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What's the best sports station in the country?

M

mrpeavey

Got into this with a friend of mine who thinks EEI because they topped out #1 12+ last year. I said that anybody would have done well with the Sox and Pats both winning it all. But if not them, who else?
 
:mad: Trust me, none of the sports stations in L.A. would make the list.
KLAC is a really terrible Laker homer station, and KSPN and KMPC are mostly syndicated feeds from ESPN and SNR. One exception on KSPN is Mason and Ireland, who are actually pretty good.
 
I don't think any of us would have too much trouble recognizing good shows or talents, but is there anybody out there putting out a great product top to bottom? Or are we just a bunch of satellite-fed wastes of airspace?
 
I used to love sports talk. I thought one on one and sportsfan radio networks in the mid 90s was the best.

but espn used disney money to crush all competitors and make their smarmy frat boy style the prevailing national style.

in st louis kmox has the most bland uninteresting tripe for 15 years but they got all the ratings so some say they're good until they lost the cards now they've come back to earth.

I don't listen to any sports talk now its all garbage.
 
Is there anybody doing anything local that's worth anything?

Here are my qualifications:
1) Significant local content
2) A degree of local talent
3) Noticeable imaging
4) A substantive promotions calendar
5) Decent revenue generation (define 'decent' as you will)
 
steve90031 said:
:mad: Trust me, none of the sports stations in L.A. would make the list.
KLAC is a really terrible Laker homer station, and KSPN and KMPC are mostly syndicated feeds from ESPN and SNR. One exception on KSPN is Mason and Ireland, who are actually pretty good.
Click to expand...

I totally agree with that...KLAC is nauseating to listen to when they're kissing Laker ass, absolutely awful and unprofessional. With KSPN, as long as ABC/ESPN continues to pump money into that station, they'll always been around, plus in some dayparts, they're beating KLAC (especially in mid-morning, where Dan Patrick beats Jim Rome, according to the L.A. Daily News). Meanwhile, KMPC is on its last legs, and I've been listening to them since they became all-sports in 1998. I listen to Tony Bruno and Dave Smith, and that's about it.
 
mrpeavey said:
Got into this with a friend of mine who thinks EEI because they topped out #1 12+ last year. I said that anybody would have done well with the Sox and Pats both winning it all. But if not them, who else?
Click to expand...
WEEI is the best. Other Boston sports station have a hard time showing up in the Boston ratings .
 
Without mentioning any specific ratings KSPN has about 2 1/2 times more listeners than KLAC. I think KSPN beats KLAC in every daypart. My nickname for KLAC is "Short Bus Radio." Just awful and unlistenable, outside of Jim Rome.
 
WEEI is the best. Other Boston sports station have a hard time showing up in the Boston ratings .

What makes EEI so good...so much better than the no-shows?
 
I'm surprised no one has mentioned WFAN. Now that it's streaming, you don't need the magic of clear channel propagation to hear it.

They're so far beyond EEI, it's not even close - especially Mike & The Mad Dog - first class radio. And, I'm a Sox fan saying that!
 
One station I forgot to mention was the old XTRA Sports 690, which was around for close to 15 years. I really miss it. They were Jim Rome's first talk station and had other hosts like Steve Hartman, Lee Hamilton, Chet Forte, Bill Werndl, John Kentera and others. They switched to the format shortly after WFAN did. At first their logo was similar to WFAN's. Hamilton has some bit parts at KLAC now and Hartman shares a show on the same station with Mychal Thompson and Vic Jacobs which is just completly unlistenable. Kentera and Werndl went to XX Sports Radio in San Diego when 690 started simulcasting with 1150 in L.A. three or four years ago, and even though XX is better than any of the L.A. sports stations, it is not quite as good as XTRA was. XX does a lot of long form programming around their Padres broadcasts from April to September, so that takes away some of the consistency of the programming. They have a three hour pre game show and a two hour post game talk show after every game.
 
This brings up an interesting point in the discussion: we considered PBP to be the format's cornerstone in the beginning, but now, with 20+ years under the belt, does the "multi-hour pre + game + multi-hour post" formula still sound good to our audience...or is it driving them away? Are we missing an opportunity to create stars out of our hosts? Are we killing the chances of providing continuity so we can bag some piece of crap franchise broadcasting opportunity? Or, are we not stressing PBP enough, pushing nation-wide hosts on everybody so that the listenerships gets some homogenized slop of opinions and angles? Should we work harder as a format to push the PBP aspect of our product?

I think I'm going to quit and open a barbershop; that's where I hear the best sports talk anyway...
 
When the sports format switched from 690 and 1150 to 570 in L.A., they actually cut an hour off the Lakers pre-game show. I guess since one of the hosts of the afternoon show also does the pregame show, they thought they would be talking Lakers anyway, which is correct.
 
steve90031 said:
One station I forgot to mention was the old XTRA Sports 690, which was around for close to 15 years. I really miss it. They were Jim Rome's first talk station and had other hosts like Steve Hartman, Lee Hamilton, Chet Forte, Bill Werndl, John Kentera and others. They switched to the format shortly after WFAN did. At first their logo was similar to WFAN's. Hamilton has some bit parts at KLAC now and Hartman shares a show on the same station with Mychal Thompson and Vic Jacobs which is just completly unlistenable. Kentera and Werndl went to XX Sports Radio in San Diego when 690 started simulcasting with 1150 in L.A. three or four years ago, and even though XX is better than any of the L.A. sports stations, it is not quite as good as XTRA was. XX does a lot of long form programming around their Padres broadcasts from April to September, so that takes away some of the consistency of the programming. They have a three hour pre game show and a two hour post game talk show after every game.
Click to expand...

I miss XTRA 690 as well, and they were great until they merged with XTRA 1150, which was a mess of a station and a trainwreck since day one. The only guy still around from the 1150 days is Vic Jacobs, and Joe McDonnell is back with them after spending about five years at KSPN, while Rome, Steve Hartman, and Lee Hamilton are the ones still around from 690. The McDonnell-Doug Krikorian show was one of the best radio shows I've ever heard, and it would be better than everything at KLAC has today. KLAC is a pure example of not how to do sports radio. This is probably my anti-Laker bias talking here, but like I mentioned eariler, their shameless homering for the Lakers is embarassing and unprofessional (in particular, Vic Jacobs, Mychal Thompson, and former KPWR morning jock Joe Grande), and I know this may go on other stations in other cities in which they carry the home team, and I don't think it is as bad here in Los Angeles with KLAC and the Lakers. After listening to their morning show today, I can't help but feel for Fred Roggin (the sports anchor/director at KNBC, whom use to do a show for KMPC), who maybe a bit on the bland side but is courteous and professional, who has to work with two blithering idiots--L.A. Times sports columnist T.J. Simers and his daughter Tracy.
 
I can't say this from any personal listening experience with the station, but I've heard that WHB in Kansas City does a pretty good job. Anyone know for sure?
 
I'd have to go with WFAN. They are wall-to-wall local and their hosts are all extremely talented.

A few other great sports talk stations-

WIP (Philly) and WQAM (Miami) have had some outstanding talent through the years. WKNR in Cleveland was at one time the top rated sports station in America- though that no longer is the case and the station seems just a shadow of its former self. In its heyday perhaps 12 years ago it would be a contender to this throne.

And KNBR in San Francisco also has a good reputation with tons of great talent coming through over the years.
 
As a huge fan of Local Sports Radio, I listen to a lot of stations around the country. My list in no particular order.

KJR-SEA
KNBR-SF (Razor & Mr. T)
KTCK-DFW (Norm Hitzges)
WWLS-OKC (Jim Traber & Al Eschbach)--talk other than OK sports
WHB-KC
WJOX-Birmingham
WSCR-Chicago
WAUK-Milwaukee
WQAM-Miami (Hank Goldberg)
WFNZ-Charlotte
WFAN-NYC
WIP-Philly (Cataldi, Eskin, Macnow)
WNST- Baltimore
 
WFAN-New York---Excellent
Tons of "national" play by play. GREAT signal in NYC, PHilly, and New England day & night. Sometimes too much play by play for their own good as they have to bump some games to FM signals that are only listenable in the New York area. BUT, local hosts 24-7 for the most part. AND, they always look at national stories from a local perspective. And not all of the host are "Ra-ra Homers".

WIP Philadelphia---Above Average.
I listened to this station growing up and was almost brainwashed. . .more of a "Hot talk" station than sports radio. Some good hosts. they have a feel for the city and it's impatience of not winning a championship in almost 24 years. Eskin, love him or hate him. one of the most popular radio (and TV) figures in the city. Almost ALL local, but too many callers "drink the philly kool-aid with their cheesesteak".

WEEI-Boston---Above Average.
Good hosts. Lots of play-by-play, and basically have a strangle hold of southern & eastern New England for LOCAL sports talk. sometimes not enough callers and i wish they were local overnight, for disgruntled fans driving home at 2:00 A.M. Also, wish they would extend the simulcast into the Upper Valley of VT and NH (Hanover, Lebanon, White River Jct.). The ESPN radio affiliate here does ZERO play by play. National shows 24-7.

KNBR-San Francisco--Average.
Good play-by-play of all Bay Area teams. Solid hosts. again though national hosts overnight.

those are the only ones i've sampled in the past year.

--D.C.--
 
Being a New Englander WEEI and it's sub carriers do a great job. In Fla the sports animal 620 out of St. Pete (WDAE??) covers a large area for a smaller station and with a good mix of sports covered.
But like sex and golf, there IS no bad sports radio station. It's all good.
 
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