CBLT-DT
 | |
| |
|---|---|
| Channels | |
| Branding | CBC Toronto |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations | CBC Television |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |
| CBLFT-DT,CBL-FM,CBLA-FM | |
| History | |
First air date | September 8, 1952 |
Former call signs | CBLT (1952–2011) |
Former channel number(s) | Analogue:9 (VHF,1952–1956), 6 (VHF, 1956–1972), 5 (VHF, 1972–2011) |
Call signmeaning | CBCGreat LakesTelevision |
| Technical information | |
Licensing authority | CRTC |
| ERP | 106.9 kW |
| HAAT | 491.0 m (1,611 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 43°38′33″N79°23′14″W/ 43.64250°N 79.38722°W |
| Links | |
| Website | CBC Toronto |
CBLT-DT(channel 5) is atelevision stationinToronto, Ontario,Canada, serving as theflagship stationof the English-language service ofCBC Television.It is part of atwinstickwithIci Radio-Canada TéléoutletCBLFT-DT(channel 25). The two stations share studios at theCanadian Broadcasting CentreonFront Street Westindowntown Toronto,which is also shared with national cable news channelCBC News Networkand houses the studios for most of the CBC's news and entertainment programs. CBLT-DT's transmitter is located atop theCN Tower.
History
[edit]
The station first signed on the air on September 8, 1952, originally broadcasting onVHFchannel 9. It is the oldest television station in the province of Ontario, and the second oldest in Canada after Ici Radio-Canada Télé flagship stationCBFTinMontreal.The station's first broadcast was prefaced by the inadvertent incorrect display of the CBC's national network logo; conflicting accounts say it was either displayed upside-down or backwards, due to the incorrect insertion of the slide. No such error was made two days earlier when CBFT signed on.[1][2]
CBLT originally broadcast from a series of smaller studios with the main one on Mutual Street nicknamed unofficially as "The Barn" next to thetransmitter tower(the old management building, nicknamed "The Kremlin", is now part of theNational Ballet Schoolon Jarvis Street). On January 19, 1953, a microwave link betweenBuffalo, New Yorkand Toronto was activated, allowing the live telecast of programs from the American television networks. A few months later, on May 14, 1953, CBC Television's stations in Montreal (CBFT) andOttawa(CBOT) became the first connections within theTrans-Canada Microwavesystem.
In 1956, CBLT moved to VHF channel 6 and increased itseffective radiated powerfrom 25 to 100 kW. The change in frequency was made to accommodate the eventual licensing of a second privately owned local station for Toronto, which eventually becameCFTO(channel 9) when that station was licensed at the end of 1960. Then in 1972, CBLT relocated to channel 5 in order to allow two new stations – CKGN (nowCIII-DT) inParisand a repeater of Ottawa-basedCJOHinDeseronto– to use channel 6.[3]
CBLT moved its transmitter facilities to theCN Towerwhen it opened in 1976; its signal was transmitted from the tower for the first time on May 31, 1976. It moved its operations to theCanadian Broadcasting CentreonFront Streetin 1992.
Branding
[edit]
CBLT has used a variety of on-air brands since its inception. From 1957 to 1972, it was known as "Channel 6". Following its move to channel 5 in 1972, it rebranded as "CBLT Five", later simplifying it to "CBLT/5". In the late 1970s, the station was branded as "Toronto/5", with the then-new CBC logo substituting for one of the O's in "Toronto". During the 1980s, it was known mainly as CBLT-TV, although it used a "CBC 5" logo. Starting on January 1, 1986, the station was identified in print ads as "CBC Television Toronto/5", but the CBLT name was used for its local programs including its supper hour newscastCBLT Newshour.By the 1990s, it was known simply as "CBC Toronto", although the CBLT calls were used from time to time in local programming, and on the CBC website. As with most Canadian television stations, the use of the analogue channel placement was phased out of the station's logo and advertising, as most cable placements did not match up with its VHF frequency.
News operation
[edit]CBLT-DT currently broadcasts 10 hours, 40 minutes of locally produced newscasts each week (with two hours each weekday, a half-hour on Saturdays and ten minutes on Sundays); in regards to the number of hours devoted to news programming, it is the lowest local newscast output out of any English-language television station in the immediate Toronto market and the second lowest among the stations in the expanded Toronto–Hamilton–Barriemarket as a whole (behindCTV 2owned-and-operated stationCKVR-DT,which airs seven hours of newscasts each week). CBLT's newscasts have consistently faced very stiff competition in the Toronto market, consistently rating behindCTVstation CFTO since it surged to the number one spot in 1970, and behindCITY-TV(channel 57) since 1982.
