WCBM

WCBM (680 AM) – branded Talk Radio 680 WCBM – is a commercial news/talk radio station licensed to Baltimore, Maryland, serving the Baltimore metropolitan area. Owned by WCBM Maryland, Inc., WCBM serves as the Baltimore affiliate for Fox News Radio, The Rush Limbaugh Show, The Sean Hannity Show, The Mark Levin Show, The Buck Sexton Show and Coast to Coast AM. The WCBM studios are located in the Baltimore suburb of Pikesville, while the station transmitter resides in nearby Randallstown. Besides its main analog transmission, WCBM simulcasts over the HD digital subchannel of WQSR, and is available online.

WCBM
CityBaltimore, Maryland
Broadcast areaBaltimore metropolitan area
Frequency680 kHz
BrandingTalk Radio 680 WCBM
SloganStimulating Talk - Breaking News
Programming
FormatTalk
AffiliationsPremiere Networks
Westwood One Network
Fox News Radio
Ownership
OwnerWCBM Maryland, Inc.
Sister stationsWQLL
History
First air date1924
Call sign meaningChateau Baltimore Maryland (Hotel where original studios were located)
Technical information
Facility ID4759
ClassB
Power50,000 watts (days)
20,000 watts (nights)
Transmitter coordinates39°22′27″N 76°51′29″W
Repeater(s)WQSR-HD2/Baltimore,
     102.7 MHz · HD2 (via HD Radio)
Links
WebcastListen Live
Websitewcbm.com

History

WCBM first signed on the air in 1924.[1] The original studios were in the Hotel Chateau, located at the northwest corner of Charles Street and North Avenue. The call letters - Chateau Baltimore Maryland, are derived from the hotel's name. The Chateau was also home to the drugstore where Dr. George Bunting first produced and marketed the skin cream Noxzema.[2]

In the 1930s, WCBM had moved to the Hearst Tower Building in Baltimore.[3] It broadcast on 1350 kilocycles but was only powered at 500 watts by day, 250 watts at night, while competitor WBAL ran 50,000 watts. WCBM was the NBC Blue Network affiliate for Baltimore, carrying its dramas, comedies, news and sports, during the "Golden Age of Radio." The Blue Network later became ABC.

WCBM moved several times on the dial. With the 1941 enactment of the North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement (NARBA), it switched from 1350 to 1400. Then in 1949, it relocated to its current dial position, 680 kHz. The move allowed WCBM to increase its power to 10,000 watts in the daytime and 5,000 watts at night.[4] As network programming shifted from radio to television in the 1950s, WCBM gradually became a full service, middle of the road music and personality station.

In 1960 WCBM added an FM station; WCBM-FM broadcast at 106.5 MHz, simulcasting the AM station. It was sold to the owner of Channel 2 WMAR-TV in 1968 and today is WWMX, owned by Entercom.

WCBM-AM-FM were sold in 1963 to Metromedia, a large New York City-based broadcasting company. Metromedia also owned WTTG/Washington, D.C.; WNEW, WNEW-FM and WNEW-TV/New York City; WHK and WHK-FM/Cleveland; and WIP and WIP-FM/Philadelphia. The studios were moved to Owings Mills, Maryland. Metromedia helped WCBM establish a reputation for radio news reporting. It affiliated WCBM with CBS Radio News and maintained a staff of professional reporters and anchors. An advertisement in the 1964 Broadcasting Yearbook said WCBM airs 32 hours of news each week. "WCBM listeners hear it first! WCBM legmen are first on the scene, in Baltimore, surrounding counties and at the state capital of Annapolis."[5]

But WCBM had a hard time competing with Hearst Corporation-owned WBAL, which also had a large news-gathering staff, as well as a powerful 50,000 watt signal. By the 1970s, WCBM evolved into more of an Adult Contemporary music format. In 1981, WCBM began running talk programming in the evening, while keeping its music and news in the daytime. As fewer people listened to music on AM radio, WCBM evolved to all talk by 1983. It was also the flagship radio station of the Baltimore Colts football team. Chuck Thompson and Vince Bagli called the action in the broadcast booth.

The station was sold in 1987 to local owners using the corporate name "Magic 680 Inc."[6] WCBM returned to an adult contemporary format, dropping talk abruptly. After several months, it began playing oldies music, with a playlist of hits from 1955 to 1969. In 1987, when the radio broadcast rights for the Baltimore Orioles baseball team became available, WCBM surprisingly outbid both WBAL and WFBR which had been the radio home of the Orioles for the previous eight years. Considered to be a major coup at the time, WCBM's tenure as the Orioles flagship lasted only one season, as the station faced severe financial difficulties. By 1988, WCBM had filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy, went dark soon after, and was put up for sale.

