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Sports Media Reacts to News of Howard Deneroff Leaving Westwood One

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Sports Media Reacts to News of Howard Deneroff Leaving Westwood One

As news came down this morning that Cumulus Media had named Mike Eaby as its new Vice President and Executive Producer of Westwood One Sports, there were mixed emotions by many in sports media on social media. While people are excited for Eaby, they are sad that with that came the news Howard Deneroff was leaving after more than 35 years with Westwood One.

“Westwood One Sports is known as the best in the business for audio sports play-by-play,”  said Colin Jones, president of Westwood One and executive vice president of corporate strategy and development at Cumulus Media, in a statement. “and I would like to thank Howard Deneroff for his immeasurable impact on our sports programming and production success over the years.”

Many took to social media to express their thoughts about having worked with Deneroff. Several did so in reply to a post by Richard Deitsch of The Athletic who wrote, “One of the more remarkable runs in sports media management concludes as Howard Deneroff departs his position as Executive Producer after more than 35 years with Westwood One Sports. Mike Eaby will follow in the role.”

Deitsch did also later post, “An important note: Westwood One Sports did not renew Howard Deneroff’s contract. So, he is a free agent.”

Here are just some of the posts from today about Deneroff:

https://twitter.com/kevinkugler/status/1788238380523774335

Greg Gutfeld: ‘I’m Not Going to Sit Up and Beg’ Kristi Noem to Appear on Fox News Show

BNM Staff
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Greg Gutfeld: ‘I’m Not Going to Sit Up and Beg’ Kristi Noem to Appear on Fox News Show

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) canceled her appearances with Fox News and CNN to promote her new book after a series of disastrous interviews with other news outlets. Fox News primetime host Greg Gutfeld said he wasn’t interested in begging her for an interview.

Noem has been the subject of controversy first of revealing that she shot her 14-month-old puppy after it showed aggressive behavior and wouldn’t follow her directions. She subsequently shared she also shot a goat on her ranch.

After those excerpts went viral, Noem came under fire for claiming she “stared down” North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un when they met. However, a South Dakota publication investigated the claim and came to the conclusion that it is highly unlikely Noem ever met with the North Korean leader. She has continually refused to answer whether she met with the dictator.

As Gutfeld! began Tuesday night, the primetime host shared that Noem had reneged on her scheduled appearance. Earlier in the day, the Governor — who was viewed by many as a potential Vice Presidential candidate for Republican nominee Donald Trump — was pressed for answers by Newsmax host Rob Finnerty about claims made in her new book.

Representatives for Noem told the Fox News program that she was forced to cancel her appearance due to the weather.

“I don’t believe it,” Gutfeld said, before adding “I just think it’s a little late to keep her on a short leash. I hoped she’d reconsider, but I’m not going to sit up and beg.”

Fox News host Dana Perino jokingly sat in Noem’s place for the interrogation from Greg Gutfeld, joking that she had killed another puppy named “Ghost Writer.”

In addition to canceling her appearance with Fox News, Kristi Noem also did not make her scheduled visit with CNN’s Dana Bash during Inside Politics Wednesday.

Ben Shapiro, Dan Bongino Top News/Talk Radio Shows in April Podcast Rankings

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Ben Shapiro, Dan Bongino Top News/Talk Radio Shows in April Podcast Rankings

Podtrac has released its monthly podcast rankings, which see The Ben Shapiro Show and The Dan Bongino Show remain in the top 10.

In the podcasts with the largest unique monthly audience in April, Ben Shapiro finished ninth, dropping two places from the previous month. Meanwhile, Dan Bongino remained in 10th place in the company’s rankings. Those two news/talk radio hosts top the charts for members of the genre in the digital space.

The top 10 was filled with news podcasts. The Daily from The New York Times regained the top spot from NPR News Now, which dropped one spot to second. NPR’s Up First and Dateline NBC took the third and fourth spots, while Fox News Hourly Update moved up four places to finish eighth, in addition to the shows from Shapiro and Bongino.

In the podcast publisher rankings with largest monthly unique audience from Podtrac, iHeart Audience Network saw more than 71 million listeners with a whopping 24,589 shows in its network. Meanwhile, NPR was fifth with more than 20 million listeners with its 65 shows. The New York Times was seventh with an audience of 11.1 million from 12 active podcasts. The Daily Wire was ninth with 6.8 active listeners with only eight active programs.

Others in the top 20 include Fox Audio Network (13th), CNN (16th), and Blaze Media (17th).

Boomer Esiason: ‘Don’t Be Surprised if the NFL and Netflix Get in Bed’ for Christmas Day Football

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Boomer Esiason: ‘Don’t Be Surprised if the NFL and Netflix Get in Bed’ for Christmas Day Football

While discussing the roast of Tom Brady that took place this past weekend on Netflix, WFAN host Boomer Esiason made a prediction that sounded an awful lot like an informed prediction.

“What I think is going to happen, could be wrong, but don’t think I am…Do not be surprised if the NFL and Netflix get in bed for a nice little Christmas Day football games. I would not be surprised.”

Esiason’s partner Gregg Giannotti replied, “Alright, that is interesting. They have not gotten into the live sports thing yet, Netflix, they actually really haven’t done a ton of sports, period…You know what means? More jobs, and a pregame show for Boomer and Gio on Netflix. I’ll give up Christmas for that.”

Last year’s streaming-only playoff game on Peacock showed some of the unique ways the NFL may try to earn extra money on their media rights. For this upcoming season, the NFL has already announced Peacock will stream their week one Friday night game from San Paolo, Brazil and that Prime Video will be the outlet which gets a streaming-only playoff game. When those announcements were made, several speculated that the NFL might try and put a package out for their Christmas Day doubleheader.

“All these other leagues are doing this now, too,” Esiason said. “Everybody’s parceling these things up. Like the NHL, part of it is on TNT, part of it is on ESPN … all these leagues are doing that, and they know there is a fight for these streaming services going on and there’s only going to be a few standing…And we are in the middle of these enormous fights going on now.”

The whole conversation started when Giannotti asked Esiason, “How much do you think Tom Brady got paid for that roast?” His reply, “I would say between $10 and $20 million…He had to get a lot of money for that. To sit through that.”

“You think he could have gotten $20 million for that?” Gio asked. “I wouldn’t doubt it,” Esiason said. “I mean he basically allowed for people to rip into him and it’s all over the place…He is not sitting up there for less than $10 million…You are not doing that unless you are getting paid an enormous amount of money.”

Radio Could See 35% Growth in Political Ads in 2024, New Projections Show

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With the 2024 Presidential election looking poised to be one of the most hotly contested on record, and several high-profile Senate races also on the ballot, the election cycle could be a fruitful one for radio.

New projections from PQ Media Executive Vice Presiden of Research Dr. Leo Kivijarv show that of the $14.6 billion they’re forecasting to be spent during the election cycle, $769 million will be spent on radio. While that figure represents only 5.3% of the total, it is a 35% uptick compared to previous years.

“Too many candidates and advocacy groups forget that radio is among the best media to engage with voters for numerous reasons,” Kivijarv wrote in a story from the Radio Advertising Bureau. “Elections are about reaching local voters, and as such, 86% of all political media buying is local, not national, although that share has been falling since candidates have begun to use the Super Bowl, cable television, streaming video, the internet, and mobile media to reach their target audiences.

“In rural areas particularly, radio is the major medium to connect with voters, as there isn’t a local digital media site, the television stations cover the larger cities in the DMA, and newspapers are usually weeklies, if there is even a print newspaper still being published in these small towns.”

While there is a growth estimate of 27% for all media marketing during the 2024 political season, radio’s growth outpaces it with that 35% increase projected.

Locked On Podcast Network Reaches 82 Million Listens and Views in Q1 2024

BSM Staff
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Locked On Podcast Network Reaches 82 Million Listens and Views in Q1 2024

After a strong 2023, the Locked On Podcast Network has started off 2024 with a bang. The first quarter of 2024 saw 24% year-over-year growth in total listens and views.

During its parent company TEGNA’s annual earnings call, it was also reported that the Locked On Podcast Network delivered 82 million audio listens and video views to sports fans in the quarter. Additionally, the network’s video views increased by 45% year-over-year through distribution across YouTube and multiple OTT platforms. 

The entire network of team and league podcasts experienced a significant increase in audience growth, with college and MLB podcasts leading the way at 48% and 39% respectively in year-over-year listens and views.

Not only is the network’s audience growing, but so is revenue, with an impressive 83% increase compared to the previous year.

The Locked On Podcast Network is a collection of locally hosted podcasts from various cities across the United States, such as New York, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Miami, Houston, and more.

Get Up, First Take, Pat McAfee Show Record Strong Viewership Totals on ESPN

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Get Up, First Take, Pat McAfee Show Record Strong Viewership Totals on ESPN

ESPN has reported viewership data for its studio programming in April that includes continued gains across several programs. Beginning in the morning timeslot, Get Up attained its most-watched April in the history of the show with an average of 382,000 viewers. The metric is up 9% from its viewership year-over-year and represents a 1.87% increase from the previous month. The show has registered viewership gains over the last two months following a record-setting month in January where it averaged 500,000 viewers per show.

ESPN’s morning debate show First Take with featured commentator and executive producer Stephen A. Smith and host Molly Qerim averaged 482,000 viewers in April. The metric earned the show its 21st consecutive month of year-over-year growth and is up 12% year-over-year. Moreover, it represents the most-viewed April in the history of the program.

Pat McAfee recently completed the eighth month hosting his program under a licensing agreement with ESPN that implements both linear and digital distribution. McAfee, along with cast members A.J. Hawk, Connor Campbell, Ty Schmit, Anthony DiGuillo and Darius Butler, took part in a Draft Spectacular edition of the program featuring former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick.

The program also presented two live shows from WrestleMania in Philadelphia. Pa. As a whole, The Pat McAfee Show registered a combined average daily viewership of 389,000 per episode, which equated to a total of 392 million views throughout the month. The program is up 37% from the studio programming that took place in the timeslot on ESPN last year. McAfee’s linear audience was also up by 2% compared to the 12 to 2 p.m. EST timeslot on ESPN in 2023.

ESPN is coming off a record-setting April with its best prime time audience on record for the month dating back to 1992. The network averaged 2.1 million viewers each night from the 8 to 11 p.m. EST window, a 42% year-over-year increase. Additionally, the total day audience on the network averaged 781,000 viewers in any given hour, representing a 23% rise in the category.

Beasley Media Reports Nearly 6% Revenue Decline Day After Layoffs

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On Tuesday, Beasley Media Group began layoffs that would affect 7% of its workforce. On Wednesday, the company announced its earnings for the first quarter, which saw a revenue decline.

The company reports that revenue was down by 5.9% compared to last year, dropping to $54.4 million.

The company saw digital revenue grow by 10% compared to the first quarter of 2023. Revenue from that sector accounted for 20% of the total revenue generated in the quarter.

“Beasley continues to advance our core initiatives, which are focused on driving revenue and cash flow, including our digital transformation, revenue diversification, and expense management initiatives,” said Beasley Media Group CEO Caroline Beasley. “We expect digital to account for between 20% and 25% of total revenue in 2024, driven by the ongoing growth and success of our premium content creation and digital services. On the new business front, our dedicated sales teams are leveraging the tremendous audience reach and engagement of our platform to attract new advertisers.

“In summary, Beasley’s underlying fundamentals—mainly, our local audio and digital platforms and audience engagement—remain strong. We are proud of our teams’ steadfast commitment to delivering exceptional content and services to our listeners, advertisers, online users and sports fans, and remain confident that the actions we are taking to transform our company and strengthen our balance sheet, are laying the foundation for future growth and success,” she concluded.

ESPN BET to be Featured in PGA Championship Alternate Telecast

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ESPN BET to be Featured in PGA Championship Alternate Telecast

The 106th annual PGA Championship, golf’s second major of the year, will be covered by ESPN from May 16-19. This year, a new element will be added to the coverage with an alternate telecast dedicated to betting, presented by ESPN BET – the official sportsbook of ESPN and recently announced as the “Official Sports Betting Sponsor” of the tournament.

During the four-day event at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Ky, the alt telecast will air for two hours each day. It will include live commentary from Senior Golf Analyst Michael Collins and SportsCenter Commentator ‘Stanford’ Steve Coughlin, along with other golf hosts and analysts from ESPN. The broadcast will be hosted by ESPN Sports Betting Analysts Tyler Fulghum and Joe Fortenbaugh from the network’s studios in Bristol, with input from fellow betting analyst Anita Marks.

The alternative telecast will provide viewers with discussions on betting related to golf, specifically focusing on the featured groups. Throughout the broadcast, there will be live analysis on hole-by-hole scores, previews for the afternoon matches, and discussions on tournament futures such as predicting the tournament winner or which players will make or miss the cut.

In addition to their regular PGA Championship coverage, ESPN will also be bringing back a second alternative telecast hosted by members of the No Laying Up golf content platform. The hosts of No Laying Up are five avid golf fans who not only host a popular podcast, but also create influential social media and digital content for the sport. This is not the first time the No Laying Up team has been featured in an alternative telecast for ESPN; they were also a part of last year’s broadcast at the PGA Championship.

ESPN x PGA Championship Coverage (all times ET):
First & Second Round Coverage (May 16-17):

  • ESPN BET at the PGA Championship: 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. on ESPN2
  • Main Coverage: 7 a.m. – Noon on ESPN+; Noon – 8 p.m. on ESPN
  • PGA Championship with No Laying Up: 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. on ESPN2

Third & Final Round Coverage (May 18-19):

  • ESPN BET at the PGA Championship: 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. on ESPN+
  • Main Coverage: 8 a.m. – 10 a.m. on ESPN+; 10a.m. – 1 p.m. on ESPN 
  • PGA Championship with No Laying Up: 9 a.m. – 11 a.m. ET on ESPN+

Chris Jericho Moves ‘Talk is Jericho’ Podcast to Audacy

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Chris Jericho Moves ‘Talk is Jericho’ Podcast to Audacy

Audacy Podcasts has partnered with AEW superstar, rock singer, actor, and author Chris Jericho for sales and distribution of his weekly podcast ‘Talk Is Jericho’ as of May 1, 2024.  

New episodes are available Wednesdays and Fridays and the ‘Talk is Jericho’ library contains more than 1000 episodes.

“I’m stoked to bring ‘Talk Is Jericho’ and our 10 years of excitement, entertainment & electricity to Audacy Podcasts!,” said Chris Jericho. “With Audacy’s reputation as being one the hottest, & fastest growing platforms in the podcasting biz, I know it’s the perfect forum to showcase the vision & variety that I’ve always had for TIJ.  So put on your helmets and get ready for a twice weekly audio attack of adventure….Chris Jericho style!”

“Both in and out of the sports arena, Chris is an engaging and gifted entertainer, and we are thrilled to welcome him to the Audacy family,” said Jenna Weiss-Berman, EVP, Audacy Podcasts. “‘Talk Is Jericho’ will deliver quality content for our listeners and exciting opportunities for clients to connect with his many fans in wrestling and beyond.” 

Throughout his 33-year career, Chris Jericho has established himself as one of the most prominent and entertaining performers in the world of professional wrestling. Jericho has held the title of world champion eight times and is one of the founders of All Elite Wrestling. Most recently, he claimed victory at the AEW Dynasty PPV in St Louis to become the FTW Champion. Beyond his success in the ring, Jericho also serves as the lead singer for the internationally acclaimed rock band Fozzy. With 8 studio albums under their belt and 6 top ten hits, the band has achieved great success and even earned a Gold record for their song “Judas.”

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