CHOZ-FM is a Canadian
radio station
Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...
based in
St. John's,
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic Canada, Atlantic region. The province comprises t ...
. Its main St. John's transmitter broadcasts at 94.7
MHz
The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...
, with additional transmitters located throughout the island. The station, known as ''OZFM'', is one of the various
media
Media may refer to:
Communication
* Media (communication), tools used to deliver information or data
** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising
** Broadcast media, communications delivered over mass e ...
properties of the
Stirling
Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...
family; this includes local
television station
A television station is a set of equipment managed by a business, organisation or other entity, such as an amateur television (ATV) operator, that transmits video content and audio content via radio waves directly from a transmitter on the eart ...
CJON-DT
CJON-DT (channel 21), branded on-air as NTV (short for Newfoundland Television), is an English-language independent television station in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, owned by Newfoundland Broadcasting Company Ltd. The statio ...
.
History
CHOZ launched on June 15, 1977 at 93.9
FM, soon after Geoff Stirling sold his interest in what is now
CJYQ
CJYQ is an AM radio station broadcasting at 930 kHz in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Owned by Stingray Group and airing a country format, the station is currently branded as ''New Country 930''.
History
The station was launche ...
. It was originally a full-time
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
station known as ''Radio OZ, The Rock Of The Rock''. It eventually transitioned into a
CHR/
Classic Rock
Classic rock is a US radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the mid 1990s, prima ...
hybrid fusion type format under the ''OZFM'' brand; nonetheless it kept "The Rock Of The Rock" slogan.
On August 1, 1984, CHOZ was approved to move to 94.7
FM.
The station's success was driven largely by the strength of its morning show, ''The Dawn Patrol'', hosted by Randy Snow, Deborah Birmingham and Larry Jay.
In the summer of 2003, Snow left the Dawn Patrol to join
CKIX-FM
CKIX-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting on 99.1 FM in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. The station currently broadcasts a Top 40/CHR format branded as ''Hot 99.1''. The station is owned by Stingray Group.
History
Launched by CH ...
to host his own morning show. His replacement was Brian O'Connell, who left the
VOCM to join CHOZ.
By 2004, CHOZ began shifting towards
hot adult contemporary
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet ...
, with slogans like "More Music, More Variety" and "Newfoundland's #1 FM Station".
In April 2007, O'Connell took over as station manager for the OZFM Network and host of the daily ''Electric Lunch'' program. Then, O'Connell left CHOZ and now works with
Stingray Radio. Paul Kinsman was O'Connell's on air replacement, joining longtime Dawn Patrol veterans Birmingham and Jay.
On August 17, 2009, CHOZ changed its format to
active rock.
On January 2, 2012, CHOZ flipped back to
hot AC
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet sto ...
, with a new slogan "Today's Best Music". This ended the use of their longtime slogan "The Rock of the Rock". The station also resurrected their longtime heart-rainbow logo that was used from the late 1980s to 2007. The following month, the station surfaced on the
Mediabase
Mediabase is a music industry service that monitors radio station airplay in 180 US and Canadian markets. Mediabase publishes music charts and data based on the most played songs on terrestrial and satellite radio, and provides in-depth analytic ...
Canadian hot AC panel.
In August 2012, Kinsman and Jay left the Dawn Patrol, which was renamed ''The Morning Rush'' and featured a new host, Robert Shawn, alongside the only remaining original host Birmingham. In January 2013, the pair were joined by their former behind the scenes producer, Laura Woodworth. Birmingham left the station in January 2014 and her replacement on the Morning Rush was Stephanie O'Brien, previously with
VOCM-FM
VOCM-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting at 97.5 Hertz, MHz from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. Owned by Stingray Group, the station is branded as ''97.5 K-Rock'' and broadcasts a classic roc ...
. Woodworth left the station in November 2014.
In July 2015, Shawn switched shifts with Stephen Lethbridge. The ''Morning Rush'' was then renamed ''The OZFM Rush''. In December of the same year, Weekend announcer Hugh Campbell joined the Rush. In December 2016, O'Brien went on maternity leave. Shannell Lewis co-hosted the Rush until O'Brien returned in February 2018.
On August 26, 2019, Snow returned to CHOZ after 16 years with
CKIX-FM
CKIX-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting on 99.1 FM in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. The station currently broadcasts a Top 40/CHR format branded as ''Hot 99.1''. The station is owned by Stingray Group.
History
Launched by CH ...
, As a result, the ''OZFM Rush'' became ''The Morning Jam'' with Snow joining O'Brien as the new host, replacing Lethbridge and Campbell. In addition, CHOZ tweaked its format to playing a mix of hits from the 1990s to today, much like many
hot AC
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet sto ...
stations. The station previously had a
top 40
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "cont ...
-leaning playlist. CHOZ became known as ''Newfoundland’s Music Mix, The New OZFM''. In May 2020, the station started to drop the "new" from their moniker. By August 2020, the "new" was removed completely.
Controversy
In January 2011, the
Canadian Broadcast Standards Council
The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) is an industry funded self-regulating organization created by the Canadian Association of Broadcasters to administer standards established by its own members, Canada's private broadcasters.
The coun ...
admonished CHOZ for playing the unedited version of
Dire Straits' "
Money for Nothing", following a complaint from a listener that stated that the song contained the word "
faggot
Faggot, faggots, or faggoting may refer to:
Arts and crafts
* Faggoting (metalworking), forge welding a bundle of bars of iron and steel
* Faggoting (knitting), variation of lace knitting in which every stitch is a yarn over or a decrease
* F ...
