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Jeff Smulyan: Mike & The Mad Dog Have a Chemistry That Will Always Work

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Jeff Smulyan: Mike & The Mad Dog Have a Chemistry That Will Always Work

Could we see former WFAN hosts Mike Francesa and Chris “Mad Dog” Russo reunite for another run in sports talk radio? The man who launched the station believes that if it ever were to happen there’s no doubt it would do well, even now.

Emmis Communications CEO Jeff Smulyan was a guest on The Pat & Aaron Show on WDAE in Tampa on Thursday, and said when Mike and Chris get together, it is always going to be compelling.

“I think great content always works,” Smulyan said. “There is a chemistry between those guys. Now, it is a long time later.”

Smulyan did say that the likelihood of a full-time reunion for the two sports talk legends is slim, but the odds aren’t completely zero.

“Whether they do it or not, Mad Dog is tied up with his SiriusXM thing, you never know,” he said. “But they certainly have great chemistry even though personally sometimes they didn’t get along.”

Russo and Francesa did reunite on First Take earlier this year, but Russo remains dedicated to his daily national radio show on Sirius. Meanwhile, Francesa recently said he is happy doing a podcast for BetRivers.

Sean Spicer Leaving Newsmax

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Sean Spicer Leaving Newsmax

After joining Newsmax in 2020, Sean Spicer has announced Thursday was his final day with the conservative cable outlet.

Spicer & Co. originally began airing in the 6:00 PM time slot, but was moved to 5:00 PM after the addition of Greta Van Susteren to the lineup.

The host was perhaps best known for his role in the Trump White House, serving as the administration’s Press Secretary for eight months before departing in 2017. Spicer developed what could be described as an adversarial relationship with the press during his tenure, especially with CNN’s Jim Acosta.

Spicer announced the move at the end of his Thursday program, and was slightly vague on details.

“Today is a bittersweet one,” Spicer said at the end of his Thursday broadcast. “It will be my last day on Spicer & Co. and my last day with Newsmax.”

Spicer added he was “grateful for the opportunity” given to him and was “proud of the work” he did at the outlet. ‘

“But now it is time to turn the page to the next chapter,” Spicer said.

According to a conversation the host had with CNN’s Oliver Darcy, Spicer has ruled out working on any 2024 Presidential campaigns.

Joe Giglio: AI Announcer At The Masters ‘Freaking Me Out’

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Joe Giglio: AI Announcer At The Masters ‘Freaking Me Out’

A clip from The Masters of IBM’s Artificial Intelligence announcer “Watson” went viral Wednesday, and 94 WIP midday host Joe Giglio wasn’t amused.

In the video, IBM’s “Watson” announcer described the player, his age, nationality, and the location of his shot, before detailing where the shot landed.

“That is not a real person. That is artificial intelligence, everyone. That is not a real person, it’s a call from a computer,” Giglio said. “That’s freaking me out.”

“That’s what everyone is moving toward now,” co-host Hugh Douglas said. He added that many of the Instagram Reels he sees are AI voices meant to sound like celebrities, so he was more prepared for the sound of the computer announcing golf.

“Should we worry about this? Will one day AI take over WIP?” Giglio asked.

“Naw. The one thing about being live and local is we still have that human connection,” said Douglas. “Where else are you gonna get conversations about the names of sandwiches you can’t remember and someone has to remind you? You can’t get that through AI.”

“We have our opinions. AI could call a game. I wonder if the play-by-play will disappear,” Giglio questioned before wondering what a computer-generated voice of Merrill Reese would sound like.

Giglio continued by pointing out the rising cost of top-tier announcers could drive companies to create AI broadcasters.

“The more these play-by-play people get on TV, the more the network is gonna cut some costs one day. Doesn’t Joe Buck get like $20 million a year now? I think Joe Buck is awesome, but someday ESPN’s gonna be like ‘We can get this AI in for free’.”

Retiring Suns Announcer Al McCoy Makes Final TV Appearance

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89-year-old Al McCoy is stepping away from the Phoenix Suns at the end of the current NBA season, and had a brief return to his roots earlier this week.

McCoy was both the television and radio voice for the Suns until the NBA eliminated the practice of simulcasting television broadcasts on radio. In 2003, he chose to become the radio voice of the franchise, before scaling his schedule back in 2010.

Earlier this week, McCoy was presented with the opportunity to broadcast the second quarter of the team’s victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Bally Sports Arizona. He told Arizona Sports 98.7’s Bickley & Marotta that it felt like it used to.

