WCBM
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| City | Baltimore |
|---|---|
| Branding | Talkradio 680 |
| Frequency | 680 kHz |
| First air date | 1924 |
| Format | News/Talk |
| Power | 50,000 watts (day) 20,000 watts (night) |
| Class | B |
| Facility ID | 4759 |
| Callsign meaning | Chateau Baltimore Maryland |
| Owner | WCBM Maryland, Inc. |
| Sister stations | WQLL |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | http://www.wcbm.com/ |
WCBM (680 AM, "Talkradio 680") is a Talk-formatted broadcast radio station serving Baltimore, Maryland. Its transmitter is located in Randallstown, Maryland.
The station is owned by WCBM Maryland, Inc., which also owns WQLL, 1370 AM. The station was previously owned by Metromedia and co-owned with WCBM-FM 106.5, now WWMX.
WCBM first went on the air in 1924 when it was based in the Hotel Chateau, located at the northwest corner of Charles Street and North Avenue. The building's name inspired the call letters - Chateau Baltimore Maryland. The Chateau was also home to the drugstore where Dr. George Bunting first produced and marketed Noxzema. Originally a low-powered local station, WCBM moved from 1400 to 680 kHz in 1949 and increased its power from 250 to 10,000 watts.
WCBM gradually became a full service free-flowing Middle of The Road music and personality station by the early 1960s. The station was sold in 1963 to Metromedia radio. By the 1970s, WCBM evolved into more of an Adult Contemporary music format and in 1981 began running talk programming in the evening and evolved to all talk by 1983. WCBM was also the longtime radio flaship station of the Baltimore Colts with broadcasters Chuck Thompson and Vince Bagli calling the action in the broadcast booth. The station would be sold in 1986 to local owners known as WCBM Inc. They then returned to an adult contemporary format, dropping talk abruptly. Then in March 1988, WCBM became an oldies music station playing the hits of 1955 to 1969. In 1987, when the radio broadcast rights for the Baltimore Orioles were up for sale, WCBM surprisingly outbid both the 50,000-watt WBAL and rival station WFBR which had been the Orioles flagship station for the previous 8 years. Considered to me a major coup at the time, WCBM's tenure as the Orioles flagship station lasted only one season, as the station did not get the return on the investment that was expected. In May 1987, after financial difficulties, WCBM filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy, went silent soon after, and was put up for sale.
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