", a slur for a homosexual person. Even though the song has won numerous awards and has been played countless times on Canadian radio, the CBSC felt that the unedited version has become unacceptable for airplay, as the term "faggot", which was once an acceptable term, has since become an unacceptable slur. In response to the ruling, at least two stations,
CIRK-FM
CIRK-FM (97.3 FM, ''K-97'') is a radio station in Edmonton, Alberta. Owned by Stingray Group, it broadcasts a classic rock format. CIRK's studios are located inside the West Edmonton Mall, while its transmitter is located at Ellerslie Road and Pr ...
in
Edmonton
Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...
,
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
and
CFRQ-FM
CFRQ-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting at 104.3 FM in Halifax, Nova Scotia. It is owned by Stingray Radio and airs a mainstream rock format. CFRQ uses the on-air brand name ''Q104'' (''The Mighty Q'' or ''The Q'' for short). CFRQ's audi ...
in
Halifax,
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
, played the unedited version of ''Money for Nothing'' repeatedly for one hour out of protest. On January 21, 2011, the CRTC asked the CBSC for a review on the ban, in response to the public outcry against the CBSC's actions; the regulator requested the CBSC to appoint a nationwide panel to review the case, as the decision on the ban was reviewed by a regional panel for the Maritimes and Newfoundland.
On August 31, the CBSC found the slur to be inappropriate; however, due to considerations in regard to its use in context, the CBSC has left it up to the stations to decide whether or not to censor the song. Most of the CBSC panelists thought the slur was inappropriate, but it was used only in a satirical, non-hateful manner.
Transmitters
CJMY and CKMY were previously known as CKCV-FM and CHOS-FM respectively, up to at least 2002. The changes were apparently made to reserve appropriate call signs for ''My FM'', Newfoundland Broadcasting's proposal for a second FM service, which went before the CRTC later that same year. (The licence in question eventually went to a different company as
CKSJ-FM
CKSJ-FM (101.1 MHz, ''Coast 101.1'') is a radio station broadcasting in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Approved by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission in 2003, the station began broadcasting on Februa ...
.)
In 1997, CHOZ added a rebroadcaster at
Stockholm, Saskatchewan with the callsign
CFZY-FM
CFZY-FM was a community radio station which operated at 104.1 Hertz, MHz in Stockholm, Saskatchewan, Stockholm, Saskatchewan, Canada.
History
Local resident Jody Herperger received approval to operate CFZY-FM from the Canadian Radio-television an ...
; the low-powered repeater is locally owned by Jody Herperger. The station was decommissioned in 2007.
In 1998, CHOZ added a rebroadcaster at
Kuujjuaq
Kuujjuaq (; iu, ᑰᑦᔪᐊᖅ, i=no or iu, ᑰᔾᔪᐊᖅ, i=no, label=none, "Great River"), formerly known as and by other names, is a former Hudson's Bay Company outpost at the mouth of the Koksoak River on Ungava Bay that has become ...
, Quebec with the callsign VF2321, owned by
Société Kuujjuamiut.
On November 30, 2012, the stations rebroadcaster at
Red Rocks
Red Rocks Amphitheatre (also colloquially as simply Red Rocks) is an open-air amphitheatre built into a rock structure in the western United States, near Morrison, Colorado, west of Denver. There is a large, tilted, disc-shaped rock behind th ...
, CKSS-FM 96.9 had closed. This transmitter served the
Port aux Basques
Channel-Port aux Basques is a town at the extreme southwestern tip of Newfoundland fronting on the western end of the Cabot Strait. A Marine Atlantic ferry terminal is located in the town which is the primary entry point onto the island of Newfou ...
area. The station has cited the age of the tower and the costs of the upkeep. CHOZ, however, announced plans to reactivate it from another location, pending approval from the CRTC. As of 2018, CRTC approval has never been granted. CHOZ also originally planned to also temporarily close CIOS on the same day, but had second thoughts in doing so, and opted to keep it open from the same location instead. The application to move the CIOS transmitter to a new location has been approved on November 8, 2013.
On September 15, 2015, the CRTC approved a new transmitter for a new CHOZ rebroadcaster in
Gander, CFAZ-FM 97.7, with an
effective radiated power
Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would h ...
(ERP) of 2,800 watts (
effective height of antenna above average terrain
Height above average terrain (HAAT), or (less popularly) effective height above average terrain (EHAAT), is the vertical position of an antenna site is above the surrounding landscape. HAAT is used extensively in FM radio and television, as it is ...
of 137.4 metres). The new transmitter would resolve coverage problems within the Gander area from its
Grand Falls-Windsor
Grand Falls-Windsor is a town located in the central region of the island of Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, with a population of 13,853 at the 2021 census. The town is the largest in the central region, the si ...
outlet CKMY, which offered fringe reception in Gander. CFAZ began broadcasting on August 9, 2016.
CHOZ is simulcast across Canada on
Bell Satellite TV
Bell Satellite TV (french: Bell Télé; formerly known as Bell ExpressVu, Dish Network Canada and ExpressVu Dish Network and not to be confused with Bell's IPTV Fibe TV service) is the division of BCE Inc. that provides satellite television ser ...
channel 951,
[https://www.bell.ca/Styles/tv/all_languages/all_regions/pdfs/U3753%20WHS%20Prog%20Channel-DTH%20ON%20FEB%202016%20E.pdf ] locally on
Rogers Cable channel 925, and in the St. John's area on subchannel 21.2 of
CJON-DT
CJON-DT (channel 21), branded on-air as NTV (short for Newfoundland Television), is an English-language independent television station in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, owned by Newfoundland Broadcasting Company Ltd. The statio ...
.
References
External links
OZFM*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Choz-Fm
Hoz
Hoz