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1620 The Zone Announces Morning and Midday Show Changes

Jason Barrett
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1620 The Zone in Omaha is making changes to its weekday lineup. The moves which go into effect on Thursday August 15th will bring a change to morning drive and middays.

The Zone is welcoming back Mike’l Severe after a five-year absence. Severe will join long-time morning co-host Damon Benning to create “Severe and Benning in the Morning” from 6a-10a weekdays. Severe had recently hosted “The Bottom Line”, heard on the website of the Omaha World-Herald and KXSP-AM.

“Benning and Severe will offers listeners a new blend of morning sports radio” said NRG Omaha Market Manager Mark Shecterle. “Benning, a former Nebraska football national champion, and Severe, a well-known local TV and radio sports personality, will be able to give listeners an intense focus on Nebraska Football, UNO and Creighton Athletics and all other local sports. We are excited to bring back Mike’l Severe to the NRG family”.

The change in mornings opens the door for former morning show co-host and “Broadcaster of the Year” Gary Sharp to take over the mid-day slot recently vacated by Nick Bahe. “The Gary Sharp Show” will air 10a-2p weekdays, giving Sharp an opportunity to fully exhibit his expertise in sports analysis and his legendary interviewing skills, Shecterle said.  Shecterle added, “Gary has deserved his own show for a while and we are thrilled that he will be anchoring our mid-day slot. By moving to mid-days, we truly believe we have a sports-talk line-up second to none”.

“Unsportsmanlike Conduct” with John Bishop and Josh Peterson, remains in afternoons unaffected. The program will continue airing weekdays from 2p-6p. In addition, KOZN’s Nebraska football post game show, “Big Red Over Reaction”, which airs immediately after the conclusion of each Nebraska game, will now simulcast on sister station KOOO 101.9 The Keg.

With The Zone starting its 20th year, Shecterle said the changes will put everything in place for continued success in ratings and revenue.

NRG Media and Creighton University Announce Contract Extension

Jason Barrett
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NRG Media and Creighton University Announce Contract Extension

Omaha’s top-ranked sports station 1620 The Zone will remain the flagship station for Creighton Men’s Basketball games following an announcement from NRG Media and Creighton Athletics that the two sides have agreed to a new three-year contract extension.

The agreement which covers the 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons gives The Zone exclusive rights to broadcast play-by-play for all home and away games as well as pre-game and post-game coverage. Creighton’s home games will continue to be broadcast on 101.9 The Keg as part of the contract extension.

1620 The Zone’s afternoon host John Bishop will continue handling play-by-play duties while a host of former Bluejays, including Fox Sports Radio talk show host and national college basketball television analyst Nick Bahe, will supply color commentary.

“We’ve had an outstanding relationship with Creighton University for many years, and we are extremely excited that our relationship will continue for many years to come.  Creighton is a fantastic university with a great athletic program, and we are thrilled to be associated with the University,” said Mark Shecterle, General Manager of NRG Radio Omaha.

“We are very happy to continue our relationship with NRG,” Creighton Associate Director of Athletics Kevin Sarver said. “1620 The Zone has long been Omaha’s premier sports talk radio station and having our men’s basketball game broadcasts as part of its programming lineup, along with the home games also available on 101.9 The Keg, is a great fit for our program and our fans.” 

The three-year extension includes The Creighton Athletics Hour – a live call-in show which will air once a week from 6p-7p on The Zone from October through March. A number of Creighton women’s basketball games will also be carried on either 1180 Zone 2 or NewsTalk 1290 KOIL, plus five Creighton Men’s Soccer home match broadcasts will be offered on La Nueva 1020AM/99.5FM. 

Sports Radio’s 2019 Spring Book Ratings Recap

Jason Barrett
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Sports Radio’s 2019 Spring Book Ratings Recap

Each quarter at BSM we highlight how sports radio stations across America have performed in their latest ratings books. I’ve been asked before why this piece comes out a few weeks after the results are in and the answer is that it takes time to gather information from over 20+ markets and other business needs require attention too. That said, I’m grateful that many format folks look forward to reading it.

Having been a programmer and analyzed panel changes, meter counts, hot zips, listener trends and every other factor that goes into generating ratings, I know how much it means to those involved with a radio station to have their work matter and be appreciated. Because I love this format, respect those involved in programming circles, and understand the challenges brands face generating advertising dollars, I continue to research market results and write this column. I hope it helps educate clients on why sports radio brands are worth investing in. I’m also optimistic that industry leaders will be reminded of some of the great work being done by their people and brands and put a few things into perspective when analyzing the numbers. Sometimes they lose sight of it.

But I’d be lying if I said I enjoy writing this column as much as I once did. Although I love giving brands recognition and credit for a job well done, there’s also the reality of this industry continuing to be poorly measured, especially digitally. When I analyze 20-30 markets and find streaming numbers practically invisible for some of the format’s top brands, it’s difficult for me to fake enthusiasm. Too many of these stations have bigger audiences and impact than they receive credit for. It’s got to get better.

This is not a ‘get off my lawn’ moment. It’s a simple reminder that we need more comprehensive data to compete against ALL media. Social media giants and tech companies are eating everyone’s lunch. The projections for the future look similar. To have a fighting chance we’ve got to be able to capture the full story of what these brands are delivering while also adjusting internal mindsets that it doesn’t begin and end with numbers.

Ratings have been a part of my world for the past 15 years. I love studying them and seeing friends, peers, and industry professionals reap the rewards of a job well done. Sports talk radio delivers an emotional connection with its audience and in the process these personalities earn trust. That helps businesses that align with them move product. That by itself is worth investing in. The numbers are the icing on the cake.

With that in mind, here’s a look at how sports radio brands around the country performed during the 2019 spring book.

NEW YORK:

Sports radio listening in the big apple remained strong with WFAN’s Boomer and Gio finishing 1st in the market in morning drive with Men 25-54. FAN’s morning team finished with a low 6 share, two points higher than 98.7 ESPN NY’s airing of Golic and Wingo which came in 10th.

Middays were strong for Beningo and Roberts and CMB on WFAN. Joe and Evan produced a low 7 share to finish 1st between 10a-1p. CMB recorded a high 6 share to come in 2nd during their timeslot of 1p-3p. 98.7 ESPN’s Humpty and Canty and the Stephen A. Smith show generated the same number (just under a mid 3 share) for the quarter. Humpty and Canty were 10th, Smith 11th.

The always interesting battle between Mike Francesa and the Michael Kay Show remained close. If you include both radio and streaming listening for both stations, Francesa wins the head to head matchup by two tenths of a point. Without the Fan’s streaming taken into account Kay wins. Using the combined number, Francesa delivered just above a mid 6 share. Kay was just under a mid 6 share. The two shows finished 1st and 2nd respectively in the market which is outstanding.

The one issue that has created confusion in New York City’s ratings has been the way Entercom New York and ESPN New York’s differ in how they operate and sell ads. ESPN combines radio and streaming whereas The Fan produces them separately.

Regardless of how you want to slice it, both brands had reasons to celebrate the spring book. Summer could be a little different with Kay off the radio due to vocal cord surgery, Gray out due to maternity leave, and Francesa taking a week or two for summer vacation.

LOS ANGELES:

ESPN LA 710 was pleased with its progress for the quarter. The station finished just under a 3 share, gaining six tenths of a point year to year. Mason and Ireland remained the top rated program in the market with a high 3 share. All of 710’s weekday programs improved their numbers from spring to spring. It was the stations best spring book since 2015.

AM 570 LA Sports also had a few reasons to be happy with the quarterly report. The radio station picked up a full point spring to spring in weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p). 570 also nearly doubled their share in morning drive year to year thanks to the Dan Patrick Show.

CHICAGO:

670 The Score continued its winning ways, securing victory for the spring book in both weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) and the full week (M-SU 6a-Mid) with Men 25-54. The Score generated a low 5 share to finish 4th and 5th respectively in those two categories. Cubs baseball certainly helped. ESPN 1000 came in 9th in prime, and 11th for the full week.

Fueling The Score’s success was the morning team of Mully and Haugh who finished 3rd with just under a mid 7 share. The show was just one tenth of a point away from being tied for 1st overall with Men 25-54. ESPN 1000’s airing of Golic and Wingo did make strides too, gaining 10% to climb into the top 10 with a mid 3 share.

A close race developed in middays between The Score’s Bernstein and McKnight and ESPN 1000’s Kap and Company. The Score’s tandem won the quarter by finishing 7th with a high 3 share. Kap’s program was tied for 9th with a mid 3 share. Also, Laurence Holmes bested Carmen and Jurko between the hours of Noon and 2pm by a little more than a point. Holmes finished 5th, Carmen and Jurko were 9th.

The afternoon drive battle this quarter was won by The Score’s McNeil and Parkins. 670’s show was tied for 3rd with a little better than a mid 5 share, nearly a point and a half ahead of ESPN 1000’s Waddle and Silvy who were 7th with a low 4 share.

One last item worth sharing, 670’s combination of Cubs baseball and Joe Ostrowski were 1st between the hours of 6p-10p. Play by Play and Julie DiCaro were ranked 3rd between the hours of 10p-12a.

SAN FRANCISCO:

Both KNBR and 95.7 The Game had success stories worth sharing this quarter. KNBR finished 2nd overall in weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) with a high 5 share, three tenths of a point ahead of The Game. The Sports Leader also won the full week (M-SU 6a-Mid) edging The Game by one tenth of a point. The Game’s big victory came in the month of June when the station won the month, finishing 1st overall in the market.

In mornings, KNBR’s Murph and Mac came in 4th, four tenths of a point ahead of Joe, Lo and Dibbs who finished 6th. The former midday team of Gary and Larry led KNBR to a win between 10a-1p, finishing six tenths of a point ahead of Steiny and Guru and 1-hour of The Greg Papa Show with Bonta Hill (Papa has since joined KNBR). The final 2-hours of Papa and Hill’s show from 1p-3p earned The Game a seven tenths of a point victory over Fitz and Brooks (Brooks has since moved to PM drive on KNBR, Fitzgerald is no longer with the station).

Afternoons saw both Tom Tolbert and Damon Bruce perform strong with Tolbert winning the matchup by six tenths of a point. Bruce’s daypart though was The Game’s highest ranked for the quarter. Both shows benefited from a few Giants and Warriors games airing during their time slot.

Closing things out at night, The Game placed 2nd to KNBR’s 5th, winning the evening matchup for the quarter by nearly a point and a half.

Overall a strong showing by both brands. With the recent lineup shuffling at both stations, and football season approaching, the next two books should be an interesting follow.

DALLAS:

It was a strange quarter for both Sports Radio 1310/96.7 The Ticket and 105.3 The Fan. In weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) The Ticket was 1st and The Fan was tied for 10th. For the full week (M-SU 6a-Mid) The Ticket was 1st and The Fan 14th. That’s the good news if you’re at The Ticket. Not so much if you’re at The Fan.

However, what makes this strange is that the winter book had the two brands ranked 1st and 3rd in the market, and last year during this same time period The Fan was ranked 4th. Looking deeper into the numbers, June was especially tough year to year for all of the Dallas sports stations. Among Men 25-54, The Ticket’s share was 44% lower, The Fan was down by 38% and ESPN 103.3 down 37.5%. Considering that the lineups haven’t changed, and both stations remain strong relevant brands, it appears a meter or two has created market challenges.

Meter challenges aside, The Ticket had more reason to celebrate thanks to a 1st place finish in mornings from The Musers, a 2nd place finish between the hours of 10a-3p with Norm and Donovan and BaD Radio, and a 1st place performance in afternoons from The Hardline.

For The Fan, their best results came in middays courtesy of GBag Nation. The show was ranked 7th for the quarter. The station’s drive time programs with Shan and RJ and Ben and Skin finished in the teens which hasn’t happened since we started following the market a few years ago.

One positive for The Fan, they defeated The Ticket in weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) with Men 18-34. Those numbers though were also lower than usual.

A word of caution to industry folks looking at the market this quarter, tip your cap to Jeff Catlin and his team at The Ticket for their overall 1st and 2nd place finishes but don’t overreact to the results. Both of these stations have been rock solid brands consistently ranked in the Top 5 with much higher shares. With football season approaching, it’s just a matter of time til the meters return and we’ve got another strong battle between two great sports radio brands.

PHILADELPHIA:

Sports Radio WIP has been on a roll for quite some time, and the spring book was no exception. The station won the local competition against 97.5 The Fanatic, finishing a little more than 2 points ahead with Men 25-54 and just under 2 points in front with Persons 25-54.

Mornings remained the same with Angelo Cataldi continuing to own the daypart, registering a 2nd place finish with just under a 10 share. He was also 2nd with Adults with a high 6 share. The Fanatic though has been making strides with Marc Farzetta and turned in a very respectable high 6 share performance to finish 3rd.

In middays, Joe DeCamara and Jon Ritchie were 3rd for the quarter with just under an 8 share. The Fanatic’s Anthony Gargano and Jason Myrtetus continued to gain ground but were a little more than a point and a half behind en route to finishing 4th.

Turning to afternoons, WIP’s duo of Jon Marks and Ike Reese claimed another quarterly victory, finishing three tenths of a point in front of The Fanatic’s Mike Missanelli. The Fanatic points out that if streaming numbers are included in the mix, it’s a different story. Marks and Reese were ranked 1st overall with Men 25-54 with just above a 9 share. Missanelli was 2nd just under a 9.

Not to be forgotten, evenings on WIP featuring Philadelphia Phillies baseball and night time host Joe Giglio turned in a 1st place finish with Men 25-54 at just under a 10 share. The Fanatic was tied for 5th for the quarter.

