CKLN-FM
Encyclopedia
CKLN.fm is a domain
owned by Chris Scully which streams an internet radio station based in Toronto
, Ontario
, Canada
which follows in the tradition of the former CKLN-FM.
From 1983 to 2011, CKLN Radio Inc. was licenced by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission as a campus
-community FM radio station affiliated with Ryerson University
, and broadcast at 88.1 MHz on the FM dial with the call sign CKLN-FM. It ceased FM broadcasting on April 15, 2011 after its licence was revoked on January 28, 2011.
A number of the internet broadcaster's programs are produced in the Regent Park
neighbourhood of Toronto and in other parts of the city. The station now uses its web address, CKLN.fm, as its name.
-based campus
-community radio station and assigned the CKLN call letters. Ryerson had surrendered its earlier radio station, CJRT-FM
, due to financial constraints, although that station was revived as an independent public radio station by the Ontario government headed by Bill Davis
.
Among the station's early accomplishments was the launch in 1983 of The Fantastic Voyage, Canada's first radio show devoted to hip hop
. The program was influential in promoting and developing many of Canada's early hip hop stars, including Maestro Fresh-Wes
and Michie Mee
. According to poet Clifton Joseph, the show was "the single most important agent responsible for the breaking of rap music in Toronto and laying the groundwork for the emergence of Canadian rap artists such as Maestro Fresh Wes."
Other artists such as Blue Rodeo
and k.d. lang
received airplay on CKLN prior to being picked up by mainstream radio. The Globe and Mail says of the station that "it sat at the forefront of independent music and radical politics in the city for more than three decades, working with a shoe-string budget, and yet it somehow always managed to survive."
In the 1980s, the station helped create a news service to share content among left-wing stations world-wide including those run by the African National Congress
and the FMLN in El Salvador
. The station aired live coverage of the release of Nelson Mandela
from prison.
CKLN was the first broadcast outlet to air Toronto's Gay Pride Day Parade
.
In its coverage of the Rwandan genocide
, CKLN aired an investigation of the colonial history behind the events.
In April 1992, one student successfully petitioned for a referendum to decide if the station should continue to receive student funding; CKLN won the referendum.
and Ontario Coalition Against Poverty
had stacked the February meeting and defended the dismissal of volunteer programmers by arguing, "If you have people decrying the station that is allowing them to go on the air, and breaking CRTC rules in the process, that can’t be allowed to go on for very long.”
For a time, the station had two rival boards of directors, both claiming to be the legitimate management. The first board, which hired Barnes and Phillips, was chaired by Josie Miner while a second board led by Arnold Minors
was elected by opponents of the first board. The Ryerson Students' Union
, which administered a student fee that, at the time, provided the station with 60 per cent of its budget, withheld funds until the conflict between the two rival boards was resolved. Responding to this action, the first board initiated a statement of claim in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice
naming the RSU and Ryerson University as defendants.
With CKLN's financial situation deteriorating due to the RSU's withholding of funds, on February 28, 2009 CKLN's studios were made inaccessible except to certain CKLN board members and those they chose to admit. Previously aired material was broadcast.
On March 1, 2009, two individuals, Paulette Hamilton and Daibhid James, were arrested after they "barricaded themselves into the radio station's studios." Ryerson University president Sheldon Levy reacted to the incident by stating that "I think they've overstayed their welcome if that's the welcome that we have on our property. I don't like it, I don't want it, and we don't need it here."
Later that month, the Ryerson Student Centre board voted unanimously to close the station until both sides of the dispute could negotiate CKLN's future. The Palin Foundation, which governs the student centre, consists of representatives of Ryerson University, the Ryerson Students' Union and the Continuing Education Students' Association of Ryerson (CESAR).
During the period of the lockout, which lasted until mid-September 2009, CKLN broadcast unattended loops of previously aired programs, jazz and pre-recorded speeches. Dead air was heard for sometimes weeks at a time. In June 2009, CKLN's broadcast antenna was damaged resulting in the signal strength being drastically reduced. CKLN's online stream was still operational through this period.
