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NBC News Touts Podcast Success as Dateline Passes 1 Billion Downloads

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NBC News Touts Podcast Success as Dateline Passes 1 Billion Downloads

In the latest Podtrac stats, NBC News was listed as the #4 top podcast publisher in the United States, and the network is touting its success.

The network claims it has experienced an 18% increase in total listenership in 2023 compared to 2022.

Podcasts produced by the company on average garnered 66 million downloads in the second quarter.

Dateline NBC has eclipsed 1 billion downloads, with 100 million downloads coming in the second quarter alone.

NBC News also claims CNBC podcasts Power Lunch and Closing Bell each saw significant growth. Power Lunch saw its best quarter ever while Closing Bell saw it’s second-best showing on record.

In total, NBC News’ podcast division has seen 11 consecutive quarters of of audience growth.

Bill Handel: Elon Musk Motivated By Attention, Not Good Business

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The surprising announcement that Elon Musk would be rebranding Twitter into X doesn’t appear to be a popular one in many circles. KFI-AM 640 morning host Bill Handel is in that group.

During Monday’s show, Handel argued that the Twitter brand and logo are iconic. However, he believed that Musk simply threw them away because of the attention he would receive for doing so.

“Do you think he’s gonna be able to do anything to revive that company? Look it was never really a well-run company to begin with,” Handel admitted. “Honestly, look…He just loves attention, and that’s what he does. His new CEO, Linda Yaccarino has to clean up all these messes. And she’s been a good soldier so far, but I don’t think — I think this one’s in the ditch.”

After being told about Musk’s obsession with the letter “X” and how he had originally planned to spell the word “sexy” with the model names from his automobile company Tesla, Handel said “he’s really mature”. He later joked the model names should have been “WGLM” for “We’re Going to Lose Money”.

Bob McCown After Stroke: ‘My Brain Knows What To Do, It Just Has to Teach My Body’

BSM Staff
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Bob McCown After Stroke: ‘My Brain Knows What To Do, It Just Has to Teach My Body’

Legendary sports radio host Bob McCown is recovering after he suffered two strokes last month, leading to his hospitalization. While he was under intense medical care, McCown communicated with fans through Twitter and updated them of his status. Two weeks ago, he was released from Trillium Hospital in Mississauga, Ontario and is continuing his rehabilitation at home, including gradually improving his speech and motor skills.

McCown, 71, currently hosts his own podcast on the BetRivers Network. He made a long-awaited, yet momentary appearance on the show on Monday to update the audience on his status. Fill-in hosts John Shannon and Dave Hodge asked McCown about how he was doing, and clearly wanted to ensure that his speech would be discernible before talking.

“I know my voice isn’t 100% yet,” McCown said. “I just hope you can understand most of what I have to say.”

When he described what happened, McCown emphasized the severity of the situation and how strenuous the recovery process has been. He went on to convey how there were times in the hospital when he could not talk or walk, circumstances that have both changed in the ensuing weeks. McCown is currently able to walk with a cane and is participating in speech therapy as he works to clear the hurdles toward a return.

“This is a horrible thing,” McCown stated. “I didn’t appreciate how difficult it was, and I know it’s different for everybody.”

McCown iwas the host of the popular afternoon show, Prime Time, while he was with Sportsnet 590 The Fan in Toronto. During his podcast appearance, he discussed the state of the Toronto Blue Jays and thanked everyone for their continued support and well-wishes throughout this process, calling it “unbelievable,” and hopes to be back on the air soon.

“A lot of what has happened to me has been new, but one thing that the stroke didn’t really affect was my brain,” McCown said. “My brain knows what to do; it just has to teach my body how to do it again.”

Sid Rosenberg Hosting One Night Only Theater Show with Bill O’Reilly

BNM Staff
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Sid Rosenberg Hosting One Night Only Theater Show with Bill O’Reilly

77 WABC morning host Sid Rosenberg is teaming up with Bill O’Reilly for a one-night-only theatre show in October.

Rosenberg welcomed O’Reilly to Sid and Friends in the Morning Monday to make the announcement.

On Friday, October 27th, the two figures will present “A New York State of Mind”, which will detail their upbringing in the city, and discuss how to return New York to its former glory.

“You know what has not been done? Actually talking about the legacy of New York and how we have arrived at this point,” O’Reilly stated.

