TORONTO — In the latest move by a company that is fiscally strapped, has seen a leadership change in the last two months, and wants regulatory authorities in Canada to help its woes by ruling a competitor is benefiting from “undue preference/disadvantage, Corus Entertainment has turned off the lights at what had once been one of Ontario’s most powerful AM radio stations.
After 96 years, Class B CHML-AM 900 in Hamilton, Ont., has ceased operations.
The sudden closure of what had been a major operation on the kHz band is tied to a series of cost-cutting initiatives at Corus. Visitors to the station’s website are being routed to the national homepage for the company’s Global News.
With 50kw, CHML’s directional 2-pattern signal from 8 towers in a rural area between Hamilton and Cambridge gave it a signal audible across the most populous areas of Ontario and well into Western New York. At night, CHML’s skywave signal could be heard far and wide.
In a statement shared on X (formerly Twitter), posted at Noon on Wednesday, the station said:
We want to extend our profound gratitude to all of our listeners, valued advertisers, and community partners — thank you for your steadfast support throughout the years. Your loyalty and this community have been the foundation of our station’s legacy, and we deeply value the connection we’ve shared with you.
After decades of service to our remarkable community, we are announcing the closure of 900 CHML … This decision, though incredibly difficult, has been made after careful consideration and is necessary following years of financial losses.
The shift of advertising revenues to unregulated foreign platforms, combined with the difficult regulatory and competitive landscape, has forced us to make the difficult decision to close.
With the shutdown of CHML, Corus will operate two FMs in Hamilton: Country CJXY “Y108” and Hot Adult Contemporary CING “Energy 95.3.”
The closure of CHML marks the end of an era in Southern Ontario, as Bell Media’s CHAM-AM 820 and CKOC-AM 1150 were sold to CINA Radio Group in a transaction that received CRTC approval in June.
CHAM was a dominant Country station from July 1983 (when still at 1280 kHz) through the end of 2005, as listeners to music formats had largely migrated to the FM dial. CKOC, the oldest continuously operating station in Canada, was a legendary Top 40 station from 1960 through 1992.
However, the loss of CHML is perhaps more stunning, with coverage immediately generating nationally distributed news stories. The CBC reported that, on social media, Hamilton Mayor Andrea Horwath called the loss of the station “devastating,” noting, “For close to 100 years – 97 years next month – CHML’s on-air personalities have been a part of our daily lives here in Hamilton and beyond …. this is a tremendous loss to our community.”
The CBC also reports that Corus-owned CFPL-AM 980 in London, Ont., said goodbye to two full-time and two part-time employees on Wednesday. They were reporter and news reader positions, the CBC said.
CHML’s closure follows the shutdown of CHQT “880 News” in Edmonton and all-Traffic CKGO-AM 730 in Vancouver earlier this year.