On July 9, 2009, in a statement by Chris McNeil, president of CESAR and chair of the Palin Foundation, CKLN was provided a deadline of July 24, 2009 for the station to elect a new board of directors or risk eviction. The July 24, 2009 meeting and elections were held, but became the subject of a legal action filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice
Commercial Court by former CKLN board member Mary Young claiming it was "improper and illegal". The case is still being considered in the courts.
In March 2010, the CRTC called CKLN to a hearing for May 12, 2010 in which the licensee was to "...show cause why the Commission should not take steps to suspend or revoke the broadcasting licence in question or why the Commission should not issue mandatory orders requiring the licensee to comply with the Regulations and its conditions of licence..." The hearing was postponed in part due to ongoing mediation efforts in the aforementioned Mary Young case. The CRTC made it clear soon after the postponement that CKLN would be called to a hearing by no later than the end of 2010. During this period, the CRTC required the station to file monthly progress reports on its efforts to improve its licensing compliance.
The CRTC called CKLN to a hearing that took place in Toronto over a two day period beginning December 8, 2010.
On January 28, 2011 the CRTC revoked the licence of CKLN-FM due to continual breaches of the Broadcast Act and violations to their conditions of licence, ordering them to cease broadcasting by February 12, 2011.
Calling the decision "premature, disproportionate and inequitable", CRTC Commissioner Louise Poirier issued a dissenting opinion stating that she was “firmly opposed” to the decision and that licence revocation “should not have been used as a first step for this station”; according to Poirier, "the Commission has never revoked a licence without first issuing a mandatory order or reducing the licence term." The decision was also opposed by the National Campus and Community Radio Association
, which stated in a press release that the commission "could have taken other reasonable steps to ensure regulatory compliance while allowing CKLN to continue serving the community".
CKLN has stated that most of its regulatory failures were committed by former staff who were no longer with the station. CKLN appealed the decision to the Federal Court of Canada
. On February 11, the station was granted a temporary stay
, allowing it to remain on the air pending the Federal Court's decision on whether or not to grant the station leave to appeal the CRTC's order.
On April 15, 2011, the Federal Court of Appeal announced that it would not be hearing the appeal and said the station must cease broadcasting on 88.1 FM immediately. CKLN continued broadcasting and podcasting via the internet as its exclusive outlet from that point.
On September 28, 2011, Dufferin Communications, the owner of CIRR-FM 103.9 (PROUD FM) applied to the CRTC to move to 88.1 MHz, formerly held by CKLN-FM, and to increase its transmitter power. The CRTC issued a Broadcast Notice of Consultation inviting other interested parties to apply for the frequency as well. The deadline for applications is December 19, 2011.
claimed the CRTC's decision on CKLN was just another oppressive example of arbitrary government bureaucracy and interference into the lives and businesses of ordinary Canadians.
Toronto city councillor Adam Vaughan
said: “It's just astonishing that the CRTC can do this to a station that's been true to its mandate, that's sustained its commitment to community-based programming, the damage it does to communities served by this station, you couldn't even begin to quantify.” Vaughan told the Toronto Star that "It's very sad that the CRTC couldn't sit down and work with this clearly volunteer organization and give them the benefit of the doubt and help them solve the problem rather than simply render a very tough decision against them."
Referring to previous boards of directors, outgoing Ryerson Students Union president and CKLN director Toby Whitfield observed: “There's been so much infighting for so many years, people lost sight of the purpose of the station. The privilege of having a license is amazing, and I think that's what was missing,” adding that the current board had gotten more students involved.
Barry Johnson, a former CKLN director and host of Calypso Fusion said: "It is very sad that it has to come to this,' claiming that "(Ron) Nelson and the (CKLN) board could have taken measures to satisfy the CRTC, but they miscalculated...The CRTC offered reasonable measures that could have been taken, but the station did not have the proper management. They tried to hang on to something that just wasn't there.”
