WHAT IF: Jack FM Went to WNEW in 2005
On June 3, 2005, a piece of New York Radio history was forever altered.
101.1 WCBS FM, NYC’s premier radio station, dedicated to oldies music, stunningly changed formats.
Earlier that day, Mickey Dolenz, best known from the fun 1960s band the Monkees, actually had his 100th show at B.B. King’s House of Blues. Alongside Mike Fitzgerald, he proclaimed that he would see everyone at show #101 that following Monday at the end of his broadcast.
Things began to seem weird when, after “Margaritaville” by Jimmy Buffett ended, afternoon DJ Bill Brown broke in as “Rescue Me” from Fontella Bass began to play.
"CBS-FM 101.1, Fontella Bass... Do you ever feel the urge to just kinda scream, "RESCUE ME!?"... I'm beginning to get that feeling, here's Fontella Bass."
That would be the last words uttered by a WCBS-FM DJ that day for the next two years.
Following thirty-seven minutes of straight music and no disc jockeys, “Summer Wind” by Frank Sinatra played, slowly fading out at the end. Then, a half-hour of various quotes from movies and songs played, with certain clips omitting the word “JACK”.
Finally, at 5PM, following a station ID, an unfamiliar voice began to speak.
“Oh hi there. Mind if I have a word? Thanks. Who am I? Well, I’m not Howard Stern. But you could probably guess that. Anyway, I have a question. Why don’t we just play what we want? I mean, there’s a whole lot of music out there. I’m talking songs like…
(clips of “September” by Earth, Wind, and Fire, “Who Can It Be Now” by Men at Work, “Bent” by Matchbox Twenty, “Bizarre Love Triangle” by New Order, “The Wall” by Pink Floyd, “Hella Good” by No Doubt, “In the Name of Love” by U2, “Won’t Back Down” by Tom Petty, and “Wonderwall” by Oasis play)...like that.
So here’s the thing. I’m thinking we just play ‘em. All of ‘em. We’ll play what we want. Yeah, I like it. Now we need a name. Hmmm…Jack. Alright, that’s it. 101.1 JACK FM. OK, what else? You? You can listen as long as you can adhere to two simple rules. One: we play what we want. And two: don’t tell us what to play. Good? Good. Then I guess we ought to get started.
Welcome to the new 101.1 JACK FM: Playing what we want.”
Then, “Fight For Your Right” by the Beastie Boys blasted out. WCBS FM began a new era in its station’s history.
It was a move no one saw coming. As legend has it, the WCBS executives took out all of the DJs for lunch after the successful BB King event, and during lunch, unloaded the boom of the switch then.
Unreal.
Almost instantly, people, especially dedicated 101.1 listeners, rebelled against it. Many felt it was a move that wasn’t needed or should’ve been made. Even New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg was quoted as saying he would "never listen to that f***ing CBS radio ever again".
WCBS FM management tried to do a positive spin of the change on their website, posting the following on June 4, 2005:
6/4/2005
Dear CBS/ FM listener,
Tuning in to 101.1 FM today, you probably noticed that things sound a little different.
WCBS has changed addresses. Instead of being at 101.1 on FM, the heritage WCBS you know and love now lives here online at wcbsfm.com. Click on the "listen here" banner below to hear the Greatest Hits of the 60's and 70's streamed with all the great music and fun you have come to expect over the past three decades on your radio.
We are very excited about WCBS FM online, and our goal is to have many of the-on air personalities you have enjoyed and loved over the years stream their shows live. We will continue to incorporate many the features and special theme weekends you have come to expect from this great station.
Stay tuned because in the future, WCBS's High Definition (HD radio) broadcast signal will also make it possible to listen to your favorite music and personalities in crystal clear digital sound on your HD Radio. More information on that coming very soon.