At about the same time that WCBM was in the middle of bankruptcy, rival AM station 1300 WFBR was sold in 1988 and changed its format from news/talk to 1950's rock & roll. With the format flip, WFBR let go most of the station's talk show hosts that summer. In October 1988, WCBM was bought by Baltimore area businessman and philanthropist Nick Mangione, Sr. who resurrected it from bankruptcy. A World War II veteran, Mangione was an avid listener of talk radio and a fan of WFBR's former talk radio format. Once he acquired the station, Mangione brought most of WFBR's former talk radio line-up to WCBM, including Frank Luber, Joe Lombardo, Tom Marr, Ken Maylath, Les Kinsolving and Stan "The Fan" Charles.

WCBM originally had The Rush Limbaugh Show on its weekday schedule in the early 1990s, but lost it to competitor 1090 WBAL in 1994. With its stronger signal and higher ratings, Limbaugh's syndicator put the program on WBAL. At the time, WCBM was broadcasting at 10,000 watts by day and 5,000 watts night. WCBM had to scramble to replace Limbaugh in the Noon to 3 p.m. slot, choosing Zoh Heironimus to fill the role. Despite having a following, Zoh Heironimus didn't capture the listeners as well as Limbaugh. So WCBM added Dr. Laura Schlessinger to the 12–3 spot but her ratings dropped further. After WJFK (1300 AM) discontinued his program, WCBM added the syndicated G. Gordon Liddy Show. Liddy improved the ratings numbers for WCBM, although was not as successful as Limbaugh. By the end of 2001, The Sean Hannity Show was added to the 3–6 p.m. time slot, replacing Bob Scherr.

In the early 2000s, WCBM began building a new, stronger radio tower in Carroll County, Maryland. WCBM went to a daytime power of 50,000 watts in 2004. The nighttime power increased to 10,000 watts. At the end of his contract with WBAL, on July 1, 2006, Limbaugh returned to WCBM. WBAL did not renew its contract with Premiere Networks due to the high cost. The station decided to go with a local host and use the extra money to win back the broadcast rights to the Baltimore Orioles and to go after the rights to the Baltimore Ravens football team. Limbaugh's show replaced G. Gordon Liddy in the early afternoon time slot. The Mark Levin Show, syndicated by Westwood One, debuted on the same day as Limbaugh's return, airing from 7 to 9 p.m.

In 2009, WCBM dropped the ABC News Radio Network and switched to Fox News Radio for its world and national news coverage. This change coincided with competitor 1090 WBAL's change to an all news morning show. For both WCBM and WBAL, new station sweepers, imaging, station ID's and music accompanied the changes in programming. WCBM's imaging now centers on its affiliation with Fox News.

On October 31, 2019, veteran personality Frank Luber retired after 31 years with WCBM, 27 of them hosting "Maryland's Wake Up Call."[7] Luber will continue to voice commercials for long-time advertisers and work on special projects. Luber's co-host, Sean Casey, is now teamed with former late morning host Bruce Elliott for "The Morning Drive with Casey & Elliott." Derek Hunter, formerly of 1090 WBAL, took Elliott's time slot, 9 to 11:45 a.m.

Programming

WCBM personalities Sean Casey and Bruce Elliott host the weekday morning show, followed by a local program hosted by Derek Hunter and Bill O'Reilly's syndicated daily commentary. Conservative talk shows The Rush Limbaugh Show and The Sean Hannity Show air during the afternoons, both of which are syndicated via Premiere Networks. The Mark Levin Show (via Westwood One) and The Buck Sexton Show (via Premiere) air in late evenings, and paranormal/conspiracy theory oriented program Coast to Coast AM with George Noory (via Premiere) airs through the overnight hours.

WCBM airs several weekend talk programs, including The Money Pit Home Improvement Radio Show and The Lutheran Hour, syndicated shows hosted by Ric Edelman and Kim Komando, and assorted brokered programming.

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References
  1. Broadcasting Yearbook 1970 page b-93
  2. Kelly, Jacques. "Old Building A Homely Piece of City History," The Baltimore Sun, Saturday, February 14, 2009.
  3. Broadcasting Yearbook 1935 page 36
  4. "WCBM to 680" (PDF). Broadcasting. March 22, 1948. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  5. Broadcasting Yearbook 1964 page B-69
  6. Broadcasting Yearbook 1988 page B-129
  7. InsideRadio.com "Frank Luber Steps Away from Mornings" October 28, 2019
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