It's the end of an era for New York City radio.
WCBS 880 AM, which has been on air since 1967, will end its all-news format and become ESPN New York starting Aug. 26, parent company Audacy said in a release Monday.
Audacy will continue to own the frequency and change the call letters to WHSQ-AM, pending Federal Communications Commission approval, according to the release.
"New York has always been proudly unique in supporting two all-news radio brands, but the news business has gone through significant changes," Chris Oliviero, Audacy’s New York market president, said in a statement. "The headwinds facing local journalism nationwide made it essential to strategically reimagine how we deliver the news for the most impact.”
"All-news is a pillar of Audacy and this decision, though difficult, fortifies that leadership position for generations to come," Oliviero added.
Audacy said it will focus on news content exclusively on 1010 WINS.
“Audacy-produced broadcasts will continue to air on 880 AM and stream on the Audacy app,” the release said.
Steve Scott, an anchor for WCBS 880, reflected on some of the stories he said he’ll never forget covering.
“Back on 9/11 in the first few minutes of the attack, it was WCBS’ Tom Kaminsky in our helicopter who helped break that story to the world," he said.
WCBS 880 will run a special called "WCBS 880 News: The People, The Moments and The Events That Shaped Our Lives" on Aug. 22.
“It’s been great. I wouldn’t trade working at WCBS 880 for anything else in the world," Scott said.
Note: Reporter Justine Re freelanced for WCBS 880 over several months in 2018.