Earlier this month 950 WPEN abandoned its oldies format and became Philadelphia's second sports/talk station. The key differences between WPEN and WIP were immediately apparent.
While WIP emphasizes caller participation and has relatively few interviews with sports personalities, WPEN is much more interview-based.
While WIP features a lineup of all in-house hosts discussing almost exclusively Philadelphia sports, WPEN features a mix of both in-house hosts such as former WIP and WFAN host Jody McDonald, as well as national syndicated programs hosted by Tony Bruno and Jim Rome. While Bruno spent years in Philadelphia working at the former WCAU AM and later WIP AM, his currently show covers the national sports scene and only delves into the Philadelphia sports scene when the topic is raised by a caller or guest.
While WIP AM only rarely breaks into the top 10 in Philadelphia Arbitron ratings and does not have the audience of its powerhouse sister-station WFAN in New York, it has established itself as THE Sports Talk station in Philadelphia. Whether WPEN AM will be able to make a dent into WIP's numbers is questionable. Clearly the intention of scheduling Jody McDonald opposite WIP's controversial Howard Eskin was intended to offer Philadelphia sports fans a clear alternative to Eskin who unquestionably has a love/hate relationship with Philadelphia sports fans.
Here is a summary of 950 WPEN's Starting Line-Up with descriptions as provided by WPEN.
6 a.m. - 9 a.m.: The First Team on Fox with Steve Czaban and Scott Linn
Steve Czaban and Scott Linn preside over the quintessential morning show for the sports fan. The show is passionate, entertaining and includes a wide variety of topics and "all the news that matters to Czabe." Scott Linn, a Philadelphia native, knows the passion of the Philadelphia sports fan first hand. The First Team on Fox starts the day, going fearlessly into sports topics few shows dare to explore.
9 a.m. - 12 p.m.: Tony Bruno
Bruno has been called "possibly the best sports talk show host in America" by the Los Angeles Times. His career started at the age of 17 in Philadelphia. A year later, Tony was working at the legendary pop station WFIL. Tony launched Sports Radio WIP as well as two networks - the ESPN Radio Network in 1992 from Bristol, Connecticut and eight years later launched Fox Sports Radio in Los Angeles. Thirty five years later, he has achieved what most sports broadcasters can only dream about.
12 p.m. - 3 p.m.: Jim Rome
Perhaps the most respected voice in the world of sports broadcasting, Jim Rome is the leading opinion-maker of his generation. Rome is known for his aggressive, informed, rapid-fire dialogue and as the top choice of athletes and fans when it comes to knowing what is going on beyond the scoreboard.
3 p.m. - 7 p.m.: Jody McDonald
Jody "Mac" has built 15 years of brand equity in Philadelphia. He grew up in Yonkers and his father was a general manager for the Mets, St. Louis Cardinals and Detroit Tigers. He recently garnered his third World Series ring as a scout for the Boston Red Sox. Jody’s career began upon graduation from Albany State, where he worked at ESPN in several capacities before going on to WFAN in NYC and WIP in Philadelphia. Jody is also a big fan of horse racing and golf.
7 p.m. - 10 p.m.: The 700 Level Sports Fanatics
This passionate, entertaining and cutting edge show will be hosted by a group of the biggest sports fans in town. It will always sound as if they are in the middle of a sports bar talking about the latest scores and happenings! The 700 Level Sports Fanatics will be the fastest moving, hardest hitting show in sports talk. The on-air crew will be announced shortly.
10 p.m. - 2 a.m.: J.T. "The Brick"
J.T. is a former New York City stockbroker who loves sports. It all started on Good Friday in 1995, when J.T. won Jim Rome's "Smack-Off" as the #1 fan caller in the country. The "Smack-Off" notoriety earned J.T. a spot at a local station hosting a Sunday night show from ten to midnight. That show was such an enormous success that within a year, J.T. was working for a network...and the "Brickhouse" was built. "The Brick" raises the bar in sports talk programming with his extensive knowledge of all sports. He earned the nickname, "The Hardest Working Man in Sports Talk," from previously working eight hours a day on the air without a co-host.