HOUSTON:

ESPN 97.5 enjoyed another successful quarter, winning weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) against Sports Radio 610 and SportsTalk 790. 97.5 was three tenths of a point higher than 610 and a point and a half better than 790. One thing worth noting, the lineup schedules for 610, 790 and 97.5 are all different. This can create some confusion if you’re just looking at the traditional Nielsen dayparts.

Looking at the local weekday shows, 97.5 won the hours of 7a-9a thanks to The Bench with John Granato and Lance Zierlein. John and Lance have now won those hours every month since October 2018.

Another positive for 97.5 was the afternoon performance by The Blitz with AJ Hoffman and Fred Faour. The Houston duo won their timeslot of M-F 4p-7p for the quarter. They’ve now finished ahead during those three hours every month since January 2018.

Two positives for 610 saw the station finish one tenth of a point ahead of 97.5 between the hours of 2p-6p. 610 and 97.5 were also tied between the hours of 10a-3p.

610 recently made changes to their weekday lineup which they’re hoping will reverse the latest results. The summer book will offer the first look at how the market receives those changes. For now, 97.5 is in front.

BOSTON:

98.5 The Sports Hub cruised to a comfortable spring book victory generating a low 9 share to finish 1st with Men 25-54. WEEI was 4th with just under a mid 5 share. Both station’s numbers include their streaming performance.

In mornings, Toucher and Rich were 1st with a low 9 share. WEEI’s former morning show Mut and Callahan came in 5th with a mid 6 share. WEEI has since turned mornings over to The Greg Hill Show.

Middays saw The Sports Hub’s Zolak and Bertrand deliver a 3rd place finish with a mid 9 share. The team of Dale and Keefe on WEEI came in 4th with a low 6 share.

The Hub got their best performance in afternoons thanks to Felger and Massarotti. The market’s top rated program produced a low 12 share en route to a 1st place finish. WEEI’s OMF ranked fourth with just under a mid 5 share.

The evening slot also belonged to The Sports Hub. The Adam Jones Show and combination of Bruins and Celtics playoff games led 98.5 to a 1st place finish with a low 10 share. WEEI’s mixture of Boston Red Sox baseball and local programming came in 8th with a low 4 share.

WASHINGTON DC:

106.7 The Fan continued to excel taking 3rd place for the quarter in both weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) and full week (M-SU 6a-Mid). The Fan popped a mid 6 share for the full week and a low 7 share in weekday prime. The Team 980 was rated in the high teens in both categories.

The best performance on The Fan came from The Sports Junkies who delivered a 2nd place finish with just under a 10 share. Grant and Danny ranked 3rd in middays with a low 7 share. Chad Dukes finished up the weekday prime shows by securing a 6th place finish in afternoons with a mid 4 share. The Team 980’s weekday shows were all ranked in the upper teens.

With Cumulus introducing a new sports talker to the market in ESPN 630 The Sports Capitol, there will be more to keep an eye on going forward. Until proven otherwise though, The Fan is operating on a different level.

DETROIT:

97.1 The Ticket continues to operate on another level, delivering some of the best performances for the entire format. The spring book saw the Detroit sports station finish 1st in every daypart with Men 25-54 except mornings (2nd). Karsch and Anderson‘s midday show, Mike Valenti’s afternoon show and the station’s full week (M-SU 6a-Mid) all produced above a 12 share.

An even more impressive case for the brand is how they’ve continued to excel with Persons 25-54. The Ticket were 3rd in mornings with Adults with a mid 5 share, 1st in middays with a low 8 share, 1st in afternoons with a mid 7 share, 2nd in weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) with just under a 7 share, and 5th for the full week (M-SU 6a-Mid) with a solid 6 share showing.

The Ticket’s continued dominance is a great example of sports radio’s ability to compete and win against ALL formats in top markets. These type of numbers are a big reason why the station was recently nominated for the Marconi Award for Sports Station of the Year.

PHOENIX:

Congratulations is in order for the staff at Arizona Sports 98.7 FM who for the first time in station history entered the top 10 (8th overall) in the money demo of Persons 25-54 for weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p).

An even more impressive performance was found with Men 25-54 where 98.7’s morning team of Doug and Wolf finished 4th with just under a 6 share. The morning show was also 6th with Persons 25-54.

Afternoons saw Burns and Gambo turn in a top 3 performance with a low 6 share among Men 25-54. John and Dave produced the best share on the radio station for the quarter.

Rounding things out, the midday team of Bickley and Marotta came in 6th with a mid 4 share among Men 25-54, and the evening combination of live play by play and Luke Lapinski produced a 5th place finish with Men 25-54 with just under a 5 share.

SEATTLE:

710 ESPN led steady as the market’s top rated sports station due to a strong spring book performance. Among Men 25-54, the radio station ranked 4th in mornings (Brock and Salk), 5th in middays (Bob, Groz and Tom) and 3rd in afternoons (Danny, Dave and Moore). 710 finished 6th overall. KJR was in the upper teens.

Given the lack of excitement from the Mariners this baseball season, both local stations have to be clamoring for football season to hurry up and get here. 710 though made the most of a slower sports period.

MINNEAPOLIS:

KFAN continued to impress, turning in a strong spring book. The station finished 2nd in weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) with just under an 11 share and 2nd for the full week (M-SU 6a-Mid) with just under a mid 9 share.

Leading the way were The Power Trip who came in 2nd in morning drive with just under a 13 share. Paul Allen followed up by pulling in a low 10 share from 9a to 12p to generate a 3rd place finish.

Moving to the afternoon portion of the schedule, ‘The Common Man‘ also grabbed 3rd place with a low 9 share from Noon to 3p, and Dan Barreiro stayed strong in afternoons, locking up 1st place with a low 11 share.

SKOR North which launched in January and places less emphasis on traditional radio ratings did see some nice gains during the book too. The station grew by a half of a point book to book and year to year. They’ve also increased their cume with Men 25-54 from January to June by 60%.

Two particular stories worth highlighting, Golic and Wingo have tripled their share year over year with Men 25-54, and the afternoon show, Mackey and Judd with Ramie has increased the station’s share by nearly a full point year to year during the hours of 4p-6p. Even more impressive given the brand’s digital first focus, they’ve increased podcast downloads by 60% year to year.

DENVER:

The spring book found 104.3 The Fan in good shape, finishing 4th overall in weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) with a mid 6 share. The station was also 6th for the full week (M-SU 6a-Mid) with a low 5 share.

Leading the way for The Fan was the morning team of Schlereth and Evans who secured a 1st place ranking with a low 9 share. The combination of Cecil and Pritch and Nick Ferguson (Nick took over the midday slot in late April) delivered a low 5 share to place 7th from 9a to noon. Stokley and Zach came in 8th between noon and 3p with a low 5 share, and The Drive with Tom Nalen and DMac (Nalen joined the show in mid April) were tied for 1st in afternoons with a low 6 share.

