CBW is the

call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally as ...

of the

CBC Radio One CBC Radio One is the English-language news and information radio network of the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial-free and offers local and national programming. It is available on AM and FM to 98 percent o ...

station in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

. The station broadcasts at 990

kHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base uni ...

. CBW is a

non-commercial A non-commercial (also spelled noncommercial) activity is an activity that is not carried out in the interest of Profit (economics), profit. The opposite is Commerce, commercial, something that primarily serves profit interests and is focused on bu ...

Class A

Clear-channel station A clear-channel station is a North American AM radio station that has the highest level of protection from interference from other stations, particularly from nighttime skywave signals. This classification exists to ensure the viability of cross ...

reserved for

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

under the

North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement The North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement (NARBA, ; ) refers to a series of international treaties that defined technical standards for AM band (mediumwave) radio stations. These agreements also addressed how frequency assignments were d ...

(NARBA) allocations. CBW's studios are located on Portage Avenue (

Winnipeg Route 85 Route 85, also known as Portage Avenue, is a major arterial route in the city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is one of the city's oldest and most important roads and is part of both the Trans-Canada Highway, Trans-Canada and Yellowhead Highway ...

) in

Downtown Winnipeg Downtown Winnipeg is an area of Winnipeg located near the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. It is the oldest urban area in Winnipeg, and is home to the city's commercial core, city hall, the ...

, while its

transmitter In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter (often abbreviated as XMTR or TX in technical documents) is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna (radio), antenna with the purpose of sig ...

s are located near

Beaudry Provincial Park Beaudry Provincial Park is an approximately park located along the Assiniboine River west of the town of Headingley, Manitoba. Beaudry Provincial Park was designated a provincial park by the Government of Manitoba in 1974. The park is consider ...

in Springstein. Due to the station's transmitter power and Manitoba's mostly flat land (with near-perfect ground conductivity), CBW 990 reaches almost all of southern Manitoba during the day and much of the middle portion of North America at night. The station is

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of "simultaneous broadcast") is the broadcasting of programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultaneously) ...

on CBW-1- FM at 89.3

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base u ...

. The FM transmitter is atop the Richardson building, in downtown Winnipeg.

History

An early demonstration of radio by

Lee de Forest #REDIRECT Lee de Forest {{redirect category shell, {{R from move{{R from other capitalisation ...

took place in Winnipeg in April 1910, with extensive amateur and experimental interest after that date. Regularly scheduled broadcasting did not begin until the spring of 1922, when Lynn Salton established a private station with the call sign CKZC. Both Winnipeg daily newspapers developed their own radio stations in 1922, notably providing coverage of the 1922 Provincial election. However, the stations were found to be expensive to operate. In January 1923, the newspapers agreed to get out of the broadcasting business in favor of the government-owned station.Garry Moir, ''On the Air: the golden age of Manitoba radio'', Great Plains Publications, 2015, , pp. 19-22 The station first

signed on A sign-on (or start-up in Commonwealth countries except Canada) is the beginning of operations for a radio broadcasting, radio or television station, generally at the start of each day. It is the opposite of a sign-off (or closedown in Commonw ...

March 13, 1923 as CKY, owned and operated by the

Manitoba Telephone System Bell MTS Inc. (formerly Manitoba Telecom Services) is a subsidiary of BCE Inc. that operates telecommunications services in Manitoba. Originally established as Manitoba Government Telephones after the Government of Manitoba purchased the Manito ...

, with a transmitter power of 500 watts at a frequency of 665 kHz. It became a partial affiliate of the

Canadian Radio Broadcasting Commission The Canadian Radio Broadcasting Commission (CRBC/CCR; ), also referred to as the Canadian Radio Commission (CRC), was Canada's first public broadcaster and the immediate precursor to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Origins The CRBC was est ...

in 1933, and was purchased outright by the

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

in 1948. The station adopted its current call sign a few months after the CBC purchase, and the CKY call sign was reassigned to a new commercial radio station in 1949. CBW was part of the ''

Trans-Canada Network The Trans-Canada Network was the name assigned to the main English-language radio network of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation to distinguish it from the CBC's second network, the Dominion Network. Today, it is known as CBC Radio One. The Tra ...

