When Kobe Bryant retired from the NBA, he was asked about his post-career plans. He replied that he wanted to write books and make documentaries.
He said he wanted to inspire through stories.
Everybody loves stories. It begins in childhood with bedtime stories, and we never really outgrow them.
There are ways you can use stories to distinguish your sportscasting.
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There are two sports talk radio shows I especially enjoy listening to. One is Jim Rome. The other is a local show. I love the content from both shows. However, I’m prone to tuning out the local show.
Why would I do that? Because sometimes the local show buries the main topic under five minutes of small talk. When they do, I change the channel even though I’m otherwise dedicated to the show.
On the other hand, Jim Rome immediately gets to the topic. If I tune in to hear his take on the big story of the day, I don’t have to wait long for him to get right to it.
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Looking to advance your sports talk radio career when sports resume?
Former ESPN Radio Network Programmer Scott Masteller shared eight suggestions for accelerating the process at an STAA One Day Ticket to Sportscasting Success seminar.
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On the day of the first time I presented the Jim Nantz Award at the National Sports Media Association Awards Banquet, I went for a swim in the hotel pool. It was two hours before the banquet started. When I emerged from the water, my eyes were on fire. I looked in the mirror and they were bloodshot from the chlorine. “My goodness,” I thought. “I’m attending this banquet for the first time and everybody is going to think I’m on something.”
I needed instant results.
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There is a sports talk host in the South who is beside himself because his program director says he needs to improve his ratings but he’s not giving the host guidance for how to do it.
Here is a six-pack of ways to improve your sports talk show.
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When I was at the old XTRA Sports 690 in San Diego, it took four years to find my next sports talk opportunity. It was at ESPN Radio Network.
These 8 top tips will help you land your next sports talk radio gig.
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When I was hosting sports talk radio in San Diego, I sometimes struggled to choose topics for my show. This was especially true in mid-summer when the Padres were bad and the Chargers season hadn’t yet started.
What do you talk about?
Fortunately, there are 5 rules you can use to prep the topics your audience wants to you hear you discuss.
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Recently, I listed to the first demo tape I ever made. I was a sophomore at the Princeton of the Plains, Kansas State University. The cassette (yep – cassette) included mostly sportscasts and live reports from K-State football games for various radio stations around the conference.
As I listened, I blushed with embarrassment. I was bad. The sportscasts sounded scripted and rehearsed because . . . well, they were scripted and rehearsed. Yikes.
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During four years as a sports talk host at ESPN Radio Network, I never figured out what to do with actualities. I knew it was supposed to improve my show to include them so I played them, but I didn’t know how to use them to make my show better.
Here are two tips I wish I had known then . . .
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A broadcaster who’s been doing small market news and sports for several years wants to move into sports talk radio. He wonders, though, if he can get a sports talk job without prior experience.
The answer is yes. All sports talk hosts lack experience at some point. The transition, though, is going to take time.
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