Station History
A brief history of the station
77WABC's 50,000 watt clear-channel signal can be heard in 38 states and Canada! Two years after its debut, WABC-AM -then known as WJZ- moved from a small studio in New Jersey to New York City in May of 1923. In 1953 the flagship station of the American Broadcasting Company, operating on 50,000 watts of power, changed its call letters to WABC. A decade later, the station introduced an exciting and innovative format called "The Sound of New York," commonly referred to as "Top40." Growth continued for WABC, and by 1976 it boasted a weekly audience of more that 5 million listeners. Visit Musicradio 77 WABC on the web here.
Times change, and WABC changed with them. In May of 1982, the station switched to a talk format By the early 1990's, WABC had carved a niche for itself as a personality-driven talk radio station. In February of 1996, ABC merged with The Walt Disney Company, which only strengthened WABC committment to radio excellence. With two of the world's leading entertainment and media companies joining forces, the combined conglomerate is a dynamic force reaching audiences worldwide and providing them with unparalleled news, information and entertainment both inside and outside the home.
From it's heyday as the pioneer of "Top 40" radio, to its success as the most-listened-to talk radio station in the country, WABC continues to reflect the spirit, energy, and excitement that is New York! Today WABC and its sister station, 95.5 PLJ are run by the Citadel Broadcasting Corporation.