Altitude Sports Radio 92.5 which moved to the FM dial in mid-September 2018 also saw some progress this quarter. The station picked up 4 tenths of a point for the full week (M-SU 6a-Mid) with Men 25-54 and 5 tenths of a point in weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p). The station’s weekday shows, Moser, Lombardi and Kane, Harris, Hastings and Dover, and Kreckman and Lindahl (Andy joined the show in early June) all gained five tenths of a point book to book.

TAMPA:

A few notes from Tampa where WDAE is still celebrating landing the rights to USF by blasting Creed tunes inside the program director’s office. The reunited tandem of Ron and Ian continued making progress finishing the quarter up a full share to secure a top 10 finish. Afternoon drive has improved by 35% year to year.

Another positive worth sharing were the gains among Men 35-64 (Tampa tends to skew older for sports radio listening). Ronnie and TKras were 9th in the demo in mornings up a full share year to year. The station’s weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) performance with Men 35-64 was also in the top 10.

Last but not least, a good start from the Tampa Bay Rays helped the station grow more than 20% year over year at night with Men 25-54.

PORTLAND:

102.9/750 The Game has been on quite a roll in 2019. The Portland sports station won the full week (M-SU 6a-Mid) for the quarter, besting former market leader 1080 The Fan, and the Trail Blazers’ radio home NBC Sports Northwest Rip City Radio 620. The Game produced a low 3 share, nine tenths of a point higher than The Fan and nearly triple the performance of Rip City’s.

The best market performance was turned in by The Dan Patrick Show which delivered just under a 9 share for The Game, earning 2nd place with Men 25-54. The show was also 6th with Adults 25-54. The Fan’s morning team of Dusty and Cam finished 13th. Rip City’s morning show was in the mid 20’s.

From 9a-12p The Jim Rome Show won his matchup with just under a 4 share. Rome finished 10th overall. The Fan and Rip City were in the 20’s.

Between the hours of Noon and 3pm, The Bald Faced Truth with John Canzano led The Game to victory over The Fan and Rip City. Canzano was 10th at just under a 4 share. The Fan was ranked 19th. Rip City finished in the mid 20’s.

Closing up in afternoons, The Fan picked up a win thanks to the team of Isaac and Suke. The familiar drive time duo generated a mid 3 share to rank 16th. The Game’s airing of Bill Reiter’s show ranked 21st. Rip City’s Chad Doing and Travis Demers were slightly behind in 22nd.

ST. LOUIS:

101 ESPN remained consistent across all four local dayparts in the spring book. The St. Louis sports station produced a low 7 share to lock up the 3rd position in weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) among Men 25-54.

Turning to the weekday programs, The Bernie Miklasz Show‘s mid 7 share performance was enough to lock up 3rd place in morning drive. The Kevin Wheeler also secured a 3rd place finish between 10a-1p with a high 6 share.

The Turn with Anthony Stalter delivered the station’s best share for the quarter, popping a high 8 share to finish 3rd between 1p-3p. And the always strong afternoon show, The Fast Lane, held down the 3rd spot in their daypart with a high 7 share.

CHARLOTTE:

No Hornets. No Panthers. No local MLB. No problem.

WFNZ turned in a top 10 performance with Men 25-54 for the quarter, driven by an impressive 1st place ranking for the book with TSL. Those who listen to the station are spending a lot of time with it, a sign that the station’s content and talent are a destination. WFNZ has now finished in the top 3 for TSL for 11 straight months, dating back to September 2018.

The station’s weekday programming saw Mac and TBone produce a top 10 finish in mornings with a little above a mid 3 share. Wilson and Parcell produced an 8th place finish with just under a mid 4 share, and The Clubhouse with Kyle Bailey reeled in a 7th place finish with a mid 4 share performance.

BALTIMORE:

The spring book saw 105.7 The Fan deliver big, placing 3rd overall with a high 8 share among Men 25-54. Leading the way for the station was the Big Bad Morning Show with Ed Norris, Rob Long and Jerry Coleman. The BBMS finished 3rd in Persons 25-54 and 2nd with Men 25-54 with a low 10 share.

Moving to middays, Vinny and Haynie came in 4th with Persons 25-54 and 2nd with Men 25-54 with just under a mid 9 share. Finishing up in PM drive, Scott Garceau and Jeremy Conn finished 3rd in their daypart with Men 25-54.

INDIANAPOLIS:

For the first time in a while, 107.5/1070 The Fan saw all of their daily local shows deliver Top 10 performances. Leading the way was The Dan Dakich Show which finished 4th overall with a mid 6 share among Men 25-54 during the hours of Noon to 3pm.

In afternoons, The Ride with JMV cracked the top 10 with a high 4 share. The brand new Fan Morning Show featuring Jeff Rickard and Big Joe Staysniak shifted timeslots midway thru the book and helped lift the station to a Top 10 finish with just under a 4 share.

MEMPHIS:

The spring book saw another impressive performance turned in by market leader 92.9 ESPN. The Memphis sports station finished 2nd overall with a low 8 share with Men 25-54 in weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p). Year to year they’re up over 2 points and if you look at a 2 year period it’s even better at 3.5 points.

Looking at the station’s local shows, the best rated performance was turned in by the midday show Jason and John. The popular program hosted by Jason Smith and John Martin produced a mid 9 share to finish 2nd in their time slot.

Next up was The Gary Parrish Show which ranked 2nd in afternoons with just under a mid 8 share. Geoff Calkins maintained his consistent success by finishing 2nd with just under an 8 share. Wrapping things up, the brand new Giannotto and Jeffrey Show popped a low 8 share en route to finishing 3rd in their timeslot. The duo were on the air for half of the spring book and contributed to the station’s best performance from 2p-4p in 4 years.

MILWAUKEE:

The three station race between Entercom, iHeart and Good Karma Brands heated up during the spring book. This quarter the top spot was held by GKB’s ESPN 94.5 which narrowly edged 105.7 The Fan and 97.3 The Game. A half of a point was all that separated the three sports talkers.

In weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) with Men 25-54, ESPN 94.5 finished two tenths ahead of The Fan and five tenths ahead of The Game. For the full week (M-SU 6a-Mid) 94.5 bested both The Fan and The Game by three tenths of a point.

Going forward this is going to be a market to keep your eye on. All three brands feature good talent, the local sports scene is on fire with the Bucks, Brewers and Packers providing a lot of optimism for local fans, and all three brands continue making tweaks to stay ahead of the competition.

What Is The Balance That Makes A Perfect Postgame?

Andy Masur
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What Is The Balance That Makes A Perfect Postgame?

“Hey why don’t they just cut that guy, he’s a bum and can’t get anyone out…”. How many of us have heard that call on a postgame show before? How many of us have had to answer that question on the air?

