• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

NFL playoffs on WTAM, not WKNR

C

collegeDJ86

I was coming home from Indiana today and was listening to the early NFL football game, first on WING 1410 Dayton, then on WBNS 1460 Columbus. Knowing that I'd eventually lose 1460, I surfed down to WKNR to verify that the game was running on there. I find out, rather, that WKNR continued running ESPN Sportscenter or something like that. I eventually stumbled back up the dial to WTAM and heard the game on there.

Now, I understand the Tribe and Cavs and Browns all have play-by-play contracts with WTAM. But this was simply a Westwood One feed for two NFL games today. How does the sports station not land this for programming? WING and WBNS I believe both use ESPN programming just like WKNR (in fact, I think WING is fulltime ESPN). Can someone help me understand why this happened (and I'm sure will continue to happen throughout the playoffs)?
 
> Now, I understand the Tribe and Cavs and Browns all have
> play-by-play contracts with WTAM. But this was simply a
> Westwood One feed for two NFL games today. How does the
> sports station not land this for programming?

WTAM has run Monday Night Football for a long time (and maybe Sunday Night Football, though I'm not sure about that last one). MNF/SNF radio rights are owned by Westwood One...and as the season affiliate for such, WTAM gets the playoffs.

-OA<P ID="signature">______________
Ohio Media Watch - <a target="_blank" href=http://ohiomedia.blogspot.com>http://ohiomedia.blogspot.com</a></P>
 
> > Now, I understand the Tribe and Cavs and Browns all have
> > play-by-play contracts with WTAM. But this was simply a
> > Westwood One feed for two NFL games today. How does the
> > sports station not land this for programming?
>
> WTAM has run Monday Night Football for a long time (and
> maybe Sunday Night Football, though I'm not sure about that
> last one). MNF/SNF radio rights are owned by Westwood
> One...and as the season affiliate for such, WTAM gets the
> playoffs.

WKNR lost those rights a long time ago. By default, WTAM (being the apparent all-relevant sports station) picked them up. And it doesn't conflict with the Browns games at all, sad to say.

- Nathan Obral
 
Sadly WTAM does not run Sunday Night Football. Your best bet for hearing that in Cleveland is from WFAN 600 in NYC. I often listen to it during the season and during Cavs conflicts when MNF is bumped off WTAM. It's a shame WTAM can't move those conflicts to another Cleveland station. I couldn't listen to the playoff game Saturday night since it was bumped off by the Cavs. WFAN was my best possibility.

It should be mentioned WW1 also airs day games, but no Cleveland station has ever aired those as far as I know. The only requirement is they can't run against the Browns. Same goes for Sports Radio USA's Sunday NFL play by play.

> WTAM has run Monday Night Football for a long time (and
> maybe Sunday Night Football, though I'm not sure about that
> last one). MNF/SNF radio rights are owned by Westwood
> One...and as the season affiliate for such, WTAM gets the
> playoffs.
>
> -OA
>
 
Monday vs. Sunday, And Extra Radio Games

> Sadly WTAM does not run Sunday Night Football. Your best
> bet for hearing that in Cleveland is from WFAN 600 in NYC.
> I often listen to it during the season and during Cavs
> conflicts when MNF is bumped off WTAM. It's a shame WTAM
> can't move those conflicts to another Cleveland station. I
> couldn't listen to the playoff game Saturday night since it
> was bumped off by the Cavs. WFAN was my best possibility.

I wonder if what WTAM will do next year? "Monday Night Football" moves to cable's ESPN, and Sunday nights will be the province of NBC. Will WTAM consider "SNF" to be the over-air heir apparent to ABC's show, or will they stick with the Monday night game?

We may not know this for a while. For one, the Sunday night game may be more attractive to radio stations because NBC will have rights to grab the best game of the week late in the season (with some caveats).

> It should be mentioned WW1 also airs day games, but no
> Cleveland station has ever aired those as far as I know.
> The only requirement is they can't run against the Browns.
> Same goes for Sports Radio USA's Sunday NFL play by play.

I don't think the new day games from Sports USA Radio get a lot of affiliates in NFL markets. I wonder if 'KNR has ever considered this package or if they'd even be allowed to run it (out of pattern with the Browns).

-OA<P ID="signature">______________
Ohio Media Watch - <a target="_blank" href=http://ohiomedia.blogspot.com>http://ohiomedia.blogspot.com</a></P>
 
One word: Sirius.

They offer every NFL game, with your choice of listening to either the home team or the road team broadcast. I've had it for about three weeks and quite honestly I can't think of a single reason why I would listen to local Cleveland radio ever again.
 
Re: Monday vs. Sunday, And Extra Radio Games

> I wonder if what WTAM will do next year? "Monday Night
> Football" moves to cable's ESPN, and Sunday nights will be
> the province of NBC. Will WTAM consider "SNF" to be the
> over-air heir apparent to ABC's show, or will they stick
> with the Monday night game?
>


I've wondered about that as well. What will be the "big game" on nights. There are many stations that only air MNF. How will they decide what is more important?? SNF is the bigger Tv wise no doubt but MNF has the heritage, and at least radio wise, will get the better announcers assuming they continue with their current broadcast team.


> I don't think the new day games from Sports USA Radio get a
> lot of affiliates in NFL markets. I wonder if 'KNR has ever
> considered this package or if they'd even be allowed to run
> it (out of pattern with the Browns).
>
> -OA
>

OA, do you know how many stations run Sports USA's games??? Personally, I have yet to come across any that do. They all run WW1.

I suppose stations feel there is little desire to hear an out of market game and in most cases, I believe they are probably correct. But at the same time, NFL games would make good weekend filler compared to infomercials.
 
Re: Monday vs. Sunday, And Extra Radio Games

> OA, do you know how many stations run Sports USA's games???
> Personally, I have yet to come across any that do. They all
> run WW1.

No idea how many affiliates they have, but I'd assume they are dwarfed by WW1's coverage.

> I suppose stations feel there is little desire to hear an
> out of market game and in most cases, I believe they are
> probably correct. But at the same time, NFL games would make
> good weekend filler compared to infomercials.

I don't know for sure, but I'd assume there are territorial rights restrictions in NFL markets for these games. Here, for example, perhaps a station IN the Cleveland market couldn't pick up the day games from either WW1 or Sports USA. Or maybe they just don't pick it up because the scheduling is at the whim of the local team's game time. But that's just a wild guess on my part.

-OA <P ID="signature">______________
Ohio Media Watch - <a target="_blank" href=http://ohiomedia.blogspot.com>http://ohiomedia.blogspot.com</a></P>
 
Re: Monday vs. Sunday, And Extra Radio Games

> > OA, do you know how many stations run Sports USA's
> games???
> > Personally, I have yet to come across any that do. They
> all
> > run WW1.
>
> No idea how many affiliates they have, but I'd assume they
> are dwarfed by WW1's coverage.
>
> > I suppose stations feel there is little desire to hear an
> > out of market game and in most cases, I believe they are
> > probably correct. But at the same time, NFL games would
> make
> > good weekend filler compared to infomercials.
>
> I don't know for sure, but I'd assume there are territorial
> rights restrictions in NFL markets for these games. Here,
> for example, perhaps a station IN the Cleveland market
> couldn't pick up the day games from either WW1 or Sports
> USA. Or maybe they just don't pick it up because the
> scheduling is at the whim of the local team's game time.
> But that's just a wild guess on my part.
>
> -OA
>
WXLW in Indianapolis airs SPorts USA NFL Games
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom