After nearly 100 years, CBS News Radio is signing off for the last time.
The radio network records in New York City at the CBS Broadcast Center and provides news programming to about 700 stations across the U.S. Its broadcast will come to an end after the 11:31 p.m. newscast on Friday, May 22.
“CBS News Radio has been trail blazing for over 70 years and (holds) the title of the original national radio news network,” the network’s website read the afternoon of May 22. “We have the most extensive team of reporters around the country and the world, delivering coverage you can trust.”
Programming on CBS News Radio includes newscast options ranging from three to six minutes, more fast-paced headline newscasts lasting just a minute, bottom of the hour updates, and minute-long features on news, finance, entertainment, health, lifestyle and technology.
The network has affiliates in major U.S. cities such as WCBS in New York, WBBM in Chicago and KCBS in San Francisco.
Here’s what to know about the shutdown.
The final sign-off comes after CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss and CBS News President Tom Cibrowski announced the change two months ago in an internal memo, reported CBS News and Deadline. They cited “challenging economic realities” and other issues.
USA TODAY contacted CBS News on May 22 to get a copy of the original memo the company sent to employees announcing the shutdown but did not immediately receive a response.
According to reporting by Deadline, Weiss and Cibrowski said all positions within the CBS News Radio team would be eliminated.
“While this was a necessary decision, it was not an easy one,” the pair wrote in the memo. “A shift in radio station programming strategies, coupled with challenging economic realities, has made it impossible to continue the service.”
As they let employees know about the network’s impending end, the chief and president reflected on the work CBS News Radio has been doing for just under a century. The network’s reporting includes Edward R. Murrow’s World War II reports in London and White House updates, the memo read.
CBS News Radio’s history dates back to 1927, when talent agent Arthur Judson started the United Independent Broadcasters. His network then merged with the Columbia Phonograph and Records Co. and changed its name to the Columbia Phonograph Broadcasting Company. Due to financial issues, William Paley bought the network for $400,000, per Britannica.
According to CBS News, Paley found himself in 1930 competing with networks such as NBC, which had a strong hold on entertainment programming and sponsors.
He decided to focus instead on news and information and in 1930, hired print journalism editors Ed Klauber and Paul White. Klauber and White brought with them their skills in print media and, according to CBS News, held their newscasters to those same standards.
The network aired its first “World News Roundup” on March 13, 1938, hosted by CBS news anchor Robert Trout. The broadcast also marked the radio debut of Edward R. Murrow.
Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY’s trending team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Email her at sdmartin@usatoday.com.