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I see your hands raised out there and its more of a common thing than you may think. How do you handle it, considering your radio station is partners with that player’s team and you’d like it to stay that way? 

The average postgame caller is part of your “P1” or active listening audience. He or she is a hard-core fan. Fully invested in the team and passionate, sometimes to a fault about the success and failure of that ballclub. They are looking to vent. They are emotional. They are sometimes irrational. You have to be more of a psychologist in this respect. Let them get it off their mind, you don’t necessarily have to agree or disagree, just by saying “I hear you; I get what you’re saying” this may appease them.

You can cut the call loose and follow it up with the numbers, if they support the caller’s argument so be it, if they don’t, so be it as well. You can really diffuse the situation by saying “do you think he’s trying to give up runs?”, or if you have knowledge of the player working on something with the pitching coach, this would be a good time to mention it.

Listen you aren’t supposed to lie, listeners are too smart, this is a better way of being diplomatic to a guy that is scuffling. You are also educating the audience that doesn’t realize what’s going on behind the scenes. In this case you’re protecting yourself while not completely protecting the player, but doing it in a manner that diffuses the situation. 

As host of the postgame show, you have to hope you have a producer that is an excellent call screener. He or she can save you from being put into a situation that can be detrimental to the relationship. It’s an art form to be able to weed out the good calls from the bad calls. In this scenario the producer becomes the psychologist and you are none the wiser. Sometimes a loose cannon will sneak through but with an experienced producer those situations will be few and far between. It’s a good idea to establish what topics you are going to take calls on and which you aren’t for that particular show. 

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There are going to be times where a manager’s choice in lineup, or decision about bringing a certain pitcher in over another, or something to that effect. The first temptation is to rip and openly question. I get that. It happened to me early in my career, where I questioned a choice that the manager made on the postgame show. I knew the manager well and he knew me, but still I made the unconscious choice to make the statement.

The next day, he summoned me to his office. I knew what was coming but took it anyway. He said, “I heard you on my way home, I was a little surprised”. His tone changed a bit when he said, “do you think that I got dumb overnight? Don’t you think I know my team better than anyone? Don’t I deserve that break?”.

 In thinking about it, I felt he was right. I had no idea that the pitcher who normally would work that inning was unavailable that day. The manager didn’t make it known as to not alert the other team. From that moment on, I would give the manager the benefit of the doubt, until he spoke to the media after the game, or until I talked to him the next day. 

Remember you don’t have to be a ‘shill’ for the team your station is partner’s with, you just have to be fair and professional. A 10-2 loss is what it is, a bad loss, you can say it without calling people out. Being true to the fans and the team is not as hard as it sounds. What took place on the field was seen and heard by too many people to try and revise history.

Image result for baseball error

Point out the facts, usually they are indisputable. Don’t take cheap shots, more than likely you’ll have to face the people you called out at some point or another. Unless you are intentionally trying to rile up a fan base, there are ways to talk about delicate things without being over the top. 

WDAE Announces Partnership with USF

Jason Barrett
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WDAE Announces Partnership with USF

WDAE (95.3 & 96.7 FM/620 AM) and the University of South Florida have announced a new partnership which will bring USF football radio broadcasts to the Tampa sports station starting this fall. The agreement also includes the station expanding USF’s popular “Bulls Unlimited” digital radio programming by offering to two channels on iHeart Radio.

“We are very excited to be partnering with one of the most widely listened to sports stations in the state to bring USF football games to our fans and expand our groundbreaking digital platform,” Vice President of Athletics Michael Kelly said. “WDAE is synonymous with sports in the Bay area and we look forward to a tremendous partnership that will continue to expand the USF brand and help connect more fans with the excitement of our Bulls sports teams.”

The three-year deal will kickoff this fall with USF football games airing live on three stations that simulcast the WDAE signal – 95.3 FM, 96.7 FM and 620 AM. All Bulls football games will be heard on WDAE’s stations except when conflicts arise with Tampa Bay Rays baseball games. When Rays conflicts arise, USF football will shift to WHNZ 1250 AM and the “Bulls Unlimited” iHeart Radio channel.

“We are thrilled to welcome USF to the iHeartMedia family,” Market President Chris Soechtig said. “Having a partnership with Tampa Bay’s home team on 95.3 WDAE further solidifies our commitment to deliver exceptional local sports coverage to our listeners. We are counting down the days to kick off!”    

USF’s expanded digital radio presence is expected to provide greater flexibility for airing game broadcasts and other content surrounding the school’s 19 sports teams. The “Bulls Unlimited” digital channel on iHeart Radio, will continue airing all football games and become the primary home for USF men’s and women’s basketball and baseball broadcasts.

Additionally, WDAE will carry some postseason contests involving USF basketball and baseball. The station will also air the USF Football Radio Show on a weekly basis throughout the season as well as the last hour of the pregame show and a 30-minute postgame show during football game broadcasts. The first hour of the Bulls’ traditional two-hour football pregame show will air exclusively on “Bulls Unlimited.”

Mitch Rosen Named PD of 105.7 The Fan in Milwaukee

Jason Barrett
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Mitch Rosen’s car is about to increase its mileage, and his attention span is about to be expanded. The successful programmer of 670 The Score in Chicago is taking on additional responsibilities, being named the new Program Director of 105.7 FM The Fan in Milwaukee.

Rosen will begin the new assignment immediately. He takes over for longtime program director Tom Parker who informed his staff earlier this year that he planned to retire. Parker will serve as a programming consultant at Entercom Milwaukee going forward.

“Having worked closely with Jimmy de Castro and the Entercom Chicago team over the last year and a half, it was the logical next step in the partnership,” said Chuck Sullivan, Senior Vice President and Market Manager, Entercom Milwaukee. “Mitch has become quite familiar with the market and the WSSP staff over that time and we are very fortunate to now have him calling the plays in Milwaukee as well.”

“It’s an honor to be part of this great Milwaukee sports brand,” said Rosen. “The Fan team has great personalities who identify with the sports fans who live and breathe Milwaukee and Wisconsin sports. I plan to be here to help in any way I can to expand the brand both on the air and through all the digital platforms, including RADIO.COM Sports.”

The addition of the PD role in Milwaukee doesn’t change anything with Rosen’s current position in Chicago. He’s led The Score for nearly 15 years and will continue to do so.

One Last Thing Before I Go

Dave Greene
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One Last Thing Before I Go

They say all good things must come to an end.  Well, for me, this is the end in this particular space.  My swan song if you will.  I am moving next month and will be working for Entercom in my home market of St. Louis.  

It’s been a great two plus years in Kansas City and I’ll miss the great crew there.  I even learned quite a bit from a few of them! So, with that change I’m going to step back from some other commitments to focus even more on the new challenges.  

By my count this is my 89th column and I hope those that took the time to read any of them, learned a thing or two.  If nothing else, I hope you’ve enjoyed some of the stories that I’ve shared from my twenty-five years (and counting) in the business.