“This show will go over both of our backgrounds, how two juvenile delinquents — and I use that term literally — have risen to the top of their professions. And how New York was a vast part of that. Then we’ll pivot into what happened,” said O’Reilly. “What happened from the city that we grew up in, we were born in, the change into the city we have now. I think anybody who has any ties to New York state or city is going to enjoy the show.”

The show — which will happen at The Paramount on Long Island — will not be entirely serious, according to the two hosts.

“It’s not a heavy duty. I’ll open the show and give you a dose of reality and with a lot of humor,” concluded O’Reilly.

Rosenberg noted that he and Bernie McGuirk attended a show by O’Reilly at the same theater nearly four years ago. He called the event one of the highlights of his career, and called the opportunity to host the event with O’Reilly as “surreal”.

Presale tickets are available at paramountny.com as well as BillOReilly.com.

Kelsey Riggs Named New Host of ‘ACC Huddle’

BSM Staff
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Kelsey Riggs Named New Host of ‘ACC Huddle’

ESPN has announced its coverage plans for the upcoming Atlantic Coast Conference football season on ACC Network, highlighted by Kelsey Riggs being named the new host of ACC Huddle. Riggs first joined ESPN amid the launch of the network in August 2019, and she served as a prominent on-air talent and reporter across its football coverage. She steps into the role after the network laid off Jordan Cornette during its talent cuts and brings vast experience with both the conference and studio hosting at large.

Riggs and the rest of the ACC Huddle cast, including analysts Eric Mac Lain, EJ Manuel, Mark Richt and Eddie Royal, will be traveling all season long. They will broadcast their show from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. EST from the location of the ACC Primetime Football game of the week. The show will provide halftime reports, a special prime-time edition from 6:30 to 8 p.m. EST and a one-hour recap show at the close of the day recapping all of the action. It will be live from Blacksburg, Va. during Week 1 before the opening matchup between the Old Dominion Monarchs and Virginia Tech Hokies. Yet it will not be the only ACC Network program on-site throughout the year, being joined by ACC PM on Fridays.

The second-year show features co-hosts Mark Packer and Taylor Tannebaum, along with news and commentary from around the conference. At the end of the week, the show hits the road and will broadcast from the same location as ACC Huddle, while the preceding four days take place from Charlotte. The show is on the ACC Network weekdays from 4 to 7 p.m. EST.

ACC Primetime Football games will have a new sound this year with the addition of Wes Durham into the broadcast booth. Durham has called ACC football games for nearly three decades. He is also the lead play-by-play announcer for the Atlanta Falcons.

In her second year with the ACC Network, Tannebaum joins Durham and Tim Hasselback on the primary broadcasts as its sideline reporter. She moves into this role while still co-hosting ACC PM with Packer on weekdays.

For the third consecutive year, ACC Football Road Trip will be previewing the start of the season by visiting all 14 college campuses from Aug. 7 to Aug. 24. The ACC Huddle cast and a score of other personalities will be on site for these special episodes premiering weekdays at 7 p.m. EST. A visit to Florida State University kicks off the proceedings, which ultimately conclude with a trip to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The network will also premiere a multi-part behind-the-scenes series, All Access with Carolina Football, on Thursday at 4 p.m. EST. This program will grant viewers an inside look at what goes into preparing for the football season with the North Carolina football team, taking somewhat of a similar approach to HBO Sports and NFL Films’ Hard Knocks. Over the years, the all-access series has afforded consumers insight into Miami, NC State and Louisville among other programs.

The View Pays Homage to Co-Founder Bill Geddie

BNM Staff
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The View Pays Homage to Co-Founder Bill Geddie

Last week, longtime Barbara Walters producer and The View co-founder Bill Geddie died. Hosts of the ABC program honored his memory during Monday’s show.

“We lost Barbara Walters in December. And on Thursday, we lost Bill Geddie. He was 68 years old, really cranky, and really funny,” said longtime host Whoopi Goldberg. “He was The View’s co-creator and Executive Producer for 17 seasons. And he worked with all of the hosts. He and Barbara met while working at GMA in New York, and they were a team for like 27 years and then Barbara said, ‘You know, Bill, let’s go do something different.’

“And that’s how we all got to the table because Barbara did something different, unique, and they call it The View. Bill was from San Antonio, Texas. He met his wife Barbara at ABC’s Oklahoma station, where they both worked. They made were married for 44 years. They’ve got two daughters, Lauren and Alison…Bill was a film buff,” Goldberg continued.

