It was announced Monday that WCBS Newsradio 880 will cease operations on Monday, August 26th as Audacy has leased the station to Good Karma Brands for ESPN New York. Longtime anchor Wayne Cabot couldn’t decipher if he was shocked or surprised by the development.
Cabot was asked by Steve Scott about his feelings on the announcement after Scott said he was “surprised but not shocked” by the news. Cabot — who has been with the station since 1988 — shared similar sentiments.
“We all have seen the headwinds in the radio industry. We all knew what was happening with advertising, going to digital. It’s affecting radio, television, newspapers, old media. So we can be logical about it, and yet it’s still a gut punch,” he admitted. “When I started at the WCBS newsroom in 1988, I walked in there among a bunch of luminaries and legends, and was sure I did not belong there. I was waiting for them to tap me on the shoulder and say, ‘We made a mistake. You’re fired.’ Well, this morning, I finally got tapped on the shoulder. It took them 37 years, but I finally got that tap on the shoulder.”
Despite the bitter disappointment of seeing the iconic New York all-news brand go the way of the dodo, Wayne Cabot chose to focus on the positives of his long tenure with the Audacy station.
“It’s gratifying to have been part of a legendary radio station — I would say, over the course of years, the best radio station in all of America that touches people on so many levels. Not just as a source of information and reliability, but companionship and warmth and family for anyone who’s listened as I did as a kid in the back of dad’s car or in the kitchen,” Cabot said. “And then working here and having friends here, it is an immense privilege that few people in this industry have ever experienced or ever will. So for that, I am immeasurably grateful.”
Homer wrote: THE ILLIOD AND ODDESY
if Home were alive today. he would write about the terrible decision to get rid of WCBS 880.
The title of his new book would be called
THE IDIOTS AT THE AUDACY
WCBS 880 am is the greatest!
I hope Audacy will reverse their terrible decision.
Audacy has the AUDACITY TO HURT MILLIONS OF LOYAL FANS OF WCBS880! THEY ALREADY HAVE A SPORTS NETWORK! WFAN!! WHO THE HECK NEEDS ANOTHER SPORTS STATION,WHEN THE WORLD IS ON THE BRINK OF WORLD WAR III ???
Feel terrible about WCBS 880 shutting down. It truly was, in my opinion, a trusted news source. Straight news, right down the middle, no shilling, no pandering. In an increasingly polarizing news landscape, 880 was an oasis.
News radio 880 was a constant in my life since it began- was so happy when radio started streaming as I couldn’t always get a signal. I listened in nj and Florida and recently in Delaware.
Now I do listen to 1010 wins – not the same though
I wish them all the best. Hope to hear you all again ( Craig Allen I get on weekends cbs ny tv)