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95.3 The Score Sets New Weekday Lineup

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95.3 The Score Sets New Weekday Lineup

Eugene, Oregon’s 95.3 The Score has tweaked its weekday programming lineup.

The station is under new leadership as Program Director Jerry Petuck took over the role last month.

The first change is starting at 7 AM PT. Listeners can wake up with BetQL Daily with Joe Ostrowski, Ed Egros, and Erin Hawksworth. Previously in the 7-9 window, the station aired Reiter Than You with Bill Reiter.

Jim Rome remains in the 9-noon window. Middays instead of the previous CBS Sports Radio afternoon show — Maggie & Perloff, which moved to mornings — from noon-3, listeners will hear You Better You Bet with Nick Kostos from 12-2.

Local programming picks up starting at 2 p.m. with Duck Insider hosted by Oregon director of broadcasting Joey “Mac” McMurry.

Steve Tannen continues in afternoon drive from 3-6 PM before BetMGM Tonight from 6-7.

The rest of the evening and overnight will continue to air CBS Sports Radio. The Score will also continue to be home to NFL play-by-play and the minor league Eugene Emeralds.

Brian Murphy: Paul McCaffrey Tried to Make ‘Radio Magic Every Single Segment’

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During a round of layoffs last week, longtime KNBR morning host Paul McCaffrey exited. His co-host Brian Murphy eulogized the pair’s 18-year morning show in his first appearance on the station since the cuts Monday morning.

While reminiscing about the pair’s original, Murphy said a former executive used to frequently point at the radio and say “magic comes out of that box”.

“Paulie Mac may have been the guy who understood that idea more than anyone I’ve ever met in the business,” Murphy said. “Paulie Mac strived every single segment, every single segment, to make magic come out of the box. And he succeeded wildly. He was the most consistent, energetic, relentless pro that I, or any of you, would ever want in your life. He taught this old newspaper guy that we were doing radio and radio mattered. And bits mattered. And getting people through the morning mattered.

“The show, the show, the show. It was always what was good for the show. Not what’s good for him, not what’s good for me, but what’s good for the show.”

Video of Murphy’s comments and reflection on his time with McCaffrey was posted by the station to social media. Former KNBR Program Director Kevin Graham chimed in, calling Murphy’s farewell a “fitting tribute”.

Chris Garagiola to Replace Greg Schulte As Arizona Diamondbacks Radio Voice

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Chris Garagiola to Replace Greg Schulte As Arizona Diamondbacks Radio Voice

After 25 years as the only radio voice in the history of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Greg Schulte stepped aside after the 2023 season. Chris Garagiola will step into the team’s broadcast booth moving forward.

Garagiola has spent the past two seasons working as the fill-in voice for the club while Schulte missed time to undergo chemotherapy treatments as he battled cancer. He also served as the pregame and postgame host for the D-backs.

“This is the byproduct of a lot of hoping, a lot of being in the right place at the right time and a lot of hard work,” Garagiola told AZCentral.com. “This was a major life goal. It really was. I have a few big-ticket things I want to achieve in my life and being the voice of a major league baseball team is one of them.”

The 31-year-old previously worked as the voice of the AA Pensacola Blue Wahoos. He said if he had the opportunity to choose any MLB play-by-play job, this was the one he wanted.

“People would ask if you could pick any team what would you pick? My pick would have been Arizona,” Chris Garagiola said. “That was my team. That was my childhood team and some of the best sporting memories I ever had.”

Chiefs Radio Voice Mitch Holthus Misses 1st Game in 30 Years After COVID Diagnosis

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Chiefs Radio Voice Mitch Holthus Misses 1st Game in 30 Years After COVID Diagnosis

Mitch Holthus has been one of the most distinctive NFL radio voices during his 30 years as the play-by-play announcer of the Kansas City Chiefs. His voice was absent Sunday for the franchise’s game after being diagnosed with COVID-19.

In a post to X, Holthus said he tested positive for the virus on Friday, and attempted to find a way to broadcast Sunday’s game against the Green Bay Packers remotely, before ultimately coming to the realization that it wasn’t feasible.

“I appreciate everyone who spent most of the day Friday trying to figure out how I could broadcast this game 2020 studio style,” Holthus wrote. “If it was (a) home game could maybe have had (an) isolated booth. But no way to pull it off on road, and (I) would never put anyone in that travel party in jeopardy, especially those who are immune compromised.”

