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You Have To Be A Thief In This Business

Dave Greene
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You Have To Be A Thief In This Business

I’m a thief.  And if you’re any kind of salesperson, you probably are, too.  I say this because all of us should have, at least one time or another, stolen a good idea from another station, another market, another industry or somewhere.  

It happens every day in our business and most every other business out there.  Someone comes up with a new way of doing something, the proof of concept shows the idea is a good one (in our case, it makes lots of money!) and slowly but surely everybody else steals the idea.

One way I do this I’ve talked about several times in this space, as I often train new sellers using Dave Gifford’s system combined other bits of wisdom I’ve taken/stolen/borrowed/adopted from others in media, sales, events and just business in general.  I’m a sucker for a good quote or a one-liner that puts things into its simplest form, such as Giff’s line: “What you say, times how many times you say it, is the only thing that works in advertising.”

Any good manager, trainer, co-worker or industry expert I’ve come in contact with over the last twenty-five years, I’ve generally taken something from.  Some of it has changed over the years, but not as much as you might think.  My first piece of advice after becoming a manager in 2002 (“Don’t let the minutiae of this job bog you down or you’ll never get to the important stuff”) is something I’ve said to every manager I’ve hired and every first-time manager I’ve come across since.

Copy ideas are another area I tend to take/steal/borrow/adopt, and why wouldn’t we?  A good idea for a piece of copy in Oshkosh, Wisconsin is usually a good idea for a piece of copy in Ding Dong, Texas.  You may change the dialect or a line, but if the overall concept was good and it makes sense for your client’s product or service, use it.  I’m on RAB.com all the time looking at different pieces of copy, which are sorted by industry, and trying to find ideas to use for current clients.

Promotions and events are the same way.  When an event is done that is successful, there will most likely be some hype on social media showing the happy consumers.  If it went well for a sports station somewhere, then there’s a good chance it might be good for you or your client.  You don’t always have to reinvent the wheel, sometimes the best idea for your client is something someone else is doing.

On the client side, I always tell them they should be stealing, too.  They should be looking at what big, national companies do in advertising.  These companies spend millions with the top ad agencies in the world and some of the recommendations they make are quite clear.  

They obviously suggest that companies advertise with frequency and consistency.  Almost all of them have some sort of jingle or catchphrase they use that is memorable.  And, many of them are using a mix of media to get their message across to their target audience.  

So should local businesses.  Obviously, many won’t be able to do it at an extreme level, but with the budget they have, they can at least follow the same formula the larger companies pay all that money to learn about.

Normally, you’d never want to be known as a thief.  In our business, however, sometimes the person who is looking in other markets, on other websites, on social media or anywhere else you can find what is being done well outside of your area, is the one who is getting ahead.  So, get out there and steal away!

5 Podcasts in 5 Days: Most Valuable Podcast

Jason Barrett
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Editor’s note from Jason Barrett:

The third day of ‘5 Podcasts in 5 Days‘ with special guest reviewer Jay Soderberg has arrived. Jay 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 has continued 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!

Title: It’s the perfect time for Anthony Davis to shave his unibrow and rebrand

Date: June 20, 2019

Length: 1 hour, 6 minutes

Cast: Christine Wilder and Jess Smetana, Brandon (the Producer)

Sponsors: none

Production: a music bed to start and end the show

Show Breakdown:

0:00 – Revisiting a trip to Boston for the NHL Finals…more in a bit, but first, the NBA Finals which feel like they finished a long time ago and now free agency is top in the news cycle…Woj Bomb in the middle of Finals that Kawhi won’t resign with the Raptors and he hasn’t even accepted the trophy yet…torn ACL’s are the worst…Did you understand what was happening at the end of that Game with the technical foul?…revisiting last week’s conversation on all sports fans are a**holes, according to tweet, Canadians find Toronto is the a**hole of Canada…

8:25 – Don’t like the uniforms that say “North” – not even the most northern NBA city…Taking pride in local teams like the Portland (Maine) Red Claws…

12:27 – Should we do more NBA free agency stuff since we just talked about the NBA??? Anthony Davis got traded…Jess wouldn’t be a great GM because she likes to be frugal…Would you want to play with LeBron? No, because he’ll make you play in Space Jam 2 and it won’t be as great as the first one…Davis now has the perfect opportunity to look the best he’s ever looked and shave the unibrow…

17:34 – An idea for an app – Kyrie Irving and James Harden ghosting their teams…ghosting is so easy in any relationship, but you really should just say something so that the other person doesn’t hang on…the app will get all the relevant info on the relationship and send the let down information for you…Kyrie could use this with Danny Ainge…

22:00 – Sorry to Charlotte who watched a sucky blowout in Game 7 of the NHL Finals (pretty clear Charlotte is a Bruins fan)…

23:50 – Brandon the Producer jumps in as he doesn’t like mosquitos and Jess just got bit by one…back to the NHL…What would you eat if you just lost the NHL Finals?…Anheuser Busch headquartered in St. Louis?

27:45 – Gary Woodland wins the US Open…didn’t realize it ends on Father’s Day every year…don’t assume because Charlotte is a woman she doesn’t know what she’s talking about with sports…they spoke this outcome into existence in a previous show…shout out to Gary…also, who still names their kids Gary?…he’s also never drank a warm beverage, does soup count?…

32:07 – Let’s talk about the World Cup…our girl Julie Ertz scored a goal vs Chile…the bad tweet from someplace, CBS?, that Zach Ertz left training camp to watch his wife in the world cup – hello, she has a name…we’re beyond this now and Julie Ertz has way more Instagram followers than Zach (but he has more Twitter followers), but Instagram is the way more used platform (well, we’ll discuss that in a moment…)…can everyone just follow us on Instagram?…

37:26 – Do we have any personal news because all it says on the little Google Doc is personal news and nothing below it…

39:27 – We have to cancel something…LaVar Ball…people forgot that he’s been canceled already and he’s still saying stupid things…need to cancel OJ Simpson again because now he’s on Twitter…

44:18 – Some Agro Facts this week…well, basically we’ve found really good brands of dried seaweed

47:29 – Underrated… this week it’s sour cream, the unsung hero of Taco Tuesday

49:53 – Future Wedding to each other…this came up from a viral tweet about going to a wedding with me and still liking me after…

51:32 – The Patriot of the Week…viral video of guy at a baseball game who caught foul ball and chugged a beer

55:36 – Shout out to Summer of #20WineTeen…how do you spell that out?

59:30 – Unofficial Official Mike Trout Fan Club…thanks to everyone pointing out what we should be paying attention to…he’s been really good at the baseball and his W-A-R has been really good…he pet a dog named Moo Moo…

1:02:12 – What is that noise (that the audience can’t hear)? The phone in the podcast room is ringing…

1:03:00 – Mike Trout had a really good transportation tweet…

1:03:58 – Time to go (because they said so and there’s the music bed)…give us high ratings and boost our Instagram

Show Analysis:

When creating a podcast it’s important to know who your target audience is. This podcast is clearly targeted towards millennial sports fans, is internet driven (lots of social media talk), and uses swear words. There isn’t a problem with that at all, but even millennial’s like to hear some cool sounding production elements.

In listening to the show, it’s clear that Jess and Charlotte do some form of prep for their show – because you can hear their transitions from topic to topic. They also mention the “Google Doc” in this episode.

So why don’t they have production elements for their regular segments? If the producer doesn’t have time to create them, why not ask the audience for some help? It’s a great way to forge an everlasting bond with your audience and frankly, sometimes you get some really great work for free.

One thing I struggle with when listening to podcasts that tend to be more on the jovial side is when they tackle subjects that are more serious. In this episode for instance, sexism in sports. I agree that Julie Ertz and any woman playing professional sports should be given the respect of being called by their name, but it’s hard to take Jess and Charlotte seriously when they’re talking about wanting to marry the guy who catches the foul ball and chugs his beer or oogling over Mike Trout petting a puppy. It’s just a little awkward.

Also, I’m assuming there were inside jokes or previous jokes when talking about Mike Trout “being good at the baseball” and his “W-A-R was really good”, but a first time listener may hear that and stereotype it as “another female sports show”. It’s a delicate line to balance and begging for more Instagram followers doesn’t help.

Closing Comments:

While this is definitely not “old guy, stuffy sports program”, there’s still a lack of innovation for a sports podcast. It sounds similar to most other sports radio products with the exception being the show features two women and they’re talking to a younger audience. The sourcing of social media is clever to help drive engagement from an audience that is using the internet to listen to the show, but adding some production would really help this show sing.

I do think there is great potential here with a few tweaks that could help drive how sports radio evolves for future generations. There needs to be a little more effort than just sitting down in a studio for an hour with microphones recording a conversation. It’s a good start, but it can be taken to the next level with a few adjustments.

5 Podcasts in 5 Days: The GM Shuffle

Jason Barrett
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5 Podcasts in 5 Days: The GM Shuffle

Editor’s note from Jason Barrett:

We’re up to Day #2 of our special ‘5 Podcasts in 5 Days‘ series. Doing the honors as our special guest reviewer for this project is Jay Soderberg, formerly the Head of Content for BlogTalk Radio, and a digital audio producer, imaging director, and podcast creator for the ESPN Radio network. Jay is not one to sugarcoat what he thinks. 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 has continued 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!

THE GM SHUFFLE

Title: The Anthony Davis Trade Would Never Happen in the NFL

Date: June 25, 2019

Length: 31 minutes

Cast: Mike Lombardi and Adnan Virk

Sponsors: none

Production: none…well, a music bed to open and close the podcast

Show Breakdown:

0:00 – Raiders on Hard Knocks tease but first, “Weed the North” as the Raptors celebrate their NBA Championship

2:18 – Raiders are on Hard Knocks and it’s going to be AWESOME!

7:53 – John Fox throwing shade at his former team, the Bears. Mike wouldn’t go as far as Fox went, but he doesn’t believe in Mitch Trubisky as much as others. Plus, they have a much more difficult schedule ahead. 

10:05 – The Patriots accuse the Texans of tampering in regards to Nick Cesario. Mike shares his insider view on how the Patriots front office works. Plus why Jack Easterby can’t work as a more senior front office guy from his previous role with the Patriots as a reverend.

15:45 – Todd Gurley has arthritic knees.

16:59 – Comparing the Anthony Davis trade to the Herschel Walker trade.

22:00 – Over/Under series and now doing the NFC North with 3 teams set at 9 wins and the Lions taking up the rear. Mike loves the Vikings.

25:18 – Teams that you’d like to see end the drought: Bills, Vikings, Browns, Lions. Mike would most like to see the Browns win it. Plus, the town will sink Lake Erie.

27:45 – Where are we going to see Mike next? How about Adnan’s Cinephile podcast? Let’s get Mike on to talk Sopranos.

:46 seconds left – music bed underneath signals the end is coming, 17 secs left “We’ll talk next week.”

Show Analysis:

It’s clear that Mike and Adnan have great chemistry and play off each other brilliantly. Adnan is a professional with great transitions between news items, but this sounds like any other extended radio guest spot or sports podcast except it offers the addition of swear words. The main difference between this show and other NFL themed podcasts is Lombardi’s extensive background in NFL front offices, which is something phenomenal to tap into.

Using his experience to compare the biggest news of the day – the Anthony Davis trade – and comparing it to the NFL – the main sport being covered on this podcast – is brilliant, but it seems wasted as we have to sit through some other less exciting news items before reaching that point. The beauty of a podcast is that it’s recorded and you can easily cut and paste segments to place them wherever you want. The segment was definitely a highlight, the team even decided to title the episode after it.

Since this show is only once a week, there’s plenty of time to plan out a great show rundown. It appears from listening to this particular episode that there are some recurring segments. Making some production elements to highlight those segments would certainly add to the show.

Also, spending just a little over 3 minutes on the entire NFC North to preview their over/under win totals isn’t going to be enough to compete with other podcasts that provide an entire hour’s worth of content on each of those 4 teams. That’s a wasted opportunity. The show would be better served extending that discussion and tapping into Lombardi’s experience to highlight how those 4 teams attacked their off-season’s and explain how it positions them for the 2019 season.

Closing Comments:

It’s an easy enough listen and only 31 minutes long. Going back to that nugget from Edison Research which states that the average podcast listener listens to 7 podcasts a week, this sports podcast isn’t going to unseat any of those 7 unless the listener is a big fan of Mike Lombardi or Adnan Virk. In their defense, they do have a lot of fans.

Every new episode is an opportunity to create more new fans but too many sports podcasts fall back on the same radio pattern much too easily these days. That prevents them from doing something different and exciting.

I would love to hear some production added to hype up recurring segments and perhaps some more segments that utilize Lombardi’s front office experiences to analyze the moves made by a few teams. How about a segment where Adnan and Lombardi think of how Tony Soprano would react to some of those other not so exciting news stories? Now, you’ve blended the pop culture with the sports news and blending the two loves instead of segmenting them separately in the podcast. Also, don’t play me out like Tony and fade to black at the end. I’m likely going to hear that music bed at the end and just skip to the next podcast waiting.

The key is to always give the audience a reason to continue listening, even if it’s the end of the podcast. How about some previous episodes they might have missed that are worth checking out? Or previewing what’s coming up next week? Can we see any potential news on the horizon? What team will be featured next in the over/under series?

There is great potential here with this podcast. Adnan, Mike and their team will need to invest more time and effort though in the presentation if they want to maximize their opportunity.

5 Podcasts in 5 Days: Mystery Crate

Jason Barrett
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5 Podcasts in 5 Days: Mystery Crate

Editor’s note from Jason Barrett:

The podcasting space is one many of us love to invest our time in. It’s a space where creativity and original ideas are encouraged, the listener has control, and personalities are given opportunities to try things that they may otherwise avoid on their daily programs.

But as liberating as the space can be, measuring a podcast’s effectiveness and importance remains a challenge. Programmers have enough to do with managing their station’s over the air content, analyzing ratings, and trying to assist sellers on monetizing radio content. Most radio companies don’t employ a Director of Podcasting who’s sole focus is to create, measure, and help monetize the brand’s digital audio content.

Because the podcasting space has turned into the wild west, we thought it’d be beneficial to bring back our 5 Podcasts in 5 Days project, and call upon someone to tackle the assignment who truly understands the space.

Jay Soderberg and I worked together at the ESPN Radio network in the mid 2000’s, and over the past 15 years he’s played an important role in helping ESPN and BlogTalk Radio develop, grow, and expand their footprint in the podcasting space. Nicknamed ‘Pod Vader’, Jay is not one to sugarcoat what he thinks. He’s candid, direct, and unapologetic. His focus is on helping creators produce exceptional content, and if it means having to get under their skin in the process, so be it.