“He wrote a sci-fi film called Unforgettable. He loved music and love comedy and he loved his coworkers. As I said, he could be crabby, but he was fair and he was funny.”

Geddie, according to his family, died of coronary-related factors.

NAB Announces 2023 Marconi Sports Radio Award Finalists

BSM Staff
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NAB Announces 2023 Marconi Sports Radio Award Finalists

Radio’s biggest night is coming up on October 25th at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City. That’s where the winners of the Marconi Radio Awards will be announced as part of the annual NAB Show. Five sports radio stations have been named finalists for “Sports Station of the Year” by the National Association of Broadcasters, trying to claim the honor after 97.1 The Ticket won the award last year.

To start out the group, 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston, Mass. has been nominated for the award for its second consecutive year. Beasley Media Group market manager Mary Menna and program director Rick Radzik oversee the station, which is owned by Beasley Media Group. Radzik is a previous winner of the 2022 Mark Chernoff Award given at the 2022 BSM Summit. Fred Toucher and Rich Shertenlieb lead the way in mornings, with programming throughout the day captivating the target demographic. 98.5 The Sports Hub was the winner of the Marconi Award in the same category in 2019 and has won three Marconi awards in the last 12 years.

The pioneer outlet in the format – WFAN in New York – was named a finalist for the first time since 2015, the year in which it won the award. The station recently revamped its programming lineup, unveiling a new midday and afternoon show, and also underwent a leadership change with the retirement of Mark Chernoff. Now being led by Audacy Market Manager Chris Oliviero and Vice President of Programming Spike Eskin, the station remains the top sports radio outlet in the New York metropolitan area and the home to the hit morning show, Boomer & Gio. Both Boomer Esiason and Gregg Giannotti received a finalist nod in the category of “Major Market Personality of the Year.”

Sportsradio 1310 The Ticket is a finalist for the honor, which is currently led by Dallas market manager Dan Bennett and program director Jeff Catlin. Legendary host Norm Hitzges officially retired from the outlet last month after 48 years on the radio, leading the station to announce a revised programming lineup. The station last won the Marconi Award for Sports Station of the Year in 2021. George Dunham, Craig Miller and Gordon Keith also obtained a finalist nomination for “Major Market Personality of the Year.” The trio appears on weekday morning drive on The Musers, which used to be the lead-in to Hitzges and Donovan Lewis’ program.

106.7 The Fan joins the nominees for “Sports Station of the Year,” the second Audacy-owned outlet on the list. The station’s morning show, The Sports Junkies, remains a staple in D.C. talk radio. Audacy Market Manager Ivy Savoy-Smith and program director Chris Kinard are at the helm of the outlet, helping shape the sound of the sports talk outlet. The station is the flagship home of the Washington Nationals and Washington Capitals professional sports franchises.

Rounding out the finalists for the prestigious award is KFAN FM 100.3 in Minneapolis-St. Paul, which is widely regarded as one of the top stations in the format. The station received its first finalist distinction since 2019, the year where the award was won by 98.5 The Sports Hub. Program director Chad Abbott and iHeartMedia market manager Greg Alexander manage the outlet’s local coverage of franchises, including working as the flagship home of the Minnesota Vikings and Minnesota Wild. On-air talents including Paul Allen, Dan Cole and Dan Barreiro are mainstays in the area and trusted sources of information and entertainment.

For the “Legendary Radio Manager of the Year” award, Debbie Kenyon of Audacy in Detroit was named a finalist. As senior vice president and market manager, Kenyon is responsible for overseeing 97.1 The Ticket, last year’s Marconi Award-winning station. Gordy Rush, vice president and market manager of Guaranty Media, is also a finalist for the honor. He manages five radio stations in the Baton Rouge marketplace, including 104.5 ESPN.

News/Talk Well Represented in 2023 Marconi Awards Finalists

BNM Staff
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News/Talk Well Represented in 2023 Marconi Awards Finalists

The NAB has announced the finalists for the 2023 Marconi Awards, and the news/talk format was well represented in the group of potential winners.

Three news/talk stations are finalists for the Legendary Station of the Year. KCBS, San Francisco; 77 WABC, New York, and 700 WLW, Cincinnati are all in the running.

Coast-to-Coast AM host George Noory is nominated for the Network/Syndicated Personality of the Year Award.

