CHOM-FM
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| City of license | Montreal, Quebec |
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| Broadcast area | Greater Montreal Area |
| Branding | CHOM 97-7 |
| Slogan | The Spirit of Rock |
| Frequency | 97.7 MHz |
| First air date | July 16, 1963 (as CKGM-FM) October 19, 1970 (as CHOM-FM) |
| Format | Mainstream rock |
| ERP | 41,000 watts |
| Class | C1 |
| Transmitter coordinates | 45°30′20.16″N 73°35′30.12″W / 45.5056°N 73.5917°W |
| Callsign meaning | Arbitrary coinage |
| Owner | Astral Media |
| Sister stations | CJAD, CJFM |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | CHOM 97.7 |
CHOM-FM is an English language radio station located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Owned and operated by Astral Media, it broadcasts on 97.7 MHz from the Mount Royal candelabra tower, with an effective radiated power of 41,200 watts (class C1) using an omnidirectional antenna.
The station has a mainstream rock format since 2009, when the station segued from classic rock, which the station had from 2002-2009. It uses the brand name CHOM, and is sometimes pronounced /ˈʃoʊm/ "shoam" as if it were a French word, but other Astral Media Radio personalities have also pronounced it as /ˈtʃɒm/ "chom".
[edit] History
CKGM-FM, as the station was originally known, was founded by Geoff Sterling as a sister station to AM station CKGM, and opened on July 16, 1963. After a few weeks as a simulcast of CKGM, CKGM-FM launched a beautiful music format on September 1, 1963.
On October 28, 1969, CKGM-FM changed its format to album-oriented rock. The first song played after the format switch was Richard Strauss' "Also Sprach Zarathustra", followed by The Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun".[1] The station would change its call sign to CHOM-FM almost two years later, on October 19, 1971.[2]
In 1974, CHOM-FM proposed to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission a plan in which the station would become bilingual (English/French). The CRTC accepted this plan but only on an experimental basis that would last three years; it also blocked a plan to implement quadraphonic broadcasting. In 1977, the station was forced by the CRTC to opt between the two languages, and after considering becoming a French-language station, it finally reverted back to English full-time.
CHOM-FM became increasingly popular, and in 1979 surpassed sister station CKGM in Bureau of Broadcast Measurement ratings. Both stations were sold to CHUM Limited on August 20, 1985.
The 1993 loss of popular morning man Terry DiMonte to Mix 96, combined with new competition from American modern rock station 99.9 The Buzz in 1996, resulted in a decline in ratings which the station tried to stop by acquiring rights to the syndicated show of shock jock Howard Stern. Stern made his debut on CHOM-FM on September 2, 1997 amid much controversy as he launched himself on his very first show heard in Montreal in an anti-Francophone/anti-French tirade. His show was dumped a year later, on August 27, 1998, after numerous complaints to the CRTC about politically incorrect remarks interpreted by complainants as sexist and homophobic, despite the fact that the show ran on a tape delay with more controversial comments being censored, which sometimes resulted in minutes of dead air. While the CRTC did not take any actions against CHOM-FM, it is generally believed that owner CHUM Limited feared other projects could be hampered by them having such a controversial host on one of their stations.
The station was sold to Standard Broadcasting, which already owned CJAD and CJFM-FM in Montreal, effective in January 2002 in exchange for Standard's CFWM-FM in Winnipeg. As a result, CHOM-FM moved from Westmount to downtown Montreal. This ownership change was promptly followed in February by a format change to classic rock and the return of DiMonte as morning man, which resulted in ratings improvements.
Ownership changed hands again when on October 29, 2007, Astral Media took control of Standard Broadcasting and its assets.
Most recently, the station added more 1990s and 2000s (mostly from 2000-2004) rock songs by September 2009, bringing them back to a mainstream rock station. Post-2005 songs on the station are mostly Canadian content.
On February 1, 2010, the station changed its logo and newer alternative rock artists to the playlist; however, classic rock staples from the 1960s and 1970s will still be played.
On October 19, 2010, CHOM-FM celebrated its 40th anniversary as a radio station.
On June 22, 2011, it was announced that Terry DiMonte will be making a return to the station, however it is unlikely that he and Ted Bird will reunite on air.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.marcdenis.com/ckgm-history.asp
- ^ http://www.marcdenis.com/ckgm-history.asp
- ^ http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/Radio+host+Terry+DiMonte+returning+CHOM/4988946/story.html
[edit] External links
- CHOM 97.7
- CHOM-FM history at Canadian Communications Foundation
- Query the REC's Canadian station database for CHOM-FM
- CHOM 97.7 on FindRadio
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