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. I think you’ll find his reviews to be honest and well explained. If you have further feedback you can find him on Twitter @TheRealPodVader or by email by clicking here. Enjoy!

MYSTERY CRATE BY LE BATARD & FRIENDS

Title: Episode 8 Date: June 21, 2019

Length: 44 minutes

Cast: various members of LeBatard & Friends

Sponsors: ZipRecruiter, Tissot watches

Production: Perfect use of a quick music bump in and out of segments

Show Breakdown:

0:00 – The only show that’s a complete mystery – for sure, because I don’t know who these people are. There’s funny “scary” laugh and there’s the first voice. The hosts never introduce themselves.

1:16 – ZipRecruiter ad that devolves into a breakdown of the scary laugh.

2:58 – We learn we’re getting some “Dan”. Contributions will come from everyone except for Allison (Turner and we learn the host is Mike Ryan in a throw away line introducing Allison). Allison does contribute though when she’s asked to talk about the Hills and other reality TV shows from the background while eventually making it to a live mic.

13:48 – Throwing to Dan speaking to Danny Goldberg who wrote “Serving the Servant: Remembering Kurt Cobain”

14:46 – Danny Goldberg interview from ESPN Radio

33:58 – Interview brought to you by ZipRecruiter

34:04 – Setting up Chris’ segment of “Ya Nevah Know” with Chris’ dad and intro music from JuJu Gotti who is the best thing on Instagram right now.

35:33 – Brought to you by Tissot Watches

36:20 – Ya Nevah Know segment – Chris’ dad is a weird cat, how? He gets into it.

40:10 – Oh by the way, Chris’ dad’s name is Greg. Their last name is Cody. Slowly learning who’s who.

41:20 – Download everything – even if you don’t listen – so they can do more Mystery Crate’s…they understand it’s a great investment of your time and patience because you don’t know what you’re getting.

42:20 – In case you didn’t realize, this was brought to you by ZipRecruiter – you’ve heard it before but this is your reward for listening all the way here

43:15 – Mystery Crate doesn’t like to tease much, but next week we’re getting Stugotz.

Show Analysis:

This is something I’ve been preaching about using repurposed audio from Live Radio shows for years. Have the production staff create original content that surrounds the audio from the radio show. In this way, people who already heard the radio content have a reason to download the podcast and listen again, and for people that never listen to the live radio show, either have time shifted their listening or have become encouraged to go listen to the radio show.

For the broadcaster, they’re developing future on-air talent that will have a built in audience from the radio show making that difficult time of introducing a new on-air talent a lot easier to jump start. However, without proper introductions to the podcast talent and without proper show notes to tell the listener what it is they’re about to listen to, there’s no impetus for new listeners to get into the show.

While it’s fantastic to see something different being tried, unless the listener is a diehard LeBatard & Friends fan, they have no idea what they’re in store for. Edison Research says that the active podcast listener listens to an average of 7 podcasts a week. With nothing to go by from the show description, there’s no reason for a person to eject one of those 7 podcasts to make room for a new one.

To that point, it took almost 14 minutes to find out we were about to hear an interview conducted by “Dan” with Danny Goldberg who wrote a book about Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain. Previous to that, we heard discussion about reality TV shows, specifically the reboot of MTV’s The Hills.

I honestly don’t remember if Dan LeBatard was ever mentioned by full name – I can certainly assume that “Dan” is the “Le Batard” in “Le Batard & Friends” which is branded on the podcast, but again, unless someone is a diehard Le Batard & Friends fan, why would a new listener take a chance on show they have no idea about? A brand new listener will probably think this is a sports podcast, but the only mention of sports came with the ad for the watch.

Speaking of which, be careful with those pronunciations as it took a Google search to understand what brand watch was being advertised. To be clear, it’s Tissot, the official watch of the NBA. Also, the show is brought to you by ZipRecruiter, and it was odd to hear the same advertiser 3 or 4 times in one show.

Closing Comments:

I love the attempt at innovation here. It’s something that sports podcasts are quite lacking these days. When every sports podcast is a couple of guys or girls just sharing their opinions about the latest events, it can get monotonous. But understand that every new episode is an opportunity for a new listener – one from outside the radio listening family or even outside the podcast network family – and there’s never any reason given for a new listener to get attached to this particular show.

I don’t mind listening to pop culture talk from sports hosts either – but I’d like to know that’s what I’m getting in advance, so I can make that choice. Perhaps doing something different with the show notes so that a person has to scroll down through the notes to find out what’s inside is a better choice on the mystery theme. The only choice you have now is “you listen or you don’t.” I think more people would enjoy this podcast if there was less mystery in the crate.

Do You Know The Talent You’re Selling?

Dave Greene
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Do You Know The Talent You’re Selling?

Usually, when I talk about sales mixing with programming, it’s directed towards the on-air talent.  I am often encouraging them to understand our business better and know that everything, in the end, comes down to how much revenue you or your show drives for the company you work for.  This week, I want to talk about sales mixing with programming, but I want to talk about it from the other direction.

Let me let you in on a secret, first.  On-air talent are generally thinking about one of 4 things: their next show, their next meal, their next check or themselves.  Most air talent (and I said most, not all) do not care about your client’s needs and wants nor do they think about ideas that could help you make more money – WITHOUT BEING PROMPTED.

So, prompt them.  Do you know your air talent?  Do you know if they are married or if they have kids?  What part of town do they live in? Do they frequent any local businesses? Where do they shop?  Where do they get their hair cut?  Do they want or need anything from a business that might make sense to advertise on our sports station?

If you don’t know these answers about everyone you sell, stop right now.  Send them an email that says you want to take them out to breakfast, lunch, for coffee, for a cocktail, whatever.   Spend some time with them somehow, someway, before the end of this week.  Initiate the conversation and get to know the people you sell.  

When a rep starts, within the first week or two I’ll have them sit in the studio, with the hosts, for a couple hours per show.  This way, they’ll have all met, the new seller will hear each show completely uninterrupted and during the breaks, hopefully they get to know just a little bit about one another.

The talent that get it, like to be engaged and they like to be part of the planning process versus being told they’re to be involved in something without having given any input. This gets back to my earlier point that it’s generally the sales team that will need to engage with talent to pull the ideas and leads out of them.  I’m not saying this is how it should be, I’m just telling the truth, they are willing to help, if you are willing to come to them.

Then, once you have them engaged, and they believe that you’re out promoting them as a brand for endorsements and selling the ideas they come up with, they could end up becoming your best lead source.  It is simply human nature for the talent to want to work with those that are working with them, those they trust, those they’ve seen take care of other clients they might know personally.  

So be that guy or that gal, the one who is working with the top talent in the building and getting them all the endorsements that sky-rocket their incomes.  Ask them questions, ask them what they are working on or what is coming up that you may be able to get out in front of.  I can assure you, if you are the rep who is known as taking care of talent, you are the rep who is getting leads when they come from talent.  And we know those leads are the Glengarry leads.

NBA Free Agency Provides 4 Valuable Lessons For Brands

Jason Barrett
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Those who know me well are familiar with my lifelong frustration of being a New York Knicks fan. Each year the hype train comes to town promising big things for the future, only to deliver disappointment when fans ask for the payoff. Those wearing New York Knicks underoos will make excuses and continue holding on to hope, but those with a strong understanding of the franchise’s failures know how this story ends.

