WQAM

Lore & Background

WQAM was initially licensed to the Electrical Equipment Company on the 360-meter entertainment wavelength. Fred W. Borton, who became president of the Miami Broadcasting Company, made many electrical parts himself. The station increased power to 500 watts in 1926, 1,000 watts in 1928, and became a full-time CBS affiliate. In 1947 it switched to ABC Radio, and in 1948 The Miami Herald assumed entire ownership. In the 1960s, under Storz Broadcasting, WQAM adopted a Top 40 format and competed with rival WFUN. It ended its Top 40 run on February 28, 1980, switching to country music, then to oldies in 1990, and became an all-sports station around 1992. It was sold to Beasley Broadcasting in 1996, then traded to CBS Radio in 2014, and merged into Entercom (now Audacy) in 2017.

Reader's Guide

WQAM's significance lies in its longevity and role as a pioneering Florida broadcaster, with a history stretching back to the early 1920s. It was a dominant Top 40 station in the 1960s and 1970s, reaching listeners from Jupiter to Key West and even Havana. Its transition to an all-sports format around 1992 made it a key outlet for Miami sports, serving as flagship for the Miami Heat, Florida Panthers, and Miami Hurricanes. The station's ownership changes—from Storz to Beasley to CBS Radio to Audacy—reflect broader industry consolidation. Its transmitter relocation in 2015 from Virginia Key to Little River reduced costs and simplified operations. WQAM remains a central voice in South Florida sports radio, available online via Audacy.

Did You Know?

• WQAM's first license was issued on January 23, 1923, but its history may extend back to station WFAW, first licensed on June 16, 1922.
• In February 1964, WQAM interviewed and heavily promoted The Beatles' second and third nationally televised appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show from the Deauville Hotel in Miami Beach.
• WQAM ended its Top 40 format on February 28, 1980, a leap year, with a montage of music, soundbites, and jingles from PAMS.
• On December 23, 2015, WQAM was granted a construction permit to move its transmitter tower from Virginia Key to the Little River neighborhood of Miami.