WCR (AM)

WCR (940 AM) is a commercial radio station in Charlotte, North Carolina. It is owned by Audacy, Inc, and broadcast a sports gambling format. The station's studios are at One Julian Price Place on West Morehead Street, just west of Uptown Charlotte, and its transmitter is located in north-central Gaston County (shared with Urban One's WBT-AM-FM and WLNK-FM; which were former Audacy stations, and Audacy's former Charlotte TV partner WBTV).

Early Years
On September 6, 1938, WCR (AM) would mark its launch in the Charlotte market. It was an affiliate of the NBC Blue Network, it carried a full-service format and aired much of that network's programming. When it launched, it was owned by the local newspaper, The Charlotte Observer. In 1943, it joined the ABC Radio Network, which was formed by Edward Noble after he purchased the NBC Blue Network from RCA. On February 16, 1949, WCR would launch an FM simulcast known as WCR-FM (now modern day sister station, WMKG).

The Charlotte Observer consider plans to enter the TV market by launching WCR-TV (which was gonna be an affiliate of the ABC television network, a sister service to the ABC Radio Network) on channel 18, however the station didn't launch at all.

In 1955, Knight Newspapers would purchase both The Charlotte Observer as well as WCR-AM-FM. In 1968, the station would adopt a Top 40 format but this didn't last long.

The Calming Music of the Carolinas
Due to FCC rules at the time which didn't allow newspapers to own broadcast outlets, Knight Newspapers would sell WCR-AM-FM to SJR Communications in 1971. Following the sale, WCR would drop its Top 40 format in favor of adopting a beautiful music format. This format proved to be successful, and gave the station notable attention in the Carolinas. Despite the format's decline over the years, WCR would continue to broadcast the format into the 80s and up till the mid 90s.

In 1982, SJR Communications would sell its Charlotte radio stations to Bahakel Communications (the owners of WCCB-TV; which ironically took the channel 18 spot away from WCR). Bahakel Communications would then sell WCR and WMKG (which was formerly known as WCR-FM) to Sinclair Broadcasting Group in 1988 in order to focus more on their core television assets. Sinclair would then sell its radio assets to Entercom in 1998.

The Birth of Radio Zindagi
On March 15, 1997, one year prior to the acquisition of Sinclair's radio assets, WCR would drop its beautiful music format after 26 years, in favor of a Bollywood format known as "Radio Zindagi". The launch of Radio Zindagi made it the first of its kind in radio history. On June 1, 2003, Entercom would sell the ownership rights to a new company called "Cinemaya Media" which would handle the Zindagi brand while Entercom would continue to operate the station under an LMA deal.

The Radio Zindagi brand would expand on September 1, 2011, when Cinemaya would purchase KFRC-AM (1550 AM) from CBS Radio and switched it to a South Asian music format. As of now, the Radio Zindagi brand is the largest of its kind in the United States.

On July 19, 2016, Beasley Broadcasting Group would sell WBT-AM-FM, WLNK-FM, and WFNZ to Entercom. This resulted in Entercom owning three AM stations in one market. Entercom would however, sell these stations to Urban One in 2020.

The Bet
On September 18, 2021, as part of Audacy's plans to expand "The Bet" brand, WCR would drop its Bollywood format and would join the BetQL Audio Network, branding itself as "The Bet Charlotte". The station would also know carry CBS Sports Radio programming at various different time slots.