- CKNX (AM)
Infobox Radio station
name = CKNX
airdate = 1926
frequency = 920 kHz (AM)
area = Primary:Wingham, ON
format =Country music
owner =Blackburn Radio
power =
branding = "AM920"
slogan = "Welcome to information Country!"
class =
website = http://www.am920.ca
callsign_meaning = |CKNX is a Canadian
radio station , which broadcasts at 920 AM inWingham, Ontario . The station broadcasts acountry music formatHistory
Launch
The station was originally launched in 1926 as an informal broadcasting experiment by local businessman [http://www.broadcasting-history.ca/personalities/personalities.php?id=220 W. T. Cruickshank] , who aired live and unscripted programming provided by customers of his repair shop. In its original incarnation, the station was simply known as Joke, but proved so popular that Cruickshank applied for an amateur broadcasting license and the station formally became 10BP by 1930. In 1935, the station was officially licensed as commercial radio station CKNX, on AM 1200.
Frequency move
The station briefly moved to the 1230 frequency in 1941, and to its current 920 frequency a few months later. In the late 1940s and 1950s, the station's "Saturday Night Barn Dance" was one of the most popular and influential radio programs in Ontario.
CKNX-TV
In 1955,
CKNX-TV was also launched. OnMarch 8 ,1962 , the building which accommodated the CKNX radio and television stations caught fire. Although nothing could be salvaged, CKNX was back on the air within a few hours, broadcasting from temporary facilities at the transmitter site and using the nearby high school gym as a TV studio. CKNX operations continued as such (with various temporary offices set up in Wingham) until they purchased new equipment and moved into a new building in 1963.Acquisition
The stations were acquired in 1971 by
Blackburn Radio , who also launchedCKNX-FM in 1977. Blackburn sold the television station toBaton Broadcasting in 1993, but retains ownership of the radio stations to this day. Blackburn also launched a second FM station in Wingham, CIBU, in 2005.External links
* [http://www.am920.ca/ CKNX]
* [http://www.broadcasting-history.ca/listings_and_histories/radio/histories.php?id=338&historyID=129 CKNX history at Canadian Communications Foundation]
*
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