He called the situation a “challenging 60+ hours”.

Mitch Holthus claimed he had not missed a Chiefs broadcast in 30 years — calling more than 500 consecutive games for the team. However, he concluded that he would start a new streak of broadcasting the team’s games next week.

Westwood One Tabs Collin Jones to Replace Suzanne Grimes As President

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Westwood One Tabs Collin Jones to Replace Suzanne Grimes As President

Westwood One has announced Suzanne Grimes has exited her role as President and will be replaced by Collin Jones. Grimes had led the organization for the past eight years.

“I would like to thank Suzanne for her invaluable contributions and her pivotal role in our success. Under her leadership, we launched the top-rated Cumulus Podcast Network, built the multi-platform Westwood One News/Talk franchise, and established the industry-leading Audio Active Group,” Cumulus Media President and CEO Mary Berner said. “Throughout her time with Cumulus, she has been a remarkable leader, colleague, and mentor to many, and we are certain she will accomplish great things wherever she chooses to share her talents next.” 

Jones has worked at the company since 2011, and will continue to serve in his current role as Executive Vice President of Corporate Strategy & Development alongside his new duties as Westwood One President.

“I am excited for the opportunity to expand upon Suzanne’s successes,” Jones said. “Since acquiring Westwood One in 2013, I have been struck by the breadth of its capabilities, the strength of its content and service offerings, and its enormous influence on the broadening audio landscape. I look forward to working day-to-day with Westwood One’s creative, passionate, and talented team to fuel growth and unlock even more value for Cumulus Media and our shareholders.” 

In addition to his roles with the company, Jones is the National Association of Broadcasters Radio Board Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Radio Music License Committee.

“With his deep understanding of both Cumulus Media and Westwood One, Collin is uniquely qualified for this role and is well-prepared to harness the full power of our platform to help Westwood One grow,” Berner added. “Collin has consistently demonstrated his savvy business acumen, effective management style, and collaborative spirit, and I have full confidence that he has the skills and the vision to build upon Suzanne’s considerable accomplishments.” 

Bob Fescoe: CFP Selection Show Should Be on Monday

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Bob Fescoe: CFP Selection Show Should Be on Monday

On Sunday prior to the start of NFL action, ESPN broadcast the College Football Playoff Selection Show, which revealed the four teams that have been deemed as eligible to compete for the CFP National Championship. On Monday’s edition of Fescoe in the Morning on 610 Sports Radio, co-host Bob Fescoe discussed how the CFP will soon expand to 12 teams, which he says will not be as intriguing because of the addition of several games, and argued that ESPN and the CFP missed the boat by hosting the show when it does.

In fact, Fescoe did not tune into the reveal live, instead learning of the teams selected through social media and ESPN platforms.

Fescoe’s argument centered around the fact that there were several marquee NFL matchups on the schedule, including a showdown between two NFC contenders expected to compete for a Super Bowl championship – the San Francisco 49ers and Philadelphia Eagles. Later in the day on Sunday Night Football, the Green Bay Packers defeated the rival Kansas City Chiefs with both award-winning singer/songwriter Taylor Swift and the most decorated gymnast in Olympics history, Simone Biles, in attendance at Lambeau Field.

“When they announce it yesterday, they’re taking a lot of good show topics away from a lot of people,” Fescoe said. “You’re screwing us, ESPN, by doing that, right? You’re screwing your own people by doing that.”

Bob Fescoe suggested that the teams should have been announced during halftime of the Monday Night Football matchup between the Cincinnati Bengals and Jacksonville Jaguars, retaining a captive audience and driving conversation about the choices on Tuesday. With the NFL playing 13 games throughout the day on Sunday, he asserted that the league took away momentum from the College Football Playoff, something that could ultimately harm the scope of sports media coverage.

“Today, how much debate would be going on right now?,” Fescoe asked. “How awesome would it be to have a Monday to have all the blowhards like us have the opportunity to debate who should be in and who shouldn’t be in, and what [Paul] Finebaum says and what this guy says? It would have been outstanding to hear the calls from Alabama [and] other people screaming why they should be in. They missed out on that – they did.”

Starting in the next college football campaign, the CFP will officially expand to 12 teams and add more games ahead of the expiration of its media rights deal with ESPN after the 2025 season.

In the final selection show under the existing four-team format, Fescoe believes that it missed the mark by having it take place on the same day as a packed slate of NFL games. He does agree with the decisions of the committee and affirmed that it will be exciting to watch the teams face off to play for a National Championship.