I went back and read my first column this morning, which was mostly about my passion for what we do and how much I love the creative freedom the sports format allows us.  And now, with digital, there’s even more ways to share that creativity and get that content to your listeners.

Our jobs are very challenging and there’s no shortage of disruptions aimed at radio.  However, in most cities there are only one or two places where you can count on hearing consistent sports talk about your local teams, and for our customers, where you can target the engaged sports fan.

We have a huge advantage and have to continue taking advantage of.  I pointed this out in another column, that sports radio was the original target marketing that everyone is high on today because of digital.  It’s just now come full circle that it’s about finding a niche or target market and find a way to own them and beat them over the head with your message and the value to them.

When it comes to managing and my philosophy on selling sports radio, I’m fairly simple.  When it all boils down, there’s six main responsibilities as I’ve talked about several times:  Prospecting, Setting an Appointment with the Decision Maker, doing a Client Needs Analysis, Presenting solutions to their key marketing challenges, Closing the sale and Servicing the sale.  So, my expectation is that you’ll do the job.  You can’t work at McDonald’s as a cook and say you’ll cook everything but the fries.  It doesn’t work that way.  You do the whole job, or someone else does.

If you’re actively doing all six responsibilities, it’s really hard to fail in our business.  Do them all well and you’ll be making a lot of money. But, as we all know, lots of people get into our business because they think it’ll be fun, and it is, but it’s also hard. If anyone isn’t willing to do all six steps with passion and strong knowledge, they’re dead before they start.

I’ve also often referred to the sign that hangs in my office.  Quotes I’ve adopted as my own, taken from training sessions with Dave Gifford back in the day:

  • There’s not a sales problem that cannot be fixed by making more presentations to decision makers
  • Business goes where it’s invited (works for both us and our clients)
  • You are not in sales, you are a marketing consultant who sells ideas and solutions

I hang this in my office so sellers see it each time they walk out of the office.  The key one, of course, being that if they’re in a slump, or sad, or mad, or having personal issues, or had a big cancellation, or something didn’t come through they were counting on, whatever the problem may be – the only answer is to go pitch more business to a decision maker. The more you do, the more you’ll sell. Period.

Thank you again to anyone who is reading this or has read any of the things I’ve written.  Thank you to Jason Barrett and Demetri Ravanos who are not only great to work with, but also great advocates for sports radio.  

Hope all your future days are profitable ones!  

5 Podcasts in 5 Days: Real_Sports with Jack and Abe

Jason Barrett
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5 Podcasts in 5 Days: Real_Sports with Jack and Abe

Editor’s note from Jason Barrett:

We’ve reached the final day of our ‘5 Podcasts in 5 Days‘ series. A big thank you to our special guest reviewer Jay Soderberg who took the time to listen to five different shows and offer his candid, direct, and unapologetic thoughts on each program. Though some of the input can sting those hosting the shows, Jay’s focus throughout this project has been to lend a few thoughts to help those creating the content improve their presentation.

As podcasting continues to grow due to its limitless offerings of unique, creative, and original content, it still remains a space without structure and a clear understanding of what does and doesn’t work. Unlike radio which uses ratings measurement to justify the effectiveness of a particular show or host, the success or ineffectiveness of a podcast can often be disguised by how a program is ranked on the Apple podcasting charts.

To help make some sense of it all, we reached out to Jay, who’s served as the Head of Content for BlogTalk Radio, and a digital audio producer, imaging director, and podcast creator for the ESPN Radio network, to put his ear on five shows and let folks know what’s working and what needs some fine tuning. The five programs we chose were Mystery Crate by Dan Le Batard and Friends, The GM Shuffle with Adnan Virk and Michael Lombardi, The Most Valuable Podcast with Charlotte Wilder and Jess Smetana, Locked on Jazz with David Locke, and Real Sports from BlueWire’s Jack Settleman and Abe Granoff.

We hope you’ll find Jay’s reviews of these 5 programs to be informative, honest, and well explained. If you have further feedback you can find him on Twitter @TheRealPodVader or you can email by clicking here. Enjoy!

REAL_SPORTS WITH JACK AND ABE:

Title: NBA Draft Preview, Kyrie Irving Breaking News and the Mike Conley Trade

Date: June 20, 2019

Length: 46 minutes

Cast: Jack Settleman and Abe Granoff

Sponsors: none

Production: Produced Open, music bed at the end

Show Breakdown:

0:00 – Tease on what’s up

:21 – Open featuring a montage of sports highlights

:41 – Introducing your hosts

1:19 – Abe’s NBA draft profile from Jack (he was robbed of living the dream as a child) but Jack mentions he was as a slow 6 footer…player comp: Draymond Green or RJ Barrett…Time for Jack’s draft profile from Abe…player comp: Lonzo Ball or Jalen Brunson…

4:15 – Time to move on to thoughts on the NBA Draft…what hasn’t been said about Zion Williamson already?…Jack believe RJ Barrett is the best player in the draft…Ja Morant break down…

11:50 – Picking apart some other NBA Draft prospects: Cam Reddish (got a pick with him earlier in the day…Abe isn’t a numbers guy, he likes to make decisions on players from what he sees on the court); Brandon Clark (Jack’s favorite player, not the best, in this draft);

20:56 – Busts: Nassir Little (shot up the boards because of hype and his length but doesn’t have a college background); Jared Culver (his size and strength won’t help him in the NBA)

24:20 – Breaking down the point guards – there are other names besides Morant and Garland

28:30 – What will Boston do with their picks? They’re in the limbo area of knowing their true identity – push forward to win with their young core or tank for more young talent?…The East is going to get weaker and the Celtics need to get an established player…the guys are split on Danny Ainge…

31:57 – What they’re most excited about for the NBA Draft…wouldn’t it be fun if the Lakers/Pelicans trade didn’t go through?

34:50 – Brief bit of feedback

35:28 – Breaking news after the pod was recorded and this is being put in afterwards…The Nets are concerned with bringing in Kyrie Irving unless he can bring Durant with him…laughing at the “trolls” who sent Jack photoshopped Kyrie pics in a Nets uniform and Irving is heading to the Knicks…Abe tells him to stop…this lends more to Kyrie going back to the Celtics or back to LeBron…

38:23 – A little more feedback

38:40 – Breaking down the Mike Conley trade…the Jazz could make some noise in a down year in the West…Derrick Favors being swapped out for a superstar before the deadline???…

45:00 – hope you liked it…give us 5 stars…thanks for the listens…want to hear from you…RSPod on Instagram… this has been Real Underscore Sports

Show Analysis:

Before we start analyzing the show, a quick lesson on the Apple Podcast charts. First, they only measure activity on Apple Podcast products (iTunes, iPods, iPads, iPhones, etc). Second, the charts are some sort of algorithm measuring new subscription activity – not a real measurement of audience size. That’s why a show like Real Sports is in the top 20 shows, but doesn’t have an episode in the top 200 episodes.

