A quick news and notes column to bring you up to speed on a few developments taking place throughout the industry. Before I do that though, be on the lookout next week for a special series I’m working on. It’s called “5 Podcasts in 5 Days”.
For the series, I’ll be analyzing five national podcasts and offering my assessments on what I took away from each experience. I’ll be examining the length, content, production value, accessibility, promotion, uniqueness, and anything else that catches my ear during the process.
There are certainly no shortage of options to consider. However, for this first exercise I want to test myself and consume some programs that are different from one another. I listen to a ton of audio each week on radio stations all throughout the world so for this particular experiment I’ll be sampling some programs that I don’t get to hear on a regular basis.
I’m personally more interested in podcasts which offer original programming and aren’t just a replica of the same talk show listeners can hear over the radio airwaves minus the commercials. I recognize there’s value in offering both types of podcasts – over the air and original content – but I believe original programming creates higher interest. People enjoy discovering it and it’s been a major factor in why the majority of the top rated podcasts on iTunes’ ‘Sports and Recreation’ category are original shows.
All five articles will be published next week. The first will be posted on Monday June 13th. The five shows I’ve reviewed for this project are “The Bill Simmons Show”, “Men In Blazers”, “The Vertical Podcast with Woj”, “The Jonah Keri Podcast” and “Outkick The Show with Clay Travis”.
Under The Radar:
- Mike Welch has left 93.7 The Ticket in Lincoln, Nebraska to become part of the morning show on 610 Sports in Kansas City. Welch will make his debut on Wednesday June 8th as part of the “Fescoe In The Morning” show which features Bob Fescoe, Josh Klingler, and Steven Spector.
- Speaking of 93.7 The Ticket, the Lincoln sports talker is filling Welch’s void by bringing in Brett Kane to host afternoons alongside Jake Bockoven. The new afternoon team debuts on Monday June 20th. Kane moves to Lincoln following a stint with WBBL in Grand Rapids. He previously spent time working in Omaha for AM 590 ESPN.
- Alpha Media in Portland has hired Bruce Collins as its Talk Operations Manager. As part of his new duties he’ll oversee two news talk radio stations and sports station 750 The Game.
- The Washington Post reports that Tony Kornheiser told his audience that the main reason for his move away from WTEM-AM ESPN 980 is to own his own content, and broadcast from a location closer to his home. He added that his new podcast will be 60 to 70 minutes in length instead of the 80 minutes he provides on his radio program. Kornheiser’s son, Michael, will oversee social media efforts for the podcast. A website is expected to launch within the week with details on how listeners can subscribe.
- Greg Peterson has been hired as afternoon producer and college basketball reporter by 750 The Game in Portland. He’s expected to start his new assignment on Monday June 20th. Peterson had done work for WNSR in Nashville, and Yahoo Sports Radio.
- Jonathan Peterlin will host his final show for Yahoo Sports Radio this Sunday. He’ll be moving to Cleveland to join 92.3 The Fan.
- Mike Florio and Stephen A. Smith had a little dust up last week over a story that Florio posted which didn’t sit well with Smith. Florio offered to address the situation on-air with Smith, but he declined the invitation. Florio went into further detail on Friday’s show.
- 1460 KXNO in Des Moines, Iowa afternoon host Keith Murphy was brought into the national spotlight last week by “Garbage Time” host Katie Nolan. Unfortunately, it was for the wrong reason. Nolan, took audio clips of Murphy’s commentary on Art Briles and the Baylor program and played them on her program. However, she didn’t air the clip in its entirety which created a stir. She apologized to Murphy for the error. He says it’s now water under the bridge.
Jason Barrett is the President and Founder of Barrett Media since the company was created in September 2015. Prior to its arrival, JB served as a sports radio programmer, launching brands such as 95.7 The Game in San Francisco, and 101 ESPN in St. Louis. He also spent time programming SportsTalk 950 in Philadelphia, 590 The Fan KFNS in St. Louis, and ESPN 1340/1390 in Poughkeepsie, NY. Jason also worked on-air and behind the scenes in local radio at 101.5 WPDH, WTBQ 1110AM, and WPYX 106.5. He also spent two years on the national stage, producing radio shows for ESPN Radio in Bristol, CT. Among them included the Dan Patrick Show, and GameNight.
You can find JB on Twitter @SportsRadioPD. He’s also reachable by email at Jason@BarrettMedia.com.
