The 3rd annual Barrett Sports Media Summit is fast approaching. Each week we announce another group of speakers. Each time we do, another few tickets are sold.
What are people most looking forward to at the event? I asked four programmers who will split their time in New York between the gallery and the stage.
Armen Williams is an accomplished and respected programmer. He started his programming journey in Albany, NY at 104.3 The Team, and cemented his reputation with a successful run in Denver at 104.3 the Fan. Just over a year ago, he took on a new challenge, overseeing Sports Radio 610 in Houston. He won’t be new to attending BSM Summit’s. He already knows the value is in who you meet.
Last year, Armen was only a month and a half into working with Entercom in Houston. He made time to network with other PDs from within the company during the 2019 BSM Summit in Los Angeles.
“I wanted to pick their brains on the company,” he said. “I wanted to hear their stories and understand what their learning curves were.”
In New York, Armen will be picking brains again. This time though, he expects several questions to be fired back at him. He welcomes the questions, because those PDs’ motivations are his motivations.
“We’re all trying to develop what sports radio will and should sound like. There are a few PDs where I’ll want to pick their brains. You know, you just go in with open eyes and open ears. I’ll pay attention to the sessions and what lessons I can bring back to my market.”
Altitude Sports Radio PD Dave Tepper knows Armen well. The two were competitors during Armen’s time in Denver and remain friends. For Tepper, the appeal of the BSM Summit is in the people. It isn’t just about networking. It is about hearing the stories from the stage.
At last year’s BSM Summit, Jim Rome sat down for a 40 minute Q&A with Jason Barrett. The two talked about his career history, his philosophies, and his work ethic. It was the highlight of the two day event for a lifelong fan like Tepper.
“The guy was just such an influence on me,” Tepper told me. “He was one of my top 5 radio influences. Rome, Stern, and Phil Hendry. Those were my guys. To see him up there and hear his story of truly what a grind is was impressive.”
This year when Dave looks at the speakers on stage, there is one that will stand out to him more than the others. He handpicked Carl Dukes to be his partner when the two were in Houston.
“I’m as proud of Carl as I am of anybody,” Dave says with audible affection in his voice.
Since their partnership ended, Dave has gone on to programming success first in Omaha and now in Denver. Carl has become one of the biggest names in sports radio in Atlanta. Dave tells me that the journey from arriving in Atlanta to having the notoriety to be invited to speak at the BSM Summit was not a straight line for Carl and that will make seeing a room hang on his old partner’s every word even sweeter.
“I know that guy’s story. I know where he came from. I know the hustle. I know the risk he took,” Tepper says. “We had a successful show, he and I did and Julia Takahashi was a part of that. We had the top afternoon drive show in Houston. He left all of that to go take his shot in Atlanta.
“I know the story everybody will look to tell is that now he and [Mike] Bell have as big a show in that market as there is anywhere. I know it wasn’t easy. I know he went through various co-hosts to find the right one. It was just meant to be for that guy.”
Chris Kinard of 106.7 the Fan in Washington, DC will be on stage for the third consecutive year. At last year’s event in Los Angeles, he shared the stage with Bonneville’s VP of Programming in Phoenix, Ryan Hatch, as well as Justin Craig of ESPN Radio and Scott Shapiro of Fox Sports Radio.
Kinard deemed their discussion of inside versus outside thinking in programming a success. “I thought it was thought provoking,” he tells me. He hopes that he inspired attendees to take as many notes as he did during other sessions.
This year, Kinard told me that he expects the event to be packed with big names and influential voices.
“As soon as Jason put out the poll for where we should go in 2020, I knew I was voting for New York,” he says. “There so much high level talent there from across every aspect of the business. I’ve walked out of the Summit each of the last 2 years with pages of notes. I know this year I won’t be able to wait to get back to the station and put some of this wisdom to use.”
Williams, Tepper, and Kinard will share the stage with Gavin Spittle, PD of Entercom’s 105.3 the Fan in Dallas. Spittle told me that the idea of being on stage isn’t intimidating at all. In fact, he expects a warm reception.
“It’s a room full of PDs and other radio people. I assume in front of colleagues it will be friendly,” he laughs.
As for the value of being in that room, Gavin says there is just as much to be gained from shaking hands as there is from sitting in your seat and listening to who is on stage. In fact, “I’m always looking to meet people,” he tells me.
“Look, if I can pluck any idea from those two days, even if it is just one, it is a success for me,” Gavin tells me when I ask about what specifically he is hoping to hear discussed. “This is a competitive landscape. Not just radio. Media. It’s competitive, so you have to listen and keep learning new ways to compete. If you stop learning, you start failing.”
There are plenty of good reasons to be in the Ailey Citigroup Theater in New York on February 26 and 27. Whether it is trying to fill up a notebook or hand out business cards, these four programmers are proof that everyone there is trying to get better.
You will be obliged. You will be embraced. There will be no shortage of great opportunities to network and form new relationships. So, if you don’t already have your tickets, click here and get them!
Demetri Ravanos is a columnist and features writer for Barrett Media. He is also the creator of The Sports Podcast Festival, and a previous host on the Chewing Clock and Media Noise podcasts. He occasionally fills in on stations across the Carolinas in addition to hosting Panthers and College Football podcasts. His radio resume includes stops at WAVH and WZEW in Mobile, AL, WBPT in Birmingham, AL and WBBB, WPTK and WDNC in Raleigh, NC.
You can find him on Twitter @DemetriRavanos or reach him by email at DemetriTheGreek@gmail.com.