In the the span of one off-season, the Pelicans lost Anthony Davis and Julius Randle yet feel much closer to being a playoff team. The Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, and Indiana Pacers all lost key players yet made moves to stay in contention atop the Eastern Conference. The Brooklyn Nets, Los Angeles Lakers, and Golden State Warriors all were aggressive making moves to try and chase future championships. The Knicks meanwhile sell their fans on a rebuilding project once again.

But this column isn’t about my deflated enthusiasm towards the Knicks’ organization. It’s about four key lessons for sports media brands which just happen to connect to things we’ve learned in the past few days involving NBA free agency.

#1 – Substance Over Hype – How many times do you turn on a radio station and hear them touting their ‘best coverage’ yet it leaves little to be desired? How can you actually prove your brand has the best coverage anyway? If you have big guests and your competitor has the actual games, do you really have the best coverage? If the roles are reversed there’s an argument there too.

Maybe your radio station is promising a big announcement later in the day and is trying to get the audience excited about. What makes the payoff significant to the audience and not just those working inside the radio station? As someone who’s used announcements to drive quarter hour listening in the past, there’s a big difference between adding a game changer to the product and a solid weekly guest who people won’t go out of their way to listen to.

While it’s important to highlight our brand’s coverage and promote good content from people the audience is aware of, it’s not a smart decision to make it sound bigger than it actually is. You can actually piss off the audience and lose their trust if they feel underwhelmed.

#2 – Know When To Stay Silent – If you say you’re going to do something, do it. Don’t brag about what you’re going to do and then issue excuses when you come up short. A perfect example of this is the Knicks’ response to not signing Kyrie or Durant.

The brands that perform best are the ones that do their work in the background and then speak when there’s something to discuss. It’s one thing to build interest in your talent, content, promotions, etc. but the more you talk, the more likely you are to have to explain something later, and the media loves to bury those who portray themselves and their brands in a cocky way.

This also applies to how you manage your talent. If you’re the type of executive who thinks he’s going to ‘coach up’ every single personality, including your brand’s all-stars, be prepared for them to vacate when other options are on the table. Micromanaging is a recipe for disaster. You have to learn who you can trust to deliver results, give them the tools they need to succeed, and then get out of the way. If you can’t, word will spread on your inability to manage big stars, and that will keep other big stars away.

#3 – It’s All About The Talent – This is the most important of all. Whether it’s the NBA, the NFL or Sports Radio or Television, you win and lose with talent. Without difference makers on the court, field or airwaves, you won’t excel. It’s that simple. There are many routes to go to introduce prospects but without proven performers you won’t maximize your business.

Whether you like it or not, we operate in a win-now world. Advertisers want immediate results. So too does your company. The members in your building expect the same. Depending on where your brand is in its development, sometimes you’ll receive a longer leash, but most groups are not going to give you 3-5 years to create a masterpiece.

Though the programmer or market manager may understand this, companies need to recognize it too. People are attracted to people who they consider larger than life. A brand must have big personalities who attract love, hate, and everything in between. It’s not as much about the content as it is who’s selling it. If you put players on the air who people care enough to seek out, you’ll have a ratings and revenue story to sell.

#4 – Have a Plan But Know When To Change It – What you decide today might make sense for tomorrow, but if tomorrow presents an unexpected opportunity that requires skipping a step, then you’ve got to be ready to adjust. The goal is to win. Those who do it often have their eye on the now and the future. The goal should remain the same, but smart leaders understand that it doesn’t pay to be unwilling to change. Don’t worry about whether or not your plan had to be scrapped to win. The winning itself will be what people remember about your leadership.

This also can be tied to the success of a daily talk show. For example, are you married to your rundown or changing on the fly when things don’t hit the mark? Are you booking guests and keeping them on for the entire segment because it said :02-:13 on your sheet, or are you cutting it short or extending it based on the flow of the conversation and importance of content? Is your show relying on the same drops, music beds, seasonal guests, topics, and reference points or actively looking for ways to freshen the presentation?

Mike Tyson once said ‘everyone has a plan until they get hit in the mouth.’ The same holds true on a sports media program. Whether it’s due to breaking news, people lacking interest, hosts not selling content in a powerful and unique way, or something else happening organically that provides a better content experience, the best results come from good planning and better adjusting.

Meet The Sales Staff: Mark Miller

Dave Greene
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Meet The Sales Staff: Mark Miller

Mark Miller is someone I’ve worked with for the past two years at Entercom in Kansas City.  Ours is a large, eight station cluster with a dominant position in the market.  Along with Rock, Alternative, Hot AC, Country, News and Talk (KMBZ A/F which Miller started selling in 1989), we have two sports stations, the Kansas City Royals, the Missouri Tigers and the Kansas State Wildcats. Additionally, we carry several local high school and college football and basketball broadcasts, most of which Mark not only sells, but also does play-by-play for.

There’s a Mark Miller on every good media sales team in the country.  A veteran seller who still has an unmatched enthusiasm for our industry and working with clients.  He has several “regular customers” he has formed great relationships with in his long career.  

When he closes a good sale, everyone knows about it instantly, but he’s also the first person to congratulate someone else when they do the same.  His work area is a shrine to his career, complete with a picture of his face superimposed on to Superman’s body, but he isn’t the least bit ashamed for being proud of what he has accomplished. 

When he isn’t out with a customer, he’s in the office working the phones and he can be heard talking about a great business idea for a client or perhaps a team’s Cover 2 defense when he’s talking to a local coach.  Whatever the topic, his big booming voice comes through loud and clear.  No, really, I mean my office is about 30 feet from his area, and I hear it all loud and clear! 

How did you get started in radio?

I was a television news anchor for two years and I had an opportunity to go to work for some radio stations in Garden City, Kansas and I made the switch around 1981.  I didn’t think I was the next Kronkite. I got in to radio sales at KBUF AM & FM, they were a big country western station and they were splitting the signals and going satellite country music.  To get the job, I had to make a presentation in front of the whole sales team.  I did a flip chart presentation of who I was and what I thought I could bring to the team. I walked out of the meeting and the GM said, “We want you to be on the staff.”

People knew who I was from being on TV, so I was able to hit the ground running and sold several annuals in my first two weeks.  We traded out some boom boxes at Gibson’s Discount Center, we would cut a spec spot and after I would flip chart the radio station, I would play the spot from the boom box.  If they bought an annual, we’d let them keep the boom box and we would trade for more.

I saw the ability to make a ton of money in commission sales by being creative, meeting a lot of people and putting together ideas. I saw money and I’m driven by money.

What do you tell people you do when others ask about your job?

When I’m asked that, I tell them I’m a professional broadcaster.  Not just sales, although that’s 95% of what I do, but I do play-by-play, I write copy, I put in my orders, I do production for some of my clients, I do some endorsement deals and while I don’t send bills, I do collect.  I do everything under the umbrella of broadcasting, so I’m in the broadcast industry and I’m a professional broadcaster. 

When I say that, people perk up.  They don’t know us by the name of our company or what an Account Executive or Senior Account Rep means, but when I say I’m a professional broadcaster with 8 radio stations and I sell and create advertising campaigns and do play-by-play, it sounds professional.  I think everyone who works in our building is a professional broadcaster.  Some think that just means you are on the air, but I think it means you are in the broadcasting industry.

What makes you good at media sales?

