned to a Top 40 format on February 10, 1989, changing its call sign
Call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign is a unique designation for a transmitting station. In North America they are used as names for broadcasting stations...
to CHTX in an attempt to distance itself as far as possible from its earlier days as a Top 40 station that even included adopting a new phone number. CHTX identified itself on-air as "980 Hits", and also infamously identified itself as "the station that plays the most music allowed by law" (in reference here to CRTC regulations that limited hit music on FM
FM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
stations). Anecdotal evidence suggests that at least some listeners wondered if there was in fact a legal limitation on the number of songs radio stations can play.
On September 14, 1990 at 5 PM, CHTX moved to the adjacent 990 kHz frequency, increasing its power to 50,000 watts fulltime from a new transmitter site located in Ville Mercier
Mercier, Quebec
Mercier is a town in southwestern Quebec, Canada in the Regional County Municipality Roussillon. It is located on the Châteauguay River, southwest of Montreal. The population as of the Canada 2006 Census was 10,121.-Population:Population trend...
, and converting itself to AM stereo
AM stereo
AM stereo is a term given to a series of mutually incompatible techniques for wireless radio broadcasting stereo audio in the AM band in a manner that is compatible with standard AM receivers...
. The switch occurred one week later than initially scheduled, on orders from the federal Department of Communications, due to the "tense security situation" (the Oka Crisis
Oka Crisis
The Oka Crisis was a land dispute between a group of Mohawk people and the town of Oka, Quebec, Canada which began on July 11, 1990 and lasted until September 26, 1990. At least one person died as a result...
) in the neighbouring Indian reserve of Kahnawake.
Another format change occurred on May 24, 1991, with the new format being oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
, although the station would also air Dr. Laura's open line show. The station changed its call sign to CKIS and identified itself as "Oldies 990".
The station returned to its original CKGM call sign on January 15, 1996, as the station moved to a talk radio
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
format known as "Talk Radio With Attitude" which included a low amount of locally-produced programming. For that reason, the station got abysmally low ratings, with less than 100,000 listeners. The CKIS calls moved to a Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
radio station formerly owned by Rawlco, and as of 2009
2009 in radio
The following events occurred in radio in 2009.- Events :* January 1: Kurdish TV starts broadcasting in Turkey.* January: Michael Smerconish, morning host at talk radio WPHT Philadelphia, begins syndication of his morning show to WHFS in Washington and WOR in New York City.* January 17: Two well...
, are now used in a Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
radio station
CKIS-FM
CJAQ-FM is a Canadian radio station, which broadcasts at 96.9 FM in Calgary, Alberta. The station uses the on-air brand name Jack FM. It is the second Jack FM station in Canada and the world, after its sister CKLG-FM in Vancouver.-History:...
.
When the 1998 Ice Storm took place, CKGM continued to rely on automation
Automation
Automation is the use of control systems and information technologies to reduce the need for human work in the production of goods and services. In the scope of industrialization, automation is a step beyond mechanization...
, making few efforts to broadcast adapted emergency information. On January 9 of that year, competitor CJAD
CJAD (AM)
CJAD is an English language radio station, owned by Astral Media, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The station has a news/talk format and identifies itself as CJAD 800....
lost its broadcast towers due to the accumulation of ice. After that station moved temporarily to 1410 kHz using the former facilities of CFMB
CFMB (AM)
CFMB is a multilingual Canadian radio station located in Montreal, Quebec.It broadcasts on 1280 kHz with a power of 50,000 watts fulltime as a class B station, using a directional antenna with different patterns day and night .The station has a multilingual format targeting ethnic minorities and...
, CKGM leased its signal to CJAD on a temporary basis, starting on January 22, 1998. (Technically CKGM left the airwaves and was replaced on 990 kHz by CJAD.) CJAD returned to its assigned frequency of 800 kHz on May 29, 1998, and after two weeks of simulcast, CKGM returned on June 12, 1998 at noon. The station took the opportunity to re-launch itself as a largely automated oldies station, again using the "Oldies 990" as its moniker (but keeping the CKGM call sign).
The Team 990
In September 2000, shortly after the CRTC made changes to radio ownership regulations allowing a single company to own up to four stations in a market, CHUM announced it would trade CKGM and sister station CHOM-FMCHOM-FM
CHOM-FM is an English language radio station located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Owned and operated by Astral Media, it broadcasts on 97.7 MHz from the Mount Royal candelabra tower, with an effective radiated power of 41,200 watts using an omnidirectional antenna.The station has a mainstream rock...
to Standard Broadcasting
Standard Broadcasting
Slaight Communications is a Canadian radio broadcasting company. The company was first formed as Slaight Broadcasting in 1971, when owner J. Allan Slaight acquired CFGM in Richmond Hill...
(which already owned two stations in Montreal) in exchange for CFWM-FM
CFWM-FM
CFWM-FM is a radio station based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The station, broadcasting at 99.9 FM, uses the on-air brand and format Bob FM. Its studios are located at 1445 Pembina Highway, along with sister stations, FAB 94.3 and TSN Radio 1290 in Winnipeg....
in Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
(a market where CHUM already had two stations). This move allowed Standard to acquire Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
's CKMM-FM
CKMM-FM
CKMM-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting a top 40 format in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It is known as Hot 103. Hot 103 is owned and operated by Astral Media...
(Hot 103) & CFQX-FM
CFQX-FM
CFQX-FM is a country music radio station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Officially licensed to Selkirk, the station currently operates out of studios in downtown Winnipeg, at 177 Lombard Avenue. It shares studios with sister station CKMM-FM....
(QX104.1).
