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When Being a Radio Host Becomes More of an On-Air Therapist

Peter Thiele
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We closed our eyes as children to dream about being a radio star. My father had a tape recorder. I was four and he showed me how to record my voice. I had the Christopher and Peter Show (Christopher was a canary). I jabbered on with the canary singing in the background. 

I dreamed, as I grew older, of playing in the NBA, which was highly unlikely. 5 foot 7 with no actual athletic ability (at my athletic peak, I had a vertical leap of 16 inches.) Majoring in being the class clown, I was frequently either the most hated or loved student by teachers, mostly despised.) Lacking confidence in anything except trying to crack up my classmates or irritate my teachers, it was obvious, except for my dashing and debonair good looks, I was destined to work in radio. Your youth may have taken the very same path.

So, here we are: untalented in many ways except when a microphone is in front of your pie hole or analyzing the on-air performance of others. This is what we do. I could have been an insurance slinger or a peppy real estate agent. But we are made for this. 

We sometimes have sacrificed everything. We have left friends and romantic relationships in the dust for that next stop in our addiction.

Time marches on as we pursue the fantasy of our youth. You have made it, now what? I know many great radio people who have developed alcoholism or drug addictions. It masks the solitary existence of being that person who is committed to their craft. Have you looked in the mirror and said “What the hell am I doing?!?” I have. We all probably should do that from time to time. 

Every time that I have weighed the option of moving for that next job, I stress over finding new connections in the new location. This is a natural fear and feeling. I always find a place. For those who are unmarried — single, divorced, or just a loner — we are made for belonging and it must be more than work. One of my high school buddies was driving through during my first week on the job. He thought that my outgoing nature would allow me to build relationships quickly. My outgoing nature and probably yours as well is a defense mechanism for the actual introvert that you are. I am introverted. 

The confines of a radio station, that microphone creates an open-air confessional for that part of your personality that can’t interact well with others. Is this you as well? I bet it probably is. 

Ok, here we are…What now?

We must put ourselves in uncomfortable positions where we arrive at places with no invitation. Perhaps, sit in the corner trying to figure out how to join the conversation. If people are very familiar with each other, that task becomes more difficult. 

I grew up with the instructions to never invite yourself unless you are asked. That was drummed into my head, and I remember those words to this day. It’s about being polite. You may have grown up with the same roadmap. So, being the new kid on the block, alone in a new place, can be scary. But, you have that microphone. You have that sanctuary and fantasy from your childhood. Radio!

Radio seems to satisfy all those conundrums, fears, and anxieties. It is our love. It is the mistress to your personal romantic relationships. 

So what is the answer to “What Now?”

You create a place of belonging for everyone listening. Your invitation to be a part of your show is a refuge for the dude who had a terrible day at the office and must show some sort of a smile to his wife and kids.  You give him some joy during that time when nothing is required from him other than driving his SUV.  Be that refuge.

You are better than a song because your emotion is part of the moment.  A song may bring a memory either pleasant or regrettable. You bring that poor sucker human connection, and he brings you an ear to confess your opinions, humor, fears, and information. 

It is a symbiotic relationship. Kind of like carbon dioxide is plant food. You can’t live without each other. That guy gets home and walks through the front door and all he hears about are the problems that the wife is having at work or with one of his kids. He pours himself a cocktail and volunteers to grill to escape the mayhem. Your moments with him were the highlight of his miserable existence. 

He doesn’t get to walk into a radio station with the stresses, laughs, and personal fulfillment.  Radio brings us that. How many people hate their jobs? How many people feel insignificant in the pursuit of a dollar to pay the bills? We are chasing the dollar as well. But, we have moments of joy that no other career can even come close to providing.

KDKA Brand Manager Dave LaBrozzi Knew the Time Was Right to Ride Off Into the Sunset

Garrett Searight
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KDKA Brand Manager Dave LaBrozzi Knew the Time Was Right to Ride Off Into the Sunset

Earlier this year, KDKA Brand Manager Dave LaBrozzi announced he would be stepping away from his duties at the Pittsburgh news/talk station.

The timing was slightly surprising for a pair of reasons.

First of all, 2024 looks to be a banner year in the news/talk format as another hotly-contested Presidential election is upon us in the all-but-certain Trump vs Biden rematch.

Additionally, LaBrozzi is in the 49th year of his radio career. And yet, with 50 on the near horizon, he told Barrett News Media the time is right — in spite of the milestone — to step aside in April.

