Indy Sports Talk

The Indy Star Sports section had an article about the Indy Sports Talk market and whether or not three sports stations could make it in Indy's marketplace.


Bascially...beginning next year news talk 1070 AM (WIBC) will be a full time sports talk radio show. WIBC is moving their news talk station from the AM dial to the FM dial--93.1 (yes Radio Now is out--for now).

The question is whether or not Indy can support three sports talk shows...the other two being WNDE-1260 AM and WXLW-950 AM.

The answer is no. I think 950 is going to be one that doesn't survive. They are currently an ESPN affiliate but 1070 will be the sole ESPN affiliate come 2008. Without that ESPN brand I don't see them surviving. When you think that 1070 already has the rights to the Colts, the Pacers, Indy 500 & Brickyard 400, and IU basketball and football it looks to me that 1070 will be the sports talk channel of Indy and the surrounding area. Plus their signal strength is twice that of 1260 and 950...and that's a definite plus for Greensburg residents who grow frustrated when at night it is easier to pick up ESPN radio 1000 out of Chicago than it is to pick up either 1260 or 950.

One thing that 1070 is going to have to do is to get a good local sports talk host for the later afternoon...early evening show. Both 950 and 1260 have pretty good hosts, Greg Rakestaw and John Michael Vincent respectively, so it will actually be difficult at first for 1070 to make inroads here. I hope that 950 can make it...as I probably prefer Rakestaw's show simply because they talk more baseball...but it is going to be difficult. (Plus 950 does broadcast Cubs games...so that is a bonus).

I think 1260 will survive because...first...they are a Fox Sports affiliate and they have success with the Tony Bruno show in the morning (which is produced by The Sporting News). Secondly their broadcast properties (Purdue football and basketball, non Colts NFL games, NASCAR and the Reds) are more popular to that of 950 (non Colts NFL, Ball State and Butler football, Notre Dame basketball, the Indians and the Cubs). With a national name and more popular properties I see 1260 with a better chance to make it than 950.

I guess it would be nice if all three could make it...having options is cool...I just don't see it. It is going to be interesting to see what happens.