Digital sports giant Jomboy Media has a new CEO, as the company announced Wednesday that Courtney Hirsch is the new executive added to its board of directors. Hirsch replaces Andrew Patterson, who was the company’s first CEO and exited in 2022.
Hirsch has been with Jomboy Media since December of 2020, originally joining the company as vice president of sales and partnerships. Over time, she took on expanded responsibilities, ultimately earning a place on the board of directors. In this role, she will work closely with lead investors and board members, including producer and entrepreneur Jack Davis, as well as Connect Ventures, a joint investment partnership between CAA and venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates.
Furthermore, she was named COO in 2023 and previously worked in sales across digital media and technology companies, most notably at Uber and GroundTruth.
Under her leadership, Hirsch helped Jomboy Media extend partnerships with long-running sponsors such as DraftKings and SeatGeek. Notably, those partnerships have now lasted for just over five years. Meanwhile, new sponsors have emerged under Hirsch’s tenure, including T-Mobile, Corona, and Best Western.
Additionally, as Hirsch served as the company’s COO since 2023, Jomboy Media experienced significant growth. Specifically, the company saw increases in both revenue and profitability, with an average annual growth rate of 53%. As a result, in 2024, the company ranked in the top 4% of digital publishers on social media, amassing more than 93 million engagements overall.
“We’ve built a powerhouse brand that celebrates fun and connects fans, creators, and premium partners. I’ve seen what makes this company and culture special,” said Hirsch. “As CEO, my focus is on scaling our original IP, growing our strategic and corporate partnerships, and unlocking new opportunities that innovate within the creator economy.”
Jomboy Media was founded by Jimmy O’Brien and Jake Storiale in 2017 and has continued to expand in popularity. Moreover, the company collaborates with a wide range of investors, including WWE, Dwyane Wade, and Billy Crystal, to name a few.
“Courtney has organized our vision into a leading sports media brand, and there’s no one better to lead us moving forward,” said O’Brien. “She never loses sight of what matters most—our community—and is relentless in discovering ways for us to grow while staying true to who we are.”
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Netflix has announced that it is bringing back Quarterback this offseason with a new lineup of signal callers involved in the proceedings. Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff will take part in the documentary series, along with the return of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins. The project is produced by NFL Films, Omaha Productions and 2PM Productions, the same entities that collaborated on the first iteration of the venture two years ago that featured Cousins with Patrick Mahomes and Marcus Mariota.
Burrow completed his fifth season with the Cincinnati Bengals and led the team towards making a playoff push despite a slow start to the season. In the NFC North, Goff had the Lions in prime position to make a playoff run in hopes to reach the Super Bowl championship for the first time in franchise history. Staying in the NFC, Cousins played his 13th season in the league after suffering a torn achilles two years ago and aimed to assimilate into a new division and add to his legacy.
During the last offseason, Netflix debuted a follow-up project titled Receiver in which it highlighted wide receivers and tight ends around the NFL in a similar fashion, including Davante Adams, Justin Jefferson, George Kittle, Deebo Samuel and Amon-Ra St. Brown. Netflix has more than 300 million global subscribers to its platform as the company continues to foray into the sports content space with docuseries and event programming. The over-the-top streaming service recently presented an NFL doubleheader for the first time on Christmas Day that attained an average minute audience of more than 30 million global viewers.
The news comes as Netflix could look to explore airing more NFL games moving forward, with chief content officer Bela Bajaria explaining that she would definitely be interested in the Sunday afternoon games. In addition to the NFL, Netflix is in the midst of airing its first year of WWE Raw under a decade-long media rights deal and has also premiered several sports-focused docuseries, including Starting 5, Full Swing, Beckham, Court of Gold and Formula 1: Drive to Survive.
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ABC News has announced the promotion of Jay O’Brien and Morgan Norwood as new correspondents for the television network.
In their new roles, O’Brien will be based in Washington D.C. while Norwood will be based in New York. O’Brien will cover the biggest stories on Capitol Hill and Norwood will focus on reporting across the network’s programs and platforms.