“I’ve been doing this a long time. And I just felt that it was time for someone else to step in and try to create the journey that I created and am very grateful for,” LaBrozzi said. “It was time for somebody else to take the reins and have some fun with it.”

While admitting that getting to year number 50 was in the back of his mind, the longtime radio leader shared family matters made now the correct time to retire.

“I just felt with my kids getting older and then getting on with their life’s work, what time I had left with them — my son is still at home and my daughter is going to be moving to New York in a couple of months — so I just felt that with the time that my wife and I had left with them while they were still around, it would be it would be good for me to spend some time with them,” he shared. “And have some quality time, because this business is all-consuming at times. It was just time just spend some time with family. That’s all.”

The decision to call it a career is never an easy one, and LaBrozzi shared that he hasn’t been viewing the finish line for all that long before ultimately coming to the decision.

“I started (thinking about it) last summer. I started…kicking it around and talking to my wife about it. And we just felt it was time,” he stated. “I have my health and there’s not much else I can accomplish in this business. All my dreams have come true. And I’ve worked with some great people. This is one of America’s great radio stations. So it was like, you know, I think it’s time for somebody else to have some fun and take it over and build on what we’ve built here.”

Not only is KDKA in Pittsburgh one of America’s great radio stations, it was America’s first commercial radio station. You might think that distinction comes with some external pressure to live up to, but Dave LaBrozzi believes it’s the opposite.

“The people are spectacular. They have a real love for what these call letters mean and the city that they serve and they live in,” he said. “They understand what these call letters represent in the industry and the city they live in. Their passion is contagious.”

Later, he added “I think internally, we understand what these call letters represent. And I think we feel that pressure but we put it upon ourselves to be the best we can every day and strive for the greatness that these call letters stand for.”

Dave LaBrozzi came to KDKA in 2021 with an already stellar resume of leading news/talk brands. In addition to previously serving in a similar role at the legendary 77 WABC in New York, LaBrozzi spent 14 years as the Vice President of Programming for Infinity Broadcasting/CBS Radio in Baltimore. He has had numerous other stops in his radio journey, including a different stop in Pittsburgh and stations in Nashville and Dallas, among others.

Having that experience of being all over the nation provided LaBrozzi with the wisdom that not every market is the same.

“I learned this early on — that each market is different. I did music radio up until about 2018 along with the spoken word. I think you just have to look at each market individually and what best fits their needs, both musically and content-wise,” he said. “What worked in New York didn’t necessarily work in Pittsburgh. I think each market is unique, and you’ve really got to take your time and find out what works and what doesn’t.

“But the problems are all the same, it still comes down to managing talent and inspiring talent to do great radio on a daily basis. It doesn’t matter if it’s in Wheeling, West Virginia; New York City; or Pittsburgh, PA.”

Dave LaBrozzi managed hundreds, if not thousands, of employees during his 49 years in the business. And he took an individual approach to each of them during his managerial tenure.

“(My style was) more person to person because each person is different and an individual doesn’t react the same way somebody else would. So I tried to get to know them as best I could and manage them in a way that was appropriate for them, what motivated them what worked, what didn’t work for them,” the longtime leader shared.

“And, to me, that was the best way to approach talent on an individual basis.”

Jay Bilas: I’ll Never Follow Anyone on X

BSM Staff
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Jay Bilas: I’ll Never Follow Anyone on X

ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas makes it a point to follow zero accounts on Twitter/X — and he doesn’t plan on following anyone anytime soon.

On the latest edition of Sports Business Journal’s The Sports Media Podcast, Bilas tells his 0 follower origin story and why he’ll continue to follow no accounts into the future.

SBJ’s Austin Karp asked Bilas flat out, “You have over a million followers, what’s it going to take for you to follow someone on X?” Bilas quickly responded in the negative.

“I won’t do it,” Bilas said. “I actually don’t look at Twitter that much.”

He then explained how the 0 follows trope began and how it got to this point.

“When I first got on Twitter, I didn’t know how it worked. So I didn’t follow anybody and I got guff for it. Somebody said, ‘What, are you too good to follow somebody?’ And I joked back, ‘Yes, I am!’ So I never did it. It’s just a joke.”

Recently, Bilas has acquired the reputation as somewhat of a curmudgeon, thanks in part to his opinions on NIL and court-storming. It’s caused media members like 97.1 The Ticket host Jim Costa to call Bilas out for his comments.

