1050 ESPN is a joke !!

[SportsRadio8288]

So ESPN brass wonders why WEPN draws 1/3 the ratings that WFAN does...well here might be a few reasons why 1050 is a joke.....

A.) Your midday show with Max Kellerman is pretty good...HOWEVER, have you ever heard of a midday show with 2 hosts that arent even in studio together ? Thats right...Brian Kenny (Max's co-host) does the show from Bristol. Isnt Bristol 1 hour from NYC ? Couldnt he drive in ? What a joke.

B.) You cancel a local overnight show from 2a-6a with Gordon Damer for that national tool in LA Jason Smith, yep NY loves national talk based out of southern cali.

C.) Jim Rome is aired from 11pm-2a...and the show is taped from 12 hours earlier......regardles if Rome is a stud, the show is TAPED !!!

D.) PTI from 7-730, cutting into Tierneys time......its TAPED !!!!!

OTHER THAN MIKE AND MIKE AND TIRICO AND VAN PELT, WHICH APPEAR TO BE MANDATED PROGRAMMING FOR AFFILIATES...THE REST OF THE DAY SHOULD BE LIVE AND LOCAL, OR WEPN WILL NEVER GROW

 

[WTUX]

The sole purpose of WEPN is to clear ESPN Radio, and its commercials, in the Number 1 market. Pre-empting national shows for local hosts does not serve their purpose. Beating the FAN is not the goal, clearing spots is.

 

[DToTheJ]

And let's not forget, Romey is not an ESPN program.

1050 still carries Rome? Wow. I thought they had scratched it from the schedule altogether when BT got the nod for primetime. 1050 never carried Rome live. However, sister station ESPN 1000 in Chicago did, and started carrying the show around the same time as 1050. I believe it was the summer of 2004, I wanna say, that 1000 moved it to tape delay - it was a year the Cubs lost a division lead and missed the playoffs (something you New Yorkers know about from last year). And it might have been Dusty's last year there, as well. My point is, Rome on his show made the argument that "no sooner than the Chicago station moved my show to tape delay, the Cubs started tanking". Epic! Rack him!

 

[fennessy]

Actually, if you know and understand their strategy, whether you agree with it or not, it's not a joke. And I can cite some other examples.

ESPN Radio in New York does not have the expectations that a normal competitive radio product would have. 1050 ESPN exists to proliferate the brand ESPN...and that encompasses the cable networks, the magazine, the web site, and anything else they have that's called ESPN.

Also in New York is Bloomburg 1130. They're not trying to be competitive with WINS or WCBS-AM, they're an extension of the brand called Bloomburg Financial Services. If they don't show up in the book, they don't.

Right now I'm running a standards radio station in Florida, which serves a huge community of retirees called The Villages. You've probably seen the TV spots. The Villages, as an entity, also owns a newspaper, a cable news channel called VNN, and a low-end-of-the-dial AM station called WVLG. That radio station is merely an extension of the product line and brand name of The Vilages. Sometimes, coming out of a stopset back into music, where most people might play a jingle that sings the call letters, their jingles sing, " The Villages".

This sort of strategy is more widespread than you may have thought.

 

[SportsRadio8288]

Look, I worked in the radio industry, both from an on-air side and sales side. So I understand the programming aspects as well as revenue aspects....BUT HERES THE BOTTOM LINE....

If you do not like WFAN, and want an alternative, 1050 gives you little to like.

Same thing with WIP in Philly, 950 ESPN sucks.

Bottom line...the ESPN owned stations have NO Shot vs CBS owned stations...b/c CBS is all local hosts !!!

 

[HarrytheK1]

ESPN Radio in New York does not have the expectations that a normal competitive radio product would have. 1050 ESPN exists to proliferate the brand ESPN...and that encompasses the cable networks, the magazine, the web site, and anything else they have that's called ESPN.

Also in New York is Bloomburg 1130. They're not trying to be competitive with WINS or WCBS-AM, they're an extension of the brand called Bloomburg Financial Services. If they don't show up in the book, they don't.

How can the radio station serve to extend the brand if nobody listens to the radio station? You can't extend the brand by promoting it on a broadcast property that nobody listens to or even knows exists.

However, your concept is correct, but there's more to it than what you've stated. Bloomburg 1130 may have a miniscule listening audience, but what is important is who composes that audience. That's why whether or not they show up in the book doesn't mean much. The (relatively) small amount of listeners to that station will, and do, make use of the other products supplied by Bloomburg Financial Services. Bloomburg 1130 superserves its audience and, although there is a chicken or egg element to this, it also provides a means for Bloomburg to promote and sell its other offerings. Additionally, the accounts that buy time on the station are going after a very narrow demographic which Bloomburg 1130 provides. Those accounts could (and may) buy time on other stations, but the amount of waste in those other station's listening audiences is huge. Virtually everyone who listens to Bloomburg 1130 is a potential buyer of the products any advertiser on that station is selling.

