Posted in Notices / Events

A last chance to save CHUO campus-community radio in Ottawa! – with accompanying audio archive

 Posted by  Posted on February 10, 2026
Image with CHUO logo in white, yellow, and grey, along with an image of a stereo boom box with CHUO 89.1 FM written on it, and two segments of text: "There's still a chance to restore CHUO" and "You can help 'rock the vote' in the leadup to March 2nd - 6th."

UPDATE (March 05) – I am updating this post with a selection of audio archives from CHUO. See below. They will gradually be added as I have opportunity and can get them ready.

The original post remains as published February 10th 2026, further below.

But TL;DR for the campaign to Restore CHUO via uOttawa student referendum March 2nd-6th:
go to linktr.ee/891chuo for all relevant info.

Also, I wrote something in-depth, originally at CounterPunch, which you can now read on my site in a better-formatted and updated version:
“Future in peril for PIRG and Campus/Community Radio at uOttawa.”

Now, here is the work-in-progress archive of audio content from CHUO.

It is not a comprehensive collection, but a selection started with things I had some involvement with, and then also some other items I had access to or otherwise found online that I thought were pertinent to include here.

I’ll clarify that once I get more of the content up.

On-site (embedded audios):

… coming soon, after all the referendum work is over …
… including G20/IMF/WorldBank protests Indymedia broadcast (2 hours, 18 Nov 2001)

Off-site (links to audio):

— Original Post —

From March 2nd – 6th as part of the annual elections, undergrad students at the University of Ottawa will be voting on whether to add a $3 fee to support CHUO 89.1 FM, the long-standing campus-community radio station.

The three weeks leading up to the vote are a campaign period to convince students of the importance and value of the station, and why they as students would want to support it.

In early December, the station’s board of directors made the decision to cease operations due to lack of funds. CHUO’s last live broadcat was December 15, 2025; since then it’s been broadcasting pre-recorded content, mostly re-runs, in order to continue to fulfil its CRTC license requirements through the end of March.

If this referendum is successful in establishing the $3 fee, the station will be in a position to operate again.

So this referendum is a bonus last chance to save CHUO, after we mostly thought there was no more chance..

Anyone who wants to help with the campaign, sign up via this online form:
https://forms.gle/TeG36URrcWs2ubcJ6
(* or email mickey@chuo.fm if you don’t want to give your info via google)

UPDATE: There is now an official linktr.ee/891chuo with full information on the referendum campaign.
As well as this post with more description and specifics on how to help.

And let anyone else you think might be interested, know too!

Note that the electoral rules say you don’t need to be a student to help with the campaign.



I’ve been listening to both CHUO and sister-station at Carleton, CKCU, since the mid-90s.

At CHUO, there are a number of shows I’ve either been a guest on, helped arranged for someone else to be a guest on, and/or contributed pre-recorded content to: Monday Night Scribes; Click Here; 5 O’Clock Train; The UnderWhere? Show; The Circle; and, Third Wave.

This was all somewhere between 2008 – 2018. Since the pandemic, I’ve only had one such interaction with the station, and that was to get coverage through their news department for a protest and subsequent arrests.

During the 2023-2024 referendum campaign – where the station lost their existing $5 adjusted-for-inflation student levy – I only randomly came to learn about it happening, and it wasn’t through the station itself; it didn’t ever seem to be mentioned on air, at least when I was listening. I don’t think a lot of people, including the on-air volunteers at the station, even knew the referendum was happening and that CHUO was at risk.

Hopefully with this referendum on a ‘compromise’ $3 fee, we can reach people who want to help resurrect the station, to make sure they know there is this opportunity and that they can help if they want.

I don’t know the likelihood of the campaign being successful, but I know the importance and value of campus-community radio, and I figure it is worth doing what we can now to let the students make the best informed decision they can. I hope this reaches others who want to give it a shot too.

Fill out the sign-up form if you want to help on the campaign!

PS – I started writing a lot more than what is above, especially about some more in depth of my involvement, what I think about community radio, some of the history of CHUO, and also some multimedia archived content, including taped-off-the-air, now-digitized recordings.

But it was too much to gather together and get ready for the moment. What is most urgent now, is to make sure people know about the vote and the campaign and the opportunity to get involved, so I’m publishing this short version now and will work on getting the rest published relatively soon, with the goal sometime enough in advance of the voting period starting March 2nd.

Loge of CHUO 89.1 FM in a black circle.