On September 10, 1984, CBLT debuted one of the only locally produced morning television programs in Canada,CBLT Morning,which aired weekdays from 7 to 9 a.m. The program was co-hosted byDale Goldhawkand Leslie Jones, with news reported by Kevin Marsh.[4]At the time of the program's cancellation on April 4, 1986, it was watched by 20,000 viewers, more than the Canadian viewership ofABC'sGood Morning America,but less than that of CTV'sCanada AM.[5]
In the spring of 1995, according toBBM Canada,CBLT's evening newscastCBC Evening Newshad a total audience of 117,000 viewers in the Toronto-Hamilton market, putting it in fourth place behindGlobal Newson CIII at 141,000, CITY'sCityPulseat 229,000, and CFTO'sWorld Beat Newsat 409,000. OnlyCHCH(channel 11), the only other station based in the Toronto–Hamilton market with a 6 p.m. newscast, had lower viewership at 77,000 viewers.
On October 15, 2011, CBLT debuted a half-hour 6 p.m. newscast on Saturdays; the station then launched a ten-minute news bulletin on Sundays at 11 p.m. the following day. A 30-minute newscast at 11 p.m. on weeknights was introduced on September 17, 2012. The additional local newscasts were part of a five-year strategic plan by the CBC called "2015: Everyone, Every Way", which featured local service improvements across the CBC's television, radio and internet platforms.[6]
Notable current on-air staff
[edit]- Dwight Drummond– weeknight anchor
Notable former on-air staff
[edit]- Guido Basso–music director(1963–1967)
- Hilary Brown– anchor ofNewshour(1984–1991)
- Bill Cameron– news anchor (1992–1995)
- Sharon Dunn– anchor ofNewshourandNewsfinal/host ofReach for the Top(1979–1984)
- Dale Goldhawk– co-host ofCBLT Morning(1984–1986)
- Bill Harrington– legislative reporter
- Ross Hull– meteorologist (2013–2014)
- Fraser Kelly– co-host ofNewshour(1981–1986)
- Jeffrey Kofman– anchor/reporter
- Claire Martin– weeknight meteorologist
- Anne-Marie Mediwake– weeknights anchor (2010–2016)
- Suhana Meharchand– news anchor (1995–2022)
- Steve Paikin– Queen's Park correspondent
- Percy Saltzman– CBLT's first weather person (1952–1972)
- Alex Trebek– news anchor/host ofReach for the Top(1962–1974)
- Adam Vaughan– reporter (1994–2000)
Technical information
[edit]Subchannel
[edit]| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming[7] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5.1 | 720p | 16:9 | CBLT-DT | Main CBLT-DT programming /CBC Television |
Analogue-to-digital conversion
[edit]On January 30, 2004, theCanadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission(CRTC) granted CBLT permission to broadcast a digital signal on UHF channel 20; CBLT's began broadcasting programming inhigh definitionon March 5, 2005.
CBLT shut down its analogue signal, over VHF channel 5, on August 31, 2011, the official date on which Canadian television stations in CRTC-designated mandatorymarketstransitioned from analogue to digital broadcasts.The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 20,[8]usingvirtual channel5.
Coverage
[edit]The station's signal from its CN Tower transmitter adequately covers the immediateGreater Toronto Area,fromOshawain the east, out toHalton HillsandGeorgetownin the west, and from Hamilton andNiagara Fallsin the south, to roughlyBradford.
In addition, CBLT serves as the default CBC Television station for cable and satellite subscribers in markets previously served over-the-air by CBLT's rebroadcast transmitters (seebelow), as well as theThunder BayandPeterboroughtelevision markets, afterCKPR-DTin Thunder Bay disaffiliated from the network September 1, 2014, andCHEX-DTin Peterborough and its sister stationCHEX-TV-2in Oshawa both followed August 31, 2015, in both cases to become affiliates of the CTV Television Network.
The station is also carried on cable in several American communities, similar to sister stationsCBUTinVancouver,CBETinWindsorand CBMT in Montreal.
Former transmitters
[edit]CBLT served much of Ontario through a network of over 35 rebroadcast transmitters, including all ofNortheastern Ontarioand most ofSouthwestern Ontario,with the exception of Windsor since CBET-DT serves the Windsor area. The station only servedSouthern Ontarioand a few ruralNorthern Ontariocommunities until 2002, when it took over the CBC affiliates of theMCTVtwinstick.[9]CBLGT inGeraldtonand the CBLAT transmitters had operated since the early 1970s, while others were added as other CBC affiliates disaffiliated from the network or were bought by the CBC.
