Many thanks to SWLing Post contributors Richard Cuff and Markku Koskinen who share the following (sad) news:
900 CHML closes, ending nearly a century of local radio in Hamilton (Toronto Star)
Station pointed to financial losses as major reason behind closure
A mainstay of Hamilton’s airwaves for almost a century has gone off the air.
900 CHML announced on social media on Wednesday that the radio station would be closing after many years of providing the city and surrounding area with local talk-radio programming.
“This decision, though incredibly difficult, has been made after careful consideration and is necessary following years of financial loss,” read the post.
“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,” added the post. [Continue read at the Star…]
What a shame. I grew up in the area in the 50’s and 60’s and my parents used to listen to them for news and information. Very sad.
The vast majority of people don’t understand the crucial role that AM radio plays. They say “I’ll just get my info online”. That’s fine until there’s a major power outage. If I want to check the status of a major weather event, I’ll go on AM and find a station several hundred miles away that is experiencing the storm. Even with a catastrophic major outage affecting a number of states, AM stations will still be on the air. I hope that a media group finds a way to keep CHML on the air.