Norwood has been at ABC News since 2021, after previously working in local television in Raleigh. She has led the network’s coverage of Hurricane Helene in North Carolina, as well as the deadly terrorist attack on New Year’s Day in New Orleans.
“Morgan is a talented reporter whose versatility in covering breaking news, investigating stories, and spearheading in-depth features have made her an asset to ABC News, and we look forward to more of her compelling storytelling for our audience,” said ABC News President Almin Karamehmedovic.
“I’m excited to extend my tenure in the ABC family, which I have been a part of since the beginning of my career, and continue giving a voice to the stories that shape our world,” Morgan Norwood added.
Jay O’Brien has worked at ABC News since 2022, covering COngress nd the 2024 election while spearheading ABC News Live specials. He worked in local television in West Palm Beach before moving to the network level.
“It has been an absolute privilege to contribute to ABC News’ reporting of pivotal political events over the past few years, and I am ready to continue giving our audience a front-row seat to history with breaking news, exclusive interviews and enterprise reporting,” said O’Brien.
“Jay has made an impact with his dedicated reporting and his tenacity in chasing and landing important stories on the Hill that drive the news cycle,” added Karamehmedovic. “In this new role, he will be even more instrumental in providing essential information and context to our audience during this unprecedented time.”
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ESPN is in the midst of developing its direct-to-consumer platform, which will be accessible within the existing ESPN App for customers to view live game broadcasts, studio shows and other programming emanating from the brand. Jimmy Pitaro, the chairman of ESPN for the last several years, is involved in the discussions surrounding this project that is expected to launch early in the fall, although the exact date and pricing are still unknown. Pitaro, speaking at “Off The Record with Andrew Marchand presented by WSC Sports” in New York City on Tuesday afternoon, elaborated on plans for the platform as the network expands the breadth of its overall accessibility.
Pitaro delineated “parallel paths” surrounding the new functionality and how ESPN networks will continue to be available on cable television despite levels of cord cutting the company does not see slowing down for the next couple of years. Customers will also have the ability to bundle ESPN direct-to-consumer with other products, although the exact combinations are still being determined based on research from dedicated teams in business development and strategy. Pitaro divulged that this DTC capability will be one of two things that takes place with ESPN in the fall, the second of which relates to “significantly enhancing the ESPN App.”
“If you buy us through Comcast or Charter or DirecTV, okay, great,” Pitaro said. “We’re happy with that, but we want you to go to the ESPN App and authenticate because that’s where we’re going to have all of these enhanced experiences, like an integration on betting, an integration on fantasy around live games, commerce integration. We’re going to have a personalized SportsCenter that we’re partnering with WSC on.”
Pitaro explained how an industry misconception is that ESPN is launching a new Flagship app in the fall when this is not the case, although the exact name for the service has yet to be determined. Furthermore, he sees artificial intelligence as something that will help facilitate improvements to the sports fan experience and assist in storytelling endeavors rather than replacing jobs.
Pitaro also divulged that the app will have a “Catch Up to Live” function that will allow viewers to recap key game highlights if they want to see what took place before tuning in live to a contest, which is being done in collaboration with WSC Sports. Later in the conversation, he also revealed a feature that will streamline how users see game scores surrounding their favorite teams and their adversaries.
“We are in development right now on something that’s called ‘Rivals Mode,’” Pitaro divulged. “And so you will be able to pick your favorites, and you will be able to pick your rivals of your favorites.”
As ESPN launches its direct-to-consumer platform later in the year, the company has a stellar rights portfolio that features a broad array of professional and collegiate sports. At the moment though, the company will no longer present live game broadcasts of Major League Baseball after the 2025 season following the entities exercising a mutual opt-out in its existing media rights deal.
Although Pitaro is a baseball fan himself and closely follows the sport, he conveyed a responsibility towards shareholders, the board, employees and chief executive officer Bob Iger and ultimately had to make what he described to be “a really tough decision.” As part of this process, the company looked at its programming and made a determination that it had enough content during the summer to keep people interested and prevent churn.