As a radio host though, Bob Fescoe expressed the downsides to such a move and the other shortcomings therein.

“That’s why the four-team playoff is fun because everybody has an opinion; everybody has a feeling,” Fescoe said. “I think they got it right. It’s a TV show, and the sooner we can all realize that sports is a glorified TV show, the better off we’re going to be, and they’ve got the best made-for-TV matchups.”

Amazon Prime Video Sees Record Ratings in Latest Thursday Night Football Broadcast

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Amazon Prime Video Sees Record Ratings in Latest Thursday Night Football Broadcast

Thursday Night Football is off to a historic start in 2023 thanks in part to a thrilling contest between the Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys. Seahawks/Cowboys averaged 15.26 million viewers and attracted a peak audience of almost 18 million viewers on Prime Video, making it the most-watched game ever on Prime Video and the most streamed NFL game ever.

The previous high was the Sept. 14 matchup between the Minnesota Vikings and Philadelphia Eagles at 10.4 million viewers. Seahawks/Cowboys was also the sixth TNF contest to average more than 12 million viewers.

Through 11 weeks, TNF is averaging 12.58 million viewers, an increase of 29 percent from last season’s 11-game average. Unsurprisingly, TNF wins Thursday night each week, because nothing beats NFL football in the United States, to the tune of 151 percent viewership over the second program of the night.

This growth comes alongside news that the Black Friday game between the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets produced TNF’s lowest ratings of the season, averaging just 9.61 million viewers.

Yahoo Sports Undergoes Round of Layoffs Including Hannah Keyser, Sam Cooper, Kevin Iole

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Yahoo Sports Undergoes Round of Layoffs Including Hannah Keyser, Sam Cooper, Kevin Iole

Yahoo Sports has engaged in a round of layoffs as part of an effort to eliminate more than 20% of its staff by the end of the year, a figure that was reported earlier in the year by Sara Fischer of Axios. The company is currently owned by Apollo Global, which purchased the entity from Verizon in 2017 along with AOL and other media businesses.

On Friday, mixed martial arts and boxing journalist Kevin Iole announced that he was laid off by the company in a post on X and took the time to thank his co-workers and express his appreciation for his time with the outlet. Within that post, he conveyed how this is not the end for him; rather, he hopes it is the start of a new chapter.

On Monday, several other Yahoo Sports staffers announced their departures from the company as a result of the layoffs. Senior MLB reporter Hannah Keyser lost her job on Friday and shared the privilege it was for her to report on the game through the platform. Keyser also appears on SNY as a contributor on Baseball Night in New York and other programming, and it remains unknown if and how her exit from Yahoo Sports will impact the role.

“Five years ago, I was terrified to accept the job and I’ve been terrified (truly) every day since that I’m bad at it,” Keyser said in a post on X. “But I never worked harder or took more joy in learning.”

MLB writer Zach Crizer was also part of the layoffs on Friday, and divulged that he continues to write about baseball. Although he acknowledged that the ending is not great, he feels that a lot of people with the outlet changed his career for the better and had more belief in his work than he did.

“I learned more about baseball from Zach in five years than I even knew there was to know,” Keyser said on X. “He is more organized than I am, less erratic, and since he actually opens HR emails about our health insurance changing, I can actually say that I wouldn’t have survived without him.”

“No one pushed me harder, or advocated me more forcefully, than Hannah,” Crizer said of Keyser in a post on X. “She is a complete original that the baseball world can’t afford to lose. Whenever you think you have a good answer, I promise she’s going to have a better question.”

Sam Cooper revealed that he was part of the Yahoo Sports layoffs after working with the company over the last 10 years. Cooper had been promoted to a full-time senior editor, a role he served in for the last five years, after starting out as a freelancer. In a series of posts on X, Cooper acknowledged how he does not understand the rationale behind the current direction of Yahoo, but also articulated that it was a great place to work and will miss his colleagues.

“So now I’m a free agent,” Cooper continued. “I’ve written extensively about CFB (+ other sports), helped transform [Yahoo Sports College Football] from an RSS feed into an account with 50k+ followers and had a consistently profitable betting column. I also know the ins and outs of editing in the digital media space.”

