It was an interesting start to the afternoon on Audacy’s 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh. As listeners tuned in to hear reactions from a busy weekend in the “Steel City,” the first segment of the highly rated PM Team with Andrew Fillipponi and Chris Mueller took an unexpected sports radio turn.
Just minutes prior to air, Fillipponi tweeted that he would be quitting his position at the Audacy Pittsburgh brand. The reason stemmed from a tweet he sent last August, in which he said that if the Pittsburgh Steelers were to draft Drew Aller, he would “think” about quitting his job. This weekend, the Steelers drafted Aller, leading Fillipponi to follow through on his social media promise with an opening segment announcing he would be leaving.
While the on-air and digital bit lasted just an hour, the program opened without its top talent after he walked out on his audience. With listener expectations centered on NFL Draft reactions, along with whether the Pittsburgh Penguins would stave off elimination against the Philadelphia Flyers, I asked multiple program directors around the country if they would sign off on a bit like this. Especially when considering timing, placement, and the importance of meeting audience expectations during such a high-cume opportunity.
Several programmers I spoke with praised the creativity of the moment, despite concerns about timing and execution.
“I love drawing attention to a bit and not being too serious. Choosing a day where you have more ears on you than a normal Monday might draw more attention to it,” said one major market sports radio programmer. “You just need to know your station and your audience. The day after the NFL Draft is typically more sports-heavy than most in the spring. That doesn’t mean you can’t have fun and be entertaining though.”
The same programmer noted that for a bit like this to work, it must be an all-in approach. On social media, 93.7 The Fan leaned into the moment with creative posts and short-form video of Fillipponi’s announcement.
However, the station’s website never changed its lineup, making the bit feel less like a full commitment.
Another anonymous programmer pointed to poor timing. Instead of serving the audience what it expected on a Monday following the NFL Draft, Fillipponi and the station pivoted away from that expectation.
“That’s pretty weak,” said another mid-market sports radio programmer. “This is a great thing to do in the months down the road, when fewer major sports events are happening. For any baseball market, there’s plenty of time to play into so-called drama—but not the day after the NFL Draft.”
Even though the mid-market programmer said he would have avoided the bit entirely, he added that the execution of Fillipponi’s one-hour exit should have been extended for greater impact.
“Go all in, or don’t go in at all. If you’re going to quit, make it more effective by quitting the whole day. The turnaround was too quick for the bit and its effectiveness for the audience,” said the mid-market anonymous programmer.
While the bit may have resonated with Fillipponi’s social media audience, it also originated there. That stood out to another program director I spoke with, who noted that not every listener follows everything happening on social platforms.
“For a major daypart like that to assume every listener is clued into the bit is laughable,” said another major market sports radio programmer. “Roughly twenty percent of your audience at best is following you on social media. Your listening audience isn’t made up of your following—it’s much bigger than that.”
Still, the social media impact was undeniable. Across platforms, video of Fillipponi’s “exit” outperformed every other post from the station that day, which another major market programmer viewed as a significant win.
“We play in an attention economy, and this won the day for the station,” said another major market sports radio anonymous programmer. “It proves that you don’t always need a hot take to get reach in a digital world. The more creative, the better. This was very creative.”
Ultimately, this comes down to a question every programmer—and every personality—must answer: who are you serving first?
“If you’re going to take it as far as NFL Draft weekend, you have to follow through on it,” said another major market sports radio programmer. “I like this kind of stuff. It generates buzz with your audience where is curious if you’re going to follow through with it or not. Every programmer has their own style of programming they aim for, but this is one I would support.”
If the goal is to win the moment on social media, then this worked. It generated attention, drove engagement, and cut through a crowded content landscape on one of the busiest sports days of the year. In that respect, it’s hard to argue the bit didn’t accomplish exactly what it set out to do.
However, if the goal is to serve the audience that tuned in expecting insight, reaction, and immediacy following the NFL Draft, the return becomes far more debatable.
Radio has always been at its best when it meets listeners where they are—especially in moments of peak interest—not when it asks them to be in on the joke.
The real takeaway isn’t whether the bit was “good” or “bad.” It’s that execution and context matter more than ever. Creativity remains essential for talent and programmers, but it cannot come at the expense of clarity or audience expectation—particularly in a format built on habit and trust.
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John Mamola is Barrett Media’s sports editor and daily sports columnist. He brings over two decades of experience (Chicago, Tampa/St Petersburg) in the broadcast industry with expertise in brand management, sales, promotions, producing, imaging, hosting, talent coaching, talent development, web development, social media strategy and design, video production, creative writing, partnership building, communication/networking with a long track record of growth and success. He is a five-time recognized top 20 program director in a major market via Barrett Medi’s Top 20 series and has been honored internally multiple times as station/brand of the year (Tampa, FL) and employee of the month (Tampa, FL) by iHeartMedia. Connect with John by email at John@BarrettMedia.com.