“It was kind of funny, as many of the followers of the Suns know in the early days I did both television and radio and we simulcast it. For probably 35 years, I was just as well known on television as I am on radio,” said McCoy. “Then, we decided not to simulcast any longer, so I guess they thought because of the background it might be fun to have me work both for a while, and it was fun.”

McCoy — in his 51st season with the franchise — joined Suns television play-by-play announcer Kevin Ray and analyst Eddie Johnson for the duration of the second quarter, and it was a trip down memory lane for McCoy, who initially helped Johnson launch his broadcasting career.

“When Eddie wanted to retire, he wanted to get into broadcasting. He came to me, we talked, and he worked alongside me for several years. I’m so proud of Eddie and what he’s been able to accomplish since then.”

McCoy joked that working with Johnson on television allowed the former NBA player to share a story about how he learned to work with the longtime Suns voice.

“He kids me many times because I told him I would let him know when he could talk. I would give him ‘ the finger’ when he could talk, and he jokes many years later that I still give him the finger.”

WWE Heard Pitch From Liberty Media Before Signing Deal With Endeavor

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WWE Heard Pitch From Liberty Media Before Signing Deal With Endeavor

Endeavor has acquired the WWE, but the road to a deal was not a smooth one. In fact, the deal was not finalized until Saturday, the first night of Wrestlemania 39. The company wasn’t just negotiating the right deal, they also faced some competition in the bidding process.

Dylan Byers of Puck writes that Liberty Media was serious about buying WWE. It could have been a perfect fit too.

Liberty is no stranger to the sports or media spaces. It owns the Atlanta Braves, SiriusXM and Formula 1 Racing. It also briefly owned a major stake in DirecTV and several television networks.

Formula 1 in particular could have been an ideal model for WWE to follow under Liberty Media. Nick Khan said in the days after the Endeavor deal that the company’s priority will be making the most of the assets WWE already owns. That idea would lend itself perfectly to something like F1: Drive to Survive on Netflix, which has helped stir a growing passion for Formual 1 in the US.

WWE had been meeting with Endeavor since the middle of March. The wrestling giant will now be combined with UFC to form a publicly traded company valued at more than $21 billion.

MLB Files Motion Demanding Diamond Sports Make Rights Fee Payments

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MLB Files Motion Demanding Diamond Sports Make Rights Fee Payments

MLB has filed an emergency motion to require Diamond Sports Group — the parent company of the Bally Sports-branded regional sports networks — pay its scheduled rights fees to the Minnesota Twins and Cleveland Guardians.

The league is seeking an order that would require the company to either make the payments to the AL Central squads or terminate the contracts so the franchises could regain control of the rights.

In the filing, MLB claims Diamond Sports Group only gave the Twins and Guardians one day’s advance notice that it would not be making the scheduled payments. The league argues that Bally Sports North and Bally Sports Great Lakes “continue to use the Clubs’ valuable intellectual property every day”.

“By continuing to broadcast Guardians and Twins games, they generate post-petition revenue, yet boldly refuse to pay the Clubs,” the filing reads according to a report from The Athletic.

Additionally, Diamond Sports Group has not paid the Arizona Diamondbacks, but that occurred before the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Therefore, the Diamondbacks are listed as a creditor.

The filing was largely redacted, keeping rights fee payments out of the public eye. However, other reports claim the Guardians are owed $55 million annually, while the Twins’ fee is reported at $42 million.

Other teams, including the Diamondbacks, Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee Brewers, Tampa Bay Rays, and Texas Rangers claimed they “reserved their rights to join in the motion if Diamond also fails to pay them in the future.” 

MLB would like a decision by Thursday, April 13th.

Fred Toucher: Management Has Used Voice Problems Against Me In Contract Negotiations

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Fred Toucher: Management Has Used Voice Problems Against Me In Contract Negotiations

Fred Toucher has had a very public voice issue for several months, and recently shared that the topic has been brought up in contract negotiations between his agent and 98.5 The Sports Hub.

“No one has been like ‘You’re screwed’. No one has been like ‘Oh my god, dude, you’re like this forever’,” Toucher said of his voice problems after reading a portion of Barrett Sports Media’s Demetri Ravanos’ recent column on the issue. “However, I will say that if you’re ever negotiating a contract and have anything sketchy going on, they will use that against you,” Toucher joked. “Is it freaky for me? Yeah, a little bit. This is what I do for a living, so it’s a little freaky.”

“Now I can imagine what it’s like to be an athlete and have these Twitter doctors say ‘Well, what’s wrong with your injury?’,” Rich Shertenlieb said.

“I swear to god, no one has told me this isn’t going away,” Toucher said.

Toucher continued to read portions of the story, before quoting “Even if you love the show, it isn’t easy to listen to these days.”