While there are now news/talk hosts nominated in the Major and Large Market Personality of the Year category, a pair of news/talk hosts are nominated in the Medium Market list. 1190 WOWO morning host Kayla Blakeslee and KIDO morning host Kevin Miller are both finalists.

1010 WINS, New York is nominated for Major Market Station of the Year, while KMOX, St Louis is nominated in the Large Market category. WHO, Des Moines; NewsRadio 92.3 WNRP, Pensacola; and WTIB, Greenville are nominated for Medium Market Station of the Year. KROX, Fargo is nominated for Small Market Station of the Year.

In the News/Talk Station of the Year category, the nominees are KFI-AM 640, Los Angeles; 77 WABC, New York; News Talk 830 WCCO, Minneapolis; WTOP, Washington D.C.; and WWL, New Orleans.

Additionally, four of the five podcasts nominated for Best Radio Podcast of the Year come from news/talk stations. WTOP has two of the nominations with American Nightmare Season 3: Unknown Subject and DMV Download. The Letter from NewsRadio KSL, Salt Lake City, and Deadly Pill from KFI-AM 640 are also nominated for the award.

The 2023 Marconi Award winners will be announced on Wednesday, October 25th during NAB Show New York.

The entire list of nominations is below:

LEGENDARY STATION OF THE YEAR
KCBS-AM, San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, Calif.
WABC-AM, New York, N.Y.
WDAS-FM, Philadelphia, Pa.
WLW-AM, Cincinnati, Ohio
WMMR-FM, Philadelphia, Pa.

LEGENDARY RADIO MANAGER OF THE YEAR
David R. DuBose, WTUG-FM, Townsquare Media, Birmingham, Ala.
Debbie Kenyon, Audacy, Detroit, Mich.
Gordy Rush, Guaranty Media, Baton Rouge, La.
Joey Cummings, KKHJ-FM, South Seas Broadcasting, Inc., American Samoa
Nick Martin, Big River Broadcasting Corporation, Florence/Muscle Shoals, Ala.

NETWORK/SYNDICATED PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
Enrique Santos, WZTU-FM Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
Erica Campbell, Reach Media, Dallas, Texas
George Noory, Premiere Radio Networks, Inc., Sherman Oaks, Calif.
Katie Neal, Audacy, Nashville, Tenn.
Rich Eisen, Westwood One, Los Angeles, Calif.

MAJOR MARKET PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
Boomer Esiason and Gregg Giannotti, WFAN-FM, New York, N.Y.
George Dunham, Craig Miller and Gordon Keith, KTCK-AM, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
Jason Pullman, KPLX-FM, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
Lin Brehmer, WXRT-FM, Chicago, Ill.
Mark “Hawkeye” Lewis and Michelle Rodriguez , KSCS-FM, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas

LARGE MARKET PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
Billy Madison , KISS-FM, San Antonio, Texas
Chris Carr, Kia Becht and Sam Sansevere, KEEY-FM, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.
Dave Ryan with Falen, Jenny and Drake, KDWB-FM, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.
Lincoln Ware, WDBZ-AM, Cincinnati, Ohio
Paul Castronovo, WBGG-FM, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

MEDIUM MARKET PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
Ashley Adams, Roger Todd and Michele Silva, WJXB-FM, Knoxville, Tenn.
Brian Dawson, WQOK-FM, Raleigh-Durham, N.C.
Chaz and AJ, WPLR-FM, Hartford-New Haven, Conn.
Kayla Blakeslee, WOWO-AM, Ft. Wayne, Ind.
Kevin Miller, KIDO-AM, Boise, Idaho

SMALL MARKET PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
Kat and J.J. Holiday, KCLD-FM, St. Cloud, Minn.
Kelly and Wood, KZPK-FM, St. Cloud, Minn.
Kevin Hilley and Erin Hart, KATI-FM, Columbia-Jefferson City, Mo.
Keziah Atofau and John Raynar, KKHJ-FM, American Samoa
M. Fletcher Brown, WXFL-FM, Huntsville-Decatur-Florence, Ala.

MAJOR MARKET STATION OF THE YEAR
KSCS-FM, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
WALR-FM, Atlanta, Ga.
WINS-FM, New York, N.Y.
WLTW-FM, New York, N.Y.
WWPR-FM, New York, N.Y.

