#CKBW-FM
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CKBW-FM
"The sound of the South Shore"
Moving onto a larger station which nonetheless carries on the tradition established so far on this blog of radio stations not chasing after "popular" music or trends, this is CKBW-FM. (This trend will be broken in due time). Getting right into things across the ocean, as I learned when listening live, CKBW is a commercial radio station owned and operated as part of a network by Acadia Broadcasting. It's located and broadcasts in Nova Scotia, Canada, but also broadcasts on different frequencies to Bridgewater and Shelburne nearby. Its formatting is that of a classic hits-dedicated adult station, aimed at a target audience likely to be 50+, especially with how old some of the songs played can be (as will be detailed later). CKBW brands itself as playing classic hits from the 70's, 80's and 90's, further supporting this. It was established all the way back in 1947 and is still running today, hinting at a loyal following and a level of success codified by their 19K following on Facebook.
CKBW has an online presence with their own website, as well as accounts on Twitter and Facebook, though they do not post especially often on either. The website updates with local news from the Nova Scotia area pretty often, showing that the radio station's scope extends beyond just their radio broadcasts.
This focus on Nova Scotia exists within the actual show itself, so let's get into show structure. I listened to CKBW on Tuesday 26 December 2023, between 2-3PM AST, and was treated to the drivetime show with "Drive Home with John Wiles". Presenter John Wiles had several links sprinkled throughout the show about a minute long each, but he had a way of packing a lot of info or content into each link despite the shortened time. These links were either conversational, posing various questions to viewers that could be answered by texting in, or featured talk about whatever is topical at the time- in this instance, of course, subjects surrounding Christmas and the upcoming new year. The branding of the show as a classic hits station comes through quite effectively- every tune I listened to, be it Take on Me by A-ha (1985), Doesn't really matter by Platinum Blonde (1983), Dream On by Aerosmith (1973) or Two Princes by Spin Doctors (1991) were hit tunes that came out between 1970 and 2000, exactly as advertised by the station itself. It stays true to its principles without variation, and does have some Canadian music artists (like aforementioned Platinum Blonde) included.
Despite not all the artists played on the station being Canadian, CKBW still manages to retain a local feel due to regularly featuring weather updates for the Nova Scotia area quarterly across the hour, and advertisements on the station regularly feature businesses in the area as well such as Nova Scotia Building Supplies.
Given CKBW is, according to its slogan, The Sound of the South Shore, it's good to see that despite sticking to the classic hits format, it still finds time to live up to that slogan and be helpful to the locals of the South Shore area (of which Nova Scotia is a part). I personally found the show to be engaging, with the presenter's banter between links to be entertaining, helping to keep the show going without monotony, and I find the station's music selection is very good at recalling a sense of nostalgia for older songs, no doubt a deliberate effect CKBW wishes to invoke from its stated adult audiences.
So all this in mind, it's clear to me why CKBW has lasted as long as it has. Its music selection, focus on local content for adverts and weather and fun short-but-sweet links between songs all combine to create a perfect formula for success. If you want to try this formula for yourself, you can find CKBW and listen via their website here:
References:
Castlensbs.com (Date N/A) Welcome to Chester Building Supplies Ltd.& Nova Scotia Building Supplies (1982) Ltd. [Online] Available at: http://castlensbs.com [Accessed 26/12/2023]
ckbw.ca (Date N/A) CKBW [Online] Available at: https://www.ckbw.ca [Accessed 26/12/2023]
facebook.com (Date N/A) CKBW South Shore Radio [Online] Available at: https://www.facebook.com/CKBWRadio/ [Accessed 26/12/2023]
wikipedia.org (Last edited 31/9/2022) CKBW-FM [Online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CKBW-FM [Accessed 26/12/2023]
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