The team at BlueWire has done something smart to drive engagement on Snapchat and Instagram, running a raffle contest to get people to write reviews and ratings for the podcast on Apple Podcasts. Rob Walch on Libsyn will tell you ratings do not matter when it comes to positioning on the Apple Podcasts charts, but it definitely looks good to see a podcast with 7 episodes and 4211 reviews (as of this writing). Most of those reviews are 5 star because as one of the 1 star ratings put it “He bribes people with giveaways on social media and makes them give 5 stars to be eligible.” 

So who is Jack Settleman? According to his LinkedIn profile, he’s a recent graduate of the University of Texas at Austin in 2018. He’s focused on social media marketing while at the school and is currently the Social Media Community Manager at The Action Network. He clearly knows how to work the social media marketing angle, but understanding how that game works is important to understanding the real chart position of this podcast. I couldn’t find much on Abe Granoff, but it’s clear from listening to the show, they are big fans of the NBA and college basketball.

Closing Comments:

A critical review of the show stated “These guys just basically read off scoresheets” and I’m inclined to agree. The scary secret to that comment though, is that’s exactly what most radio hosts are doing. The difference is, experienced radio hosts sound less stiff and more genuine with their takes. Jack and Abe can at times sound robotic in their delivery. The key to improving that will come from gaining more reps.

I thought this podcast was just like most other ones, lacking innovation. It was just two guys providing their takes on the news of the day. The next generation of sports talk hosts are going to come from podcasts, so I’m hopeful the younger generation of broadcasters will introduce new original ideas instead of following the pattern of what everyone else has been doing.

The disappointing part of the story is that these guys really know how to get their message out to the younger masses – as shown in their ability to generate 1 million followers on Snapchat. But if the younger generation thinks this is what great sounding podcasts should sound like though, I tremble for our future.

5 Podcasts in 5 Days: Locked on Jazz

Jason Barrett
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5 Podcasts in 5 Days: Locked on Jazz

Editor’s note from Jason Barrett:

‘5 Podcasts in 5 Days‘ continues with special guest reviewer Jay Soderberg spending day four to analyze the Locked on Jazz podcast by Utah Jazz voice David Locke. For those unfamiliar with Jay, he is the former the Head of Content for BlogTalk Radio, and a digital audio producer, imaging director, and podcast creator for the ESPN Radio network. He’s candid, direct, and unapologetic with his feedback, and focused on trying to help content creators produce exceptional material, even if it means having to get under their skin in the process.

As podcasting continues to grow due to its limitless offerings of unique, creative, and original content, it still remains a space without structure and a clear understanding of what does and doesn’t work. Unlike radio which uses ratings measurement to justify the effectiveness of a particular show or host, the success or ineffectiveness of a podcast can often be disguised by how a program is ranked on the Apple podcasting charts.

Since this space has turned into the audio version of the wild west, we thought it’d be beneficial to bring back 5 Podcasts in 5 Days and find out which audio shows are checking the right boxes, and which ones could use some fine tuning. The five podcasts we charged Jay with listening to and critiquing were Mystery Crate by Dan Le Batard and Friends, The GM Shuffle with Adnan Virk and Michael Lombardi, The Most Valuable Podcast with Charlotte Wilder and Jess Smetana, Locked on Jazz with David Locke, and Real Sports from BluWire’s Jack Settleman and Abe Granoff.

We hope you’ll find Jay’s reviews of these 5 programs to be informative, honest, and well explained. If you have further feedback you can find him on Twitter @TheRealPodVader or you can email by clicking here. Enjoy!

LOCKED ON JAZZ

Title: Kevin Pelton stops by to discuss the Lakers and the NBA Draft by the Numbers

Date: June 19, 2019

Length: 38 minutes

Cast: David Locke, guest: Kevin Pelton

Sponsors: Lenovo, Homie (local? BYU creators), The Store (local), Hotels.com, Shamrock Auto Group (local)

Production: minimal

Show Breakdown:

0:00 – Produced open for 10secs, 30sec pre-produced ad for Lenovo, David Locke teases what’s up on the show and then says he’s going on vacation for a bit

2:17 – Kevin Pelton interview begins…starting with 2 questions about the Anthony Davis trade…the two local Locked On hosts loved the deal but the national guys have been slamming it

8:55 – Reset – that was Kevin Pelton’s trade analysis, now getting into his Draft projections…he’s been really good at finding the 25-35 range, that’s the strength of his scenarios…highlighting some examples of guys that Pelton has projected guys in that range…how good has he been at projecting busts?

13:43 – Reset, again with a tease of what’s coming up…but today’s show is brought to you by Homie (host read ad) also brought to you by The Store at 60 and 200 South and 20th East

16:43 – Kevin, who’s top 10 in his numbers and who’s top 10 generally accepted?

23:47 – Distracted by computer noises…teasing what’s coming up but I can’t stand this throw to commercial “…that and more when we’re back on the Locked On Podcast Network.”

24:15 – Hotels.com (pre-produced), Shamrock Auto Group (host read), Locked On NBA Net on Draft night

26:50 – Why is there not a big difference between 19 and 22 year olds?

29:29 – Who’s Fred Van Fleet or Monte Morris this year? Not sure there’s anyone Kevin feels that strongly about this year but here are some guys Kevin likes more than others.

34:54 – Guys who will go in top 20 that Kevin’s numbers just don’t see it.

36:31 – Go follow Kevin @kpelton…going on vacation

37:00 – Promo for Locked on Cougars, reminder that your smart speaker can play your podcasts (but it’s cut off before Dave finishes the explanation)

Show Analysis:

When I was first introduced to podcasting at ESPN 15 years ago, I remember thinking the brilliance of it was that you no longer needed to have your peanut butter mixed with your chocolate. Meaning – I can have my football without having to listen to the baseball or the basketball or the hockey. David Locke has taken that one step further with his Locked On network, making podcasts for individual teams, mainly in the NBA and NFL. David is the voice of the Utah Jazz and has a professional radio background and it’s apparent listening to his show.

David has multiple resets with his guest (which for a podcast listener can become a little annoying), teasing upcoming content before commercial breaks and then extremely professional reads on those ad deliveries. David has worked on this network for quite some time and the mix between the pre-produced ads from Megaphone and the local ads (which I’m assuming David has acquired on his own) gives the podcast a strong local feel (literally naming the streets to find The Store).

While this does sound like a re-purposed local radio show, it’s hard to complain about that lack of innovation because the focus is on one local team. That said, David did have a national guest on to talk about the NBA Draft and never asked a specific question regarding the Utah Jazz. To be fair, David’s interview did center mostly on later round options in the draft (the Jazz had the 23rd pick and a couple of second round choices). And to really hit the minutiae, he never tells us Kevin Pelton is from ESPN.

