CHTZ-FM

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CHTZ
City of license	St. Catharines, Ontario
Broadcast area	St. Catharines, Ontario/Buffalo, New York
Branding	97.7 HTZ (Hits) FM
Slogan	"Southern Ontario's Best Rock"
First air date	1949
Frequency	97.7
Format	active rock
Power	100,000 watts
ERP	100 Kw
Class	C
Callsign meaning	HiTZ = Hits
Owner	Standard Broadcasting
Website	CHTZ

CHTZ is a radio station in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. The station airs at 97.7 on the FM dial, and broadcasts an active rock format with the brand name HTZ (Hits) FM.

The station launched in 1949 as an FM simulcast of the city's CKTB. The station later launched distinct programming, and adopted a country music format with the new callsign CJQR in 1979. Niagara District Broadcasting, the owner of CKTB and CJQR, was acquired by Standard Broadcasting in 1980.

The station subsequently adopted its current callsign and a contemporary hit radio format in 1986.

In 1998, the station was sold to Affinity Radio Group. In 2000, Affinity was acquired by Telemedia, which was in turn acquired by Standard in 2002. Standard retained ownership of CHTZ after the reacquisition.

Currently, HTZ-FM is led by a veteran group of disc jockeys: Buffalo-based DJ Iron Mike Bensson in the mornings, along with Shannon Slack and long-time sports guy Joe "Carrots" Cahill; long-time rawk chick Kristy Knight who returned to the station earlier in the century after a stint as a record publicist, she had been with the stations from the late-1980s to the late-1990s; another returned veteran, Jon Gonzo Mark, who came back to the station in 2004; and Double D, Diane Daniels in the evenings. Plus there's cameo appearances by Jonny Crow, the morning show's producer and laugh track, and Michelle Cruise, another rawk chick.

[edit] External links

• CHTZ