101.1 FM is now JACK-FM, and we hope that since you loved WCBS as 60's and 70's, that you will give JACK-FM a try too.
Be sure to let us know what you think of WCBS Online. Thank you for your years of listening to WCBS on the FM band, and now let everyone know that CBS-FM moves into the future by going worldwide. The Greatest Hits of all Time lives on here at wcbsfm.com!
Sincerely,
Chad Brown
Vice President / General Manager
WCBS Online @ www.wcbsfm.com
101.1 JACK-FM
In one ratings book in 2005, 101.1 FM went from a 3.0 in the Spring to a 1.5 in the Summer. After two years of consistent low ratings, although profitable thanks to low overhead (no disc jockeys salaries), 101.1 went under a change of management in 2006 and on June 12, 2007, WCBS FM returned and JACK FM hit the road.
To this day, JACK FM is looked at as one of the greatest failures in modern New York radio history. The format, which has worked in other markets, bombed miserably in the greatest city in the world.
What if I brought a different perspective into the mix?
What if I said, “Right idea, wrong station”? You’d think I’m crazy.
Allow me to explain.
—--
Around the same time WCBS FM was going through its radical format change, 102.7 WNEW FM was floundering.
Known as the premier New York rock station throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the station began losing its identity throughout the 1990s. With 92.3 K-Rock gaining steam with grunge and alternative rock, as well as Howard Stern being an absolute juggernaut in the morning, and Q104.3 becoming the place to go for classic rock, the station lost its identity.
In 1998, the Opie and Anthony Show became a major hit in the afternoons for the station. A year later, WNEW made a massive change with a “hot talk” format, adding Ron & Fez, Don & Mike, The Radio Chick, and Tom Leykis.
By the Summer of 2002, ratings were down, with the exception of O&A. However, after the infamous “Sex For Sam 3” incident in August 2022, the show was taken off the air, leaving WNEW in a massive lurch. After the station hit a .7 rating in the Fall, 102.7 began looking for a new format to implement.
After ending “hot talk” in January 2003 and playing three months of contemporary hits, WNEW rebranded as Blink 102.7 on April 10. Constant changes over the next nine months caused the ratings to fall even further. Following Christmas, the station rebranded AGAIN as Mix 102.7 with an “adult contemporary” format, with a consistent listenership in the cellar.
On New Year’s Eve 2005, Viacom and CBS split apart, and Infinity Broadcasting, which housed their radio division, rebranded as CBS Radio. WNEW 102.7 fell under the new CBS Radio umbrella.
My question is this: if this division was happening, could the JACK FM decision have been held off for six months and have been used for 102.7 FM?
—--
Here’s my feelings.
We’re coming up on twenty years since the dramatic switch of WCBS FM to JACK FM.
I actually like the JACK concept. In comparison to modern-day radio, the vision was original and ahead of the curve. All killer, no filler was the concept, and the music came together like an iPod Shuffle. The “Playing What We Want” format was a unique concept that needed time to flesh out and become a hit.
If this idea was tried on WNEW, in 2005, I honestly think it would have worked. Compared to the atrocity of what was airing on 102.7 since Opie and Anthony was cancelled three years earlier, I do think a younger demographic would have tuned in to see what was going on. WNEW was, for lack of a better term, in the toilet. What’s the worst that could happen? Not see an uptick in ratings and switch over to FRESH in 2007?
Attempting to rebrand WCBS FM when it was still a top New York station was absolutely the wrong move. I truly think Infinity, and CBS in general, should have given “the oldies station” more respect. Infusing more music from the ‘80s and saving doo-wop and music from the 1950s to weekends would have probably gotten some brushback, but I believe it would have been accepted over time.
The bottom line is simple: “Right idea, wrong station.” JACK FM could’ve worked had it been launched on ANY other station other than WCBS FM.
But a wise lesson was learned: don’t try to fix what isn’t broken.
On the bright side, at least JACK FM did try to make peace with Mayor Bloomberg to no avail.
Jon Harder