I don’t think I’m the Mick Jagger of sales, but I still like the chase and I still have the energy and the drive to make money.  That’s what motivates me.  When I was hiring people as a manager for a couple of years, I would ask them what motivated them.  If the answer wasn’t money, I didn’t hire them. 

I am creative, I can present and I’m good at interaction with clients.  While I’m always prospecting to find new business, I’m really good at increasing the amount my current clientele spends with me.  A lot of my clients started off spending a little bit of money and now they spend thousands and thousands with me.  People buy people they like and if you get in there and you grow the relationship, not only business but personal, they’ll trust you and that’s been my formula.

I wouldn’t sell anything else.  Insurance, appliances, medical supplies, nothing. This is the only thing I ever want to sell, because it changes.  One day you’re talking to a banker, later that afternoon a car dealer and the next day a doctor.  I’m not a master of any of those categories, but I am a master of what I sell, and I can match my products up with each of those categories and create ideas for them.

Why do you think there’s so much churn in media sales departments?

I think it’s work ethic.  My dad was a railroad engineer and he’d take the passenger train out of Newton, Kansas at 5:05 AM, he would be there a day in Dodge City and then came back the next day.  My mom was in politics on a national level, and she had a great work ethic.  When I was young, I was a sponge and I soaked that up and saw what they did, and they always went to work and had careers.  

Times have changed, and I don’t think a lot of people come in with great work ethics.  I also see a lot of rookies who come on board, and they end up teaming with other rookies.  They should connect with veteran account executives and go out on the streets with them.  If they team up with somebody else who doesn’t know what they’re doing, they both usually end up failing.  

You’ve sold a lot of spoken word stations – news, talk and sports.  What is it about spoken word that makes it work so well for your clients?

It’s all about recall.  People that listen to spoken word formats are listening and are actively engaged.  You usually either like it or you don’t and if you do, you’re going to keep listening to hear what the next person has to say on the air.  I’ve got their attention in spoken word so I can go to Mr. or Mrs. Advertiser and know that their message is going to get heard.  Then, I come up with creative copy that people can remember.

With sports, the key is association.  The advertisers love the association whether it’s pro, college or high school, they like being associated with it.  The loyalty of the sports audience is a tremendous asset for our customers. 

You have carved out quite a niche selling and broadcasting local high school and college sports, as well.

This will be our fifteenth year doing it and management and the advertisers know I have tremendous passion for it. Plus, it does well financially, as it has generated over a million dollars in sales.  We may not be doing pro sports teams on our broadcasts, but we deliver a pro caliber broadcast and people like what they hear.

I do a lot of features like player of the game, coach of the game, mom of the week (where we recognize a player’s mom at halftime), scholar athlete, we recognize educators, administrators and school officials.  It’s a lot more than just a high school game broadcast.  The advertisers love the association.  

What They Say…

“Mark thinks big and outside of the box. He’s great at presenting interactive ideas for clients that turn an interesting topic for listeners in to sales opportunities.” – Rich Deutsch, GSM Entercom – Kansas City

KNBR signs Greg Papa to multi-year deal; New lineup to Debut on July 16th

BSM Staff
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Last summer, Greg Papa took to the airwaves on 95.7 The Game to confirm he would no longer be the radio voice of the Oakland Raiders. For the first time in over two decades, the legendary play by play announcer went thru an NFL season not calling Bay Area football games.

But the disappointment Papa experienced in 2018 has quickly been replaced by joy in 2019. The year began with the San Francisco 49ers naming him their new radio play by play voice, and now just two and a half months before the NFL regular season kicks off, Papa is changing radio stations too.

After nearly eight years with 95.7 The Game, Papa is leaving the station to join KNBR. The new voice of the 49ers has inked a multi-year deal with the station which will reunite him with former on-air partner John Lund. The new program, Papa & Lund, will be featured weekddays from 10a-2p PT.

KNBR Program Director Jeremiah Crowe said: “Greg brings unrivaled knowledge and top-notch entertainment value to every broadcast he leads. His connection with the Bay Area sports fan runs deep on many levels through his history in the local market, and we are proud to reunite him with John Lund in mid-days on The Sports Leader.”

“I am thrilled to be returning to the powerful airwaves of The Sports leader,” said Papa. “Being reunited with John Lund on the flagship station of the 49ers is the perfect combination.”

In addition to adding Papa and Lund to middays, KNBR will introduce a powerful new afternoon show. Larry Krueger and Rod Brooks will leave their midday slots to move into drive time, joining Tom Tolbert as part of the newly formed Tolbert, Krueger and Brooks. The three men have been a part of KNBR for a combined total of 67 years. Their new show will air weekdays from 2p-6p PT, giving an extra hour to evening host Mark Willard who will now host weeknights from 6p-10p PT.

As a result of the changes, KNBR and longtime personality Gary Radnich will go their separate ways. Radnich had been with the station since 1992. He tweeted out on Friday that he had planned to retire at the end of the year but with his 70th birthday approaching it made more sense to exit now. Radnich will host his final show on the station this week.

“From the time Gary Radnich started at KNBR he was a pioneer in the sports-talk format” said Doug Harvill, Vice President/Market Manager, Cumulus San Francisco. “He built a close relationship with listeners through his entertaining and intriguing perspective on sports and life. I cannot express how appreciative all of us at KNBR are for the opportunity to have partnered with him on his KNBR journey.”

Also vacating the station will be longtime midday host Bob Fitzgerald who had been with the station as a host since 1990. The television voice of the Warriors on NBC Sports Bay Area, Fitzgerald said “I’d like to thank everyone that I had the great fortune of working with at KNBR, from my co-hosts, in particular Rod Brooks, to our tremendous producers and staff I have encountered over the great many years. For three decades it has been my great privilege to entertain the incredible sports fans of the Bay Area. KNBR will always have a special place in my heart and I wish everyone at the station all the best moving forward.”

The loss of Papa is a blow to 95.7 The Game. He spent 8 years with the station, delivering strong ratings in middays with Bonta Hill, and previously with Lund before he exited to join KNBR in 2016.

According to a report in The Athletic, The Game is expected to adjust to Papa’s departure by relying on 3 shows in their weekday lineup instead of 4. Joe, Lo and Dibs will remain in mornings, Matt Steinmetz and ‘The Guru’ Daryle Johnson will add Hill to their midday show, expanding to 10a-2p, followed by Damon Bruce in afternoon drive.

BSM’s 2019 Sports TV Draft: The Top 30 Shows of All-Time

Jason Barrett
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BSM’s 2019 Sports TV Draft: The Top 30 Shows of All-Time

Benjamin Franklin once said there are two things certain in life: death and taxes. I’d like to modify that quote by adding a third – a fascination with lists.

Since launching BSM, we’ve written thousands of pieces on personalities, news, strategy, ratings, and career advice. They’ve been well received, but pale in comparison to anything we’ve created involving lists. For four years straight our number one most read piece of content has been the BSM Top 20 in Sports Radio. The annual BSM Sports Radio Draft has also received strong support.

As proud as we are of those sports radio content specials and their ability to fuel discussion among sports media types, the amount of creative projects we’ve built around sports television has left much to be desired. So with an NBA Draft on the horizon, we began tossing ideas at the wall last month, and came up with an outline for a Sports TV Draft.

Since the NBA Draft features 30 picks per round, we thought it made sense to select the Top 30 shows of all-time. We focused on studio/live/produced shows because sitcoms, reality shows, and documentaries are different type of programs. We then created a document with 65 programs to choose from, figuring that some folks would likely want to add to it.

