Citytv

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Citytv

Image:Citytv.png
Type	Broadcast television system
Country	Canada
Availability	Most urban areas of Ontario and Alberta, also southwest B.C. and much of Manitoba, also available in Northern United States via digital cable
Owner	CHUM Limited
Key people	Ellen Baine - VP Programming
Launch	September 28, 1972
Past Names	None
Website	www.citytv.com

Citytv is a system of five English language television stations in Canada, owned by the CHUM Limited group.

The stations (CITY in Toronto, CKVU in Vancouver, CHMI in Winnipeg, CKAL in Calgary and CKEM in Edmonton) are treated as independent stations which share common branding and some common programming, and not as a television network.

Moses Znaimer, head of Citytv for many years, once described the system's philosophy by saying, "It's not the show, it's the flow."

Contents 1 History 2 Programming 3 Citytv stations 4 Former Citytv employees 5 External links

History

The original Citytv station (granted callsign CITY-TV by the CRTC) was founded in Toronto in 1972 and began broadcasting for the first time on September 28 of that year. Known through its first decade as channel 79 on the UHF dial, programming shifted to channel 57 in 1983, where it remains to this day.

In 1987 Citytv moved to its current headquarters at the CHUM-City Building, making it one of the most recognizable landmarks in the city.

Citytv gained a second station in Vancouver when CHUM bought CKVU-TV from Global in 2001. The station became Citytv Vancouver on July 22, 2002.

In 2004, CHUM bought Craig Media Inc., parent of the A-Channel system in Manitoba and Alberta. These stations were rebranded as Citytv on August 2, 2005.

Programming

Image:City-logo.jpg Citytv is best known for its unconventional approach to news and local programming. With a lack of a news desk (anchors read the news standing up) and laid-back yet hard-hitting presentation, Citytv's CityNews, formerly known as CityPulse, has developed a large following, and other stations around the world have tried to imitate its format to varying degrees of success.

Citytv (specifically the Toronto station) also produces more local programs than any other television station in Canada, such as Speakers' Corner, CityLine, FashionTelevision, SexTV, and MediaTelevision.

The station also attracted attention and controversy by airing "Baby Blue Movies", or soft-core pornography, on Friday nights after midnight. Although this programming strategy was discontinued in the 1980s, it has recently been reinstated.

As well, CITY was one of the first television stations in Canada to implement a diversity policy in hiring its on-air staff. Znaimer originally described the policy as wanting the station to "look like Toronto".

See also: List of programs broadcast by Citytv

Citytv stations

Image:CityTV Building.JPG

• CITY (Toronto, Ontario)
• CKVU (Vancouver, British Columbia)
• CHMI (Winnipeg, Manitoba)
• CKAL (Calgary, Alberta)
• CKEM (Edmonton, Alberta)

The CTV-owned ASN in Atlantic Canada may also be considered a Citytv "affiliate" of sorts, as it airs a localized version of Breakfast Television and a mix of programming similar to the Citytv stations in Alberta and Manitoba. ASN was previously owned by CHUM and continues to sublicense the Atlantic rights to various CHUM-controlled programmes.

CHUM also owns CKX in Brandon, Manitoba, a CBC affiliate formerly owned by Craig Media, which rebroadcasts some Citytv programming.

CHUM has also licensed the Citytv name and brand identity to local television stations in Bogotá, Colombia (Citytv Bogotá) and Barcelona, Spain (Citytv Barcelona).

Former Citytv employees

• Producer Ivan Reitman (Producer with Citytv Toronto)
• Actor Dan Aykroyd (Citytv Toronto's first on-air announcer)
• Anchorman John Roberts (Hosted Citytv Toronto's The New Music, using the name J.D. Roberts)

External links

• Citytv Toronto
• Citytv Vancouver
• Citytv Winnipeg
• Citytv Edmonton
• Citytv Calgary
• Citytv Bogota
• Citytv Barcelona