There are a lot of assumptions being made and for a regular listener, that’s probably great. For a brand new listener though, they might feel lost. Every new piece of content is an opportunity for a new listener.

Speaking of formatics, I HATE hearing these phrases around commercial breaks on the radio and especially on a podcast – “we’ll be right back” “and we’re back” “we’re going to take a break” “the break is all done”. You and especially the podcast listener never left! A majority of podcast listeners don’t even hit the fast forward button available to them to skip the ads so why give them a warning flag that a commercial is coming up?

I’m a big proponent of the tease before a commercial break. Give the audience that cliff hanger. They can’t wait to hear Kevin’s deep draft gems. Just leave it at that. “In a moment, Kevin’s going to tell us his deep draft gems” – lay out. Commercials. “Kevin, what do your numbers say about the potential Superstars around pick number 23?”

Closing Comments:

As a frequent podcast listener, the difficulties David faces with a network like this is finding clones of himself. While David is a professional broadcaster, there are others in his network that could use some polishing. Having worked on the business side of the podcast industry, I know how difficult it can be to find a sales team that will focus on local businesses to feature in a local podcast. Many podcasters carry that load upon themselves while most podcast sales agents (like Megaphone or Midroll) will focus on a national type sponsor. For a podcaster with no previous media experience, you can see how difficult a task that would be to undertake.

That’s an advantage the Locked On Network has with David at the helm. He’s on to something good, delivering the type of niche content sports fans are looking for. The podcast is also offered daily during the NBA season, giving fans the chance to enjoy the content they want on their own schedule. If local stations aren’t careful, he’ll steal their audience and then their sponsors.

A Twitter Strategy From The Play-By-Play Booth

Andy Masur
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A Twitter Strategy From The Play-By-Play Booth

In this day and age, social media can be a useful tool, but if not used correctly it can end up being your worst nightmare. All of the popular sites are great resources to self-promote, give out valuable information or gather the same. Don’t approach social media, well don’t approach social media without an approach. I use most of the platforms, but the one I use most is Twitter, so I’ll gear this column towards that. 

My basic need while the game is going on is information sharing. Now, I don’t just repeat or retweet things I may see on Twitter unless I know the source. I make sure I follow credible sources for each Major League Baseball team: beat writers, beat reporters, radio announcers, television announcers and the teams’ various PR Twitter handles. 

For example, on the night of July 12th, I was doing a game in Oakland with the White Sox, there was something special going on a few hundred miles down the coast. The Angels were combining to throw a no-hitter in their first game at home since the tragic death of pitcher Tyler Skaggs. I was following along through the Angels account and several of their beat writers. It was an easy way for my listeners to know what was going on in Anaheim without me being distracted and looking all over the place for information. It was a special thing that I wanted my audience to be aware of. I use Twitter for just this reason, to provide up to date information on things of note that are going on around the league. 

Image result for angels no hitter

I make sure to return the favor when it applies. During a day game in Chicago on April 17th, the White Sox and Royals had the benches clear after Tim Anderson was hit by a pitch following a home run in which he ‘flipped’ his bat. A large gathering of players and coaches milled around the field while the umpiring crew tried to figure out who stayed in the game and who was to be ejected.

I tweeted the information so my fellow broadcasters and my audience that couldn’t be listening to the game would know what had happened. I also tweeted out a picture of the aftermath of the incident to supplement our coverage.  I did offer a few opinions about the decisions on ejections as well, because we were talking about it on the air after order had been restored. That’s just an example of the information during a game that I will tweet out. 

Before a game, I get to play reporter. Providing news from the pregame manager scrum, things I learned in the clubhouse that day and giving out information on official team releases as well. Plus, I get to tie in a promotion for my pregame show and guests and the game broadcast time and radio station. Free advertising for yourself and the flagship station is never frowned upon. I will from time to time use a photo of the field or something else going on at the park before the game to enhance the tweet. I especially include a picture when the weather is either beautiful or awful!  I think fans really appreciate those times you take them behind the curtain, showing them the inner workings of the broadcast and of the field before a game. 

Another thing to get in the habit of doing is ‘retweeting’ others. A lot of the time there is a guy in Chicago that is a master of the “nugget” during games. He’ll Tweet out excellent information that can’t easily be gathered. I admire his effort and will retweet him often with a comment. I feel like his information is accurate and credible, so give him credit. It also shows that you are willing to share someone else’s information for benefit of your audience. Promote others and they are likely to promote you when you have information that they don’t have. 

That’s the good of social media, but believe me there is a not so good side too. You will be told sometimes how bad you are, how many mistakes you’ve made and try to bate you into a retort. Best bet is to ignore it and move on. I’m sure your first thought is to fire back, but what good will it do you to engage a fan online? Live by this motto: THINK BEFORE YOU TWEET. If you remember nothing else, remember those 4 words, they could save you a lot of unnecessary headaches. 

Think about who is going to see the response, your friends, colleagues and more than likely your bosses. Is it worth it? Probably not. Is your job worth it? Again, likely the answer is no. A good portion of these active tweeters just do it to get a rise out of you. Don’t engage. Sometimes to get my anger out, I’ll open up a word document and type out a response just to get it off my chest and then delete. There are other occasions where it’s necessary to respond. Every once in a while, I’ll respond with a “thanks for listening, we appreciate it.”. More often than not, the listener will respond by ‘back peddling’ because they never thought you’d either see it or for sure respond. 

I’ll wrap this up by giving you a list of things that you should be thinking about doing and not doing on your social media posts. 

DO:

  1. Update your profile on the platforms regularly to make sure they’re current.
  2. Be consistent, during the baseball season, I’m all about baseball, people expect it.
  3. Interact with your audience, but again don’t respond to all the negativity. If you are asked a question, try to answer it to the best of your ability. 
  4. Just like during a broadcast, inform and entertain the audience. 
  5. Try new things, like polls, photos and GIFS.
  6. Be on your best behavior, be couteous on Social Media. Be conscience of who you are tagging in posts.
  7. Be careful on posting political opinions, you will likely alienate half your audience. Not saying you can’t, but be ready for the backlash.  
  8. Use your account for good

DON’T:

  1. Use improper grammar or spelling, makes you a less credible follow. Typos happen, so proof before tweeting. 
  2. Overshare things. If you have a podcast, or a blog post, don’t share it 25 times during the day. Maybe once in the morning, once in the afternoon and once at night. 
  3. Along those lines, don’t be a needy Tweeter. Oversharing, begging for followers or retweets is not a good habit to get into. 
  4. Retweet “fake accounts”. I’ve been burned a few times especially during baseball trade season with the copycat Ken Rosenthal account. Block them. 
  5. Provide fake information yourself either
  6. Come across as someone that knows everything and can’t be challenged on things
  7. Spend all your time on social media platforms, there’s a great big world out there
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