The "chirp" is going silent. After nearly a century of being the pulse of American airwaves, CBS News Radio is shutting its doors on May 22, 2026. If you’re a regular listener to KNX News 97.1 in Los Angeles or WBBM in Chicago, you’ve probably heard the news and wondered if your favorite local station is about to vanish too.
The short answer is no. KNX isn’t going anywhere. Neither is WINS in New York or KCBS in San Francisco. But the sound of your morning commute is about to change in a way we haven't seen since the 1920s.
Why KNX News 97.1 is staying on the air
There’s a massive misconception that because a station carries CBS News, it’s owned by CBS. That hasn't been true for years. Back in 2017, CBS Corporation spun off its radio division and merged it with Entercom, which we now know as Audacy.
When you tune into KNX, you’re listening to an Audacy-owned station that simply buys a "feed" from CBS News. It’s like a restaurant that serves Coca-Cola. If Coke stops production, the restaurant doesn't close; they just start serving Pepsi.
KNX is a local powerhouse. It has its own massive newsroom in the Miracle Mile district. It has its own reporters, traffic anchors, and local editors. What it loses on May 22 is the "top-of-the-hour" national update and the specialized world reports that have been its backbone for decades.
The end of an era for 700 stations
It’s hard to overstate how much this hurts the smaller guys. While a giant like KNX has the budget to pivot, there are roughly 700 affiliate stations across the country that rely on CBS News Radio for their entire national identity.
In a memo sent out on March 20, 2026, CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss and President Tom Cibrowski pulled the plug. They blamed "challenging economic realities" and a shift in how people get their news. Basically, they can't make the math work anymore. Approximately 60 people are losing their jobs, and the World News Roundup—the longest-running newscast in the country—will air its final episode.
This isn't just a business move. It’s a cultural lobotomy. We’re losing the direct descendant of Edward R. Murrow’s rooftop reports from the London Blitz. Radio was the foundation of CBS long before television was even a flicker in a lab. To see it discarded like a legacy software update feels wrong.
What will replace the CBS News Radio news feed
KNX and other major all-news stations in the Audacy family don't have time to mourn. They have to find a replacement by May 23. You can expect a few names to come up in conversation:
- ABC News Radio: This is the most logical replacement for a premium news station. It offers top-of-the-hour newscasts that sound a lot like CBS.
- Fox News Radio: A huge player with a massive network, though some all-news stations might shy away due to brand alignment.
- NBC News Radio: Currently distributed through iHeartMedia, NBC still maintains a strong radio presence for its affiliates.
- Internal Expansion: Audacy has been building its own "Infinity Networks" distribution. It wouldn't be surprising if they started producing their own national "top-of-the-hour" news to keep the revenue in-house.
If you’re a KNX listener, you’ll likely hear a new voice at the start of each hour. The "chirp" sounder will be gone. You'll probably hear a slightly different theme song. But the local traffic reports, the weather, and the Los Angeles-centric reporting will stay exactly the same.
The future of the all-news radio format
Is the format dying? Honestly, it depends on who you ask. The rise of podcasts and social media has decimated the younger audience. But in a city like Los Angeles, where traffic is a literal way of life, radio is the only reliable way to get real-time local info while you’re behind the wheel.
The move by Paramount and CBS News to shut down their radio arm is a "cost-cutting" measure. They're pivoting toward streaming and digital. But they're also severing a direct connection with millions of people who still rely on the dial.
Audacy has a lot on its plate. The company has its own financial hurdles to clear. But they know that KNX is one of their crown jewels. They aren't going to let it go quiet. They’re simply going to change the batteries.
If you want to keep following the fallout from the CBS News Radio shutdown, keep an eye on the official Audacy corporate announcements. They’ll likely announce their new national news partner before the May 22 deadline hits. Until then, enjoy the last few weeks of that iconic "World News Roundup" intro. You won't be hearing it much longer.
