New York sounds different now. If you've lived in the Tri-State area any time over the last fifty years, you know exactly what I mean. That rhythmic "WCBS News Time..." followed by the sharp bong of the top-of-the-hour chime wasn't just a radio quirk. It was the city's heartbeat.
But on August 26, 2024, the heartbeat stopped.
The legendary WCBS 880 NY radio—a 50,000-watt powerhouse that could be heard from the Canadian border down to the Jersey Shore—is officially a memory. In its place? Sports talk. Specifically, ESPN New York. For many, it felt like a death in the family. How does a station that survived the 1977 blackout, 9/11, and Superstorm Sandy just... disappear?
The Day the News Died on 880 AM
Honestly, the end came faster than most people expected. Audacy, the company that owns the station, dropped the bombshell just weeks before the final sign-off. The reason? They called it "headwinds facing local journalism." Basically, that’s corporate speak for "it’s getting really hard to make money with a massive newsroom."
The final broadcast on Sunday, August 25, was a tear-jerker. Wayne Cabot, a name synonymous with the station for over 30 years, handled the closing hours. He didn't just read the news; he eulogized an era.
It wasn't just a quiet fade to black, either. The station aired a three-hour tribute titled WCBS 880 News: The People, the Moments, and the Events That Shaped Our Lives. They brought back the greats. You heard the voices of Charles Osgood and Lou Adler. You felt the weight of decades of reporting. Then, at the stroke of midnight, the call letters were retired. The new identity, WHSQ-AM, took over.
It’s sports now. All day.
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Why Audacy Pulled the Plug on WCBS 880 NY Radio
You might be wondering why they’d kill a station with such a massive legacy. New York was actually the last city in America to have two competing 24/7 all-news stations: WCBS 880 and 1010 WINS.
Most cities can barely support one.
Audacy owned both. For a long time, that was a flex. But eventually, having two giant newsrooms covering the same fires in Queens and the same press conferences at City Hall started to look like a liability on a balance sheet. They decided to consolidate. 1010 WINS (which also broadcasts on 92.3 FM) is the "survivor."
They leased the 880 signal to Good Karma Brands to run ESPN New York. Why? Because ESPN was losing its lease on 98.7 FM and needed a new home that wasn't the weak-signal 1050 AM.
The Financial Reality
- Cost of News: Running a newsroom with dozens of reporters, writers, and editors is incredibly expensive.
- Advertising Shift: Local businesses aren't buying AM radio spots like they used to; they’re buying Facebook ads and podcasts.
- Consolidation: Audacy has been through a rough financial patch (including a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in early 2024), and cutting 23 union jobs at WCBS was a cold, hard business move.
Traffic and Weather (No Longer) Together
If there’s one thing every commuter misses, it’s "Traffic and Weather Together on the 8s."
Tom Kaminski spent 36 years in the sky for WCBS 880 NY radio. He was the "Chopper 880" guy. When there was a mess on the George Washington Bridge, Tom was the one who told you to take the Lincoln Tunnel instead.
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Then there was Craig Allen and Todd Glickman. Between them, they had nearly 80 years of meteorological experience at the station. They didn't just read a script; they knew the microclimates of the Hudson Valley versus the Jersey Shore. When they said it was going to snow, you went out and bought milk and bread.
Now, Tom Kaminski is doing backup traffic for WABC, and veteran anchors like Brigitte Quinn and Paul Murnane have moved over to part-time roles at WINS. It’s a diaspora of New York’s most trusted voices.
Is the 880 Signal Gone Forever?
Technically, no. The 880 AM frequency is still one of the strongest in the country. Because it's a "clear channel" signal, it has incredible reach.
If you tune in today, you’ll hear The Michael Kay Show or DiPietro & Rothenberg. It’s the new home for the New York Knicks and Rangers. Funnily enough, the New York Mets are the only thing that stayed. Audacy kept the rights to the Mets, so Howie Rose still calls the games on 880, even though the rest of the day is ESPN programming.
But for the person who just wants to know what’s happening in the world without having to scroll through a chaotic Twitter feed, there’s a massive hole. WINS is great, but it has a different "vibe." WCBS was always seen as the more "long-form" sister—the one that would give a story an extra 30 seconds to breathe.
What This Means for the Future of Local News
This isn't just about one station in New York. It's a signal of what’s happening everywhere. When a "heritage" station like WCBS 880 goes dark, it's a warning.
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We are losing the "local" in local news.
The Writers Guild of America East, which represented the staff, put out a pretty scathing statement when the closure was announced. They argued that losing WCBS deprives the public of "critical local news stories with different perspectives." They’re not wrong. When you only have one major news station left in the biggest city in the country, the diversity of what gets covered naturally shrinks.
Where to go now for NY News?
If you're feeling "news withdrawal," here is what's left:
- 1010 WINS (92.3 FM / 1010 AM): Now the only 24/7 all-news game in town.
- WNYC 93.9 FM: Great for deep dives and NPR style, but not the "headlines every ten minutes" fix.
- WABC 770 AM: Mostly talk radio now, but they still have a news presence.
The loss of WCBS 880 NY radio marks the end of a specific kind of New York ritual. It was the station you turned on the second you started the car. It was the background noise in every bodega and deli from Staten Island to Stamford.
It’s strange to think that a frequency that first signed on in 1924 (back then as WAHG) is no longer a news source. A century of history ended with a simple format flip.
If you want to keep the spirit of the station alive, you can still find old airchecks and tribute clips on YouTube. There’s a whole community of radio nerds (and just regular, lonely commuters) who are archiving the final hours. It’s worth a listen if you want to hear what "quality" sounded like one last time.
To stay updated on the shifting media landscape in the city, keep an eye on local media watchdogs or the New York State Broadcasters Association. They track these license changes and format flips as they happen. If you’re a Mets fan, don’t worry—just keep your dial at 880. For everyone else, you’ll have to find a new way to set your watch.