One station for sports... the other for sports?

[KMGX]

"One station for News, the other ALL SPORTS ALL THE TIME!" ...or you know, not so much. Today, at 3pm News 92.3 KTAR and Sports 620 KTAR both carried the press conference officially announcing the hiring of the new Arizona Cardinals head coach Mike Whisenhunt. If you're going to seperate the two brands, then seperate them entirely, why carry out the crossover between the two. I doubt the 65 year olds that listen to 92-3 really care about another head coach brought in to the revolving door of failure that is the Arizona Cardinals organization. Couldn't we have another hour of McBland fill-in asking whether or not their plants suffered frost bite? Although I guess Ken Barns--or whoever it was filling in for McBland (you can really see I found him to be interesting enough to recall his name) could use this as a springboard for the final half hour of his show. "Do you like the new hiring, what do you think, give me a call!!!" Show prep made easy... ON FM!

Could radio in Phoenix get much worse?

 

[DrAkbar]

Hmmmm...what part of NEWS 92~three don't you get? New GM for the Bidbirds is NEWS! TMISU made the right decision on this call. However Nurse Jeff and I have taken a few points away for Stan Barnes filling in for Captain Stupor. If they're going to do Barnes, then team him with Ed Walsh so we can dream of the glory that was once 9~ten KFWhyEye!

 

[oldiesfan6479]

TMISU made the right decision on this call.

KMGX - 1
Dr. Akbar - 0

Doc, I have to side with "Magic 94" on this one. They have the whole Sports
Parking Lot 620 for long-form stuff such as pressers, even if they have to
cutaway from a syndie offering (although in this case it was at 3:00pm so it
was an easy toss from their local elongated PMD show).

Sports on Snooze 92/3 should be limited to the current three-minute windows,
along with the "sports star makes police blotter" stories that may crop up from
time to time in the Ned 'n' Connie 'n' Ded 'n' Heidi reads...even at the expense
of staying with McBland and "is it below freezing where you are?" ;D

If they're going to do Barnes, then team him with Ed Walsh so we can dream of the glory that was once 9~ten KFWhyEye!

The Walshmeister is currently unavailable, having just started an AMD host gig at
N/T WBZ Boston, succeeding recently retired long-timer Gary LaPierre.

 

[zumahans]

Nope. Akbar's right.

PS I did my first live newscast on Magic 94, KMGX.

My board operator was some kid named Brian ... wonder if he's still in broadcasting.

I think his last name was Jeffries.

 

[brian4]

So is it News (92.3) when a professional sports team gets a new head coach? We won't be able to tell until The Great One decides to step down as the manager of the Coyotes. KT'R is in bed with the Cards, D-Backs, and Suns so it isn't shocking when they interrupt news to talk about those sports. The Coyotes will be the true test.

 

[rockjock420]

Does anyone still care about hockey?

 

[KMGX]

Nope. Akbar's right.

PS I did my first live newscast on Magic 94, KMGX.

My board operator was some kid named Brian ... wonder if he's still in broadcasting.

I think his last name was Jeffries.

My 'nick' or 'handle' on these boards has nothing to do with Magic 94 KMGX nor the station in Bend, Oregon by that name, it has more to do with one of my online ventures, plus two of my initials, etc (long story).

I love sports, I enjoy sports talk radio, which is why the seperation of the two brands of KTAR was intriguing to say the least. (Naturally, the style of radio KTAR does is absolutely disgraceful in a market like this, but that's neither here nor there), I feel that if you have two stations, you could use your SPORTS station to cover a SPORTS story, and leave your other one covering news and "engaging talk radio". Maybe even announce that you can catch the press conference on Sports 620 KTAR. It just seems like you have nothing going on with your station when you devote two frequencies to covering a minor event--the hiring of another head coach to the worst organization in the history of professional athletics.

As mentioned above, when the Coyotes inevitable fire Gretsky or when "breaking news" occurs with that organization, News 92.3 won't be there, you can count on that. I would say the greatest hockey player being dismissed from an organization would rank higher on the chart (by a little) than a no-name being hired to coach the team with most losing record in all of sports.

 

[DrAkbar]

In case you missed it, Bruce Jacobs of KFWhyEye had the Bidbirds' new head coach on Thursday morning. It's news and News 92~three was right for carrying the press conference. Even the market's resident expert from Pt Hueneme agrees

The Nurse and I think there's a danger in getting too focused on whether a story belongs on the News station or the Sports station. With NBA, NFL, NHL, MLB teams in Phoenix, sports transcends all formats. We think TMISU should reconsider their position of keeping play by play off News 92~three, where Hip Hop used to live. An after 7pm weekday game is far more interesting than the kindergarteners currently on air. And who on this board would really miss Michael Dixon talking about a Panama Canal cruise Sunday afternoon if the BidBirds pre-empted him?

Is Pat McMcMahon boring where you are?

 

[porfavor]

Easy calling the AZ Cards the worst organization in the history of professional athletics...you'll hurt the feelings of the Detroit Lions!!!
LOL!

I have to disagree with you about KTAR covering anything to do with 99. It would be too big of an international story for it to be ignored! I think the line has blurred so dramatically between sports & entertainment, entertainment & sports, news & entertainment, entertainment & news, sports & news, news & sports, news, sports, & entertainment....it's all one big cluster-you-know-what.