Jacky Tuinstra-Harrison, who was station manager at the time, responded to Johnson's claims by saying that the CRTC failed to follow its own policy of graduated discipline: "The CRTC could have followed their own policy, but did not; they did not pursue avenues such as warnings, fines, mandatory orders or other options against CKLN, but moved directly to the most serious of measures- revocation. We were not at any point offered alternatives" and that the claim that "CKLN’s 'demise' could have been avoided is an admonishment, which could have been made to any of the last six CKLN Boards, including the two on which Mr. Johnson sat."
According to then station manager Jacky Tuinstra-Harrison, "They have a social mission which is very similar to ours, which is to have citizens participate in their media.... It’s a wonderful opportunity to expand on our social mission, representing marginalized communities or communities that don’t get to represent themselves a lot in mainstream media.”
CKLN host Barry Johnson claimed the move to internet radio was a waste of time due to the format's limited reach and audience. Several CKLN programs ceased production or left CKLN following the move off the Ryerson University campus in late August 2011.
At a CKLN membership meeting held on October 11, 2011 a motion was passed to seek court approval for the dissolution of CKLN Radio Incorporated.
Domain name
A domain name is an identification string that defines a realm of administrative autonomy, authority, or control in the Internet. Domain names are formed by the rules and procedures of the Domain Name System ....
owned by Chris Scully which streams an internet radio station based in 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...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
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...
which follows in the tradition of the former CKLN-FM.
From 1983 to 2011, CKLN Radio Inc. was licenced by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission as a campus
Campus radio
Campus radio is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively by students, or may include programmers from the wider community in which the radio station is based...
-community FM radio station affiliated with Ryerson University
Ryerson University
Ryerson University is a public research university located in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its urban campus is adjacent to Yonge-Dundas Square located at the busiest intersection in Downtown Toronto. The majority of its buildings are in the blocks northeast of the square in Toronto's Garden...
, and broadcast at 88.1 MHz on the FM dial with the call sign CKLN-FM. It ceased FM broadcasting on April 15, 2011 after its licence was revoked on January 28, 2011.
A number of the internet broadcaster's programs are produced in the Regent Park
Regent Park
Regent Park is a neighbourhood located in Old Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Regent Park is Canada's oldest and largest social housing project; built in the late 1940s. Formerly the centre of the Cabbagetown neighbourhood, it is bounded by Gerrard Street East to the north, River Street to the east,...
neighbourhood of Toronto and in other parts of the city. The station now uses its web address, CKLN.fm, as its name.
History
CKLN began as a closed circuit station set up in 1977 with the call letters CRFM, its broadcasts piped to loudspeakers around campus. It was licensed by the CRTC in 1983 as a Ryerson UniversityRyerson University
Ryerson University is a public research university located in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its urban campus is adjacent to Yonge-Dundas Square located at the busiest intersection in Downtown Toronto. The majority of its buildings are in the blocks northeast of the square in Toronto's Garden...
-based campus
Campus radio
Campus radio is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively by students, or may include programmers from the wider community in which the radio station is based...
-community radio station and assigned the CKLN call letters. Ryerson had surrendered its earlier radio station, CJRT-FM
CJRT-FM
CJRT-FM is a Canadian public radio station, which broadcasts at 91.1 on the FM dial in Toronto, Ontario. CJRT currently operates as JAZZ.FM91.The station transmits at a strength of 40,000 watts; as its transmitter facilities are at the CN Tower...
, due to financial constraints, although that station was revived as an independent public radio station by the Ontario government headed by Bill Davis
Bill Davis
William Grenville "Bill" Davis, was the 18th Premier of Ontario, Canada, from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the MPP for Peel in the 1959 provincial election where he was a backbencher in Leslie Frost's government. Under John Robarts, he was a cabinet minister overseeing the education...
.
Among the station's early accomplishments was the launch in 1983 of The Fantastic Voyage, Canada's first radio show devoted to hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
. The program was influential in promoting and developing many of Canada's early hip hop stars, including Maestro Fresh-Wes
Maestro (rapper)
Wesley Williams , better known as Maestro and formerly Maestro Fresh-Wes, is a Canadian rapper, record producer, and actor. His pioneering status and outstanding achievements have led to him being referred to as the "Godfather of Canadian hip hop".In 1989 he became the first Canadian rapper to have...
and Michie Mee
Michie Mee
Michelle McCullock , better known by her stage name Michie Mee, is a Canadian rapper and actor. As Canada's first notable female MC, she is considered a national hip-hop pioneer.-Early life and career:...