'', which was the main CBC radio network, while CKRC carried programming from the ''

Dominion Network The Dominion Network was the second English-language radio network of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation from January 1, 1944 to 1962. It consisted of the CBC-owned CJBC (AM), CJBC radio station in Toronto and a series of 34 privately owned ...

'' between January 1, 1944 and 1962. The

was originally located in

Carman In Celtic mythology, Carman (Carmán) or Carmun was a warrior and sorceress from Athens who tried to invade Ireland in the days of the Tuatha Dé Danann, along with her three sons, Dub ("darkness"), Dother ("evil") and Dian ("violence"). She use ...

. On February 3, 1952, a small plane with 3 passengers struck the Carman tower, due to heavy fog. None of the passengers survived. Three tower workers were killed when the tower collapsed during efforts to replace a missing guy wire. On July 29, 1992, CBW was authorized to decrease its night-time power from 50,000 watts to 46,000 watts and relocate the transmitter from Carman to a new site near Springstein. On October 15, 1993, CBW began broadcasting from the new site, which was 30 miles closer to Winnipeg than the old site. CBW moved from the 3rd floor of the ''Telephone Building'' on Portage Avenue East to its current location on Portage Avenue, broadcasting from the new location for the first time on July 5, 1953. The opening officially occurred on September 25, 1953. Over the next week, the station held open house tours of the station. The building cost $1 million to construct and was state of the art at the time. Today, CBW shares this same location with

CBW-FM CBW-FM (98.3 MHz) is a public non-commercial radio station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The station airs the CBC Music Network, a mix of adult album alternative, classical music and other genres. Its studi ...

and

CBWT-DT CBWT-DT (channel 6) is a CBC Television station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It has common ownership with Ici Radio-Canada Télé station CBWFT-DT (channel 3). The two stations share studios on Portage Avenue and Young Street in Downtown Winn ...

. On March 16, 2006, 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) approved an application by the CBC for a "nested" FM rebroadcaster in Winnipeg as a simulcast of CBW. The station had long been plagued by poor coverage in portions of Winnipeg itself, and the FM repeater was intended to improve reception in these areas. CBW-1-FM 89.3 operates from a transmitter atop MTS Bell Place Main, and has 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 2,800 watts. The call sign CBW was previously used by the CBC Radio station in

Windsor, Ontario Windsor ( ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada. It is situated on the south bank of the Detroit River directly across from the U.S city of Detroit, Detroit, Michigan. Geographically located within but administratively independent of Esse ...

in 1937-38 until it was shut down. When it was revived in 1950, the Windsor CBC outlet became

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

Local programming

CBW's

local programs Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...

are ''Information Radio'' in the morning, ''

Radio Noon Radio Noon is the name of CBC Radio One's CBC Radio One local programming, regional noon-hour programs in the Canada, Canadian provinces of Manitoba, Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador. It was formerly the name of all of the network's noon progra ...

'' and ''Up to Speed'' in the afternoon; ''The Weekend Morning Show'' runs on Saturdays and Sundays, and the arts and culture show ''Manitoba Scene'' at 5:00 p.m. on Saturdays in addition to ''North Country'' programming weekdays at 7:30 a.m. and 12 p.m. CT.

CBWK-FM CBWK-FM is the callsign of the CBC Radio One station in Thompson, Manitoba. The station broadcasts at 100.9 MHz. The station's studios are located on Selkirk Avenue in Thompson. History The station signed on in 1980. Although separately licens ...

Thompson and its rebroadcasters also air programming from the CBC Manitoba studio in Winnipeg (with the exception of "Information Radio").

Transmitters

CBW personalities

Current

Rosanna Deerchild Rosanna Deerchild (Ferguson) is a Canadian Cree writer, poet and radio host. She is best known as host of the radio program ''Unreserved'' on CBC Radio One, a show that shares the music, cultures, and stories from indigenous people across Canada, ...

