5-16-13
Just over 25 years ago WFAN in New York was the only Sports Talk radio station in the United States. Today there over 700 carrying the format, five national sports networks and many other regional sports networks. Cumulus has 73 stations carrying sports. Working together Cumulus and CBS now have 280 affiliates taking programming from the CBS Radio Sports Network that launched less than six months ago. Cumulus CEO Lew Dickey says "I wish I had a sports station in every market." He says we're going to see more and more stations going sports. "It would not surprise me to see 1,000 stations programming sports and we're going to see more sports stations moving to the FM.
Everyone agrees because of the sound quality, and because they were born listening to FM not AM, the younger demos are on the FM dial. And, moving sports to FM is expanding the listening base. Dickey says it's not a zero sum game. KDKA Program Director Ryan Maguire told the Radio Ink Sports Conference crowd yesterday that "music formats on FM were in trouble," because personalities no longer play the role they used to on music stations. And sports is the one place you get those personalities in Boston, Pittsburgh, Dallas, San Francisco and other cities. "We're being asked to be on FM."
"We've got a real story to tell here. The story is the format, engagement and the hosts." Another theme at the conference was the ability to make more money in the sports format, partly due to the blurred wall between "church and state." Live reads and in-game sponsorships can be woven more into the content than in any other format. And hosts endorsing products has become big business.
CBS Radio Senior Vice President of Programming Chris Oliviero said, talent is the secret sauce that helps you make money. "Talent is foreground. There is an aura of celebrity that you can monetize. To the advantage of sports radio, the talent on music radio has been pushed aside. "It's the sports host and the callers. "It's entertainment. It's emotion."
Add a Comment Send This Story To A Friend
