CBNLT (channel 13) was a

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV, or simply CBC) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language terrestrial television, broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcasting, p ...

station in

Labrador City Labrador City is a town in western Labrador (part of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador), near the Quebec border. With a population of 7,412 as of 2021, it is the second-largest population cent ...

, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It was an analog

semi-satellite A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater (two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or trans ...

CBNT-DT CBNT-DT (channel 8) is a television station in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, broadcasting the English-language service of CBC Television. Owned and operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the station maintains studio ...

in St. John's. Until 1985, it produced limited amounts of local programming. The station was founded by the Iron Ore Company of Canada Aviation, Limited, and was co-owned with nearby sister station CFKL-TV in

Schefferville, Quebec Schefferville () is a town in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. Schefferville is in the heart of the Naskapi and Innu territory in northern Quebec, less than 2 km (1¼ miles) from the border with Labrador o ...

(which later became CBSET-1, which repeated

CBMT CBMT-DT (channel 6) is a television station in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, broadcasting the English-language service of CBC Television. It is owned and operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation alongside Ici Radio-Canada Télé flagship ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

History

1970s

On July 28, 1970, the licences for the two stations (CJCL-TV and CFKL-TV) were renewed for only two years. The Iron Ore Company of Canada Aviation, Limited was considered ineligible to hold a

broadcast Broadcasting is the data distribution, distribution of sound, audio audiovisual content to dispersed audiences via a electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio waves), ...

television station licence, as 60% of the company's shares were owned by American companies. Although both stations were private CBC affiliates, they aired the whole CBC schedule on

videotape Videotape is magnetic tape used for storing video and usually Sound recording and reproduction, sound in addition. Information stored can be in the form of either an analog signal, analog or Digital signal (signal processing), digital signal. V ...

. At the time, both stations were

bilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolin ...

(English and French), with 73% of their programming in English, and the other 27% in French. Since it was considered very unlikely another company would be willing to buy these stations, their licences were renewed temporarily under the existing ownership. On March 30, 1973, the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is the Canadian Public broadcasting, public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a Crown corporation that serves as the national public broadcaster, with its E ...

was given approval to purchase CJCL and CFKL. CJCL would continue to operate as it did when it was a private affiliate: on channel 13, with an

effective radiated power Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would ha ...

of 214 watts (video), and 43 watts audio, using a directional antenna. Full CBC network programming would now be received via

satellite A satellite or an artificial satellite is an object, typically a spacecraft, placed into orbit around a celestial body. They have a variety of uses, including communication relay, weather forecasting, navigation ( GPS), broadcasting, scient ...

transmissions, instead of having videotapes flown in. CJCL became CBNLT.

1980s

In 1985, the

Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC; ) is a public organization in Canada tasked with the mandate as a regulatory agency tribunal for various electronic communications, covering broadcasting and telecommunic ...

(CRTC) considered an application to amend CBNLT's licence so it could receive all of its programming directly from CBNT in St. John's. This would relieve CBNLT of its requirement to provide local programming (such as news segments) for Labrador City. In the application, the CBC told the CRTC that it would close CBNLT's local studio to save money, effective March 31, 1985. This meant the station would cease production of its local public affairs and information programming, which aired 15 minutes per day, Monday to Friday. This programming had aired for over 10 years, and was inserted in the provincial weekday evening news program ''Here and Now''. This closure also resulted in the elimination of roughly 230 minutes per week of

public service announcement A public service announcement (PSA) is a message in the public interest disseminated by the media without charge to raise public awareness and change behavior. Oftentimes these messages feature unsettling imagery, ideas or behaviors that are des ...

s. The CBC had proposed that a

news reporter A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

supported by a technical crew would prepare news stories regarding Labrador City and Western

Labrador Labrador () is a geographic and cultural region within the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the primarily continental portion of the province and constitutes 71% of the province's area but is home to only 6% of its populatio ...

, and send the tapes directly to CBNT in St. John's (the master control facilities), where the program editor would select which material would be broadcast. The CRTC had expressed serious concerns the following year that the CBC had discontinued the production of 75 minutes of local live television programming in Labrador City, as of March 31, 1985, without prior notification to the community of Labrador City, or authorization from the CRTC. Due to budget cuts, it was agreed that it would be unreasonable to expect the CBC to completely reinstate the former level of local origination at CBNLT. The station was told, however, to continue to originate programming from Labrador City. The CRTC maintained that the programs broadcast by CBNLT and CBNLT-1 (its

broadcast translator A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater (two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tran ...

Churchill Falls Churchill Falls (formerly called Grand Falls and known as Patshishetshuanau in Innu) is a high waterfall on the Churchill River in Labrador, Canada. Formerly counted among the most impressive natural features of Canada, the diversion of the r ...

on Channel 9, at 0.0089 kW) be received from studios located at Labrador City. In 1987, the CBC had notified the CRTC that it intended to introduce regular weekday local newscasts on CBNLT as of August 4. On September 13, 1988, CBMRT (channel 9, 0.089 kW) in

Fermont, Quebec Fermont (; ) is a mining city in Côte-Nord region, Quebec, Canada, near the Quebec-Labrador border about from Labrador City on Route 389, which connects to the Trans-Labrador Highway (Newfoundland and Labrador Route 500). It is the seat of ...

, was authorized to change its program source from

in Montreal to CBNLT in Labrador City.

1990s

On February 22, 1991, CBNLT-1 in Churchill Falls was authorized to change its program source from CBNLT Labrador City, to the CBC Television network feed received via

. It would also air local programs produced by CBNT St. John's. The CBC indicated the change was necessary because the

Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway The Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway is a private Canadian regional railway that stretches through the wilderness of northeastern Quebec and western Labrador. It connects Labrador City, Labrador, with the port of Sept-Îles, Quebec, on ...

Company Inc. would abandon its

microwave Microwave is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths shorter than other radio waves but longer than infrared waves. Its wavelength ranges from about one meter to one millimeter, corresponding to frequency, frequencies between 300&n ...

facilities on February 9. These facilities provided the feed to Churchill Falls. Also on this date, CBNLT and CFLA-TV Goose Bay became rebroadcasting transmitters of CBNT.

Closure of CBNLT

Due to budget cuts handed down on the CBC in April 2012, the CBC has announced several austerity measures to keep the corporation solvent and in operation; this included the closure of the CBC and Radio-Canada's remaining analog transmitters, including CBNLT and CBNLT-1, which occurred on July 31, 2012.CBC/Radio-Canada Speech Transcript: "Speaking notes for Hubert T. Lacroix, President and CEO, CBC/Radio-Canada, regarding measures announced in the context of the Deficit Reduction Action Plan (DRAP)", April 4, 2012.
/ref>

References

External links

CBNLT
at The History of Canadian Broadcasting by the

Canadian Communications Foundation The Canadian Communications Foundation (CCF) was a Canadian nonprofit organization which documented the history of broadcasting in Canada, particularly radio and television networks, programs and broadcasters. The organization was established in ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:CBNLT Labrador City BNLT Television channels and stations established in 1965 Television channels and stations disestablished in 1991 Television channels and stations disestablished in 2012 BNLT 1965 establishments in Newfoundland and Labrador 1991 disestablishments in Newfoundland and Labrador 2012 disestablishments in Canada BNLT