, host ''Unreserved'', Saturdays 5:00 PM Manitoba Sundays 7:00 PM National * Marcy Markusa, host ''Information Radio'' * Marjorie Dowhos, host ''Radio Noon'' * Faith Fundal, host ''Up to Speed'' * Nadia Kidwai, host ''Weekend Morning Show'' * Shannah-Lee Vidal, traffic & community reporter * Heather Wells, news anchor weekday mornings * Matt Humphrey, news reader * Riley Laychuk, weather specialist, CBC evening news * Brittany Greenslade, TV News anchor * Karen Pauls, National reporter * Meaghan Ketcheson, reporter * Susan Magas, reporter *

Bartley Kives Bartley Kives is a Canadian journalist, currently senior reporter for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's radio and television operations in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Local Television Reporter at the 12th Ca ...

, City Hall reporter Formerly of the Winnipeg Free Press * Bruce Ladan, director/host, ''Weekend Morning Show''

Former

Bill Guest Bill Guest (1928-1985) was best known as quizmaster of the Winnipeg edition of ''Reach for the Top'' from 1962–1985 and quizmaster of the national finals between 1969 and 1985 when the show aired on CBC Television. Bill began his broadcast ...

- host ''Information Radio'', ''Reach for the Top'' * Donald Benham - hosted ''Questionnaire'' in the (1990s) *

Garth Dawley Garth Dawley (1933 - 2020) was most known for reading the news on CBWT's supper-hour news program '' 24Hours'' from October 5, 1970 – 1983. Prior to his role at ''24Hours'' he co-hosted the local morning show on CBW-AM in the 1960s. At th ...

- co-hosted ''Information Radio'' (1960s) (Deceased June 1, 2020) * Eric Friesen - co-hosted ''Radio Noon'', ''Up to Now'' (1970s) * Lesley Hughes - co-hosted ''Information Radio'' (1980s) * Tom McCulloch - ''Information Radio'' news anchor (1970s) * Doug McIlraith - co-hosted ''Radio Noon'' (1970s) * Gren Marsh - co-hosted ''Up to Now'' (1970s) * Agatha Moir - ''Information Radio'' (1980s), regular fill-in host for all radio shows * Gary Moir - news/sports * Lionel Moore - co-hosted ''Radio Noon'' (1970s) * Maureen Pendergast - co-hosted ''Information Radio'' (1990s) * Jim Rae - co-hosted ''Radio Noon'' (1970s) * Kerän Sanders - host of ''The Afternoon Edition'' (1989–1997) & ''The Weekend Morning Show'' (2009–2012) * Jack Turnbull - ''Information Radio'' news anchor (1970s) * Bob Willson - co-hosted 1950 flood coverage * Roger Currie * Peter Duck (Moved to

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places *Detroit–Windsor, Michigan-Ontario, USA-Canada, North America; a cross-border metropolitan region Australia New South Wales *Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area Queen ...

) * Ismaila Alfa (now host of CBC Toronto's Fresh Air) * Terry Mcleod (retired host of ''Information Radio'' and ''Weekend Morning Show'') * Megan Benedictson (now with

CKY-DT CKY-DT (channel 7) is a television station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, part of the CTV Television Network. The station is owned and operated by network parent Bell Media, and maintains studios on Graham Avenue (adjacent to the Canada Life Ce ...

) * Sean Kavanagh (now with Manitoba government) * Marianne Klowak (resigned as of 2023 citing pandemic reporting) * Larry Updike (former host, ''Up to Speed'') * Sarah Penton (now hosting ''Radio West'' in Kelowna, BC) * Leslie McLaren - news reader/reporter * Marilyn Maki, retired * Katie Nicholson (now with The National) https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/author/katie-nicholson-1.4288107 * Emily Brass, reporter (now hosting ''Information Morning'' in Saint John, NB)

CRTC licensing

CRTC Decision 1999-515 - New multi-channel antenna serving Brandon, Manitoba

References

External links

CBC Manitoba

CBW-AM
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 ...

* *
Radio-locator information on CBW
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cbw (Am) BW BW Radio stations established in 1923 1923 establishments in Manitoba CNR Radio Canadian Radio Broadcasting Commission Clear-channel radio stations