. According to poet Clifton Joseph, the show was "the single most important agent responsible for the breaking of rap music in Toronto and laying the groundwork for the emergence of Canadian rap artists such as Maestro Fresh Wes."
Other artists such as Blue Rodeo
Blue Rodeo
Blue Rodeo is a Canadian pop and country rock band, which was formed in 1984 in Toronto, Ontario. They have been signed with Warner Music Group since their debut album Outskirts in March 1987...
and k.d. lang
K.D. Lang
Kathryn Dawn Lang, OC , known by her stage name k.d. lang, is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress...
received airplay on CKLN prior to being picked up by mainstream radio. The Globe and Mail says of the station that "it sat at the forefront of independent music and radical politics in the city for more than three decades, working with a shoe-string budget, and yet it somehow always managed to survive."
In the 1980s, the station helped create a news service to share content among left-wing stations world-wide including those run by the African National Congress
African National Congress
The African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a...
and the FMLN in El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
. The station aired live coverage of the release of Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
from prison.
CKLN was the first broadcast outlet to air Toronto's Gay Pride Day Parade
Pride Week (Toronto)
Pride Week is a ten-day event held in Toronto, Canada, during the end of June each year. It is a celebration of the diversity of the LGBT community in the Greater Toronto Area. It is one of the largest organized gay pride festivals in the world, featuring several stages with live performers and...
.
In its coverage of the Rwandan genocide
Rwandan Genocide
The Rwandan Genocide was the 1994 mass murder of an estimated 800,000 people in the small East African nation of Rwanda. Over the course of approximately 100 days through mid-July, over 500,000 people were killed, according to a Human Rights Watch estimate...
, CKLN aired an investigation of the colonial history behind the events.
In April 1992, one student successfully petitioned for a referendum to decide if the station should continue to receive student funding; CKLN won the referendum.
Financial difficulties
By September 2003, following the departure of station manager Conrad Collaco, CKLN was teetering on the brink of insolvency. As a result, the Ryerson Students' Union bailed out CKLN on at least $100,000 of unpaid taxes and other debts.Move to Ryerson Student Centre
In August 2005, CKLN shifted its broadcast studios from the basement of Jorgenson Hall at Ryerson University to the second floor of the newly constructed Ryerson Student Campus Centre.Internal conflict and loss of licence
In November 2007, CKLN's board appointed Mike Phillips as interim station manager. It had been over four years since the position had been filled. On December 21, 2007, CKLN program director Tim May resigned "suddenly and questionably" and within days CKLN's board appointed Tony Barnes to fill in as interim program director without first advertising the post. The new hires, and the manner in which the hirings were carried out, proved unpopular with some and resulted in a special general meeting being called, which was attended by over 150 members, more than 90% of whom voted to impeach the Board of Directors. The management of CKLN subsequently dismissed several dozen volunteer programmers as well as two paid staff, including the station's news director, who was allegedly told she was being fired for not seeing "eye to eye" with the board. Station manager Mike Phillips claimed that members of the Canadian Union of Public EmployeesCanadian Union of Public Employees
The Canadian Union of Public Employees is a Canadian trade union serving the public sector - although it has in recent years organized workplaces in the non-profit and para-public sector as well...
and Ontario Coalition Against Poverty
Ontario Coalition Against Poverty
The Ontario Coalition Against Poverty is an anti-poverty group in Ontario, Canada, who promote the interests of the poor and homeless...
had stacked the February meeting and defended the dismissal of volunteer programmers by arguing, "If you have people decrying the station that is allowing them to go on the air, and breaking CRTC rules in the process, that can’t be allowed to go on for very long.”
