WYCK is an AM broadcastingradio station owned by Bold Gold Media and licensed to the city of Plains, which serves the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton radio market. It broadcasts with 810 watts, non-directional, on 1340 kHz . WYCK simulcasts the classic hits format, branded as "105 The River", from WWRR 104.9 FM Scranton. During the spring and summer, WYCK simulcasts WICK1400 AM Scranton during Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRidersminor league baseball games, in order to provide coverage for fans in Luzerne County who are unable to receive WICK.
History
WYCK was first licensed on January 15, 1925 as WBRE, broadcasting on 1300 kHz with 10 watts, and licensed to the Baltimore Radio Exchange company at 17 West Northampton Street in Wilkes-Barre. WBRE made its debut broadcast on January 31, 1925. In 1927 ownership was transferred to Louis G. Baltimore. On June 15, 1927 WBRE was assigned to 1200 kHz on a time shared basis with the other long time Wilkes-Barre station, WBAX. On November 11, 1928, under the provisions of a general reorganization resulting from the Federal Radio Commission's General Order 40, it was shifted to full time operation on 1310 kHz. WBRE remained at 1310 kHz until the North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement took effect in 1941, when most of the stations on its frequency, including WBRE, were moved to 1340 kHz. For many years WBRE was an NBC radio affiliate. In October 1980, the station's call letters were changed to WKRZ. From 1987 to 1992 the station went through multiple ownership and format changes, resulting in numerous call sign changes, starting with WPLJ in late 1987, followed by WYOM, WBCR, WTSW, and finally, in late 1992, WYCK, simulcasting Scranton's WICK. After losing the lease on its tower site in Kingston, WYCK moved its transmitter to east of Wilkes-Barre near the VA Medical Center in the 1990s. As a result of this relocation the station had to change its community of license to Plains. In 2006, Bold Gold dropped its Oldies radio format in favor of a sports format branded as "The Game", with programming for WYCK along with sister stations WICK located in Scranton and WCDL in Carbondale coming from Fox Sports Radio and Premiere Radio Networks's Jim Rome. "The Game" simulcast network also acted as the flagship for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders AAAMinor League Baseball radio play-by-play coverage. On September 23, 2015 WYCK switched to a simulcast of classic hits-formatted WWRR 104.9 FM Scranton, branded as "105 The River".