LARGE MARKET STATION OF THE YEAR
KMOX-AM, St. Louis, Mo.
KQMT-FM, Denver, Colo.
KSTP-FM, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.
WHYI-FM, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
WKRQ-FM, Cincinnati, Ohio

MEDIUM MARKET STATION OF THE YEAR
WHO-AM, Des Moines-Ames, Iowa
WNRP-AM, Mobile, Ala.-Pensacola, Fla.
WTIB-FM, Greenville-New Bern-Washington, N.C.
WXKB-FM, Ft. Myers-Naples, Fla.
WYOY-FM, Jackson, Miss.

SMALL MARKET STATION OF THE YEAR
KDXY-FM, Jonesboro, Ark.
KROX-AM, Fargo-Valley City, N.D.
KZPK-FM, St. Cloud, Minn.
WIKY-FM, Evansville, Ind.
WYKY-FM, Lexington, Ky.

BEST RADIO PODCAST OF THE YEAR
“American Nightmare Season 3: Unknown Subject,” WTOP-FM, Washington, D.C.
“Behind the Song,” WDRV-FM, Chicago, Ill.
“Deadly Pill,” KFI-AM Los Angeles, Calif.
“DMV Download,” WTOP-FM, Washington, D.C.
“The Letter,” KSL-FM, Salt Lake City, Utah

AC STATION OF THE YEAR
KBIG-FM, Los Angeles, Calif.
KODA-FM, Houston, Texas
KOIT-FM, San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, Calif.
WALK-FM, New York, N.Y.
WEZN-FM, New York, N.Y.

CHR STATION OF THE YEAR
KMVQ-FM, San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, Calif.
KNDE-FM, Waco-Temple-Bryan, Texas
WAPE-FM, Jacksonville, Fla.
WHTZ-FM, New York, N.Y.
WWPW-FM, Atlanta, Ga.

CLASSIC HITS STATION OF THE YEAR
KJEB-FM, Seattle-Tacoma, Wash.
KONO-FM, Austin, Texas
KRTH-FM, Los Angeles, Calif.
WAXQ-FM, New York, N.Y.
WSRV-FM, Atlanta, Ga.

COLLEGE RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR
WGCS-FM, Goshen College, South Bend-Elkhart, Ind.
WMSC-FM, Montclair State University, Montclair, N.J.
WPSC-FM, William Patterson University, Wayne, N.J.
WRRC-FM, Rider University, Philadelphia, Pa.
WSOU-FM, Seton Hall University, South Orange, N.J.

COUNTRY STATION OF THE YEAR
KCLR-FM, Columbia-Jefferson City, Mo.
KNCI-FM, Sacramento-Stockton-Modesto, Calif.
KYGO-FM, Denver, Colo.
WKXC-FM, Augusta, Ga.
WXTU-FM, Philadelphia, Pa.

NEWS/TALK STATION OF THE YEAR
KFI-AM, Los Angeles, Calif.
WABC-AM, New York, N.Y.
WCCO-AM, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.
WTOP-FM, Washington, D.C.
WWL-FM, New Orleans, La.

RELIGIOUS STATION OF THE YEAR
KLTY-FM, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
WLCC-AM, Tampa-St. Petersburg-Sarasota, Fla.
WMIT-FM, Greenville-Spartanburg, S.C.-Asheville, N.C.
WNNL-FM, Raleigh-Durham, N.C.
WPRS-FM, Washington, D.C.

ROCK STATION OF THE YEAR
KGLK-FM, Houston, Texas
WIYY-FM, Baltimore, Md.
WMMR-FM, Philadelphia, Pa.
WPLR-FM, Hartford-New Haven, Conn.
WXTB-FM, Tampa-St. Petersburg-Sarasota, Fla.

SPANISH LANGUAGE STATION OF THE YEAR
KLOL-FM, Houston, Texas
WLKQ-FM, Atlanta, Ga.
WLZL-FM, Washington, D.C.
WRUM-FM, Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne, Fla.
WYUU-FM, Tampa-St. Petersburg-Sarasota, Fla.

SPORTS STATION OF THE YEAR
KFXN-FM, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.
KTCK-AM, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
WBZ-FM, Boston, Mass.
WFAN-FM, New York, N.Y.
WJFK-FM, Washington, D.C.