On August 16, 2011, the CRTC granted the CBC permission to continue operating 22 analogue repeaters within mandatory markets, including those inLondonandKitchener.These analogue transmitters were given an extension until August 31, 2012, to continue in operation, by which time the transmitters had to be converted to digital or shut down. The CBC did not seek an extension for its Barrie transmitter, which it shut down on August 31, 2011; however, the remaining satellite rebroadcast stations remained in operation.
Reportedly due to federal funding reductions to the CBC in April 2012, the CBC made substantial cuts to their transmitting budget, including shutting down the CBC's and Radio-Canada's remaining analogue transmitters on July 31, 2012.[10]This included shutting down all the remaining CBC and Radio-Canada's rebroadcasters that had been "held over" using analogue transmitters during 2011–12. All of them have been decommissioned by the CBC, leaving rural Canadians and U.S. border regions with no free over-the-air CBC coverage, and those viewers have been instructed to subscribe to a cable or satellite provider or have been directed to the website available through pay internet providers.[11]
Rebroadcasters of CBLT
[edit]| City of licence[12] | Call sign[13] | Channel | ERP (W) |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attawapiskat | CBLET | 12 (VHF) | 10 | Originally a repeater ofCFCL-TV/Timminsuntil that station became a CBLT repeater in 2002. |
| Beardmore | CBLAT-5 | 9 (VHF) | 8 | |
| Chapleau | CBCU-TV | 7 (VHF) | 101 | Originally a repeater of CFCL-TV/Timmins until that station became a CBLT repeater in 2002. |
| Elliot Lake | CBEC-TV | 7 (VHF) | 34,000 | Formerly CKNC-TV-1; originally a repeater ofCKNC-TV/Sudburyuntil that station became a CBLT repeater in 2002. |
| Fort Albany | CBLDT | 8 (VHF) | 491 | Originally a repeater of CFCL-TV/Timmins until that station became a CBLT repeater in 2002. |
| Fort Hope | CBLHT | 12 (VHF) | 10 | This transmitter once repeatedCBC NorththroughCBNTofSt. John's, NL |
| Fraserdale | CBLCT | 7 (VHF) | 10 | Originally a repeater of CFCL-TV/Timmins until that station became a CBLT repeater in 2002. |
| Geraldton | CBLGT | 13 (VHF) | 22,000 | Formerly CBLAT |
| Hearst | CBCC-TV | 5 (VHF) | 5,300 | Originally a repeater of CFCL-TV/Timmins until that station became a CBLT repeater in 2002. |
| Hornepayne | CBLAT-6 | 13 (VHF) | 30,000 | |
| Huntsville | CBLT-TV-2 | 8 (VHF) | 115 | Formerly CKVR-TV-2, originally repeated present-dayCTV 2affiliateCKVR-TV/Barrie |
| Kapuskasing | CBLT-9 | 2 (VHF) | 17 | Originally a repeater of CFCL-TV/Timmins until that station became a CBLT repeater in 2002. |
| Kearns | CBLT-8 | 2 (VHF) | 70,000 | Also servedRouyn-Noranda,Quebecin lieu ofCBMTMontreal;originally a repeater of CFCL-TV/Timmins until that station became a CBLT repeater in 2002. |
| Little Current | CBCE-TV | 16 (UHF) | 23,700 | |
| Manitouwadge | CBLAT-1 | 8 (VHF) | 22,000 | |
| Marathon | CBLAT-4 | 11 (VHF) | 7,500 | |
| Moosonee | CBCO-TV-1 | 9 (VHF) | 9 | Originally a repeater of CFCL-TV/Timmins until that station became a CBLT repeater in 2002. |
| Nipigon | CBLK-TV | 16 (UHF) | 2,300 | Originally a CBC-owned repeater of CBC private affiliateCKPR-TV/Thunder Bay(currently aCTVaffiliate) |
| North Bay | CBLT-4 | 4 (VHF) | 100 | Operated as CHNB-TV, a separate station from 1955 to 1970, then it became part of theMCTV-CBCregional network from 1970 until the CBC's acquisition in 2002. |
| Parry Sound | CBLT-TV-3 | 18 (UHF) | 50 | The CBLT repeater was launched on channel 18 on September 1, 1995[14]the same dayCKVR/Barrie disaffiliated from the CBC and kept its channel 12 repeater at Parry Sound as an independent station.[15] |
