call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally ass ...
of the
CBC Radio One
CBC Radio One is the English-language news and information radio network of the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial-free and offers local and national programming. It is available on AM and FM to 98 percent of C ...
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada. CBEW broadcasts from transmission facilities at McGregor and also reaches the nearby
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
area and parts of Southwestern Ontario through relay transmitters in
Sarnia
Sarnia is a city in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada. It had a 2021 population of 72,047, and is the largest city on Lake Huron. Sarnia is located on the eastern bank of the junction between the Upper and Lower Great Lakes where Lake Huron f ...
.
History
The station first aired in 1935 as CRBC station CRCW 600 AM, which broadcast until 1938 (changing its call sign to CBW in 1937 after the CRBC became the CBC). Between 1938 and 1950, CBC Radio programming was aired on private affiliate
CKLW
CKLW (800 AM) is a commercial radio station in Windsor, Ontario, serving Southwestern Ontario and Metro Detroit. CKLW has a news/ talk format. It features local hosts in morning and afternoon drive times, with syndicated Canadian hosts ...
. A CBC-owned station was subsequently relaunched in 1950 using the CBE
call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally ass ...
and 1550 frequency. Regional FM rebroadcasters were added in 1977.
On May 9, 2008, the CRTC approved the station's application to launch a low-power nested FM
rebroadcaster
A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater (two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tra ...
(CBE-1-FM) in Windsor, at 102.3 FM. Six months later, on November 13, 2008, the CBC applied to the CRTC to convert CBE from the AM band to the FM band at 97.5 FM, to revoke its previous request for CBE-1, and to include a new FM rebroadcaster in Leamington on 91.9 FM (which was originally planned for 91.5 FM but was moved due to conflict with Windsor station
CJAM-FM
CJAM-FM (99.1 MHz) is a Canadian campus radio station broadcasting at 99.1 FM from the University of Windsor campus in Windsor, Ontario.
CJAM is an active member of the National Campus and Community Radio Association, and hosted the 2008 Nati ...
which, until October 2009, was also on 91.5). The new 97.5 FM main signal would broadcast with a directional antenna to the southeast, to avoid interference with two other stations at 97.5,
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
's
CIQM-FM
CIQM-FM is a radio station broadcasting at 97.5 FM broadcasting, FM in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada, branded as ''97.5 Virgin Radio''. The station airs a contemporary hit radio, CHR/Top 40 radio format, format. CIQM is owned by Bell M ...
and
Lansing
Lansing () is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is mostly in Ingham County, although portions of the city extend west into Eaton County and north into Clinton County. The 2020 census placed the city's population at 112,644, maki ...
,
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...
's WJIM-FM.
On June 16, 2009, CBE received approval for its conversion to 97.5 FM and for its Leamington repeater.Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2009-349 /ref> Originally, no time frame was given for the AM to FM transition, though after the new FM signal would sign on, the AM signal was to go silent after three months of simulcasting, with the repeater signal at 102.3 to close within thirty days of the start-up of the 97.5 signal. That decision came following the CRTC approval for CJAM to relocate to 99.1 in March 2009. The 97.5 facilities began testing on December 1, 2010, the start of a 7-month testing stage that also included resolving issues between the new signal and second-adjacent stations in
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
(
WXYT-FM
WXYT-FM (97.1 MHz "97-1 The Ticket") is a commercial radio station in Detroit, Michigan, serving Metro Detroit and much of Southeast Michigan. It airs a sports radio format and is owned by Audacy, Inc. Its studios and offices are located i ...
97.1 and
WJLB
WJLB (97.9 FM) is a radio station in Detroit, Michigan. Owned by iHeartMedia, it broadcasts an urban contemporary format.
WJLB's studios are located in Farmington Hills. WJLB's transmitter is located in Highland Park near the intersection o ...
97.9). The station officially launched on July 1, 2011"Nassau Exits New England" ''NorthEast Radio Watch'', July 4, 2011. (CBC Windsor Community Blog) under the
call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally ass ...
of CBEW-FM (which was the call sign for a defunct CBC radio transmitter in Fraserdale).
In accordance with the original transition plans, the CBC announced that CBE would close down on September 30, 2011. Sometime after midnight on October 1, 2011, without fanfare, CBE's 10,000-watt Class-A 1550 AM signal was either powered down or shutdown. According to Scott Fybush's Northeast Radio Watch, CBE 1550 AM's sign-off happened without fanfare; indeed, the scheduled midnight end to CBE was extended out for a bit as the station came back on and off the air several times before finally dropping audio at 12:25 a.m. October 1, leaving just a dead carrier on 1550 AM.
In May 2012, the CBC filed a request with the CRTC to move Windsor's Première Chaîne station
CBEF
CBEF (1550 AM) is a non-commercial radio station in Windsor, Ontario. It airs the programming of Radio-Canada's Première network.
CBEF is a Class A station broadcasting on the clear-channel frequency of 1550 AM, and is the only full power s ...
to CBE's former frequency and transmitter, owing to potential issues with the age of the facilities and
rust
Rust is an iron oxide, a usually reddish-brown oxide formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen in the catalytic presence of water or air moisture. Rust consists of hydrous iron(III) oxides (Fe2O3·nH2O) and iron(III) oxide-hydroxide (FeO( ...
found on its tower in August 2011. The move was approved by the CRTC on October 16, 2012. The move would bring programming back to 1550 for the first time since CBE's sign-off.
Local programming
CBEW produces the local morning program ''Windsor Morning'', hosted by Nav Nanwa."Revolving Door" ''Broadcast Dialogue'', May 5, 2022.
Prior to 2015, the station produced the local afternoon program ''The Bridge'', hosted by Bob Steele. In 2015 that program was renamed ''Afternoon Drive'', expanded its focus to cover much of the
Southwestern Ontario
Southwestern Ontario is a secondary region of Southern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario. It occupies most of the Ontario Peninsula bounded by Lake Huron, including Georgian Bay, to the north and northwest; the St. Clair River, Lake ...
region, and was added to the schedule of the network's
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
station
CBCL-FM
CBCL-FM is a Canadian radio station in London, Ontario, broadcasting at 93.5 FM.
It is the city's CBC Radio One station. Their studio is located in downtown London in the Central branch of the London Public Library while its transmitter is ...
; in 2017, the program's production was moved to London, concurrently with the launch of a new local morning program on that station."Changes afoot at CBC Radio's Afternoon Drive" CBC News, June 6, 2017. The program is now hosted by Chris dela Torre.
Rebroadcasters
Former repeater, now shut down:
The 102.3 frequency is now used by CINA-FM, which signed on in September 2012.