All things Sports Talk Radio - DMV (met)

[ixcuincle]

But I've said literally every single post here that it's ratings driven for about a year now. I know that. It'd just be nice to talk about hockey and not only caps hockey other hockey too

Guys I'm biased because I moderate the other hockey forum hfboards so yes I'm going to demand respect for this beautiful game despite the uphill ratings climb. I love hockey and want to see it talked more but the general public as said is obsessed over steph curry

[tshile]

The issue was that you claimed the arguments were nonsense and unproven. That it's caused by the media having something against hockey/the capitals.

 

You want respect for the sport? Stop making up reasons why it's not covered. Find a way to get more fans.

 

You don't see NASCAR fans acting like this. They understand. It's always hockey fans that act like this.

[TD_washingtonredskins]

But I've said literally every single post here that it's ratings driven for about a year now. I know that. It'd just be nice to talk about hockey and not only caps hockey other hockey too

Guys I'm biased because I moderate the other hockey forum hfboards so yes I'm going to demand respect for this beautiful game despite the uphill ratings climb. I love hockey and want to see it talked more but the general public as said is obsessed over steph curry

 

You seem to be chasing the wrong thing here. You are upset or concerned mostly about the popularity of a sport you love. I get it, but I wouldn't channel that through an industry that is dependent on interest and ratings. I think in DC we are probably closer to having a 365-day-per-year Redskins station than we are having one that spends equal time on hockey as it does on football and baseball. 

 

In the 1930s, papers and radio covered boxing, baseball, and horse racing. I'm sure there were football fans who were livid that they couldn't always read about the NFL's Chicago Cardinals or Boston Braves, but that's what the entertainment industry does...cater to the stories with the most interest. 

 

As to what seems to be your main beef, I have no clue how hockey will ever become more than a niche sport here. It's not as exciting as football, not as established or nostalgic as baseball, and not as aesthetic as basketball. They all have elements that hockey will NEVER have. 

[BornaSkinsFan83]

I just want to know one thing: why the **** don't they talk about the DC United? Just ugh.

Same exact argument.

[hail2skins]

As to what seems to be your main beef, I have no clue how hockey will ever become more than a niche sport here. It's not as exciting as football, not as established or nostalgic as baseball, and not as aesthetic as basketball. They all have elements that hockey will NEVER have. 

TD_w probably gives the best explanation of hockey's problem here.

 

Ix, I know you and many others disagree, but the one way to solve the whole "ratings" thing would be for the hosts to throw open the phones for folks to call in and talk about what they want to talk about. But you claim, "callers are morons"..........but is someone like Czaban really any more insightful than the average caller? And I like Steve, but please.  And yes, there should be room made for the beat reporters/announcers of the teams, but if you have to fill a 3-4 hour show, there's only so much time the beat reporters will take up.

 

Obviously right now you're get a lot of time spent for people wanting to talk Skins. But it'd be interesting to see what folks would talk about once the Skins and NFL playoffs end.  Another thing to consider is that folks like to talk about teams which are performing not up to par.  There's very little you can seemingly find wrong with the Caps right now. If anything, I could see folks wanting to nitpick more about the Wizards and Hoyas.

[TD_washingtonredskins]

hail2skins, the issue with that (letting callers drive the show) is that you need hosts who can build on what is mentioned. Unless you truly want to turn entire segments over to Joe the Fan, you need to have hosts with a large breadth of sports knowledge. 

[hail2skins]

hail2skins, the issue with that (letting callers drive the show) is that you need hosts who can build on what is mentioned. Unless you truly want to turn entire segments over to Joe the Fan, you need to have hosts with a large breadth of sports knowledge. 

TD, that is a big part of the problem. I can see hosts like Sheehan, Czaban (who actually plays adult hockey), and Galdi making it work.  The others on both 980 and 106.7, I'm not so sure about.

 

Which is a shame, because I would think "large breadth of sports knowledge" would/should be a prereq for a local radio sports talk show host.

[TD_washingtonredskins]

TD, that is a big part of the problem. I can see hosts like Sheehan, Czaban (who actually plays adult hockey), and Galdi making it work.  The others on both 980 and 106.7, I'm not so sure about.

