Hard In The Paint (HITP) Sports Media has announced a new partnership agreement with Equity Media that will bring additional sports content to WBOK 1230 AM and its website. The company is in its first year of operations and has a variety of podcast-based offerings that it produces and distributes to various outlets, headlined by founder David Grubb’s program. HITP will also craft original written content for the station’s website as part of the deal. The agreement will also move Grubb to the airwaves on The Sports Report on Monday, Wednesday and Friday weekly from 4 to 7 p.m. CT.
Grubb received some of his first hosting opportunities with WBOK earlier in his career, and he affirms that they changed his trajectory. Since that time, he went on to work with various television and radio outlets, including as assistant managing editor of Rob Parker’s startup website, MLBbro.com and as a writer and podcaster with SB Nation. Grubb’s last endeavor with WBOK 1230 AM was as a routine co-host and fill-in host on its local sports program, Sport-a-Facts, which occurred as he was juggling responsibilities as a sports blogger and communications director at the collegiate and professional level.
“We see this as a historic opportunity,” Grubb said in a statement. “There are so many stations operating with limited resources that need support. As we grow, I’d love for HITP to partner with other outlets to not only improve the quality of content available, but to also have more opportunities to develop true sports journalists.”
Various companies in the audio space are outsourcing their content and other aspects of their businesses in order to optimize the use of internal resources and cut costs. ESPN Radio, for example, recently expanded its partnership with Good Karma Brands to have the company take over its day-to-day operations and advertising sales under a revenue sharing agreement.
Moreover, many local stations act as affiliates for national programs, including shows hosted by Colin Cowherd, Dan Patrick and Jim Rome among others, to fill time slots rather than relying on original content each day. Grubb and Hard In The Paint Sports Media hope that its content can continue to emerge and stand out within the vast marketplace of personalities and programming.