URBAN STATION OF THE YEAR
WBTJ-FM, Richmond-Petersburg, Va.
WDAS-FM, Philadelphia, Pa.
WEDR-FM, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
WHQT-FM, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
WMIB-FM, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

Fred Toucher on WFAN Criticism: ‘New York Post’ is Not a Real Newspaper

BSM Staff
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Fred Toucher on WFAN Criticism: ‘New York Post’ is Not a Real Newspaper

When New York Post opinion columnist Phil Mushnick wrote a review about a segment on WFAN’s morning program, Boomer & Gio, it caught attention from those within sports media. Mushnick lamented the fact that Gregg Giannotti and update anchor Jerry Recco (filling in for Boomer Esiason) engaged in conversation related to genitals. In his column, he claimed that the station does not consider its listeners intelligent enough to be able to “distinguish crude from clever or sports from the sounds of gastric flatulence.”

Mushnick took umbrage with the conversation, which ironically stemmed from an article that the New York Post, the very outlet he writes for, posted as an exclusive story. Sports Illustrated columnist Jimmy Traina expressed his thoughts on the entire ordeal, essentially calling Mushnick and The Post out as being hypocritical. Before even conveying their opinions, Fred Toucher and Rich Shertenlieb of 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston, Mass. read off various headlines published by the newspaper over the years. The undertaking was a purported effort to demonstrate the newspaper’s jocoseness and crudeness utilized to generate engagement.

“‘Osama bin Wankin. Beet the Meatles.’ And then of course, there was when Ike Turner died with the wildly inappropriate, ‘Ike Turner beats Tina to death!,’” Shertenlieb recited on the air.

The show proceeded to read the litany of headlines the newspaper wrote regarding Anthony Weiner, a disgraced politician who became involved in sexual harassment scandals that forced him to resign from Congress and an election. Essentially, the headlines embody what the show was trying to state about the New York Post and how it is distinct when compared to other newspapers.

“You write for crap,” Toucher said to Mushnick. “The Post is crap – it’s not a real newspaper. No one’s under the illusion The Post is a real newspaper. It’s funny – it’s a joke…. First of all, The Post is five pages, and second of all, it’s nonsense.”

In his column, Mushnick took a shot at Esiason when he was not even involved in the incident by calling him “a profane phony who plays a gentleman on CBS’s NFL weekend studio show.” He went on to include a quote from a reader about the specific segment in which Giannotti and Recco were referred to as “two clowns,” and then questioned whether or not they speak with the same mannerisms in front of their families.

WFAN’s Boomer & Gio recently won the spring ratings book in the morning daypart with an 11.1 share and continues to be simulcast on CBS Sports Network. The book spans beyond solely sports radio stations, as it includes all radio stations in New York City and further emphasizes the appeal of the show. Nonetheless, Mushnick seems to make a habit of harshly criticizing WFAN in his columns according to Toucher, and it is something those in the industry recognize from afar.

“He was always complaining about [Mike] Francesa,” Toucher said of Musnnick. “He had this thing that Francesa supported the Nazis [and] all this crazy stuff [where] he was like, ‘The audio doesn’t exist, but he really laid into Israel’ or something.”

Toucher proceeded to say that if Mushnick were to host 20 hours of radio programming per week, he would have to probably prescript it. Moreover, he does not think Mushnick could captivate an audience, comparing him to when baseball luminary Bill James appears across different programming in the middle of the summer.

“This guy is just such a prick; he’s really a prick,” Toucher said of Mushnick. “I’ve been in markets where they have guys covering radio; I don’t know anyone who just hates it so much.”

Kyle Cassandra Joins 96.9 The Game as PD & Midday Co-Host

BSM Staff
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Kyle Cassandra Joins 96.9 The Game as PD & Midday Co-Host

96.9 The Game is bringing in a new voice and station leader. Kyle Cassandra is joining the station as the new program director. He will also be the co-host of the station’s midday show The Beat of Sports. 

Cassandra has not been in radio full-time since 2020. Prior to that, he worked for crosstown rival ESPN 580. He was there from 2007 until 2020, serving as executive producer and APD.

At the Game, he replaces Scott Harris, who had been at iHeartMedia in Orlando for 17 years. Harris is moving on to dedicate more time to other endeavors, including his role as the play-by-play voice of Orlando City in the MLS.

Kyle Cassandra made his debut on 96.9 The Game on Monday. He is partnered with Marc Daniels on The Beat of Sports.

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