CKUA Radio Network
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| Broadcast area | Alberta |
|---|---|
| Slogan | Original radio |
| Frequency | Various FM frequencies |
| First air date | November 21, 1927 |
| Format | public broadcaster; jazz, classical, news, local artists, eclectic |
| Power | see chart |
| Class | see chart |
| Callsign meaning | Canada K University of Alberta |
| Former frequencies | 580 kHz |
| Owner | CKUA Radio Foundation (non-profit) |
| Website | CKUA |
CKUA is a Canadian radio station. Originally located at the University of Alberta in Edmonton (hence the UA of the call letters), CKUA was the first public broadcaster in Canada. It now broadcasts from studios in downtown Edmonton, and as of fall 2016 out of a studio in Calgary located at the National Music Centre. CKUA broadcasts on 16 FM frequencies across Alberta (see "Frequency" in Infobox sidebar).
CKUA was created in 1927 through a provincial grant which allowed the University of Alberta's Extension Department to purchase the licence of CFCK. CKUA and also the first radio station to offer educational radio programming, including music concerts, poetry readings, and university lectures. From 1930 to 1931 the station was an affiliate of the CNR Radio network. CKUA was operated from 1945 until 1974 by Alberta Government Telephones. The crown corporation, Alberta Educational Communications Corporation (later known as Access), assumed ownership of the station in 1974. In 1994, Access sold the CKUA network to the non-profit CKUA Radio Foundation for $10.
On March 20, 1997 the station went off the air for five weeks due to political squabbles, poor financial management, and attempts at privatization. The station restarted broadcasting on April 25, 1997 after control was given to the public from directors appointed by the provincial government. As of 2005, more than two-thirds of the station's funding came from its listeners in the form of donations.
CKUA is considered a cultural icon by many musicians throughout Canada. The station's practice of supporting local, independent, and non-commercial artists has helped launch the careers of such renowned musicians as k.d. lang, Jann Arden, and Bruce Cockburn. In addition, CKUA has contributed to the careers of Arthur Hiller, Robert Goulet, and Tommy Banks, among others. Throughout the 1930s an early radio drama series, CKUA Players, was produced out of the station and broadcast throughout Western Canada by a network of stations.
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