Josh Klingler can remember when Kansas City Chiefs fans were not sure if the team would receive one game on prime-time television. Prior to the 2015 season, the organization had not advanced beyond the Wild Card round of the playoffs since 2003, and the Chiefs only finished atop the AFC West division one time during that stretch. For nearly a decade, the team has cemented itself as a dynasty with eight consecutive division titles and four Super Bowl appearances in five years, resulting in a total of three championships.
Klingler has been following the team as the official sideline reporter of its radio broadcasts since 2020, providing listeners with deft insight and unparalleled access over the course of the season. Throughout the 18-game schedule, he is on the road and has witnessed the spectacle and intrigue surrounding the organization.
Facilitating the inexorable and unrelenting nature of the schedule, especially while co-hosting the morning drive show on 610 Sports Radio in the process, came in part through the adrenaline and passion he has for the craft. Working with Bob Fescoe for the last 14 years in the drivetime daypart, Klingler has refined his hosting abilities and helped craft a program filled with knowledge and fun. After many years of waking up early and balancing different ventures, the lifestyle caught up to him and necessitated a change.
“It got to the point where I had several times a year where I was kind of coming straight from the airport into work, and I don’t know how healthy that was and sleep deprivation and what have you,” Klingler said. “I think [it was] not just one thing, but it just kind of all added up to be, ‘Hey, is this what I want to do every day or is this becoming a task?’ It was kind of turning into more work than I wanted.”
Klingler believes that some people outside of the media industry may not realize the extensive amount of preparation that goes into a typical edition of a sports talk radio program. There are times when he was executing tasks in the middle of the day and would pause to think if it would make sense as a topic on the show. Aside from discussion about the local teams, part of the allure of the program came in its ability to relate to listeners and convey their genuine sentiments on a range of topics.
“I was always kind of the traffic cop and the even keel, and Bob would always be able to have the rein to [have] hots and colds and a lot more range of emotions and takes,” Klingler said. “I felt like my best role was to be the kind of even-keeled steward of, ‘If he flew off the handle, I could rein it back in’ [and] those types of things, and I think it worked.”
The longevity of the program came in part because of the rapport that was established between Klingler and Fescoe. When 610 Sports Radio first launched in 2003 though, Fescoe was working at Sports Radio 810 WHB, an outlet that had been broadcasting in the sports talk format for several years. Klingler himself accepted a role at 610 Sports Radio producing at night after being told he was overqualified for the position and that it would not pay that much.
“I feel like I just kind of fell into the talk thing,” Klingler said. “I was, probably am, still kind of a failed play-by-play brand broadcaster to a certain extent that kind of ended up being a chatter for a while on the air. So I never set sights on being a talk show host; I was always more in the play-by-play route and kind of settled into more of the talk than [I] probably ever thought I was going to do.”
As a producer, Klingler worked for parts of five years with Damon Amendolara in morning drive on a locally focused program. Once Amendolara left the station in late 2007, he continued to diligently improve as a versatile industry professional, delivering sports updates and maintaining the website during the daypart.
Two years later, he was added on The 610 Morning Rush with Roger Twibell, an ephemeral program that was supplanted once Fescoe made his return to Kansas City and began working with 610 Sports Radio. At that point, Klingler was unsure of what his new role would be, and after Fescoe debuted solo, he was asked by the program director to slide in and try to make the program sound as if it was more of a two-person show.
“I’m not a huge fan of one-person shows – I think Bob would probably tell you that too,” Klingler said. “I think having someone you can bounce stuff off of and have conversations with is a little bit better, and I think it worked out probably for both of us as well.”
In the last 14 years, Klingler and Fescoe have formed a duo that has been a familiar presence on the local sports radio airwaves, discussing a variety of topics ranging from sports to lifestyle. Although the show discussed sports, the conversations did not always touch on specific nuances of games but remained dynamic, nonetheless.
“I think as the years went on too, Bob and I discussed our families a lot and our kids a lot [and] being parents a lot, and I think that did resonate well with people,” Klingler said. “We tried to be like, ‘Hey, we’re doing a lot of the same stuff our listeners are doing, so let’s just talk about it or gripe about it or whatever,’ and I think at times, [we] tried to be kind of an open book.”