For a time, the station had two rival boards of directors, both claiming to be the legitimate management. The first board, which hired Barnes and Phillips, was chaired by Josie Miner while a second board led by Arnold Minors
Arnold Minors
Arnold Minors is a Bermudian-Canadian organizational consultant specializing in race relations and a public official. In the 1990s, in Toronto, he served on the Metropolitan Toronto Police Services Board. More recently, from 2009 until 2010, he was the press secretary to Bermudian Premier Ewart...
was elected by opponents of the first board. The Ryerson Students' Union
Ryerson Students' Union
The Ryerson Students’ Union is local 24 of the Canadian Federation of Students. It is a body that represents Ryerson University’s full-time undergraduate and graduate students...
, which administered a student fee that, at the time, provided the station with 60 per cent of its budget, withheld funds until the conflict between the two rival boards was resolved. Responding to this action, the first board initiated a statement of claim in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice
Ontario Superior Court of Justice
The Superior Court of Justice is the superior court of general jurisdiction for the Province of Ontario, Canada. It is the successor to the former Ontario Court of Justice , and was created on April 19, 1999...
naming the RSU and Ryerson University as defendants.
With CKLN's financial situation deteriorating due to the RSU's withholding of funds, on February 28, 2009 CKLN's studios were made inaccessible except to certain CKLN board members and those they chose to admit. Previously aired material was broadcast.
On March 1, 2009, two individuals, Paulette Hamilton and Daibhid James, were arrested after they "barricaded themselves into the radio station's studios." Ryerson University president Sheldon Levy reacted to the incident by stating that "I think they've overstayed their welcome if that's the welcome that we have on our property. I don't like it, I don't want it, and we don't need it here."
Later that month, the Ryerson Student Centre board voted unanimously to close the station until both sides of the dispute could negotiate CKLN's future. The Palin Foundation, which governs the student centre, consists of representatives of Ryerson University, the Ryerson Students' Union and the Continuing Education Students' Association of Ryerson (CESAR).
During the period of the lockout, which lasted until mid-September 2009, CKLN broadcast unattended loops of previously aired programs, jazz and pre-recorded speeches. Dead air was heard for sometimes weeks at a time. In June 2009, CKLN's broadcast antenna was damaged resulting in the signal strength being drastically reduced. CKLN's online stream was still operational through this period.
On July 9, 2009, in a statement by Chris McNeil, president of CESAR and chair of the Palin Foundation, CKLN was provided a deadline of July 24, 2009 for the station to elect a new board of directors or risk eviction. The July 24, 2009 meeting and elections were held, but became the subject of a legal action filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice
Ontario Superior Court of Justice
The Superior Court of Justice is the superior court of general jurisdiction for the Province of Ontario, Canada. It is the successor to the former Ontario Court of Justice , and was created on April 19, 1999...
Commercial Court by former CKLN board member Mary Young claiming it was "improper and illegal". The case is still being considered in the courts.
Licence revocation
Even before CKLN resumed scheduled programming in late September 2009, the CRTC reported concerns over the station's inability to comply with licence requirements during the dispute, such as playing the aforementioned loop for several months in 2009, its failure to properly submit on-air logger tapes, program logs and complete annual financial returns since 2007, and that the CRTC licence for CKLN had been transferred to a third party without authorization.In March 2010, the CRTC called CKLN to a hearing for May 12, 2010 in which the licensee was to "...show cause why the Commission should not take steps to suspend or revoke the broadcasting licence in question or why the Commission should not issue mandatory orders requiring the licensee to comply with the Regulations and its conditions of licence..." The hearing was postponed in part due to ongoing mediation efforts in the aforementioned Mary Young case. The CRTC made it clear soon after the postponement that CKLN would be called to a hearing by no later than the end of 2010. During this period, the CRTC required the station to file monthly progress reports on its efforts to improve its licensing compliance.
The CRTC called CKLN to a hearing that took place in Toronto over a two day period beginning December 8, 2010.
On January 28, 2011 the CRTC revoked the licence of CKLN-FM due to continual breaches of the Broadcast Act and violations to their conditions of licence, ordering them to cease broadcasting by February 12, 2011.
