CHLY-FM (101.7

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 ...

) is a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

campus-community

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based rad ...

Nanaimo Nanaimo ( ) is a city of about 100,000 on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. "The Harbour City" was previously known as the "Hub City", which was attributed to its original layout design with streets radiating fr ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, Canada. Primarily funded by students of

Vancouver Island University Vancouver Island University (abbreviated as VIU, formerly known as Malaspina University-College and Malaspina College) is a Canadian public research university serving Vancouver Island and coastal British Columbia. Malaspina College opened in 196 ...

's Nanaimo campus, the station is also supported by donations and memberships from the community, as well as local advertising, sponsorships and grants. CHLY-FM is run by the Radio Malaspina Society, an incorporated non-profit society. CHLY is a Class A station 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 ...

(ERP) of 1,300

watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of Power (physics), power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantification (science), quantify the rate of Work ...

s (3,000 watts maximum). From 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 ...

tower A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...

on Cottle Hill, CHLY's broadcast signal covers much of the west coast of

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are of land. The island is the largest ...

, as far north as Campbell River, south to the

Cowichan Valley The Cowichan Valley is a region around the Cowichan River, Cowichan Bay and Cowichan Lake on Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. There is some debate as to the origin of the name Cowichan, which many believe to be an anglicized for ...

as well as

Gabriola Island Gabriola Island is one of the Gulf Islands in the Strait of Georgia in British Columbia (BC), Canada. It is about east of Nanaimo on Vancouver Island, to which it is linked by a 20-minute ferry service. It has a land area of about and a resi ...

and Valdes Island.FCCdata.org/CHLY
/REF> It can also be heard on the southern Sunshine Coast.

History

CHLY signed on the air on . But before gaining a broadcast licence, the station had its beginnings on the Internet. It first began airing programming on April 1, 2000, before receiving a licence from 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) on June 5. CHLY aired a test signal at 101.7 FM on September 21, and ran promotional material about the station for two weeks before officially signing on at 6:00 p.m. on October 5, 2001. CHLY's studios are in the basement of the Queens Hotel on Victoria Crescent in downtown Nanaimo. The station features an eclectic format with a variety of music genres including

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

, classical,

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

, roots music,

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

and

electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that came to prominence in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mos ...

. It also airs locally produced and syndicated news and talk programs reporting on issues of the campus, local community and the world. CHLY is a member of the

National Campus and Community Radio Association The National Campus and Community Radio Association/L'Association nationale des radios étudiantes et communautaires (NCRA/ANREC) is a non-profit organization of campus radio and community radio stations in Canada. It represents the interests of t ...

Alumni

Former CHLY talent includes: * Tchadas Leo; An Indigenous journalist and podcaster behind the "Our Native Land" podcast from CHEK. During his years at CHLY he hosted a program called "A Native Perspective" while attending Vancouver Island University. * Cole Schisler; Journalist. Sat on CHLY's non-profit board of directors & hosted CHLY's late night hip-hop program "The Kinetic Flow" while attending university at Vancouver Island University. Worked for the Black Press, and now works for

Citytv Citytv (sometimes shortened to City, which was the network's official branding from 2012 to 2018) is a Television in Canada, Canadian television network owned by the Rogers Sports & Media subsidiary of Rogers Communications. The network consis ...

's CityNews in Vancouver as an anchor. *

Paul Manly Paul Manly (born April 19, 1964) is a Canadian politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Nanaimo—Ladysmith from 2019 until 2021. A member of the Green Party of Canada, he was elected to the House of Commons in a by-election on ...

; Former Member of Parliament for Nanaimo-Ladysmith for the

Green Party of Canada The Green Party of Canada () is a federal political party in Canada, founded in 1983 with a focus on green politics. The Green Party is currently the fifth largest party in the House of Commons by seat count. It elected its first member of ...

. Contributed to a political commentary program called "Elephant Talk" in the early 2000s.

References

External links

CHLY-FM
Station website.
CHLY-FM
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 ...

* Hly Hly Vancouver Island University Radio stations established in 2001 2001 establishments in British Columbia {{BritishColumbia-radio-station-stub