Origins

  The foundations for CFCF were laid through a series of experiments with the transmission of electromagnetic signals. The Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company of Canada (hereafter referred to as Canadian Marconi) received a license from the Canadian government to conduct experiments with radio, including the erection and operation of wireless telegraph stations on ships for navigational and commercial purposes. Report of the Department of the Naval Service (the Canadian Department of Marine and Fisheries oversaw radio services at this time), dated 31 March 1915, lists CFCF's predecessor, XWA (Experimental Wireless Apparatus), as the sole experimental "wireless telephony" station.

     Although many place the distinction of "oldest radio station" on KDKA Pittsburgh, an equally strong case can be made for the precedence of XWA. Both stations experimented with broadcasts to local ham operators in 1919, but there are no existing records indicating that signals were received. If the date when scheduled broadcast began is used as a starting point, XWA's broadcast of musical programming on 20 May 1920 occurred six months before KDKA's broadcast of the Harding-Cox election returns on 2 November 1920. XWA's inaugural program featured an orchestra and soloist Dorothy Lutton as part of a special meeting of the Royal Society of Canada at the Chateau Laurier Hotel in Ottawa. It was possible to receive the broadcast as far as Ottawa, more than 100 miles away. XWA was christened CFCF on 4 November 1920.

     Early programming from XWA/CFCF consisted mainly of weather reports and the playing of gramophone records on a wind-up Victrola. CFCF moved into its first real broadcast studios at the Can­ ada Cement Building in Phillips Square in 1922. Performers heard regularly from the Phillips Square location included the dance bands of Joseph Smith from the Mount-Royal Hotel, Andy Tipaldi from the Ritz-Carlton, and Harold Leonard from the Windsor. In 1923 a yacht race from Lake St. Louis was described using a portable hand-held transmitter. Catering to the station's wealthier radio set owners, CFCF made arrangements with The Financial Times to provide bulletins from the Montreal Stock Exchange to be broadcast during the noon hour. By 1923, livestock and financial market reports also appeared.

     In 1927, CFCF participated in the first coast-to-coast network radio experiment in Canada. A number of privately run stations were linked together using the telegraph lines from the Canadian National and Canadian Pacific railways along with local and provincially operated telephone lines. The network was arranged to cover a number of celebrations held in Ottawa to mark Canada's Diamond Jubilee. The broadcast also aired worldwide on CFCF's shortwave station, VE9DR (later CFCX).

     By 1930 Canadian private radio stations began forming affiliate relationships with the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) and the National Broadcasting Company (NBC). Although the American networks used the Canadian stations on a station-by-station and program-by-program basis, the links became more frequent and regular. By 1932 CFCF had permanent affiliate status with NBC. The station's program lineup mixed American programming, such as Miracles of Magnolia, Gloom Chasers, Hotel New Yorker Concert Ensemble, and Amos 'n' Andy with locally produced, sometimes bilingual programming. With the dissolution of the Canadian National Railway's radio service during the 1930s, CFCF's manager (and former CNR employee) Vic George negotiated a deal to use CNR telegraph circuits in the evenings so that stations from as far as London, Ontario and Halifax, Nova Scotia could exchange programming. By the end of World War II, CFCF switched its affiliation to the American Broadcasting Companies (ABC). One of the first ABC broadcasts heard on CFCF was the Saturday afternoon live broadcast from the Metropolitan Opera.

     Between 1922 and 1935, the station moved its studios three times, from Phillips Square to the penthouse of the Mount Royal Hotel and finally to the King's Hall Building on St. Catherine Street East. However, their stay at the King's Hall location was short-lived, as an explosion and fire destroyed the building in January 1948. The station moved to a temporary studio on Cote des Neiges, and variety programs such as Little Players on the Air and The Good Neighbour Club were back on the air in a matter of weeks. The station was forced to move again in 1957 because of another fire. Within days, temporary studios were established in the penthouse of the Dominion Square building until a complete broadcast complex could be built on the 6th floor.

Ownership and Program Changes

In 1968 the federal government passed new legislation limiting foreign ownership of broadcasting entities. Because the owner­ship of Canadian Marconi was held by the English Electric Company of Britain, the company had to divest its holdings and find a new owner. In 1972 the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) approved the ownership of the station by Multiple Access, owned by the sons and daughters of Samuel Bronfman. CFCF remained in the broadcast division of Multiple Access until 31 August r979, at which time Jean Adelard Pouillot purchased CFCF and all of its broadcasting assets. In 1985 CFCF radio moved to the Park Street Extension district in the city's north end, where the television station was located.

     In 1988 the station was purchased by Mount Royal Broadcasting, operated by Pierre Berland and Pierre Arcand. On 1 May 1989 the station relocated downtown to 1200 McGill College Avenue. As a condition of sale, the station had to abandon its call letters in order to differentiate itself from the television broadcaster CFCF-12. The condition was met on 9 September 1991, when CFCF became radio station CIQC. Upon the expiration of their lease in 1996, CIQC moved its studios to Gordon Street in the Montreal suburb of Verdun.

     The change of call letters also resulted in a change of programming format, as the station moved from adult standards to country music. In 1993, CIQC switched formats again, towards a talk radio and community affairs format. The result was an eclectic mix of "Ask the Experts" programs (ranging in topics from automobiles to holistic medicine), phone-in programs featuring local celebrities (including Jim Duff, Ted Tevan, Mitch Melnick and Howard Galganov), and syndicated American programming. The station also broadcasts Montreal Canadiens and Montreal Expos games. However, a dwindling Anglophone population, a weak frequency, and increased competition from rival English language stations eroded CFCF/ CIQC's status within the Montreal radio environment. In late 1998 the station successfully applied to the CRTC to shift its frequency to the vacant, and stronger, 940 AM. The CRTC allowed the station to simulcast its broadcasts on both the 600 and 940 AM frequencies for a period of six months. In December 1999, the station became "News 940" and CIQC's call letters changed to CINW. In August 2000, the company was purchased by the Corns Entertainment company and has retained its all-news format.