It's Official - Sports on 92.3 August 29th

[Rusty Muck]

But this development does prove one thing we can almost always expect from OMW: The scoop.

Indeed it does. OMW scored a solid one here...and not for the first time, nor, I'm sure, the last.

To be fair, it was a team effort.

 

[Rusty Muck]

Well, how about them apples!

92.3 The Fan is a reality.

And on 92.3 itself, no crazy switchover to 98.5, and NCX goes here, and this goes there.

Very good.

Hopefully, the bratty bunch at the Galleria will now be forced to shape up (and grow up) now that someone else is using the sandbox.

It still doesn't answer or quiet the performance issues that will be faced on 92.3. I have serious doubts as whether being in mono will be enough to give it enough coverage.

And again, the point of having duel flagships for PBP is silly. Nonsensical if 92.3 landed an everyday team like the Indians, for example. Then it would HAVE to move to 98.5. It likely will have to do so anyway in a year or two.

And how does the launch of "92.3 The Fan" matter in the realm of the lineups at 98.5, 102.1 and 104.1? Goodness knows that this isn't going to be cheap in the least.

 

[SportsDotCom]

Kiley & Booms in the morning sounds like a disaster. Both guys are way to angry and over the hill. Honestly, they'd be a much better fit in the afternoon. Problem is Adam The Bull is not morning material either.

 

[vjm]

Well, how about them apples!

92.3 The Fan is a reality.

And on 92.3 itself, no crazy switchover to 98.5, and NCX goes here, and this goes there.

Very good.

Hopefully, the bratty bunch at the Galleria will now be forced to shape up (and grow up) now that someone else is using the sandbox.

It still doesn't answer or quiet the performance issues that will be faced on 92.3. I have serious doubts as whether being in mono will be enough to give it enough coverage.

And again, the point of having duel flagships for PBP is silly. Nonsensical if 92.3 landed an everyday team like the Indians, for example. Then it would HAVE to move to 98.5. It likely will have to do so anyway in a year or two.

And how does the launch of "92.3 The Fan" matter in the realm of the lineups at 98.5, 102.1 and 104.1? Goodness knows that this isn't going to be cheap in the least.

I think this is just to see if the FM sports talk format will fly here in Cleveland.

If it's a winner, then it could switch places with WNCX.

If it's a failure, then 92.3 probably gets it's 745th format change into something else, and NCX, DOK, and QAL roll merrily along as they have been all these years.

It would look really bad if they put The Fan on 98.5 and it flops.

It flops on 92.3...CBS says "Oh well, we tried, but our 3 main stations are all still solid as a rock, so no harm no foul. So let's just fire the jukebox back up on 92.3 and cut our losses."

 

[vjm]

And to put out a fire before it begins...

I've seen people on their twitter machines wondering if the fact 92.3 The Fan left the 12-3p slot open is in hopes of snagging Jim Rome.

Not gonna happen.

More than likely, somebody's coming in to do a 10a-3p show, as well as potentially 7p-12a (considering the Fan stated in their press release they were gonna do postgame shows after Indians/Browns/Cavs/Buckeyes games)

 

[Rusty Muck]

And to put out a fire before it begins...

I've seen people on their twitter machines wondering if the fact 92.3 The Fan left the 12-3p slot open is in hopes of snagging Jim Rome.

Not gonna happen.

More than likely, somebody's coming in to do a 10a-3p show, as well as potentially 7p-12a (considering the Fan stated in their press release they were gonna do postgame shows after Indians/Browns/Cavs/Buckeyes games)

I'm in total agreement with you on that. Rome only gets his first hour back on 850 if GKB panics over a ratings decline, or if when they jettison off KNR2 to some LMA agreement or whatnot.

Same thing re: WMMS. Putting Rome on there would make sense given the man talk, but wouldn't it have been done already? I can't see it happening over there, either. At least enough to make me think that it's possible.

 

[Capulet]

Kiley & Booms in the morning sounds like a disaster. Both guys are way to angry and over the hill. Honestly, they'd be a much better fit in the afternoon. Problem is Adam The Bull is not morning material either.

Booms will implode. Always does.

 

[Tim]

A little bit of revenue is better than no revenue at all. And, let's keep whatever we can get til it eventually fades away. That must be how CBS feels about classic rock on 98.5 WNCX.

But, putting such a potentially killer format on such a marginal-coverage FM to me, will be embarrassing....especially when you're outside of Cuyahoga County.

CBS must not be confident that a full-signal sportstalker can be really successful without major league play-by-play from at least one team.

I believe what Nathan is saying: sooner or later 98.5 will become the home of CBS sportstalk in Cleveland. Makes way, way too much sense not to happen. Will never, ever be that big on a frequency half the metro population simply can't hear.

Everybody doesn't have luxury-car-type car radios. Wonder if the CBS folks realize that?

 

[fybush]

But this development does prove one thing we can almost always expect from OMW: The scoop.

Indeed it does. OMW scored a solid one here...and not for the first time, nor, I'm sure, the last.

To be fair, it was a team effort.

I was speaking of "OMW" the entity, not just "OMW" the Primary Editorial Voice. ;D

 

[Ron Lee]

Kiley & Booms in the morning sounds like a disaster. Both guys are way to angry and over the hill. Honestly, they'd be a much better fit in the afternoon. Problem is Adam The Bull is not morning material either.

Booms will implode. Always does.

I agree. Booms has a long history if imploding. Why would this be any different? Id look for Steve Czaban in the mornings if/when this does happen.