“We have a strategy team that looks at value on a regular basis, and we did have an opt-out in our deal and we felt like it was fiscally responsible for us to go ahead and exercise that opt-out based on what we were paying,” Pitaro explained. “That being said, again, we love it, we love the sport. We love the league, and if they are interested in re-engaging with us when the time is right, we’ll be ready to have that conversation.”
ESPN carries 25 NFL games per season on its networks, most of which are through its Monday Night Football franchise, and is preparing to broadcast the Super Bowl in two seasons. The company has made several key personnel moves surrounding the game, including the promotion of Andy Tennant to vice president of production for the game.
On top of that, the network recently hired Artie Kempner as the new director of Monday Night Football and named Ken Potrock as president of major events integration, reporting both to Pitaro and chairman of Disney experiences Josh D’Amaro. At the same time, there have been reports of ESPN having discussions about the potential acquisition of NFL Media assets, such as NFL RedZone and NFL Network.
“I don’t want to get into any conversation around ownership,” Pitaro said. “What I will tell you is we are always looking at ways to expand our relationship with the NFL and grow the game of football. We recently partnered on FLAG – I’m a huge supporter and fan of FLAG. Going back to my point before on the enhanced app, there are many things – I drive our core product people crazy because my background is product innovation, and so I have so many ideas on what we can potentially do within that enhanced app connected to Monday Night Football and our postseason rights.”
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ABC News has announced a trio of new podcasts to partner with its popular 20/20 brand, which the company hopes cements it as the top destination for true crime listeners.
ABC Audio has released 20/20: The After Show, The Crime Scene Weekly, and Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy as its new true crime offerings. Deborah Roberts will host the new weekly 20/20 program, while Brad Mielke will host The Crime Scene Weekly, which premieres March 20th. Finally, Brian Buckmire will host Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy, which will debut on Tuesday, March 25th.
“ABC Audio has a proven track record of creating gripping and award-winning true crime podcasts, and we’re excited to build on that success in partnership with 20/20 to give listeners more of what they want,” said ABC Audio Vice President Liz Alesse. “Our expanded slate of new releases underscores our commitment to delivering powerful, must-listen stories that keep audiences engaged and informed.”
Additionally, ABC Audio is launching a new 20/20 True Crime channel on Apple Podcasts for listeners to more easily identify audio content from the ABC News brand.
“By expanding the established 20/20 audio brand, introducing new true crime titles, and launching the true crime channel, we’re doubling down on our mission to inform and entertain audiences with the best content backed by the legacy of ABC News,” said ABC Audio Executive Producer Laura Mayer. “Fans can now consume ABC News true crime content every day of the week, moving seamlessly between platforms.”
“20/20 and its podcast have resonated with true crime fans worldwide, and we’re thrilled to bring more behind-the-scenes content and context on these cases that are in the zeitgeist,” added 20/20 Executive Producer Janice Johnston.
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NewsTalkSTL has changed its daily lineup in the wake of Dan Bongino exiting the national news/talk radio scene. The station has tabbed evening host Jamie Allman to fill the slot.
Beginning on March 24th, The Allman Report with Jamie Allman will be heard in the 12-2 PM timeslot. That show was previously heard from 8-10 PM.
“I am super excited to be St. Louis’s new lunch partner, and I am honored to continue my 22-year tradition of Common Sense Conservative Radio!” said Allman.
“This is the first major change to our prime-time weekday lineup since we launched nearly four years ago, which speaks to how important this expansion is for our station and our listeners,” said NewsTalkSTL co-owner and Programming President Jeff Allen. “Listener feedback over the past few weeks made it clear this was the lineup they wanted, and we’re excited to deliver it.”
Additionally, the NewsTalkSTL midday show hosted by Vic Porcelli and Ken Williams will expand from 9 AM to Noon to fill the window held by Dan Bongino before he departed Westwood One to serve as the Deputy Director of the FBI.
