For the first time since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the sports media industry came together at the 2022 Barrett Sports Media Summit, an opportunity not only to learn about the evolution of the industry, but also to catch up with former colleagues and make valuable connections for the future.
The two-day event welcomed executives such as ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro and Meadowlark Media CEO John Skipper; program directors including 670 The Score/105.7 The Fan’s Mitch Rosen and 98.7 ESPN New York’s Ryan Hurley; and on-air hosts, among them Mike Francesa and Christopher “Mad Dog” Russo, WFAN’s Craig Carton, and 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Fred Toucher.
The 2022 BSM Summit was the topic of discussion Thursday morning on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Toucher & Rich in Boston. Toucher was joined by his colleague and afternoon drive co-host Mike Felger on the “Kings of Content” panel presented by Beasley Media Group at the event and, upon returning to Boston, spoke about his experience in New York City both inside and outside of the Anne Bernstein Theater.
“Me and Felger were up there for an hour, but the thing is Felger is a real businessman,” said Toucher. “Felger flew in, did his thing [at the BSM Summit], then drove over to the ESPN Studios and did a show and flew home.”
Felger and his co-host Tony Massarotti were honored as the recipients of the first-ever Mike & the Mad Dog Award Thursday as the best local sports radio show in the United States. Additionally, 98.5 The Sports Hub Program Director Rick Radzik won the 2022 Mark Chernoff Award as sports radio’s top programmer Wednesday, for which Toucher was on-hand to witness.
“It went well,” said Toucher. “Felger’s ratings are better so every time they put up the ratings, Felger seemed vastly superior to me.”
Toucher and his wife flew in for the event the night before and kicked off their time in New York City going out to dinner with friends. They also made the time to check out some of the destinations around Times Square, including the M&M’s Store and MLB New York City Flagship Retail Store. Being that the BSM Summit was within the Broadway Theatre District, Toucher noticed that many of the classic plays are still in theatres.
“They have the same plays: Chicago and The Book of Mormon; those are all still playing out there,” said Toucher. “It’s exhausting, though, walking around there trying to find out where you are.”
While specifically discussing the BSM Summit, Toucher called the Anne Bernstein Theater a “perfect” venue for the event and was impressed by the list of names assembled for sports media’s premier conference.
“I’m not positive who was there when I was there,” said Toucher. “I talked to [SVP/Market Manager for Audacy Boston] Mike Thomas for a while.”
