News is not sports. But sports can very much be news. I often hear from radio programmers and hosts who insist there needs to be a very clear line between the two formats. Sports talk is talking about sports. News/talk is talking about news. There’s a clear distinction, in the eyes of some.
But like everything in our world in 2024. That’s just not true. And I don’t think it’s ever been true.
In Kansas City, we are heading down the home stretch of a controversial vote on April 2nd regarding a ⅜ cent sales tax extension for the Chiefs and the Royals to help the football team upgrade Arrowhead Stadium and the baseball team move into a new downtown ballpark.
The vote has resulted in millions of dollars flooding our local airwaves from the teams asking voters to vote “Yes” on April 2nd. The notion that this is a slam dunk due to the Chiefs’ recent success is inaccurate. In fact, the teams just dumped another $1 million into their campaign because they are nervous it won’t pass.
This story is not a sports story. It’s what news/talk radio does at its core. It’s about taxes. Big business vs. small business. Eminent domain. Incentives used by municipalities. And yes, it’s about politics.
There’s just no way for sports radio to cover a story like this in as much depth as a quality news/talk show, assuming the latter host is competent and capable, knowing the ins and outs of local government, the power players, and the background information that is more up the alley of a news/talk host, rather than a sports talk host.
The story pits activist, progressive groups against billionaire owners, while anti-tax conservative folks are also expressing their dissatisfaction. In fact, politics makes strange bedfellows, and that’s exactly what we are getting with a liberal, urban core joining forces with a rural, conservative core, to try and stop the tax.Fascinating times.
There is a lesson in this story for news/talk hosts in any market: Don’t think a stadium story, which pops up in markets on a yearly basis around the country, isn’t in your purview. In fact, it’s much more in your lane, it’s just masked as a sports story. But it’s not. It’s local, it’s impactful, and it’s what people in your community are talking about. Not the same old Trump vs. Biden silliness. There will be more time for that.
But there’s also a lesson for sports talk hosts: Grow your brand and your interests beyond sports. Be a more well-rounded host and person. And you’ll just be more interesting as a talk show host, in general, and grow your audience beyond the hardcore P1’s.
I think back to being a kid and listening to Mike and the Mad Dog on WFAN in New York. Some of their most interesting conversations that stand out over their 20-year run were unrelated to sports, such as big news stories like 9/11, or interviews with non-sports figures like former NYC Mayor Rudy Guliani.
They were versatile. They were smart. It wasn’t guy talk, but it was smart talk (with some dumb, yet wildly entertaining, callers). They always had the pulse of what was being talked about in their market.
While there’s no doubt media has become very niche in its approach in super-serving very segmented audiences, local radio can still win by having trusted, informed, and well-versed hosts who can tackle any topic that’s being discussed in your town.
Take off the guardrails of what your station is branded as by your company or Nielsen, and just pop the mic, tackle the topical, local issues, and let it rip. Your audience will thank you with more occasions and listening hours. And you’ll be a more interesting host and person for it.
Pete Mundo is a weekly columnist for Barrett Media, and the morning show host and program director for KCMO in Kansas City. Previously, he was a fill-in host nationally on FOX News Radio and CBS Sports Radio, while anchoring for WFAN, WCBS News Radio 880, and Bloomberg Radio. Pete was also the sports and news director for Omni Media Group at K-1O1/Z-92 in Woodward, Oklahoma. He’s also the owner of the Big 12-focused digital media outlet Heartland College Sports. To interact, find him on Twitter @PeteMundo.