Calling the decision "premature, disproportionate and inequitable", CRTC Commissioner Louise Poirier issued a dissenting opinion stating that she was “firmly opposed” to the decision and that licence revocation “should not have been used as a first step for this station”; according to Poirier, "the Commission has never revoked a licence without first issuing a mandatory order or reducing the licence term." The decision was also opposed by the National Campus and Community Radio Association
National Campus and Community Radio Association
The National Campus and Community Radio Association/L'Association nationale des radios étudiantes et communautaires is a non-profit organization of campus radio and community radio stations in Canada....
, which stated in a press release that the commission "could have taken other reasonable steps to ensure regulatory compliance while allowing CKLN to continue serving the community".
CKLN has stated that most of its regulatory failures were committed by former staff who were no longer with the station. CKLN appealed the decision to the Federal Court of Canada
Federal Court of Canada
The Federal Court of Canada was a national court of Canada that heard some types of disputes arising under the central government's legislative jurisdiction...
. On February 11, the station was granted a temporary stay
Stay of execution
A stay of execution is a court order to temporarily suspend the execution of a court judgment or other court order. The word "execution" does not necessarily mean the death penalty; it refers to the imposition of whatever judgment is being stayed....
, allowing it to remain on the air pending the Federal Court's decision on whether or not to grant the station leave to appeal the CRTC's order.
On April 15, 2011, the Federal Court of Appeal announced that it would not be hearing the appeal and said the station must cease broadcasting on 88.1 FM immediately. CKLN continued broadcasting and podcasting via the internet as its exclusive outlet from that point.
On September 28, 2011, Dufferin Communications, the owner of CIRR-FM 103.9 (PROUD FM) applied to the CRTC to move to 88.1 MHz, formerly held by CKLN-FM, and to increase its transmitter power. The CRTC issued a Broadcast Notice of Consultation inviting other interested parties to apply for the frequency as well. The deadline for applications is December 19, 2011.
Reaction to loss of licence
On April 18, 2011, in his inaugural television broadcast on Canada's Sun News Network (also published in the pages of its sister newspaper outlet) conservative columnist Ezra LevantEzra Levant
Ezra Isaac Levant is a Canadian lawyer, conservative political activist and media figure. He is the founder and former publisher of the Western Standard, hosts The Source daily on Sun News Network, and has written several books on politics....
claimed the CRTC's decision on CKLN was just another oppressive example of arbitrary government bureaucracy and interference into the lives and businesses of ordinary Canadians.
Toronto city councillor Adam Vaughan
Adam Vaughan
Adam Vaughan is a councillor representing Ward 20 Trinity—Spadina in Toronto, Canada. For about 20 years, Vaughan worked as a political journalist and activist, most recently as the Political Specialist at Citytv/CP24. Before that, for ten years, he reported for CBLT in Toronto as a municipal...
said: “It's just astonishing that the CRTC can do this to a station that's been true to its mandate, that's sustained its commitment to community-based programming, the damage it does to communities served by this station, you couldn't even begin to quantify.” Vaughan told the Toronto Star that "It's very sad that the CRTC couldn't sit down and work with this clearly volunteer organization and give them the benefit of the doubt and help them solve the problem rather than simply render a very tough decision against them."
Referring to previous boards of directors, outgoing Ryerson Students Union president and CKLN director Toby Whitfield observed: “There's been so much infighting for so many years, people lost sight of the purpose of the station. The privilege of having a license is amazing, and I think that's what was missing,” adding that the current board had gotten more students involved.
Barry Johnson, a former CKLN director and host of Calypso Fusion said: "It is very sad that it has to come to this,' claiming that "(Ron) Nelson and the (CKLN) board could have taken measures to satisfy the CRTC, but they miscalculated...The CRTC offered reasonable measures that could have been taken, but the station did not have the proper management. They tried to hang on to something that just wasn't there.”
Jacky Tuinstra-Harrison, who was station manager at the time, responded to Johnson's claims by saying that the CRTC failed to follow its own policy of graduated discipline: "The CRTC could have followed their own policy, but did not; they did not pursue avenues such as warnings, fines, mandatory orders or other options against CKLN, but moved directly to the most serious of measures- revocation. We were not at any point offered alternatives" and that the claim that "CKLN’s 'demise' could have been avoided is an admonishment, which could have been made to any of the last six CKLN Boards, including the two on which Mr. Johnson sat."