 

Which is a shame, because I would think "large breadth of sports knowledge" would/should be a prereq for a local radio sports talk show host.

 

Well, yes and no. I think someone who is good behind the microphone and has a general knowledge of sports is probably the best person for the job. Of course, the job description changes over time. Ken Beatrice could talk about football the way Cooley breaks down film. But, prior to Cooley joining 980, that's not what hosts did. They came up with the topics to discuss, gave their opinions as fans, picked out controversial new stories, etc. 

 

In the end, I really don't see the need to impose discussion or air time for sports that simply don't interest 80% of your audience. The reason you have to search to find bowling on TV, is the same reason you need to search to find hockey conversation on sports talk radio. It's just not interesting to most people. At all. 

[Warhead36]

Football dominates sports talk radio in just about every major market.

 

I lived in Minneapolis for over a year. They love hockey there, but most of the radio coverage was Vikings Vikings Vikings.

 

Its the same just about anywhere, except maybe LA, and I suppose Boston once Red Sox season starts.

[ixcuincle]

They don't even talk hockey in NEw York City. Francesa almost never talks hockey. 

[BornaSkinsFan83]

Football dominates sports talk radio in just about every major market.

I lived in Minneapolis for over a year. They love hockey there, but most of the radio coverage was Vikings Vikings Vikings.

Its the same just about anywhere, except maybe LA, and I suppose Boston once Red Sox season starts.

I lived in LA for a year and I honestly can't recall a single thing about sports besides USC football. That was the big thing while I was there. I'm sure the Lakers were big news but the Lakers are big news everywhere so it doesn't stick out.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Hockey's not accessible.  Most every kid in America grew up throwing around a football, a baseball or shooting hoops, practically no kid grows up shooting a hockey puck.  Even if you want to bring street hockey into the equation, not a lot of kids do that.  You don't need anyone to practice a jump shot with.  You can throw a baseball against a wall or a pitchback.  You only need a friend to throw a football with.  Hockey?  Not so sure.  I don't think I've ever seen anyone practicing their slapshot in a driveway but I've seen a ton of kids practicing a jump shot or playing one on one.    

 

Agreed with the above poster too, it's only hockey fans that get this way.  NASCAR fans don't seem to care.  And like NASCAR, people watch hockey for fights, like you'd only watch a NASCAR highlight for a crash.

 

Count me in as someone who'd rather listen to the most boring mundane offseason Redskins talk instead of how the Caps won 3-2 on a late Ovechkin goal.  I'm changing the channel whenever I hear the Caps come up.  

[@DCGoldPants]

I don't understand hockey like the other major sports. But I'd still like a little more on sportstalk. Problem is, having Doc Walker interview a beat reporter about the sport will just make things worse.

I think part of why you don't get much of it on 980 is because their hosts aren't that strong outside of the Skins. Some can talk hoops and very little baseball.

[jpage520]

I'm always a little torn on this one. On one hand, I would love to see maybe a hockey based show on at some point when folks are actually listening, or at least maybe an hour or so with someone who has a fair amount of insight, as opposed to nothing more than a short segment here and there outside of the playoffs. But I also know that the ratings just haven't been there so there isnt much incentive for the program directors to do it.

 

I chalk up a fair amount of the lack of interest in the NHL in the US to a couple things. The primary thing being the regional aspect of it. The game while huge in the north all across the country, just doesn't have a big following in the south. Especially in places that shut down over two inches of snow lol. And it's not just the weather. It costs a lot of money, and takes a lot of time to get kids into hockey. Pads, skates, and sticks are not cheap by any means. Ice time comes at a premium in these places because there just aren't many places to play and practice. It's that foundation of kids growing up with the game that creates generations of fans of a sport.

 

Another thing being the awful way that the league has been run over the past 15 years alone. Full league shutdowns and work stoppages, labor disputes, and delayed and even canceled seasons. ESPN won't touch the league anymore. I think NBC has done a good job. But you need more. Until the league proves that it it's stable, it's gonna be tough to make that happen.

 

 

 

I have a couple frustrations with sports radio callers...