| Sault Ste. Marie | CBLT-5 | 5 (VHF) | 37,900 | Operated as CJIC-TV, a separate station from 1955 to 1970, then it became part of theMCTV-CBCregional network from 1970 until the CBC's acquisition in 2002. This repeater also provided analogue service to the easternmost portions ofMichigan'sUpper Peninsulain the United States. |
| Sudbury | CBLT-6 | 9 (VHF) | 115,500 | Operated as CKNC-TV, a part of theMCTV-CBCregional network from 1971 until the CBC's acquisition in 2002. |
| Timmins | CBLT-7 | 6 (VHF) | 100,000 | Operated as CFCL-TV, a separate station from 1956 to 1970, then it became part of theMCTV-CBCregional network from 1970 until the CBC's acquisition in early 2002. |
| Wawa | CBLAT-3 | 9 (VHF) | 16,000 | |
| White River | CBLAT-2 | 12 (VHF) | 304 |
Rebroadcasters of CBLN-TV
[edit]The following is a list of transmitters that originally rebroadcast London, Ontario-based CBC outlet CBLN-TV. CBLN-TV first signed on in 1988 as a CBC outlet for southwestern Ontario outside of Windsor, broadcasting on UHF channel 40, replacingCFPL-TVas an affiliate. CBLN-TV carried local advertising and very few programming variations, but otherwise produced no programming of its own and was ade factorebroadcaster of CBLT.
| City of licence[12][16] | Call sign | UHF Channel[16] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chatham | CBLN-TV-3 | 64 | |
| London | CBLN-TV | 23[17] | Began operation in 1988; formerly on channel 40 |
| Normandale | CBLN-TV-6 | 44 | |
| Paris/Kitchener/Waterloo | CBLN-TV-1 | 29[17] | Formerly on UHF channel 56 |
| Sarnia/Oil Springs (Port Huron, Michigan) |
CBLN-TV-2 | 34 | |
| Wiarton | CBLN-TV-5 | 20 | |
| Wingham | CBLN-TV-4 | 45 | ReplacedCKNX-TVas a CBC affiliate |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^"Canadian Communications Foundation – Fondation Des Communications Canadiennes".Archived fromthe originalon September 30, 2007.RetrievedFebruary 26,2007.
- ^"The First Image on CBC English Television in Canada Was an Upside Down Station Id-Slide".January 27, 2018.
- ^"2 new TV channels allotted".The Windsor Star.Windsor, Ontario, Canada. October 4, 1968. p. 1.RetrievedJune 10,2022– via Newspapers.com.
- ^McLean, Ross (September 22, 1984). "New morning show off to shaky start". The Globe and Mail. p. P13.
- ^"News, drama programs saved from knife". Globe and Mail. April 4, 1986. p. A18.
- ^CBC Toronto Launches Expanded Weekend News ServiceArchivedDecember 4, 2011, at theWayback Machine,Broadcaster Magazine,October 14, 2011.
- ^RabbitEars TV Query for CBLT
- ^Digital Television – Office of Consumer Affairs (OCA)ArchivedNovember 20, 2013, at theWayback Machine
- ^Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2002-303
- ^Speaking notes for Hubert T. Lacroix regarding measures announced in the context of the Deficit Reduction Action Plan
- ^CBC-TV, TVO end analog transmission
- ^abTV & Cable Factbook(65th ed.).Washington, D.C.:Warren Communications News. 1997. p. B-308 and B-309.
- ^“Microsoft Word - Analogue transmitters - emetteurs analogiques.docx”.CBC/Radio-Canada.Retrieved November 5, 2019.
- ^Decision CRTC 94-744,Applications to establish new rebroadcasting transmitters of CBLT Toronto at Barrie, Huntsville and Parry Sound - Approved,CRTC,September 14, 1994
- ^Decision CRTC 94-745,Disaffiliation of CKVR-TV Barrie from the CBC English-language television network - approved,CRTC,September 14, 1994
- ^abCBLN 40 Sign-Off 1993.capnvid47.Archivedfrom the original on December 21, 2021 – viaYouTube.
- ^abARCHIVED - Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2011-494CRTC.August 16, 2011.
External links
[edit]- CBC Toronto official website
- CBLT-DTat The History of Canadian Broadcasting by theCanadian Communications Foundation
- CBLTin the REC Canadian station database