ESPN New York is set to move to 880 AM on Aug. 26, marking a dramatic turn of events in the decades-long local sports talk radio battle with parent company WFAN, which also owns 880 AM.
Good Karma Brands, which owns Audacy and ESPN New York, announced a local marketing agreement Monday that paved the way for the surprising deal.
The move is good news for ESPN New York, which was scheduled to leave the 98.7 FM signal on Aug. 23 and be demoted to 1050 AM.
The 880 AM signal is much stronger than 1050 AM, which will provide a bigger stage for the station as it shifts its focus to digital.
Mets coverage will continue on 880 AM.
The station’s new call sign will be WHSQ-AM (pending FCC approval), ending WCBS-AM, which began as a news station in 1967 and evolved into a 24-hour station in 1972. The station’s first sports director was Pat Summerall.
Audacy also owns WINS, which started as a news station in 1965. Having two such stations was not a good idea, so Audacy will continue to own the 880 AM frequency while Good Karma will control the programming.
ESPN New York also broadcasts Knicks and Rangers games, so those games will also have a stronger signal than 1050 AM alone. The Jets are moving from their longtime radio home of ESPN New York to Q104.3-FM this season.
“New York has always been unique in supporting two dedicated news radio brands, but the news business has undergone significant change,” Chris Oliviero, Audacy’s New York market president, said in a news release.
“The headwinds facing local journalism across the country have forced us to strategically rethink how to most effectively tell the news. WCBS-880 is one of the most respected radio stations in history, with its tradition cemented by the hundreds of world-class on-air and off-air journalists who have been a pillar of its existence for decades.”
