To say that Julie Talbott is excited about receiving the Jeff Smulyan Award at the upcoming BSM Summit would be an understatement.
When you hear her talk about it, it’s clear that she’s over the moon about it.
“It’s just such an honor,” said Talbott, the President of Premiere Networks and parent company of Fox Sports Radio.
The award was introduced at the BSM Summit in 2019 and is named after Jeff Smulyan, the founder of WFAN Radio in New York and the Chairman, CEO, and Founder of Emmis Communications.
The award, to be presented to Talbott at the BSM Summit March 21-22 in Los Angeles, is given to a radio industry executive who has produced results, led by example, and uncovered new business opportunities.
“We’re so proud of Fox Sports Radio and to receive an award that’s named after a dear friend Jeff Smulyan, I just can’t even express how meaningful this is. Jeff is someone that I have looked up to for many many years. I have admired him and I have embraced his friendship and help that he has given me every step along the way.”
The sports radio industry has certainly grown by leaps and bounds since New York’s WFAN became the country’s first all-sports radio station in 1987. Not long after WFAN went on the air, it didn’t look like the format would last very long. But, the all-sports format would be adopted by many other radio stations around the country and that led to multiple national all-sports radio networks.
“I think everybody had their doubts in the beginning and then when you started listening as we always say radio is really your companion,” said Talbott. “We are thrilled with it. We think it’s a place where everybody can listen and it’s a place where people can feel like they really do have a companion to listen to and a place where it can continue to grow and have audiences from all demographic groups join in.”
As the all-sports radio format evolved over the years, so did the technology that comes with running a radio station as well as a network. Today, social media, along with audio and video distribution plays a big role in the success of a radio outlet.
Talbot’s team at Premiere and Fox Sports Radio has certainly embraced those changes.
“Completely,” said Talbott. “It is very positive and very exciting. Our world has always been about promotion and marketing and I would consider technology along with social media as one of the greatest places where we can continue to promote our trade, to promote our stars, and to promote our radio stations and our podcasts. It’s just been an incredibly exciting time to have different levers to pull that help grow our audiences.”
So how has Fox Sports Radio been able to grow and how have they been able to stay atop the sports radio industry for such a long time?
Hiring Colin Cowherd away from ESPN certainly changed the landscape of the network all-sports radio battle and also the recent addition of Covino and Rich has been another strong piece to the Fox Sports Radio winning formula.
But to better answer the question about the network’s success, growth and sustainability, Talbott channels her inner “Beatles” by admitting that she gets some help from her friends.
“I really want to say that my partner in crime (iHeart Media Sports Executive Vice President) Don Martin along with (Fox Sports Radio Senior Vice President) Scott Shapiro. They have their ears to the ground on every trend in the sports world that is emerging. I feel like we’re always ahead of what talent is coming up. We have amazing talent and consequently great content and that’s the name of the game.”
And the name on the 2023 Jeff Smulyan Award will be Premiere Network’s Julie Talbott who continues to follow the awards’ mission statement as an executive who excels in producing results and taking risks in the sports radio industry.
Peter Schwartz writes weekly sports radio features for Barrett Media. He has been involved in New York sports media for over three decades, and has worked for notable brands such as WFAN, CBS Sports Radio, WCBS 880, ESPN New York, and FOX News Radio. Peter has also served as play by play announcer for the New Yok Riptide, New York Dragons, New York Hitmen, Varsity Media and the Long Island Sports Network. You can find him on Twitter @SchwartzSports or email him at DragonsRadio@aol.com.