Next we had to decide who to include in the voting process. I thought it’d be fun to involve the nation’s top sports media writers and critics, media researchers, former TV executives, bloggers, and a few popular social media accounts, but wasn’t sure if we’d be able to drum up enough support to pull it off. To my surprise, most of the people I asked jumped in.

And that brings us to the actual draft.

Below you will see an image featuring our list of the Top 30 Sports TV Shows of All-Time as decided on by our voters. Underneath that image you’ll find a detailed explanation from each voter on what they liked about the show they selected. If you want to learn more about the shows, our voters or the companies they work for, we’ve made it easy for you. All you have to do is click the show name, company name or individual’s name and a new page will open up.

I want to extend my sincere thanks to everyone who participated in this project. Although lists are very subjective and determined by the order in which people select, this was fun to assemble, and we hope you enjoy reading it. With that in mind, here are the results of the 2019 BSM Sports TV Draft.

#1 – SportsCenter – Gerry Matalon, Matalon Media

For the sports fan, SportsCenter was the equivalent of the advent of the internet. The fan had access to information and video like never before. It was THE must-watch studio show of generation X, and a sports fan’s dream come true. 

NEVER before were fans able to get all the highlights, significant national news, analysis and discussion in an engaging manner, multiple times a day from hosts who would become icons in their own right. Every on-screen sports program since September of 1979 is a branch on the SportsCenter tree. Though the show might not have the significance it once had, SportsCenter has often been replicated, though never duplicated.

#2 – FOX NFL Sunday – Patrick Crakes, Crakes Media

FOX NFL Sunday showed America that FOX would keep its promise – to present the NFL in a modern, fun, but reverent way. Under David Hill, Ed Goren and Scott Ackerson’s vision and guidance the credibility, chemistry and flow of the show opened a new era in live sports commentary and became the flagship of the FOX Sports Brand.  The show was a paradigm shift operating on the assumption that most viewers were looking for something more than just information as they gathered to watch NFL games on Sunday. 

The amazing collection of unique personalities at the desk added something unique for mainstream NFL fans thirsty for a show that could “sugarcoat the information pill” with a modern sensibility.  JB, Terry, Howie and Jimmy were the “Guys you wanted to have a beer with at the bar and watch a game” and America embraced them. It was the beginning of a new era – one that saw FOX evolve on the back of FOX NFL Sunday into one the most important sports media brands in the world. Impressively, FOX NFL Sunday  remains as relevant, entertaining and fun today as it was in 1994, and it’s endurance, legacy and continued impact make the case for its place as one of the important live studio shows in sports TV history.

#3 – Pardon The Interruption – Tim Scanlan, Octagon Sports

PTI revolutionized the sports studio program with the Topic Sidebar, the running clock, the simple props, and the PA announcer with corrections. The personalities of Tony and Michael were non-traditional and irreverent and the program looked ahead as much as it reacted to stories in sports.

#4 – Inside The NBA – Andrew Marchand, New York Post

The show featuring probably the greatest studio analyst of all-time, Charles Barkley, at 4? Thank you very much. I considered ESPN’s College GameDay and, at its peak, NFL Primetime, with this pick, but Inside The NBA is so enjoyable for the basketball and non-basketball fan.

#5 – College Gameday – Richard Deitsch, The Athletic

I’ve written many times over the years that I consider Inside The NBA the greatest sports studio show in history. If I had the No. 1 overall pick for this draft, it would have been an easy selection. But I am delighted to see that College GameDay remains on the board. This whole exercise is subjective but GameDay slots right behind Inside for me among all-time sports studio shows.

College football is best experienced in person, and GameDay has brought that experience into our homes for decades. As someone who lived for many years in New York City, GameDay allowed me to experience what it was like to be part of LSU football in Baton Rouge, Alabama in Tuscaloosa, and other places that were foreign yet fascinating to me. The on-air talent has always had intellect and chemistry; the show’s feature producers are the best in class. GameDay was also early among mainstream sports shows to highlight sports gambling info and has maintained a journalistic bent. It’s one of the best enterprises ESPN has done and I feel like I just got one of the steals of this draft. 

#6 – NFL Primetime – Chad Finn, Boston Globe

I thought about picking a relic of a wholly different age in sports television here, but choosing This Week In Baseball would have been an overdraft based on nostalgia. So instead I made a sentimental pick with more recent relevance.

From 1987 to 2005, Chris Berman and Tom Jackson made ESPN’s NFL Primetime an entertaining and, in a time before our phones gave us every highlight in real time, a practically essential way to see every meaningful nightlight from the day’s NFL action. Primetime was marginalized when NBC got the Sunday night package in 2006. But it won’t be forgotten. 

#7 – NFL RedZone – Ryan Glasspiegel, The Big Lead

It’s almost unfair to pick this considering it encompasses live events, but the eight greatest words in the English language are when Scott Hanson says, “Seven hours of commercial-free football begin now.” Imagine reverting back to a world without it. If they ever try to put the genie back in that bottle, there will be torches and pitchforks in the streets.

#8 – Speak For Yourself – Michael McCarthy, Front Office Sports

“Speak for Yourself” with Jason Whitlock and Marcellus Wiley is my choice at #8. They’re both ex-football players, and have some of the best, if not the best, NFL debates in the business with a constant stream of current and former players weighing in. Among the show’s most interesting guests in my opinion are James Harrison, Terry Bradshaw and Michael Vick.

#9 – The SportsWriters on TV – Neil Best, Newsday

Long before it was commonplace for sportswriters to kibitz on camera, this groundbreaking syndicated show out of Chicago was a revelation in the mid-1980s, and begat several decades worth of copycats that have filled endless hours of cable TV time. Unlike their polished, better-dressed modern counterparts – who work on polished, better-appointed sets – these guys were rumpled, cigar-smoking throwbacks, offering among the first takes of countless ones to come.

#10 – REAL Sports – Ben Koo, Awful Announcing

I’m very happy with my selection of HBO Real Sports at #10. The standard bearer in sports journalism is closing in on 25 years of distinguished and culturally relevant work. Correspondents have come and gone and the show has undergone a few changes over the years but the quality and significance of their work continues to be must watch television for intellectually curious and thoughtful sports fans.

I haven’t missed an episode in more than a decade as the quality has never wavered nor has my interest in expanding my knowledge as a sports fan. Sure it often veers into serious and uncomfortable topics and controversy, but Real Sports has always had a  rich and eclectic mix of topics, personalities, and stories which has always been appointment viewing for me every month. I’m delighted to use my pick on a show as impactful and unique as Real Sports. 

#11 – Outside The Lines – Austin Karp, Sports Business Daily

Among the smartest sports programming on TV. It doesn’t matter whether Bob Ley or Jeremy Schaap or Kate Fagan hosts. The topics are timely, and the show has stood the test of time.

#12 – Around The Horn – Robert Seidman, SportsTV Ratings

After SportsCenter, Outside the Lines and PTI it’s the longest-running daily show. As PTI’s lead-in it has consistently been one of ESPN’s best-performing studio shows.  It’s also been a great vehicle for ESPN to showcase new talent from Michael Smith & Jemele Hill, Mina Kimes, Sarah Spain, and Ramona Shelburne to Bomani Jones & Pablo Torre. As far as I know it’s also the only sports studio show ever parodied on NBC’s “30 Rock” — I tip my hat to Aaron Solomon, Tony Reali & everyone involved with the show.