Arun Srinivasan worked at Yahoo Sports Canada and was part of the recent round of layoffs as well, posting a statement on Saturday night while covering his final Toronto Maple Leafs game at Scotiabank Arena for the outlet. Within his remarks, he thanked Dan Toman and Mackenzie Liddell for their leadership and for taking a chance on him, along with William Lou for endorsing him after he was looking for work following layoffs from theScore in February 2019.

“…I’m itching to get back to the arena more regularly,” Srinivasan said on X. “How many of us get to do everything we dreamed of as children? Thank you for everything Yahoo, this message is for everyone I’ve ever been lucky enough to work with here.”

Earlier in the year, Yahoo laid off 1,000 positions within its companies and revealed that the remaining layoffs would occur in the second half of 2023. The company is in the midst of a restructuring of its advertising technology unit in an effort for the company to be able to invest more heavily in areas of the company that garner significant profits. Additionally, the company hired Ross Dellenger and Jason Fitz, along with welcoming new president Ryan Spoon in June 2023.

Adam Ottavino Joining ‘Baseball Tonight’ on ESPN as Guest Analyst

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MLB pitcher Adam Ottavino has appeared throughout the offseason on SportsNet New York (SNY), contributing his insights and expertise on select episodes of Baseball Night in New York. With the Winter Meetings taking place this week in Nashville, Ottavino will continue his endeavors into media as a guest analyst for editions of Baseball Tonight, which will take place from the network’s studios in Bristol.

The program will be hosted by Phil Murphy and is set to feature analysts Doug Glanville and Tim Kurkjian. Additionally, ESPN MLB reporters Alden Gonzalez, Jeff Passan and Jesse Rogers will be covering the event for the network’s website, along with Baseball Tonight and SportsCenter.

Ottavino most recently pitched for the New York Mets over the last two seasons after spending the previous three seasons in the American League. During the early stages of his career, he primarily anchored the bullpen for the Colorado Rockies. Additionally, he won a silver medal as a member of Team USA during the 2023 World Baseball Classic before primarily working in the later innings of games during the MLB season.

Ottavino, 37, has not announced his retirement from the sport, presumably looking to sign with a team and pitch again in 2024 after posting a 3.21 ERA in 66 games during the 2023 regular-season campaign.

After the season, he declined his player option due to uncertainty surrounding the Mets organization amid various changes, including hiring new President of Baseball Operations, David Stearns, and firing Buck Showalter as manager. Throughout the offseason, he has had the opportunity to work alongside relief pitcher Jerry Blevins on SNY, who transitioned from the field to working in media full time upon his retirement from the game in 2021.

The first episode of Baseball Tonight’s coverage of the Winter Meetings airs on Monday, Dec. 4 at 11:30 PM ET on ESPN2 and the ESPN app. Subsequent episodes will air on Tuesday and Wednesday and will be available to consume on those platforms. Moreover, the Baseball Tonight with Buster Olney podcast will have new episodes, which is available to listen to on all platforms.

Spotify Announces Massive Companywide Cuts

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Spotify Announces Massive Companywide Cuts

Spotify has announced it is reducing its workforce by a whopping 17% in a round of cost-cutting measures.

“I recognize this will impact a number of individuals who have made valuable contributions. To be blunt, many smart, talented and hard-working people will be departing us,” CEO Daniel Ek wrote in a letter published to the company’s website.

Ek admitted the company considered making smaller job cuts in 2024 and 2025, but decided it was more feasible to make wide-ranging job eliminations now.

“Considering the gap between our financial goal state and our current operational costs, I decided that a substantial action to rightsize our costs was the best option to accomplish our objectives,” he wrote. “While I am convinced this is the right action for our company, I also understand it will be incredibly painful for our team.”

The cuts from Spotify come after a 6% reduction in force earlier this year eliminated the jobs of 600 within the digital audio company.

Ek argued the decision to eliminate so many jobs was a strategic one for the company, with an eye toward different goals.

“The decision to reduce our team size is a hard but crucial step towards forging a stronger, more efficient Spotify for the future. But it also highlights that we need to change how we work. In Spotify’s early days, our success was hard won. We had limited resources and had to make the most of every asset,” he concluded. “Our ingenuity and creativity were what set us apart. As we’ve grown, we’ve moved too far away from this core principle of resourcefulness. 

The Spotify of tomorrow must be defined by being relentlessly resourceful in the ways we operate, innovate, and tackle problems. This kind of resourcefulness transcends the basic definition – it’s about preparing for our next phase, where being lean is not just an option but a necessity.”

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