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Sports Media
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Three's Company: St. Louis Welcomes New Sports-Talk Station
The St. Louis sports radio landscape became more competitive Friday, as WMVN-FM has changed its call letters to WXOS and "joins the already-crowded field of jock-talk radio," according to Dan Caesar of the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH. WXOS GM John Kijowski said that his goal is not to become the No. 1 sports-talk station, but that “a year from now he wants to be a top-five rated radio station in the male 25-54 age demographic among outlets in all formats, something no all-sports station locally has come close to accomplishing.” Caesar notes WXOS comes “with a booming signal that reaches farther and is much crisper than that of [its] competitors,” KFNS-AM/FM, which has been in the format since '93, and KSLG-AM, which has been in the business for four years and “finally passed KFNS last summer in the ratings.” Execs with all three of the stations are “brimming with confidence as the battle lines are drawn.” However, the “consensus is that not all will survive.” Kijowski: “I can't see all three being around in a year. We have the talent, the signal and the financial backing (of parent company Bonneville International) to succeed." But Kijowski has heard “criticism that WXOS is making a huge mistake by not airing a local show in morning drive-time,” as it will air ESPN Radio's "Mike & Mike in the Morning." Caesar notes that is “in large part because ESPN is requiring” the network to carry five hours of its shows daily in order to be an affiliate. WXOS wants ESPN's “play-by-play package as well as its night and weekend shows, and agreed to the five-hour stipulation in order to take the network away from” KFNS owner Big League Broadcasting, which carried ESPN primarily on KRFT-AM. But Kijowski said research shows "Mike & Mike" "tested at the top, No. 1'' among listener preferences. Kijowski: "I questioned it myself. I was overwhelmed that they were very high by a considerable margin” (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 1/2).
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