CKLW - Definition

CKLW is a 50,000 watt AM radio station located in Windsor, Ontario. In the late 1960s and early 1970s it was one of the top radio stations in the world, using a very tight (top 40) format devised by legendary radio programmer Bill Drake. During that period it was the top-rated radio station not only in Windsor, but across the river in Detroit, Michigan, and even in cities as far away as Toledo and Cleveland in Ohio. Some say that the station started to decline in popularity after Canadian content regulations went into effect, but probably the biggest reason for the decline was because listeners were abandoning AM radio in favor of the clearer audio available on FM radio. Today CKLW focuses mostly on local news and information, which some people consider a waste of a high-powered station with a signal that reaches far beyond its immediate local area.

The operation also included CKLW-TV, Channel 9. When the Canadian government requested RKO General divest itself of its Canadian holdings, the stations were sold to a consortium of the CBC and Baton Broadcasting. Baton ran the radio station for several years, before selling to CHUM. When the CBC took full ownership of the television station, it changed its call letters to CBET.

External links

• Official AM 800 CKLW site (http://www.am800cklw.com/)
• The Classic CKLW Page (http://www.thebig8.net/)