However, a few months later, the CKGM portion of the deal was cancelled. The company immediately announced that CKGM would be added to the list of CHUM-owned AM stations switching to an all-sports
Sports radio
Sports radio is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A popular format with an almost exclusively male demographic in most areas, sports radio is characterized by an often-boisterous on-air style and extensive debate and analysis by both hosts and...
format on May 7, 2001, joining the new "The Team" network and identifying itself as "Team 990". CKGM became the radio flagship of the Montreal Expos
Montreal Expos
The Montreal Expos were a Major League Baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec from 1969 through 2004, holding the first MLB franchise awarded outside the United States. After the 2004 season, MLB moved the Expos to Washington, D.C. and renamed them the Nationals.Named after the Expo 67 World's...
a few days later, marking a return of baseball on English-language airwaves. The station would broadcast the last Expos' games as a Montreal franchise in 2004.
Even in the very last days before the switch to the new format, the largely automated CKGM continued to air a promo criticizing "those talk stations" (in addition to always playing the same songs in the very same order).
While most Team stations returned to music programming (generally oldies) on August 27, 2002, CKGM was one of the few stations where the all-sports format survived, and locally-produced programming was increased.
The Team 990 is anchored by the 3pm-7pm drive show with Mitch Melnick. It's morning show features veteran broadcaster Elliot Price and Shaun Starr (Denis Casavant left in November 2011 to pursue his career at RDS television). Former NHLer PJ Stock hosted his own program daily 1-3pm. Stock, during 2010
2010 in radio
The following events occurred in radio in 2010.-Events:*Date Unknown: CHOI/Quebec City flips from Alternative Rock to News/Talk.*January 4: KJCS/Lufkin, Texas goes silent....
-2011
2011 in radio
The following events occurred in radio broadcasting in 2011.-Events:*January 1: 2 Knoxville stations change formats as WDLF and WYLV flip to K-LOVE and Air 1 , and a few Pittsburgh station change formats, as ESPN Radio moves from WEAE to WBGG, and Radio Disney moves from WWCS to the renamed WDDZ,...
was part of the morning show at CHOM.
Other popular programs include the Delmar Cargo Habs Post Game show, which comes on after each Montreal Canadiens game.
Currently, CKGM has the broadcasting rights to the Montreal Juniors of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, as well as NFL football (through Priszm Radio
Priszm
Priszm LP is the largest operator of Canadian fast food restaurants. The Priszm Income Fund, an income trust, owns 60.2% of Priszm.Priszm is one of the largest franchisees of Yum! Brands in the world, owning 446 restaurants of various Yum!-owned chains in Canada, namely KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell,...
) and Sunday night baseball. CKGM also broadcasts home games of the Montreal Impact of the United Soccer League.
In the summer of 2007, Matthew Ross, host of Game Points, set The Team 990 station record by hosting a 10.5-hour marathon program.
Sale to CTVglobemedia
On June 22, 2007, CTVglobemediaCTVglobemedia
CTVglobemedia , was one of Canada's largest private media companies. Its operations include newspaper publishing , television broadcasting and production , radio broadcasting , and their respective Internet properties.Originally established by BCE and the Thomson family in 2001 combining CTV Inc.,...
purchased CKGM and most of the other assets of CHUM Limited following approval by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, while the Citytv
Citytv
Citytv is a Canadian English language television system owned and operated by Rogers Communications under its Rogers Broadcasting Ltd. division...
stations were sold to Rogers Communications
Rogers Communications
Rogers Communications Inc. is one of Canada's largest communications companies, particularly in the field of wireless communications, cable television, home phone and internet with additional telecommunications and mass media assets...
.
CKGM files for frequency swap
On September 7, 2011, the CRTC announced the applicants for the 690 kHz frequency previously occupied by CINF. Among these included Bell Media, who plan on using 690 as a new frequency for CKGM. The reasoning for the swap is to take advantage of 690's around-the-clock clear-channel frequency, especially during nighttime hours when most sporting events, especially hockey, takes place; at 990, the station is forced to broadcast at a lower power at night, broadcasting directionally towards the north to protect CBW and CBY, significantly decreasing its coverage area in the suburban areas and on the South Shore. Other frequencies CKGM considered moving to was 940 kHz, though doing so would take six months to make the move, as opposed to three months if CKGM is awarded 690; and 600 kHz (formerly used by CINW's predecessor, CIQC, before moving to 940 in 1999), but it would require building new towers, and the only suitable site for broadcast is in Kahnawake, on land owned by competing broadcaster, CogecoCogeco
Cogeco Inc. is a Canadian media and communications company. The name is an acronym for Compagnie Générale de Communication .-History:...
.
On November 21, 2011, CKGM's relocation from 990 to 690 was approved by the CRTC; after the move is made, Evanov Communications will be assigned the 990 frequency for a francophone LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
-based radio station, which they originally applied for 690.
TSN Radio 990
On October 3, 2011, Bell Media announced that the Team 990 would be relaunched (along with CFRWCFRW (AM)
CFRW is an AM radio station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, currently owned by Bell Media. It broadcasts at 1290 kHz. The station has an all-sports format and is branded as TSN Radio 1290....
in Winnipeg) under the new TSN Radio
TSN Radio
TSN Radio is a semi-national sports radio network in Canada carried on AM radio stations owned by Bell Media's Bell Media Radio division. The TSN Radio brand, and much of the network's content, is partially shared with Bell Media's television sports channel, The Sports Network...
banner, thus becoming known as TSN Radio 990 effective October 5, 2011,
External links
- TSN Radio 990
- CKGM history at Canadian Communications FoundationCanadian Communications FoundationThe Canadian Communications Foundation is a history of Canadian broadcasting for radio and television chronicles and documents. It also provides a history of radio and television stations, including networks, programs, broadcasters and many others....