Michael Wilbon: Everyone in Sports Media Makes Topics Harder Than Needed

BSM Staff
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Michael Wilbon has become a sports TV pioneer through his work on ESPN’s Pardon The Interruption. He believes things are different than they used to be and not necessarily in a good way.

While making his weekly appearance with Waddle & Silvy on ESPN Chicago, Wilbon passionately spoke in favor of the Chicago Bears finding a new stadium south of Soldier Field along the lakefront in the Windy City.

The topic has been a hot one in Chicago for more than a year as the NFL franchise purchased nearly $200 million worth of land in the northwest suburb of Arlington Heights with rumors circulating the club planned to build a new stadium there and leave the city limits of Chicago.

When the topic was broached, Michael Wilbon shared his opinion that this item — and many others, for that matter — were much simpler than sports media members make them out to be.

“This is not hard. People can make this hard if they want,” Wilbon said. “That’s what we specialize in now, all of us in the talk industry. ‘Let’s make it hard so we can have many layers and several days (of content)!’ You can do that, but that’s not happening.”

“That’s not true,” Marc Silverman said with a chuckle.

Craig Karmazin: Good Karma Brands Dropping Nielsen Not Related to ESPN NY Leaving FM Dial

BSM Staff
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Craig Karmazin: Good Karma Brands Dropping Nielsen Not Related to ESPN NY Leaving FM Dial

Earlier this year, Good Karma Brands ended its relationship with Nielsen for radio ratings. Craig Karmazin, the company’s CEO, says there wasn’t just one item that led to the company moving on.

During an interview with Newsday’s Neil Best, Karmazin said the outdated metrics compiled by Nielsen were the biggest factor in ending the relationship.

“It’s outdated to use one form of media to measure a show, especially one that doesn’t reflect the entire listening audience and viewing audience across all the different ways we distribute our media now,” he said. “It’s just not a number that we use.”

Good Karma Brands is preparing to shift its ESPN New York properties away from WEPN-FM 98.7 and move strictly to the AM band along with its digital platforms in August. When questioned on whether or not the decision to drop Nielsen ratings was in part due to the company leaving the FM dial, Karmazin denied that had any effect on the call.

“It’s not like, ‘Oh, we lost the battle in New York,’” said Craig Karmazin. “It’s just a company decision.”

ESPN Sees Most-Watched Women’s College Basketball Regular Season Since ’08-09

BSM Staff
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ESPN Sees Most-Watched Women’s College Basketball Regular Season Since ’08-09

If you’ve been following viewership trends over the past few months, this information probably won’t shock you. If you haven’t, then you should know women’s college basketball has been a hot commodity all season long — and now ESPN has the numbers to prove it.

According to data provided by ESPN, the network’s 2023-24 women’s college basketball regular season saw a 37 percent year-over-year increase in viewership across the network’s platforms.

Across 81 total games, this season was the most-watched regular season on ESPN platforms since 2008-09, with viewers watching more than 2.6 billion total minutes of live women’s college basketball games. This season’s broadcasts averaged 476,000 viewers across games on ESPN and ABC.

In addition, ESPN platforms aired 13 games that surpassed 500,000 viewers during the regular season slate, the most on record in a single season, including two games that received over one million viewers:

DatePlatformGameViewers
Thu, Jan 25ESPNSouth Carolina vs. LSU1.6 million
Sun, Feb 11ESPNUConn vs. South Carolina1.1 million
Sun, Feb 18ABCGeorgia vs. South Carolina962,000
Thu, Feb 15ESPNSouth Carolina vs. Tennessee705,000
Sun, Mar 3ESPNTennessee vs. South Carolina679,000

Among ESPN’s biggest draws were the undefeated South Carolina Gamecocks, the top team in the country. All five of ESPN’s top WCBB broadcasts featured South Carolina either on the road or at home.

Throughout the WCBB regular season, it seemed like a viewership record for every network was being shattered just about every week.

While much of the viewership followed Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, part of the Big Ten (a conference to which ESPN does not hold broadcasting rights), fans still tuned into ESPN to watch South Carolina’s continued dominance. Rest assured, ESPN hopes the Hawkeyes go on a long March Madness run to reap some of the benefits that CBS, NBC, and FOX have had this season.

Additionally, the regular season was the most-watched ever on ESPN+.

Michael Kay: I Don’t Like Talking to Famous People

BSM Staff
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Michael Kay rubs elbows with some big names in his duties with 98.7 ESPN New York and the New York Yankees. That doesn’t mean he always enjoys the interactions.

