It carries a news, talk and information format and is the local Radio One station of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

[2] With its non-directional signal and low dial frequency, CBN can be heard by day around most of Southeastern Newfoundland.

[3] For listeners who have trouble picking up CBN 640's signal clearly in the downtown area, this "nested rebroadcaster" provides an alternative.

CBN is currently the largest Radio One station in eastern Canada that is still located on the AM band, along with CBY in Corner Brook, which also operates at 10,000 watts and has clear channel designation.

The province's other five Radio One stations (CBG Gander, CBT-FM Grand Falls-Windsor, CBY Corner Brook, CFGB-FM Happy Valley-Goose Bay and CBDQ-FM Labrador City) simulcast most of CBN's local programming during Radio One's local programming blocks.

In 1989, the shortwave relay began to rebroadcast CFGB-FM in Happy Valley-Goose Bay, part-time as well as CBN.

Most of Newfoundland had reliable AM or FM reception by that time, so the relay's main use was now limited to the remote areas of Labrador.

Its unknown when CBND signed on and when it left the air, however, there's a CBND-FM currently operating at 105.1 MHz in Postville which rebroadcasts CFGB-FM Happy Valley-Goose Bay.