 

1. Please don't state your fanhood resume before you start talking about the topic at hand. Unless you have something VERY unique there, nobody cares. Sorry. I find myself yelling at my radio quite often because so many folks call in and before even talking about the subject it's always "Let me just say this. I'm a die hard Skins fan. Been following this team since the 80s! I remember the glory years! I remember when Gibbs got hired. My family are all fans too!" GET TO THE POINT!

 

2. Please don't call into a show and ask for hosts who have absolutely ZERO background, knowledge, or even interest in a particular sport to talk about that sport or team. I love United. But I have no desire to call the Junkies and hear them stumble around trying to think of something to say about a team that they spend zero time covering, watching, or following. I've never understood why folks do this. About a month ago I was listening to Chad Dukes on my way into the city and he was doing an open line kinda thing. He was getting a little frustrated because he wasn't getting many calls at all. Then some guy calls in and says "Hey Chad! Love your show man! Been listening for a long time. I wanted to call in and talk about Navy football." Chad, who knows about as much about Navy football that I know about Russian bear gymnastics, proceeds to say "...okay, I'm not too up on it. What about it?" and then the caller proceeds to go on and on asking his opinion on things he has absolutely no opinion on. It was painful to listen to. I know it would be nice to get a more diverse array of topics on the sports stations. But please don't force it. It does nothing but make for uncomfortable radio.

[ixcuincle]

Callers are usually pretty dumb.

You can listen to crashing the net for your hockey talk. It is on 1067 but I listen on podcast.

[@DCGoldPants]

never start a call with "real quick" because that means you won't be.

[ixcuincle]

Kornheiser was hilarious on Monday and he said the two underrated reasons for success this year were rg who was willing to mature and not raise a fuss in public. Also said Snyder was good for keeping his yap shut.

He's right.

[@DCGoldPants]

I'm no fan of Snyder. But there are a few guys like Andy who keep saying the owner did this and that. But when somebody asks "How do you know that?" it's always "Well, you know.....he's been involved in the past".

 

I think Snyder has been hands off since Shanny arrived. 

[ixcuincle]

I agree that many people just bring up the past and don't realize he's hands off. I like how the media completely makes up these stories like rg was at Snyders house for Thanksgiving or gruden and rg hate each other. Who told you that?

"Well it's how they act in public "

[jpage520]

Most of it is based on general distrust and suspicion due to past action. I can definitely say that's where it comes from for me. Can't speak for anyone else. Personally, I think over the past few years at least that the majority of it has been media fluff, exaggeration, and scapegoating. I think it has probably just taken a long while to get his hand out of the cookie jar. But I still can't bring myself to trust the guy. Maybe down the road. But as of right now, I still can't help but consider him a slimeball. More than anything just because of the stories I've heard from the folks that have met him.

[RonArtest15]

Marcus from College Park still around?

[Gamebreaker]

I believe Snyder has long since stopped trying to dictate what the front office should do, but his relationships with players is still a concern like it was with LaVar and Portis. There is a video out there of Snyder going bowling with Griffin and his wife. Now some people can say that isn't that big a deal, but would Snyder have that type of friendship/relationship with Keenan Robinson? Doubt it. And Shanahan, who's been in this league for a long time, found it highly inappropriate.

 

So there is some substance to the Snyder bashing, but I still don't like the way Andy does it because he never has any evidence or proof Snyder is meddling when throws out the accusation.  

 

Found the video: 

 

[Mr. Sinister]

Marcus from College Park still around?

I doubt he ever recovered from 2012

Skins pretty much put dude out of business that year and he became a running punchline

[jpage520]

I know of MFCP, wasn't aware he became a punchline. What do you mean?

 

That's the dude that always called Lavar and Chad with some uber lengthy explanation about current events with the team isn't it? Or am I thinking of someone else?

[Mr. Sinister]

He used to hate on the team a lot. Some of it was funny in the very beginning, but over time, he just became more and more of a gump, and during 2012, he had no ammo, and started getting clowned. I think even Czabe and Andy had him on the Sports Reporters and talked ****. He was basically done as a radio personality