“Thanks to all the Vic Heads for all of the amazing support now, and over the last four years,” said Porcelli. “Now, all of our streaming platforms will be getting an extra full hour of handsomeness, WHOOSH!!”
Local shows helmed by Mike Ferguson, Tony Colombo, Tim Jones and Chris Arps, and Larry Conners will round out the remaining programming for the St. Louis news/talk station.
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R&B artist Bobby V is joining KISS 104.1 Atlanta to host 7-9 pm. A 20-year veteran of the R&B scene, Bobby V is known for his hit “Slow Down,” which made its way to number eight on the Billboard chart in 2005. The same year, his self-titled debut album went to number three.
Michael Saunders, Director of Branding and Programming for KISS 104.1, said, “Bobby is a perfect fit for KISS 104.1; his knowledge and love for R&B is an asset for WALR.”
The Kiss 104.1 lineup is now “Toni & Tony in the Morning,” with Dyron Ducati, PM Driver Monie Love, Bobby V from 7 to 9, and Keith Sweat’s “The Sweat Hotel” from 9 pm to 2 am.
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ESPN baseball analyst Jessica Mendoza has been with the company since 2014, initially serving as an analyst on Baseball Tonight. Less than two years later, she made history by stepping into the broadcast booth for ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball telecasts, becoming the first female broadcaster to do so.
Recently, Mendoza appeared as a guest on the Front Office Sports podcast Redefined with Leslie Osborne and Arielle Houlihan. During the conversation, she reflected on her journey to the broadcast booth and acknowledged that, even nearly a decade later, some baseball fans still struggle to accept her presence in the role.
“The reaction to my initial (game) wasn’t like, just wasn’t kind of ‘sneak in,’ it was a huge game,” recalled Mendoza calling her first game on ESPN which ended up as a no-hitter by Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta. “People freaking reacted to my voice. It was like people loved it, or they freaking wanted to kill me. It was dramatic on both ends.”
Beyond her work on Sunday Night Baseball, Mendoza has also contributed to ESPN’s coverage of the College World Series and Little League World Series. Additionally, she has worked as a sideline reporter for the network’s college football broadcasts.
She continued to share her perspective on the ongoing challenges of being a woman in Major League Baseball broadcasting, even after an accomplished career as a gold medal-winning softball player and a four-time First-Team All-American at Stanford.
“The beauty and the beast of America’s pastime, a sport that is so ingrained in our, let’s say, ancient culture,” noted Mendoza. “It’s the sport that that has the least amount of change, or wanting to change.”
However, she also acknowledged that baseball has evolved in recent seasons. For example, the implementation of a pitch clock has led to faster games and increased viewership. That said, she pointed out that change in baseball is often met with resistance.
“It is America’s past time, good or bad,” Mendoza noted. “There are people that hold on the baseball and the way that it’s been and don’t want change more than anything I’ve ever seen in my life.”
While the representation of women in Major League Baseball has improved since Mendoza first joined ESPN, she remains surprised by the continued resistance toward women in the sport at all levels.
“As much as it has changed and that there’s more women,” Mendoza explained. “It’s not welcomed in the way that’s like, ‘dude it’s 2025.’ Come on. This isn’t that big of a deal to have women that are good at their job do something that a man can do.”
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SiriusXM host Chris “Mad Dog” Russo was barking yesterday as the legendary sports talk show host took the New York Mets to task. Russo took aim at the National League club over an incident involving his son, Colin, who is also a radio host with ESPN West Palm.
The younger Russo’s program was broadcasting live from the Mets’ spring training facility in Port St. Lucie, FL, hoping to secure an interview with a player or coach while on-site. However, the Mets were unable to accommodate ESPN West Palm’s show, which features Michel Russo and co-host Mike Rizzo. As a result, Mad Dog launched into a nearly twenty-minute tirade, ripping the Mets organization for not granting the West Palm, FL-based station an opportunity to speak with a Mets player or member of the team’s personnel.