Although the show was never directed to have certain conversations by management, it tried to adhere to the interests of its listeners. When the Chiefs are within the NFL season, he feels the show is more buttoned up because of how the team has captivated consumers in the marketplace.
“I think a lot of cities probably live on their sports as kind of the gateway to their community and to be able to showcase your city in other ways by kind of opening the door via football, and certainly that’s been the case,” Klingler said. “And yeah, Taylor Swift hasn’t hurt either. That dynamic has brought on a whole new set of attention.”
The show never had Klingler’s name in it, instead adopting a title that solely highlighted Fescoe without making it apparent that he had a co-host. While he recognizes that it would have been nice to have his name in the marquee, it is never something he yearned to attain.
“I think if I were more ego-driven, I probably would have pushed for it, but I think anybody that heard the show got it,” Klingler articulated. “It was the two of us and a third voice at times, but I think anybody that listened got what the show was about.”
From the time Klingler announced that he was going to be retiring from daily sports talk radio six weeks before his last day, he received messages from listeners and colleagues thanking him for his work. If he walked out of the studios feeling like they informed and entertained the audience without missing key storylines, he felt the show was good enough. Akin to a golfer – posting a score and hoping that it was good enough – he tried to fulfill his role within the sports media business and concentrate on factors in his control.
“I wasn’t always focused on the ratings, but I knew what they were,” Klingler said. “I think we tried to put on a show that entertained us, and if it entertained us, we were hopeful that it entertained others.”
Following an emotional farewell program this past Wednesday, Klingler feels that listeners will quickly transition to whoever is named Fescoe’s new co-host. Dusty Likins, who hosts the evening program at 610 Sports, is someone who he thinks is ready to take the next step. Likins has filled in on numerous occasions when he or Fescoe were absent from the program, and while Klingler has provided his input, he does not have much say in the final decision.
Shortly before his egress, Fescoe in the Morning added a new producer in Mac Morey, who previously worked in Nashville, someone who he surmises will further elevate the on-air product. Fescoe will remain on the air, someone who Klingler perceived knows everyone in the locale and is the “most wired-in person” he has ever met.
“Bob’s there, and he’s a tremendous, tremendous anchor for the whole thing,” Klingler said. “So my role was my role, and whoever’s role comes in next, they got to make it their own.”
Pondering over what is next in his career, Klingler does not want to step away from sports media entirely because of the fact that he enjoys his work; however, his next occupation will not be a daily occurrence. Klingler envisions himself continuing to remain involved in the media for a few more years with what he is doing before he presumes to decide to do something completely different.
“I’m not interested in doing any more extra media,” Klingler said. “I had no reason to stop doing it if I was wanting to continue – 610 was the place I wanted to be – so if I’m not doing it there, I don’t foresee myself doing it anywhere.”
Several people have reached out to Klingler in different areas to whom he has been perceptive, neither accepting or declining any propositions at the moment. For now, he will continue to balance sideline reporting on Kansas City Chiefs broadcasts while engaging in freelance play-by-play work and other television opportunities. Klingler remains a staunch advocate for sports talk radio and is cognizant of its societal impact and inherent congeniality. Even though he will no longer be situated behind the microphone, he still intends to turn up the volume and be part of the sonic environment.
“I feel like I’ve ran the race, and so I’ve got other interests non-media wise that I’ve probably never had necessarily time to explore, and maybe it’s time to start exploring them,” Klingler said. “I don’t know what’s there, but I got multiple part-time broadcasting jobs that will still keep that fix going, but the day to day, I think I was just kind of just ready to not be putting in the time that it requires to be good.”
Derek Futterman is a contributing editor and sports media reporter for Barrett Media. Additionally, he has worked in a broad array of roles in multimedia production – including on live game broadcasts and audiovisual platforms – and in digital content development and management. He previously interned for Paramount within Showtime Networks, wrote for the Long Island Herald and served as lead sports producer at NY2C. To get in touch, find him on X @derekfutterman.