Im anxious to see who they have going up against WKNR's flagship show, Rizzo. That will be an interesting battle to watch unfold. To me, that seems like a pivitol hire and pivitol opportunity to get a big early victory for CBS, no???

 

[Rusty Muck]

Kiley & Booms in the morning sounds like a disaster. Both guys are way to angry and over the hill. Honestly, they'd be a much better fit in the afternoon. Problem is Adam The Bull is not morning material either.

Booms will implode. Always does.

I agree. Booms has a long history if imploding. Why would this be any different? Id look for Steve Czaban in the mornings if/when this does happen.

Im anxious to see who they have going up against WKNR's flagship show, Rizzo. That will be an interesting battle to watch unfold. To me, that seems like a pivitol hire and pivitol opportunity to get a big early victory for CBS, no???

"Kiley and Booms" imploded on FSR because Premiere Radio Networks let Booms' contract run out. Booms actually had very little to do with that.

In fact, the FSR show was probably the most successful venture both Kiley and Booms ever worked on.

 

[Capulet]

Kiley & Booms in the morning sounds like a disaster. Both guys are way to angry and over the hill. Honestly, they'd be a much better fit in the afternoon. Problem is Adam The Bull is not morning material either.

Booms will implode. Always does.

I agree. Booms has a long history if imploding. Why would this be any different?

This hire speaks loudly to the fact that the CBS person who made this hire does not know what time it is.

 

[1sttimecaller]

Nathan,
do you think for just a second his contract wasnt renewed because he was a pain in the arse? Also FSR had booms hosting a sunday night show for about three months after k&B's were cancelled.

What about his WTAM fill in work?

What about his morning gig in Texas?

Boom goes boom.

 

[Ed Felson]

I hope to hell that Chuck keeps it together long enough for K&B to take off; it would be great radio if he doesn't go Chernobyl by the end of the third month. God knows it's a ten-fold improvement over anything 'KNR has to offer (especially Mike & Mike).

As for his time at FSR, he'll tell you he left because he was making $400K a year and the new management didn't want to keep paying him, but others will tell you that it was his chemical dependency (e.g. failed tests, etc.). Lots more that could be said, but let's wait to see how this plays out.

A few links:
http://www.voy.com/123500/
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Where_is_comedian_Chuck_Booms
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_did_chuck_booms_leave_the_jock

 

[Rusty Muck]

Nathan,
do you think for just a second his contract wasnt renewed because he was a pain in the arse? Also FSR had booms hosting a sunday night show for about three months after k&B's were cancelled.

Actually, that was three years after K&B was cancelled - he went back in 2006 for a few months of fill-in work. The network never committed to offering him anything.

What about his WTAM fill in work?

Canceled because of Chuck Galieti's own implosion.

Boom goes boom.

Like 107.3? ;D

 

[Rusty Muck]

I think this is just to see if the FM sports talk format will fly here in Cleveland.

If it's a winner, then it could switch places with WNCX.

If it's a failure, then 92.3 probably gets it's 745th format change into something else, and NCX, DOK, and QAL roll merrily along as they have been all these years.

It would look really bad if they put The Fan on 98.5 and it flops.

It flops on 92.3...CBS says "Oh well, we tried, but our 3 main stations are all still solid as a rock, so no harm no foul. So let's just fire the jukebox back up on 92.3 and cut our losses."

I think you also nailed it here. Plus they may feel reluctant to move WNCX down to 92.3. That or it was decided by the Cleveland cluster management, and they feel a need to protect the station.

The acquisition of play-by-play contracts, however, will be key. The Indians and Browns contracts won't be available for another year. Maybe they can build up an audience for 92.3, wipe away WKNR without even trying, and also extend WNCX for another year or two. Then when they go after CC for either or both PBP prizes, make the 92.3-98.5 swap.

 

[Whiplash]

Congratulations to Cleveland on getting another FM CBS Sports Fan. We sure like it here in Pittsburgh. Don't forget the Fan knocked ESPN 1250 here out of the format in less than a year.

 

[OhioMediaWatch]

I was speaking of "OMW" the entity, not just "OMW" the Primary Editorial Voice. ;D

Though Nathan didn't write any of the actual blog entries - he only writes if he's under the "Secondary" handle - he was a big help in all this.

He had some answers I just didn't have (like Adam "The Bull"'s correct time slot), and was getting similar answers that I was getting from different sources.

I'm sure Nathan will say the same as I have...the breadth and depth of sources previously unused, many from outside the market, was stunning...at least to me. This thing brought us out-of-market reliable sources like a magnet. Seeing all that, it's no wonder our predictions mostly turned out to become reality.

As for the whole 92.3-vs-98.5 thing, I did spend some time speculating about that (but clearly labeling it as such, and noting frequently that we were hearing nothing from the Halle Building about it).

Some factors in WNCX's current situation and near future led me to add to that speculation. In the end, they decided not to pull the plug. 'NCX (and Maxwell) may not be out of the woods yet...though I agree any move of this station to 98.5 happens to coincide with the first big PBP contract.

Does anyone know the renewal dates, for sure, for the big three contracts? And for OSU?

I've heard the Browns are the first of the three pro teams, reportedly up at Oak Tree in 2013.

 

[DToTheJ]

In addition to OMW and all involved, a BIG thanks to the Internet! Nobody would even have gotten a sniff of CBS' plans for an all-sports station and easily shared this info had the Internet not have existed!

 

[X-Nooz]

Are everyone's elbows significantly sprained from all the self-backslapping yet?