“You got a young kid, he’s on four to six, and you have a show there promoting the Mets,” explained the elder Russo on Mad Dog Radio. “Ah, go to hell. Your schedules are full for the rest of the day.”
As his frustration grew, Mad Dog escalated his rant, recalling the numerous times he had attended spring training camps and received ample assistance from team communications staff.
“Don’t give me any nonsense that you can’t figure out a way to get Paul Blackburn or the backup infielder,” shouted Chris Russo. “Nobody is asking for (Pete) Alonso, (Francisco) Lindor, or (Juan) Soto. We get it. Nobody is asking for Sean Manaea or Jeff McNeil, who is hurt. We get it. And I understand there might be a language issue.”
Building on his anger, Mad Dog declared that, because of this incident, he would be rooting for the Mets to lose every “fricking” game. He argued that it’s nearly impossible for an entire baseball team to be completely tied up with scheduling ahead of a night game.
“The Mets are the Mets. They are not the Boston Celtics. They are not the Green Bay Packers. They are the freaking Mets,” Chris Russo said. “Let me give you the most obscure guy I can come up with. You mean to tell me that José Butto can’t come on for five minutes? You mean to tell me Tylor Megill can’t come on? He might be in Syracuse to start the year!”
This is not the first time the New York Mets have drawn Mad Dog’s ire. As recently as last year, he was highly critical of the team for allowing Hailey Welch (a.k.a. Hawk Tuah Girl) to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before a game.
“They are here for two hours,” screamed Chris Russo. “You can’t do five minutes with them? And baseball wonders why ESPN said adios.”
Mad Dog Russo went OFF on the Mets for over 18 minutes (!!!) for refusing to provide a single player or team representative for his son Colin to interview.
Colin Russo is a sports-talk host for ESPN West Palm. They were broadcasting live from the Mets' spring training facility. pic.twitter.com/WSz1n9pRAt
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If you follow the radio broadcasting industry, I’m sure you’ve heard of the term metrics from time to time. That term can mean several things depending on the person using it. For example, a radio sales metric could include key performance indicators, churn rate, or cost per point. For programmers and talent, metrics could include listening cume, time spent listening, and reach.
There are so many metrics in and around radio broadcasting that it could lead the brightest minds in the medium into a collective headache of information. Fortune favors the bold who can spin a winning formula from an ocean of metrics.
However, there is one metric that unfortunately hasn’t seen much if any growth in some time, and it’s the most important metric to the viability of broadcasting’s future. People.
When you work for Barrett Media, you tend to spend a lot of time on a computer. Between scouring websites and working sources for information, you get caught up in a slew of Google searches and social media timeline drivel. On Monday, something caught my eye that instantly made me think about the past couple of months as radio broadcasting companies experienced their annual slash-a-thon of layoffs and budget cuts.
A Radio Company Investing In People?
It was a post by RAMP with the headline “Alpha Media Portland Is Hiring!”
I thought to myself by God, let’s crack the champagne! There’s a radio broadcasting company that’s not putting talent people on the street and looking to grow! The headline lured me in, so I shared my click to the posting, and what caught my eye was the first sentence on the story.
“Against a backdrop of mass industry layoffs… we have stumbled upon that proverbial silver lining on a cloudy day — Alpha Media is actually hiring!”
Let me repeat what was said there. Against a backdrop of mass industry layoffs.
The story about a job posting began with the biggest dose of reality that everyone in radio broadcasting faces, layoffs.
What Audacy’s Latest Reduction In Force Signals
Courtesy: Audacy
When Audacy went through their recent reduction in force a couple of weeks back, I was asked to share my perspective on what the roster cuts mean for the industry. Audacy isn’t the first broadcasting company to cut its workforce by more than 3% in one weekend, and they won’t be the last. Audacy is just the latest example of mass industry layoffs, as the RAMP article mentioned.
I wrote than that radio is losing the battle for its own livelihood. I wrote that it’s become a constant “look over your shoulder” business, where there are more fires to put out than sparks to ignite. I wrote that If it continues to neglect investing in people, it must ask itself: Why should people continue investing their time in radio?