620 KTAR covered "Operation Slapshot" last year (as did every news outlet on the planet) - so why wouldn't News 92.3 KTAR?

 

[KMGX]

In case you missed it, Bruce Jacobs of KFWhyEye had the Bidbirds' new head coach on Thursday morning. It's news and News 92~three was right for carrying the press conference. Even the market's resident expert from Pt Hueneme agrees

The Nurse and I think there's a danger in getting too focused on whether a story belongs on the News station or the Sports station. With NBA, NFL, NHL, MLB teams in Phoenix, sports transcends all formats. We think TMISU should reconsider their position of keeping play by play off News 92~three, where Hip Hop used to live. An after 7pm weekday game is far more interesting than the kindergarteners currently on air. And who on this board would really miss Michael Dixon talking about a Panama Canal cruise Sunday afternoon if the BidBirds pre-empted him?

Is Pat McMcMahon boring where you are?

Bruce Jacobs runs a "talk" show, there's a difference between conducting an interview with a coach on a show where you talk about anything and covering a press conference on two of your stations... although I remember when the Suns fired Paul Westphal they carried the press conference on K-LITE.

Honestly, I don't think they should have ever gone FM, nor seperated brands. I'd love to hear sports on FM as it's clearer and whatnot. Nonetheless, that would certainly go against the split. Dr. Akbar is right though, I'd rather hear another Cardinals loss than listen to Michael Dixon tell us how great Peru was... then again I think any sporting event would be a marked improvement over Pat McBland's conservative alter-ego Jay Snorence.

 

[Legend City]

I am a big fan of travel shows, but not the kind on KTAR. They are all about dreary package vacations on giant floating shopping malls of a boat, briefly stopping at an ugly touristic port which usually consists of 2 streets full of bars and people selling crappy nicknacks.

Do a fun show, about going on holiday to off beat and scary places and finding hotels for $10 a nite.

Oh, I forgot, that wouldn't fit in with the mantra of "safe radio"

As for sports, much better in FM, I'd try to simulcast it with TV but there is always a lag somewhere that kills it.

What is the deal with 860? Every time I hit the button its just an endless loop promo. How much money is being lost by doing that?

 

[KMGX]

860 Simulcasts the 620 feed during games and local shows, then goes to the endless loop of 3 promos during ESPN/network programming. What a waste of a frequency.

 

[DrAkbar]

860 Simulcasts the 620 feed during games and local shows, then goes to the endless loop of 3 promos during ESPN/network programming. What a waste of a frequency.

Just keeping the carrier on until they announce an LMA or sale of 8~sixty.

No one's said this before, but the Nurse and I think TMISU might have a Wii problem convincing the FCC that turning over their SF stations to Entercom is a good idea.

 

[rockjock420]

860 doesn't carry the games (at least they aren't supposed to) unless there is a conflict. If you simulcast both stations indefinitely, then you are going to piss off a bunch of people when all-of-a-sudden 860 disappears (which will happen sooner rather than later). I have no idea why they carry the morning and afternoon drive shows though.

 

[rockjock420]

Do a fun show, about going on holiday to off beat and scary places and finding hotels for $10 a nite.

Travel shows are paid for by travel companies. I'm sure Carnival Cruises (or whomever) would love to pay to be on a show telling listeners that cruises suck and they should stay in a $10 a night hotel room.

While they're at it, KTAR should change their computer show to a show about looking things up in books at the library... then I'm sure Cox would fill it up with spots for high speed internet!

 

[zumahans]

860 Simulcasts the 620 feed during games and local shows, then goes to the endless loop of 3 promos during ESPN/network programming. What a waste of a frequency.

Probably has more listeners than 960 or 1360.

Certainly as compelling.

 

[tfg46]

Speaking of sports, I was absentmindedly preset-surfing the other day -- about a week ago, I suppose -- and I heard them broadcasting an ASU Men's B-Ball game on the mighty 1260. It was 5:00-ish in the afternoon, and I was on the 101 at Chaparral. The signal was coming in crystal clear, so I guess they really had the hamsters spinning overtime...

G&A were on 620 at the time, so it looks like Devils basketball isn't high enough on the totem pole to preempt them.

--Clifton Gray

 

[jayaz]

kmgx

The hiring of a new head coach is NEWS not just sports. Your comments about 92.3 are so far off base I shan't comment further.

Jay

 

[jayaz]

Dr Akbar

As I read further your comments are right on, and yet, the writer of the first complaint continues to defend his comments even in light of everyone else telling him he's wrong. I've learned a few lessons in life one of them is if everyone disagrees with you find a way to say "I was taken out of context, I agreed with what all of you said, you must have misheard what I was saying"

Jay

 

[KMGX]

kmgx

The hiring of a new head coach is NEWS not just sports. Your comments about 92.3 are so far off base I shan't comment further.

Jay

Care to provide examples of how my comments are so far off? Anyone can make an ad hominem argument, but facts/examples are usually helpful in contributing to discourse.

the writer of the first complaint continues to defend his comments even in light of everyone else telling him he's wrong. I've learned a few lessons in life one of them is if everyone disagrees with you find a way to say "I was taken out of context, I agreed with what all of you said, you must have misheard what I was saying"

Everyone telling me I'm wrong? One person now constitutes "everyone" ? Oh, I get it, since you disagree that somehow makes your opinion the "group" view. I expressed my opinion, if you don't like it, fine... but rather than just piling on, how about offering a constructive piece of criticism.