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ROCKHAPPENZ Public Collection

  
 

3ZB  —  Christchurch's original radio station of the day ...

  
 

3ZB was a radio station based in Christchurch, New Zealand, whose first air date was in 1937.  This station was run by Radio New Zealand (formally the NZBS/NZBC/BCNZ) until 1996 and eventually spawned a second FM station called B98FM.  Today 3ZB and B98FM are part of a nationwide networks Newstalk ZB and The Hits which operate in Christchurch on 1098AM (100.1 FM) and 97.7FM (B98FM).

  
   
 

3ZM Announcers in Cathedral Square - John Dunne, Unknown, Unknown, Ken Ellis, Danny Watson, Ali Jones, James Daniels and Barry Corbett

  
 

The ZM station in Christchurch has a history dating back to 1963 as local station 3ZM which originally broadcast on 1400AM. The station was started by the New Zealand government owned Radio New Zealand (which at the time was known as the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation).  In 1973 3ZM was joined with 1YD Auckland and 2ZM in Wellington to form to youth orientated ZM network, 1YD became 1ZM.  In 1978, in a bid to compete against local Christchurch station Radio Avon, 3ZM was rebranded as Radio Nova (coincidentally Avon spelt backwards) playing an Easy Listening format similar to that of Radio i in Auckland.  Listener interest was strong at first but later ratings dropped and the station was reverted to 3ZM playing the same music format as that of 1ZM and 2ZM.  3ZM later moved to 1323 kHz in 1978 after the AM band in New Zealand was changed from 10 kHz spacing to 9 kHz spacing.  3ZB began broadcasting on 96.1FM in 1990 in addition to the 1098AM frequency.  For a short period in 1990 the station also broadcast on 93.7FM.  3ZM, originally a Christchurch radio station, is now part of the ZM network, which is owned by New Zealand Media and Entertainment (NZME).  ZM is a contemporary hit radio network targeting the 18-39 demographic, playing a chart-music playlist of pop, rock, hip hop, country, and dance.  The network has a large weekly listenership and broadcasts across 31 markets in New Zealand via terrestrial FM and worldwide online.