A similar concept applies to ESPN 1050, although that station's target demographic is much broader than Bloomburg 1130's. Also, you can reach the ESPN 1050 audience on WFAN so ESPN does not have an exclusive format. The crucial aspect to ESPN 1050 is its play-by-play broadcasts. Listeners tuning in to hear their teams play will also be exposed to the ESPN brand's other products, which might result in (for instance) ESPN 1050 listeners tuning in Mike and Mike, rather than the Today show or the recycled Sportscenter from last night, when they turn on their TV in the morning.

 

[neo11]

Excellent point. I understand the rationale of having the brand name have a presence in the #1 market, to clear national ad accounts, however, I never understood why networks such as ESPN were content with just having a "presence," even when that presence results in bottom of the barrel ratings. Certainly I am sure their advertisers would be happier knowing that their spots are actually being heard in these various major markets they are being cleared in.

Bloomberg, as you pointed out, is a different case altogether as it superserves a very small but very affluent niche audience. Sports, on the other hand, is much more mass appeal. ESPN really should be doing better.

 

[davideduardo]

The sole purpose of WEPN is to clear ESPN Radio, and its commercials, in the Number 1 market. Pre-empting national shows for local hosts does not serve their purpose. Beating the FAN is not the goal, clearing spots is.

The objective of Disney's ESPN and Disney radio brands is to promote the Disney and ESPN brands. The branding is far more important than even the profitability of the two radio groups. Disney is very much about branding, so you can almost consider that the radio stations are in and of themselves advertising for the two brands and not ad media per se.

 

[motnow]

I saw the thread title and just had to throw this out there...sorry it goes off topic...
Personally, I'm just pissed that ESPN radio took over 107.1WLIR on the L.I.'s East end.
Granted, it was an alternative station running on fumes...but I used to listen to it.
and now...NOT.

 

[neo11]

Well don't be pissed at ESPN, be pissed at TMO, which has treated 'LIR as an afterthought for the past few years, jettisoning it each time they came up with a "brilliant" new station to replace it...remember 107.1 The Box? NeoBreeze and the whole Channelcasting experiment? Unfortunately, the station was killed long before it officially went off the air, and I say this as someone who used to be a big fan

 

[DToTheJ]

The objective of Disney's ESPN and Disney radio brands is to promote the Disney and ESPN brands. The branding is far more important than even the profitability of the two radio groups. Disney is very much about branding, so you can almost consider that the radio stations are in and of themselves advertising for the two brands and not ad media per se.

Yes, let's not forget New York's Radio Disney outlet at 1560 AM. That station is hard-pressed to even find itself even registering in most ratings books, let alone duking it out with WBBR. At least 1050 shows up in the ratings.

By the way, shouldn't they be showing up now in the ratings as "WEPN-AM/WNJE-AM/WLIR-FM", or at least the former two?

FYI - WLIR did not show up in the latest Nassau/Suffolk trend, either - but WEPN-AM has!

 

[ansky212]

A.) Your midday show with Max Kellerman is pretty good...HOWEVER, have you ever heard of a midday show with 2 hosts that arent even in studio together ? Thats right...Brian Kenny (Max's co-host) does the show from Bristol. Isnt Bristol 1 hour from NYC ? Couldnt he drive in ? What a joke.

Actually Bristol is more like 2 hours from NYC.

 

[davideduardo]

Yes, let's not forget New York's Radio Disney outlet at 1560 AM. That station is hard-pressed to even find itself even registering in most ratings books, let alone duking it out with WBBR. At least 1050 shows up in the ratings

Radio Disney targets 6 to 11, so they would not show up in today's ratings.

By the way, shouldn't they be showing up now in the ratings as "WEPN-AM/WNJE-AM/WLIR-FM", or at least the former two?

Only if they are 100% similcasts, with no local spots, will they be combined by Arbitron at the station's choice.

 

[barthgimble]

Actually, if you know and understand their strategy, whether you agree with it or not, it's not a joke. And I can cite some other examples.

ESPN Radio in New York does not have the expectations that a normal competitive radio product would have. 1050 ESPN exists to proliferate the brand ESPN...and that encompasses the cable networks, the magazine, the web site, and anything else they have that's called ESPN.

Also in New York is Bloomburg 1130. They're not trying to be competitive with WINS or WCBS-AM, they're an extension of the brand called Bloomburg Financial Services. If they don't show up in the book, they don't.

Right now I'm running a standards radio station in Florida, which serves a huge community of retirees called The Villages. You've probably seen the TV spots. The Villages, as an entity, also owns a newspaper, a cable news channel called VNN, and a low-end-of-the-dial AM station called WVLG. That radio station is merely an extension of the product line and brand name of The Vilages. Sometimes, coming out of a stopset back into music, where most people might play a jingle that sings the call letters, their jingles sing, " The Villages".

This sort of strategy is more widespread than you may have thought.
You guys do a great job of programming WVLG and promoting the Villages. It reminds me of WIOD in the 70's with Big Wilson, Bill Calder,
Mike Renieri, and Larry King. Live and local at its best. You deserve a Marconi for best small market station. Sorry if I strayed off-topic.
Anyway, 1050 should pick up Colin Cowherd and go local in place of Tirico and friends. They are too dull for New York.

 

[fennessy]

Actually, I'm the GM of the rival station not owned and operated by The Villages, WRZN-AM 720.