February 2003 - Nr. 2
Community Radio in the Region of Waterloo
by Herwig Wandschneider
In the same way we have Information Overflow, we also have Media Overflow – whether in the form of the Printed Word, Radio (or CD) and Television (or Video). Via the Airwaves, Cable, Satellite, or the Internet - Newspapers, Magazines and Radio Stations, Music and Video can be summoned to your computer from around the world. TV shows and Movies will not be far behind.
You can watch NHK TV to be updated on Japanese and World Affairs or read the Shanghai Star in English (http://www.shanghai-star.com.cn/). How relevant this information and Entertainment is to the individual on a day-to-day basis is a function of personal interest and preference. It may be vitally important to someone to know that IKEA opens the biggest Asian Store in Shanghai in two months, but then again it may be more relevant to others, to know what is going on in and around the Region we live in. Listening, for example, to the familiar sounds of the local community while waking up, driving about town, working at the office or relaxing at home, establishes a sense of belonging and comfort. A peace of mind.
In
Waterloo Region, the local community is king for FM Radio CKWR 98.5. The
Station has its early beginnings on the campus of the University of Waterloo
in 1964 as Radio Waterloo, just a few years into the existence of the
University itself. Following years of struggle to obtain a Broadcast
License, a group called "Wired World" broke away from Radio Waterloo and
filed an independent application for a broadcast license, which it received
in 1973 and thereby became Canada’s First English Language Community Radio
Station licenced by the CRTC. That makes it 30 years of licensed public
broadcast service to Waterloo Region and beyond to also include Guelph,
Brantford, Wingham, Stratford and Mount Forest! (Radio Waterloo, by the way,
eventually succeeded in securing its license in 1977 and is today on the air
at 100.3 FM with call letters CKMS).
CKWR’s programming was largely swing and jazz-oriented until 1995. When CHUM Limited acquired CFCA FM (Kool FM) in 1993 and changed that station to a "classic rock" format, an entire audience was left without the format they had been used to for years. CKWR jumped in at that time and changed its format to today’s "Soft Hits of Yesterday and Today" format within the context of a community station.
Located now on University Avenue East in Waterloo with transmitter in St Agatha (to which they are connected by telephone cable), CKWR 98.5 FM broadcasts a varied programme to Waterloo Region communities – call the music Light and Easy, Soft Adult Contemporary – according to Paul Scott, it appeals to the currently 35 – 65 year old population, but addresses also other segments of Region Residents through special programs ranging from Classical to Jazz, and – on weekends - to programs in 11 different languages, with more to come. "Local content and announcers speaking to the community they know and understand is what makes it a community station", explains Paul Scott, General Manager.
To make the existence of CKWR possible (call letters stand for Kitchener and Waterloo Region), involves a remarkable number of Volunteers. Of the total of 56 people involved in running the Station, 44 are volunteers. "But," as Paul Scott insists, "it is not the numbers, or the fact that so many are volunteeers, that make 35,000 listeners tune in to us over a 7-day period, it is the enthusiasm and dedication of all the broadcast people involved, that makes the Station a success". Case in point: Ken Silvester, well known announcer at the Station, volunteers his time to emcee a Swingin’ Sweethearts Valentines Dance, Saturday, February 15th at the Concordia Club, another community event co-sponsored by CKWR.
Among its very modern electronic equipment are still two turntables, used to broadcast some of the "vinyl music" the many volunteers bring with them from their own collections, from which they carefully select the music for the community, particularly on weekends. "The old 33’s often have a softer and warmer sound than the high tech digital recordings of today" explains Paul Scott. No doubt, they will also include the more familiar recordings to the listeners.
Remarkable also is the fact that the Station is a Not-For-Profit organization – "…which makes donations to the Station tax-deductible" says Henning Grumme, the Marketing Manager. "Membership (at $40 per year) makes a contribution as well, but Operations are to 95% carried through commercial time sold in the community".
Through 30 years of growth, not without its turbulent times, CKWR continues to broadcast as a community station. Proud to be the First, it is another feather in the Region’s cap!
