Day three of our BSM Top 20 of 2019 has arrived, and today we turn our focus to the sports format’s best midday shows. Before scrolling down the page to see the results and save the photos to promote your favorite hosts and programs on social media, here are a few things to be aware of.
First, the voting for our Top 20 series this year involved forty seven radio professionals from thirty cities and eighteen companies. Yours truly (Jason Barrett) does not vote on the awards, I simply collect the information, add up the votes, design the images, and present and promote the results.
Secondly, our voters were asked to consider the criteria below to judge the format’s best programs. Keep in mind that each individual values things differently and has deeper knowledge of some shows and cities than others. Though that may make this an imperfect science, we could say that about any list on any topic ever created. Therefore, we’re going to move forward and present a collective snapshot of what radio industry executives believe to be the format’s best shows.
- Strong ratings in 2019
- Industry track record
- Reputation and influence
- Finished 2019 with the network/station
- Ability to entertain and inform consistently
- Points are given for each spot (EX: 20 for 1st, 1 for 20th)
That brings us to this year’s rankings for the Major Market Local Sports Radio Midday Shows of 2019. Mason & Ireland won this award last year and in 2016, but the popular duo moved up to afternoon drive in 2019, opening the door for a new winner. The show that took home the honor this year is WFAN’s Joe & Evan.
Benigno and Roberts won’t win this award next year because they too have moved to afternoon drive. That step was taken officially in January 2020, but for 2019 they were entrenched in the big apple in the midday slot and produced a strong year’s worth of results to earn the respect and attention of our voters. The New York tandem defeated 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Zolak & Bertrand by twenty nine (29) points, although the two shows tied for the most 1st place votes with nine (9).
BSM congratulates Joe, Evan, Mark Chernoff and the entire WFAN team, as well as every other show that appeared on this year’s Midday shows list. Now without further adieu, let’s take a look at the full results of “BSM’s Top 20 Major Market Local Sports Radio Midday Shows of 2019!”
Additional Notes:
- Joe & Evan and Zolak & Betrand tied for the most 1st place votes with ten (10). Joe and Evan won the category by twenty nine (29) points.
- Spots 21-25 belonged to Bonta, Steiny & Guru, John Clayton, Roggin & Rodney, In The Loop, and Darren Smith.
- 38 shows were eligible for consideration this year, 11 earned at least one (1) 1st place vote.
Here is the remaining schedule for the BSM Top 20 of 2019.
- Thursday January 30 = The 2019 Top 20 Major/Mid-Market Local Sports Radio Afternoon Shows
- Friday January 31 = The 2019 Top 20 Major/Mid-Market Local Sports Radio Program Directors
- Monday February 3 = The 2019 Top 20 Major/Mid-Market Local Sports Radio Stations
- Tuesday February 4 = The 2019 Top 20 Original Sports Podcasts
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.