Move to Regent Park
On August 2, 2011 in a statement posted on CKLN's website, it was announced that the Palin Foundation would evict CKLN on August 27, 2011. It was confirmed officially by CKLN on August 4, 2011 that, after the eviction, CKLN internet streaming would emanate almost exclusively from the Regent Park Focus Youth Media Centre, a community group which offers media training programs for economically disadvantaged youth in the neighbourhood and which had already produced a weekly program for broadcast on CKLN for a number of years.According to then station manager Jacky Tuinstra-Harrison, "They have a social mission which is very similar to ours, which is to have citizens participate in their media.... It’s a wonderful opportunity to expand on our social mission, representing marginalized communities or communities that don’t get to represent themselves a lot in mainstream media.”
CKLN host Barry Johnson claimed the move to internet radio was a waste of time due to the format's limited reach and audience. Several CKLN programs ceased production or left CKLN following the move off the Ryerson University campus in late August 2011.
At a CKLN membership meeting held on October 11, 2011 a motion was passed to seek court approval for the dissolution of CKLN Radio Incorporated.
CKLN alumni
- Cameron Bailey - co-director of the Toronto International Film FestivalToronto International Film FestivalThe Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
and film reviewer for Now MagazineNOW (magazine)Now is a free weekly newspaper in Toronto, Canada. It was first printed on September 10, 1981 by Michael Hollett and Alice Klein. Now is an alternative weekly mixing arts and entertainment news with political coverage.... - Denise Benson - DJ and Eye WeeklyEye WeeklyEye Weekly was a free weekly newspaper published in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was owned by Torstar, the parent company of the Toronto Star, and was published by their Star Media Group until its final issue on May 5, 2011. The following week, Torstar launched a successor publication, The Grid.-...
columnist - Matt GallowayMatt GallowayMatt Galloway is a Canadian radio personality, who is host of Metro Morning at CBLA-FM in Toronto. Galloway succeeded Andy Barrie as host of Metro Morning effective March 1, 2010....
- host of Metro MorningMetro MorningMetro Morning is CBC Radio One's local morning program in Toronto, airing on CBLA-FM and is hosted by Matt Galloway. The program airs from 5:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m...
on CBLA-FMCBLA-FMCBLA-FM is a Canadian radio station. It is the flagship station of the CBC Radio One network, broadcasting at 99.1 FM in Toronto, Ontario.- History :... - Tanya KimTanya KimTanya Kim is a Canadian television personality. A classically trained pianist and dancer, Kim was raised in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. She attended Ryerson University from 1994 to 1998, graduating from the journalism program, specializing in broadcasting, and worked as a videographer at MuchMusic...
- Ryerson graduate and former voice-over artist for CKLN promos and announcements circa 1998, current co-host of CTVCTV television networkCTV Television Network is a Canadian English language television network and is owned by Bell Media. It is Canada's largest privately-owned network, and has consistently placed as Canada's top-rated network in total viewers and in key demographics since 2002, after several years trailing the rival...
's etalkETalketalk is a Canadian entertainment news show hosted by Ben Mulroney and Tanya Kim. It airs weekdays weeknights at 7 p.m. ET on CTV, at 1:30 p.m. ET on CTV Two and at 6 p.m. ET and 11:30 p.m. ET on E!... - Adam VaughanAdam VaughanAdam Vaughan is a councillor representing Ward 20 Trinity—Spadina in Toronto, Canada. For about 20 years, Vaughan worked as a political journalist and activist, most recently as the Political Specialist at Citytv/CP24. Before that, for ten years, he reported for CBLT in Toronto as a municipal...
- former CKLN station manager, later a municipal affairs reporter for CBLT and CITY-TVCITY-TVCITY-DT, Channel 57 , is a television station based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada owned and operated by Rogers Media...
; now a city councilCity councilA city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...
lor
External links
- CKLN-FM
- CKLN 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....
- CKLN Chronology Now Magazine
- CKLN & Regent Park CBC Radio One Metro Morning interview