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If you run a sports station you probably know it's a tough task dealing with talent at times. The successful ones can be very opinionated. At the Radio Ink Sports Radio Conference in Dallas, consultant Scott Masteller led a panel about coaching Sports Talk talent. Masteller was joined by Weiss Agency VP Heather Cohen, WEEI Brand Manager Kevin Graham, XTRA-San Diego PD Brian Long, and Ryan Maguire, PD of KDKA-Pittsburgh. Here's what they had to say.
Long told attendees that coaching isn't just a thing, it's everything. Great coaching is what sets talent apart. It isn't only air checking, it's about creating a link to your talent. "Talk to them about their lives. Coaching is about creating great communicators, and opening them up to tell their stories." So what did the others have to say?
Maguire noted that being a great talent coach is about being "part boss, part coach, part shrink and part pal." Maguire said that it's important to find a way to reach out to your talent as individuals. It's the most fun and most difficult part of the job. Building equity and trust (with your talent)." Cohen says mentoring is everything and it's important to manage expectations. "Part of that includes protecting your talent. Good managers protect their talent from dust-ups, and yes, even sales."
WEEI Brand Manager Kevin Graham has worked with some of the most high-profile talent in Sports/Talk. He says being able to relate to your talent, to "your guys," is an absolute necessity. "Your talent needs the support to win. You have to help your talent to understand that you are there to help them with, to help them get ratings."
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Scott Masteller is a veteran Sports radio programmer and talent coach with more than 23 years experience in the industry. He started in sports media in 1991 as a baseball play-by-play broadcaster for the minor leagues in Wichita, KS. His entry into Sports radio was with WLAP/Lexington, KY, on-air in afternoons, doing play-by-play, and as program director. He moved on to other markets, including Salt Lake City in 1996 and Portland, OR, in 1997; in both cities he was PD and afternoon personality. He became PD of ESPN-FM in Dallas in 2001, launching the station in the market. Masteller joined ESPN as senior director/content in 2006. He was later named senior director of affiliate and syndicated content, a position he held until November 2014, with a focus on affiliated and syndicated content, talent coaching, and PD development.
Heather Cohen is executive vice president of the Weiss Agency, a broadcast talent agency that represents and develops the careers of many of the industry's most successful local and syndicated personalities. Cohen joined the Weiss Agency from GreenStone Media, where she was VP of programming. She arrived at GreenStone from New York's legendary WOR, where she was APD and responsible for the station's local and national on-air content, programs, and production. She also served as executive producer for WOR's award-winning Joan Hamburg Show.
Brian Long is PD of XTRA 1360/Fox Sports & KOGO, San Diego. His career in spoken word formats began in his hometown of Kansas City, at the heritage KMBZ. In 1998, Long headed to California for stints in Palm Springs, Bakersfield, and Los Angeles. During his time at ESPN in L.A., he was part of the programming management team and also hosted a variety of on-air programs. In 2007, 2008, and 2009 L.A. Daily News recognized him as one of its Top Ten Sports Radio Personalities. In late 2010, Long became program director at ESPN in Seattle, and he was later promoted to senior director of programming for Bonneville Seattle. He took his current post in early 2014.
Ryan Maguire, program director of CBS Radio's KDKA-FM (93.7 The Fan)/Pittsburgh, is a broadcast professional, talent coach, and brand marketing manager with over two decades of experience in the Sports Talk radio format. The stations he's managed have all shown a quick improvement in both ratings and revenue, as well as improved digital metrics. Maguire has received numerous honors for his work in station management: Radio Ink magazine named him one of the Best Program Directors in America in 2011, and the station he programmed was nominated for a Marconi Award in 2014. Maguire has also gained experience in front of the microphone as well, having served as a sports reporter, anchor, talk show host, and play-by-play announcer.