After a caller questioned if Don La Greca resembled wrestling legend Ric Flair, Kay noted he would have no interest in speaking with the Nature Boy.

“He loves celebrities,” co-host Peter Rosenberg said of Flair.

“Here’s the deal, though, I have no desire to speak to him,” Kay admitted. “I don’t like to talk to people that are famous. I did an entire cross-country flight and didn’t say a word to Cindy Crawford.”

When Rosenberg and La Greca joked that The Michael Kay Show host purposely didn’t talk to Crawford so he could use the story until the end of time, Michael Kay laughed. He continued by noting he doesn’t have anything in common with some celebrities he meets.

“What would I say to (Flair)? ‘We had your daughter on our show?'”, said Kay.

“Yes! You have so many icebreakers. ‘We had your daughter on the show. I work with Dave La Greca’s brother, Don. I work with Peter Rosenberg,'” La Greca responded. “What’s the matter with you? Are you not a conversationalist?”

“No! I’m not! You know I’m not. Everybody laughs when I say this, but I’m essentially shy,” Kay shouted. “You think a guy picking up a pizza and a chicken parm hero really wants to have a conversation with me?”

Rosenberg posited that Flair would enjoy conversing with Kay because of his stature as the voice of the Yankees.

Lou Holtz to Launch New Twice Monthly Podcast Series

BSM Staff
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Former college football coach and ESPN analyst Lou Holtz has announced a new podcast project that is set to debut later this week.

The Lou Holtz Show will publish two episodes per month and will be distributed in conjunction with the America First Policy Institute.

“The purpose of the podcast is not to promote Republicans, Democrats, White, Black. It’s just to get people to make good choices. We need to get back to teaching young people about obligation, and how to help other people, how to make good choices, and understand that wherever you are in life, it is because of the choices you make,” Holtz said.

According to a release from the Institute, each episode will feature a unique guest who has made a profound impact on American culture.

Upcoming guests include Heisman Trophy winner and NFL Hall of Famer Tim Brown, former college football coach and analyst Urban Meyer, LIV Golfer Ian Poulter, and former college football coach and current Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL).

The debut episode of the podcast will be released on Thursday, March 14th, and feature a conversation with Auburn men’s basketball coach Bruce Pearl.

Justin Shackil, Emmanuel Berbari to Call 25 Yankees Games in John Sterling’s Absence

BSM Staff
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As John Sterling continues to lessen his workload as radio voice of the New York Yankees, additional opportunities have arisen for Justin Shackil and Emmanuel Berbari.

Sterling plans to call around 112 of the 162 games for the Bronx Bombers in 2024. Shackil and Berbari will each call 25 games for the Yankees on flagship WFAN.

Both announcers have past history with the club and its flagship station. Shackil joined WFAN on the Yankees beat last year after the departure of Sweeny Murti. In addition to his work with the club’s radio broadcasts, Shackil also served as the TV sideline reporter for roughly 40 games in 2023.

Berbari has served as an overnight host in a fill-in capacity at WFAN as well as the pre and postgame host for Yankees broadcasts after Murti’s departure.

The news was first reported by The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand.

Elon Musk, X Defend Decision to End The Don Lemon Show

BNM Staff
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Elon Musk, X Defend Decision to End The Don Lemon Show

As the debut of The Don Lemon Show approaches, the former CNN host revealed that X owner Elon Musk canceled the program’s contract after a contentious interview between the two.

Musk, a self-avowed “free speech absolutist”, reportedly told subordinates to cancel the company’s contract with Lemon after an interview that the former cable news host admits that the discussion between the two was “tense” at times.

However, the social media platform is defending itself from criticism after the reports surfaced of the program’s cancellation due to Musk’s displeasure with the line of questioning from Lemon.

“X is a platform that champions free speech, and we’re proud to provide an open environment for diverse voices and perspectives. The Don Lemon Show is welcome to publish its content on X, without censorship, as we believe in providing a platform for creators to scale their work and connect with new communities,” a statement from the company read.

“However, like any enterprise, we reserve the right to make decisions about our business partnerships, and after careful consideration, X decided not to enter into a commercial partnership with the show.”

Later, Elon Musk shared his insight on the decision, claiming “His approach was basically just “CNN, but on social media”, which doesn’t work, as evidenced by the fact that CNN is dying.

“And, instead of it being the real Don Lemon, it was really just Jeff Zucker talking through Don, so lacked authenticity. All this said, Lemon/Zucker are of course welcome to build their viewership on this platform along with everyone else.”

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