Canadian Student Station CKMS to Cease Broadcasting

Back in 2008 I wrote a few pieces about the situation at Canadian college radio station CKMS and haven't really followed their plight since then. Well, it turns out that after they lost funding from the University of Waterloo in 2008, the station revamped itself a bit and continued under the name SoundFM.

This week they again attempted to gain school funding via a referendum presented to students. Students were asked if they would pay a refundable $2.50 fee (less than what students paid in the past to fund the station) in order to help support the radio station.

Well, the referendum lost yesterday, with only about 18% of students voting.

Yesterday SoundFM announced that the station will cease broadcasting on December 4, 2009. According to a statement on their website, they would like to continue operating as a radio station and supporters are encouraged to contact them:

"If any campus or community members would like to share any ideas or support please get in contact with the President of the Board of Directors, Steve Krysak.

We will be holding a general meeting in two weeks time, with a location and exact date to be announced, to discuss potential options for continuing broadcast and get feedback from SoundFM supporters in the campus and community. You do not have to be a SoundFM member to attend this meeting."

I'm always going to be on the side of keeping radio on campus and I hope that CKMS/SoundFM figures out a way to continue operating; especially since radio dates back to the 1960s on campus.

It saddens me to read in various articles that student apathy and lack of interest in radio (and reliance on iPods) are a few reasons for the station's demise.