#13 – Wide World of Sports – David Barron, Houston Chronicle

I don’t think it’s possible to overestimate the significance of what this show delivered during an era of black and white cathode ray tube TVs, 6 a.m. to midnight telecast schedules and filmed highlights that had to be delivered by airplanes rather than by satellite. It was like having an Olympics every Saturday, and it set the standard and the expectations for generations of broadcasters and viewers.

#14 – Garbage Time – Will Leitch, New York Magazine

My pick was between “Garbage Time” and “The Dan Patrick Show” — either is a steal with the 14th selection. It is EXTREMELY rare in the relentlessly repetitive, failing-up world of sports television to find an actual new, unique voice. Katie Nolan was (and is) different than everyone else working in sports TV, something that was obvious from her very first show. Plus, it’s impossible not to admire any show this good that was essentially filmed in a closet.

#15 – Baseball Tonight – Fred Segal, Freezing Cold Takes

As with NFL Primetime, Baseball Tonight used to be an absolute must watch for me. Much like many other highlight-centric shows it has lost significant value nowadays as highlights and updates are instantly available on social media. However, back when I was growing up in the 90s, it was absolutely an essential watch for any baseball junkie.

Most of the time, watching the show was my first exposure to any of the highlights from the day’s games. The show also holds personal sentimental value for me as I used to watch it every night with my dad as he would track his fantasy baseball players. We used to sing the lead in song together, which in my opinion, is as iconic as the SportsCenter lead in song ???? Da…Da Da Da…Da DA ????.

#16 – TMZ Sports – Robert Littal, Black Sports Online

The fact of the matter in 2019 is that people care more about the drama and viral news than what is going on, on the court or on the field. While many shows try to sprinkle in TMZish type of stuff, only TMZ does it full time.

#17 – The NFL Today – Brooks Melchior, Sports By Brooks

The NFL Today is arguably the most important studio show in sports television history. “In 1975 it introduced Americans to one of the most influential TV sports personalities in history, Brent Musburger. It was the first network studio show in history to include a woman, Phyllis George, an African-American, Irv Cross, and a professional handicapper, Jimmy “The Greek” Snyder, as fulltime on-air contributors.

It also played an early, pivotal role in popularizing the format which all NFL studio shows use today. In lieu of the NFL’s now-ubiquitous presence in the daily lives of Americans, it isn’t too much to say that the debut of The NFL Today with Musburger, George, Cross and Snyder represents a seminal moment in television history.

#18 – High Noon – Paulsen, Sports Media Watch

While it’s too early to call it one of the best sports TV shows of all-time, I’ll still go with High Noon here. Sports talk is dominated by fake debates and overheated opinions, but High Noon is an exception. Nothing seems staged or done for the sake of clicks and pageviews. Plus Jones and Torre have excellent chemistry.

#19 – The George Michael Sports Machine – Arash Markazi, Los Angeles Times

Before every household in America had cable or satellite and you could see every sports highlight within seconds of it happening live on your phone, tablet or computer, there was only one way for someone like me, without cable, to see sports highlights every Sunday and that was on The George Michael Sports Machine. I recorded it every week on our VCR and I’d watch it again and again throughout the week. It was a show ahead of its time and the first sports show I religiously watched as a young sports fan.

#20 – Stump The Schwab – Ben Strauss, Washington Post

The fact that ESPN was, at a certain point in time, willing to build a show around a chubby career researcher is all you need to know about why this show deserves a spot on this list. And even if Schwab never quite carried the show, his array of throwback jerseys and Stuart Scott’s attempts to inject energy and cachet into what today would be considered a live action version of Sporcle is forever endearing.

#21 – E60 – Andrew Bucholtz, Awful Announcing

Since its 2007 launch, E:60 has been one of ESPN’s more impressive commitments to journalism and storytelling. The news-magazine show has had a number of timeslot and network moves, including the 2017 shift to its current Sunday morning slot, but its pieces have always managed to make an impact. The show has won 16 Sports Emmys, including “Outstanding Sports News/Feature Anthology” and “Outstanding Short Sports Documentary” (for “Identity : Deland McCullough’s Journey,” which is a very worthy winner) this year, plus nine Edward R. Murrow Awards, a Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award and much more.

E:60 has also shown a great ability to tell all sorts of stories, from pieces on kids facing incredible challenges (Josiah Viera, Owen Hawkins) to deep investigations of deaths of migrant workers building World Cup stadiums in Qatar. It continues to be one of the best things ESPN does.

#22 – NFL Matchup – Jason Romano, Sports Spectrum

This was the show where I truly learned something new about the game of football in a way that no other show could provide. The downfall was that ESPN never gave it a great timeslot but man if you watched it, you walked away more knowledgeable about the NFL than you were 30 minutes earlier. The way they broke down film and showed you the intricacies of the game was always unique and special. Ron Jaworski, Merril Hoge and Sal Palantonio were fantastic.

#23 – Mike and the Mad Dog – Douglas Pucci, Programming Insider

“Aaaaaaaaand good afternoon everybody! How are you today!” yelled the Mad Dog. It’s the New York radio show that kicked off the sports talk genre in our country starting in the 90’s. It was the show I grew up listening to on WFAN as they discussed the legendary sports moments of the 90’s and 00’s like the Yankees world championship runs (especially the memorable Freeway of Love 1996 playoff run), the Rangers in ‘94, the Knicks playoff runs in the 90’s and Chris’ hilarious rants against the SF Giants.

Mike and the Mad Dog were also there for the big events of our world like the OJ trial and verdict and 9/11. Each host has succeeded in their own separate ventures – Mike still popular in the afternoon in NY radio, Chris on SiriusXM and MLB Network – but there was special magic when the two joined together to talk sports in front of the YES Network cameras.

#24 – Up Close – Tom Hoffarth, Los Angeles Times

I figured Roy Firestone’s “Up Close” would be long gone before my 24th pick so I was pleasantly surprised to find it still available. My Plan B was to snag the Jim Rome franchise of shows – from “Talk2” in the early 90’s all the way to “The Jim Rome Show” today, spanning ESPN2, ESPN, Fox Sports, ESPN again, CBS Sports Net and a stop in there on Showtime.

Some quick history: “SportsLook” is the original title of the show that started in 1980 on the USA Network, then moved to ESPN as “Up Close,” with Firestone, a former sportscaster at the local CBS affiliate in L.A., as the host for 13 years. It was taped in L.A. so he had access to everyone coming and going. It was a simple premise: Firestone sits on the right, the guest is on the left, and they talk about all sorts of things about their sporting life. It relied on Firestone’s curiosity and research and what buttons to push.

Many tried to replicate the template to other shows with other hosts – there’s maybe no Bob Costas’ “On the Record” or even a version Rome was asked to launch with ESPN2 in the early 90’s. It all connects to the importance of Firestone creating a trustworthy space to show emotions – important especially with strong male athletes – knowing Firestone would calmly talk you through it and expose a side of yourself that wasn’t readily available in pre-social media times.