If a silver lining on a cloudy day for radio is a single job posting, then radio is in worse shape than we can imagine.
Consider these metrics as examples.
If you read Kevin Robinson’s piece last week, he pointed out a list of the companies that have severed ties with radio broadcasting employees since 2009. It’s hard to not find a broadcasting company on the list.
iHeartMedia, Cumulus, Audacy, Saga Communications, Hubbard Radio, Beasley Media Group. Good talented people all out of work and all too recently unfortunately.
If you read Dr. Ed Cohen’s piece last week, he again called for radio broadcasters to try something different. Invest in people! Only then the good doctor noted stock prices of companies such as iHeartMedia, Cumulus, Beasley Media Group, Urban One, Saga Communications and Townsquare all near or below less than the cost of a large Coca-Cola at your local McDonalds.
Audacy of course not listed in that group because they emerged from their 2024 bankruptcy as a privately owned group instead of a publicly traded company.
That cloudy day referenced in the RAMP article is starting to look like storms, or is it?
Time for more metrics!
Radio Consumption Is Still King?
Jason McCollum is a director of operations for iHeartMedia in Dallas, and he posted to his Facebook page to dispel noise of those claiming radio is dead. McCollum simply wrote, and I’m a fan of simple, the latest 2024 Q4 Edison “Share Of Ear” findings support the notion that in his words “radio is dominant.”
“Let’s keep it simple,” McCollum wrote. “61% of Americans listen ONLY to AM/FM radio. 22% listen to both digital audio and AM/FM. Only 18% are digital-only.”
McCollum used metrics to quantify why advertisers need a strategy to buy advertising on radio, and he’s right. That 61% is key for an advertiser to consider, but that was 71% only seven years ago. So while AM/FM radio may not be dead but instead still be alive, is it fair to consider it “dominant?”
I had a pleasure of being a panelist at the NAB Show in Las Vegas, NV last year entitled “Creating Unique Sports Radio Programming.” The panel was hosted by Fred Jacobs of Jacobs Media, and he shared a slide form the 2024 Jacobs Media TechSurvey asking sports fans why they’re listening less to AM/FM radio.
47% of those surveyed said because their favorite personality or show is no longer on the radio.
With every layoff and budget cut, that’s a metric that shouldn’t surprise. If radio broadcast companies don’t stick with their own people, how can they expect the consumer to stick with them?
The audience is telling you exactly why they’re tuning out, are you listening?
Radio Needs To Try Something Different; A Suggestion
It is with this understanding that I’ve come to this conclusion.
This week we marked the five-year anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic, which changed how the consumer searches out and finds compelling content. The world was told to stay home and not travel. Living rooms became the driver seat, searching out for that connection we all so desired. People who couldn’t wind a wristwatch began experimenting with YouTube, Twitch, and other free distribution platforms to find that connection that was lost in a global health crisis.
Why? Cause radio didn’t invest in its own people to adapt to those technologies when it had that chance to.
Radio in the digital age has historically played from behind, and COVID was no different. As damaged as it was then, it still has not fully recovered and it’s only because of it’s own doing.
Radio broadcasting at its core is connection. Where the audience comes first while embracing changes in consumption habits and experiment with innovation. Without people, there is no connection.
Radio is a business that’s operated on metrics, from ratings to revenue to downloads and more. You can program strategically to raise listening cume. You can create a new endorsement campaign to build a new revenue stream. You can lock yourself in a production room and crack out some amazing content for a new upstart podcast.
To do any of that, you need people. A metric forgotten too long ago by too many.
It’s way past time for radio broadcasting to try something different, get back to investing in people. Instead of buying up digital audio or video property that’s available everywhere already and chasing the ever-growing digital dollar, which now makes up one of every four dollars of the average station’s total revenue.
I advise radio to re-invest that growing revenue stream in people now, and build radio’s future. Because fortune favors the bold who can spin a winning formula, from an ocean of metrics.
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