“Someone from corporate just writes something else on their pad,” Shertenlieb joked. “Got him ‘here’, let’s mark Fred as a minus sign. It is kind of funny what publications and posts that we get quoted to by our bosses. Like, why are you paying attention to buttcrunch.com?”]

Toucher added that while he’s appreciative of the support he’s received, he does feel some of the coverage might be slightly overblown, before sharing that the conversation has come up between station management and his agent.

“Awful Announcing has an article. They’re very nice, but they’re essentially obituaries for my career. They make the point that like Mad Dog is on the air, so it’s not like you need a silky smooth voice to be on the radio. My only fear is that I will lose my voice like last week, but I don’t think that’s going to happen again…I’m not nearly as worried about as some other people are, but it was used in our agent’s conversation with management. ‘What if he can never talk again’. I’m like if ‘I have a raspy voice, you’re not going to re-sign me?'”

Jox 94.5 Extends Flagship Deal With UAB

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Jox 94.5 Extends Flagship Deal With UAB

The UAB Blazers have a new home for football in downtown Birmingham. On the radio though, the team will stay where it has always been after signing an extension with Jox 94.5.

Cumulus Birmingham and Blazers Sports Properties have signed an extension to keep UAB sports on the iconic three-station brand for three more years. Football will air on Jox 94.5. Basketball will be on Jox 100.5. Coaches shows featuring Trent Dilfer, Andy Kennedy and Randy Norton will also air on 100.5.

“We are thrilled to extend our partnership with UAB Athletics and Blazer Sports Properties,” VP/Market Manager for Cumulus Media Birmingham James Robinson said in a press release. “The Blazers are Birmingham’s hometown team, and we are proud to broadcast them on our airwaves.  It’s a great partnership and we look forward to many exciting Blazer Football and Blazer Men’s Basketball games as well as the Coaches shows with Trent Dilfer, Andy Kennedy and Randy Norton.”

Blazers Sports Properties is operated by Learfield. The company worked with Cumulus on the extension.

“Cumulus has been a great partner for many years and the relationship with Blazers Athletics continues to get stronger,” Blazer Sports Properties GM Greg Wheeler said. “WJOX 94.5 FM and JOX2 100.5 FM are the best places to tune for sports programming in this market and it’s a perfect fit for our broadcasts.”

Jack Harris: I’ll Be Back on Tampa Radio

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After claiming he was fired last week, longtime Tampa radio host Jack Harris told The Tampa Bay Times he would find a new radio home.

Harris has been a fixture in the Tampa market, working for the last 29 years at WFLA. He spent the majority of his radio career in the market — which began in 1970 — with the iHeartMedia station.

“I definitely want to do morning radio,” Harris said. “That’s where I belong.”

The 81-year-old lamented the inability to host a final show on the station. However, iHeartMedia West Florida Area President Chris Soechtig contends Harris was offered the chance to say farewell.

“Jack is a local broadcast legend and has been part of the fabric of the Tampa Bay community, and we wanted to celebrate all his contributions with a farewell show,” Soechtig told The Times.

According to a report from the newspaper, Harris will host a farewell program on Salem Media-owned AM 860/FM 93.7 The Answer. The show was originally scheduled for this week, but his non-compete clause could be an issue. The station said it did not wish to risk “any negative impact” on the longtime host.

Eric Bolling Mocks Rachel Maddow After MSNBC’s Decision to Not Air Trump Speech

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After his first court appearance following being indicted on 34 felonies, former President Donald Trump aired his grievances with the process in a speech that was broadcast on several networks. MSNBC chose not to air the speech, and Newsmax host Eric Bolling took issue with that decision.

Bolling aired a clip of MSNBC host Rachel Maddow discussing why the network wouldn’t air the speech, in which she said “We don’t consider that necessarily newsworthy, and there’s a cost to us — as a news organization — of knowingly broadcasting untrue things.

“For now, just know that it’s happening, and we’re not taking it,” Maddow said as the clip concluded.

“Wow. So brave, Rachel. You really showed Trump there,” Bolling said. “That’s MSNBC in a nutshell. If you picked at random a left-wing protestor and put them — gender-neutral them — on a set, you’d get exactly what you heard on MSNBC.”

The Eric Bolling The Balance host then claimed that Newsmax aired “untrue things” in its own right earlier that same day.

“Rachel Maddow said they didn’t broadcast Trump’s speech because that would be knowingly broadcasting untruths. But we, Newsmax, broadcasted (Manhattan District Attorney) Alvin Bragg and a bunch of untruths on our air yesterday in full.”

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