#25 – This Week in Baseball – Rob Tornoe, Philadelphia Inquirer

Growing up, I kept to a pretty strict schedule on Saturday mornings: eat a bowl of Rice Chex, watch some cartoons and tune into “This Week in Baseball.” Hosted by famed Yankees broadcaster Mel Allen, the mix of storytelling, music and crazy plays fueled my dreams of being the MVP of our neighborhood baseball game. And the show’s iconic theme song played like a soundtrack to summer. As Bill Simmons once put it, “My goosebumps just got goosebumps.”​

#26 – Inside The NFL – Jimmy Traina, Sports Illustrated

In a world without DirecTV, Sunday Ticket and Red Zone, there were two shows every NFL fan had to watch for highlights and cool features: NFL PrimeTime on ESPN and Inside the NFL on HBO. Each week, Len Dawson and Nick Buoniconti (and later Cris Collinsworth) would recap the games from the week before and make picks for the upcoming week. One thing Inside the NFL had that NFL PrimeTime did not, since the show aired during the week and not immediately following games on Sunday, was footage of players and coaches mic’d up. These days, that doesn’t seem like a huge thing, but in the ‘80s, when the show was at its peak, it was must-see TV for football fans.

#27 – The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz – Perry Simon, All Access

I’m taking The Dan LeBatard Show with Stugotz, because it a) treats sports with the reverence it deserves, meaning very little, and b) the show has a rhythm and internal logic that’s its own. It’s an acquired taste, it has the feel of a club to which not everyone’s invited, and hard core sports fanatics must hate it because they’ll blow off the obvious big sports story of the day to talk about something Dan finds more interesting (and complaints are met with “You don’t get the show!”), but it’s about as entertaining as a radio show with cameras in the studio can be.

Once you get the running gags (the Hard Network Out, “How ‘bout THAT?,” the Kentucky Fraud Chickens, etc.), you’re hooked whether you want to be or not. And the hot take machine that is Stugotz works as a neat parody of all the other hit takers out there. I think this and Highly Questionable (a sports show that isn’t really about sports at all) should be a tandem since they, in combination, are a sports talk universe separate and apart from the rest of ESPN and sports media in general. Since I can only pick one, I’ll go with the radio show, but it’s a coin flip.

#28 – Highly Questionable – Alex Putterman, Hartford Courant

Obviously HQ isn’t for everyone. If you want serious sports talk, from people whose veins nearly burst every time an NBA player asks for a trade, you’ll be better served elsewhere. But for those who believe sports are inherently fun (and, in a sense, inherently absurd), it’s hard to beat Dan Le Batard, a rotating cast of amusing guest hosts and, most importantly, Papi – in all his rapping, wise-cracking, fake-hand shaking glory.

#29 – The Dan Patrick Show – Bobby Burack, The Big Lead

Dan Patrick has had one of the best sports radio shows in the country for years now. His show not only lands the most intriguing guests, but as the best interviewer in the business, Dan is able to get people to open up and create talking points around the industry. The show is fun and loose but can also get serious when needed.

Unlike most radio shows, the DP Show is actually better on television. The Man Cave leaves little doubt that Dan and the Danette’s are just five sports fans that we all want to hang and have a beer with. 

#30 – NBA Inside Stuff – Demetri Ravanos, Barrett Sports Media

With apologies to SportsCenter and Inside the NBA, if you are a 90’s kid, NBA Inside Stuff is the sports show of record. Honestly, this show should have been everyone’s first sign that they were just thinking differently at the NBA offices in New York. They created an all-access style show with interesting and fun content and rather than offer it in syndication or as part of their Sunday NBC package, they pair it with Saturday morning cartoons and market it to kids. It was a brilliant exercise in how to create lifelong fans!

You Have To Plan For A Successful Pregame Show

Andy Masur
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You Have To Plan For A Successful Pregame Show

It was the TV show “The A-Team” that probably put it best when Colonel John “Hannibal” Smith said often, “I love it when a plan comes together.” Another famous quote says “Failing to plan is planning to fail.” No truer words can be uttered when it comes to your broadcast as well.

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Always have an idea of what you are going to do when you get to the ballpark. This goes for broadcasters, pregame hosts and reporters alike.  

Generally when I’m hosting the pregame show, I already have a pretty good idea of what the storylines are going to be when I arrive. Of course there are the days when that plan can change drastically, which I’ll get into in a bit. I know who is pitching the night before the current game, so I can do my research before getting to work. That information may provide a good story I’ve dug up that I can use in pregame or when I’m doing play-by-play. I’m aware of any connections between players and the opponent, or players and the stadium they’ll be playing in and if someone was hurt the night before. 

For example, while doing play-by-play for the White Sox/Cubs series at Wrigley Field I remembered that when I was with Yonder Alonso in San Diego, he told me the story of his first major league home run. It came at, well you guessed it Wrigley Field against the Cubs’ Carlos Zambrano when Alonso was a young player with the Reds. My White Sox audience would probably find that story interesting, since Zambrano was a not exactly a name held in high regard with Sox fans. So I approached Alonso and had him tell the story again and it played well with the broadcast.

Now again, I had the benefit of knowing the story before, but I didn’t the first time I met Yonder. I just assumed that since he was with the Reds, he’d played a few games on the North Side and just innocently asked him if he had any stories about the Ivy Covered ballpark. Sure enough he shared the information.  Common sense led me to the info, but research into the players past set the wheels in motion and gave me a story I’m now sharing with a second audience. 

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It is so important for you to get to know the players and coaches on your team, because with that knowledge comes power, the power to capitalize and create a nugget or chunk of info that will not only fill your show, but be interesting to your audience. Use the fact that you know your first baseman is from Pittsburgh and your team is playing the Pirates. Was he a fan growing up? Memories about trips to the ballpark with family? Favorite players growing up? All excellent ways to get to know the player and provide great stories for your listeners. 

If you know that Player A looked a bit gimpy the night before, that’s an obvious follow up. You find out that he’s not in the lineup after seeing it on Twitter either before you got to the park or when you arrived. Well, get on that!

You have to be paying attention. You must try to notice the little things that most won’t think to look at. Again this goes back to knowing your team. Player A didn’t hustle to first like he normally does, so that’s an immediate red flag to me, at least to keep in my back pocket for the following day when more info is usually available about him. 

Now there are going to be times you will need to be flexible. Sometimes the best laid plans need to be put aside because news breaks. Don’t let it freak you out, although it may the first time you go through this. I can recall a day last year at Guaranteed Rate Field. It was a day or two after a Michael Kopech start. One that was marred by a rain delay and his velocity didn’t look all that great. Nobody thought much of it since he’s a young pitcher and maybe he was pitching into his velo that game. We were told that the GM would be meeting with the media in the dugout. Was it a trade? Did a player get released? Nope. He informed us that Kopech was going to undergo Tommy John surgery and would be lost for the rest of the season.

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Every other story was deemed backseat material when news like this breaks. Kopech was a face of the rebuild and a fan favorite and the information needed to be presented. I immediately texted the radio station to inform them of the situation and tweeted while I listened into the details. My pregame show and broadcast basically wrote themselves that day, but again, flexibility plays a key role in being able to pull this off under a deadline. 

Now again, when I say have a plan, you should likely have more than just that one. Plan B’s are sometimes needed. If the subject of Plan A isn’t available, you can’t cancel your pregame show because the first option was a dead end. This is where you have to dig deep and be able to carry on with a back up plan. It’s rare that a game that gets played nearly everyday will only net you one storyline worth following. 

Listen, read, pay attention and be aware of what is going on around you at all times. Trust me, the stories are there, you just have to find them. Sometimes they are in the most obvious places, but without that pre-show prep, you may just walk past and miss a great opportunity to tell tale. Be more like Colonel Smith of the “A-Team”, make sure that plan comes together. 

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