WCCM (AM)
WCCM (1110 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to Salem, New Hampshire, USA, the station is currently owned by Costa-Eagle Radio Ventures Limited Partnership, a partnership between Pat Costa and his chief investor, The Eagle-Tribune.
History
The 1110 frequency in Salem first signed on January 10, 1977 as WVNH, a middle-of-the-road station owned by Salem Broadcasters. The station was sold in 1980 and under General Manager Dick Lange shifted to a nostalgia format. Unfortunately, just a month or so before the new ownership returned WVNH to the air a fire struck and destroyed Rockingham Park. Without its anchor draw, the business climate in Salem withered and WVNH failed to generate enough revenue to sustain its original staff. In late 1981, however, under Program Director Russ Mottla (the station's morning man, who was retained) the station shifted to a Big Band/Middle-of-the-Road format which dramatically improved ratings. Despite the obvious drawback AM radio was by this time facing from FM, the Hughes family, which bought the station in 1984, restored the previous format; four years later, Costa Communications purchased the station, changed the call letters to WNNW, and implemented a talk format. Initially run more-or-less as a hobby, Costa soon discovered that the bulk of the station's profits came from its leased-time Spanish language programs, leading WNNW to a full-time Spanish tropical format in 1990. The station came under the operation of the Costa-Eagle partnership in 1996.