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Bernie Miklasz Out Amid Lineup Changes At 101 ESPN

“Miklasz’s show has topped Barrett Sports Media’s list of the Top 20 Mid-Market Morning Shows each of the last three years.”

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Starting on Monday, 101 ESPN will have a new weekday lineup. The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy have forced St. Louis’ sports radio leader to make adjustments including parting ways with one of the most recognized personalities in the market.

Several hosts will change dayparts to help the station move forward but the headline that is certain to generate a lot of attention is the exit of longtime host Bernie Miklasz.

Miklasz has been a fixture in St. Louis sports media for decades. The former St. Louis Post Dispatch columnist joined 101 ESPN in April of 2009. He’s spent most of the past decade patrolling 101’s airwaves, delivering ratings, and earning recognition from industry executives as the #1 Mid-Market Morning Show in BSM’s annual Top 20 each of the past three years.

101 ESPN afternoon host Randy Karraker paid tribute to Miklasz today on his show and said the situation was the result of the economy being shut down. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reached out to Miklasz for comment and he wasn’t ready to discuss the situation but did say that he’s trying to keep things in perspective and stay positive.

With Miklasz gone, 101 ESPN will turn to Randy Karraker to take over the morning drive slot. Karraker will be joined by Miklasz’s former co-host Michelle Smallmon for a new show. The program is expected to air weekdays from 7a-10a CT.

Karraker’s move to mornings creates an opening in afternoons on the station’s top rated program The Fast Lane. Brad Thompson and Chris Rongey will remain with the show and taking over Karraker’s role will be midday host Anthony Stalter. Stalter originally joined 101 as the show’s producer and has since gone on to thrive as a host working alongside the late Chris Duncan and former Blues player Jamie Rivers. He’s also added PT hosting opportunities at the ESPN Radio network.

As Stalter moves into afternoons and away from middays, 101 will add a 1-hour show featuring St. Louis Cardinals broadcaster Dan McLaughlin from 10a-11 CT. They’ll also retool the midday show with Rivers, adding one of its rising stars Brandon ‘BK’ Kiley as the lead host. The midday team will occupy the weekday slot of 11a-2p CT.

Sports Radio News

Charles Barkley: ‘I Want to Be on TV Less’

“His contract with Warner Bros. Discovery runs through 2024-25.”

Jordan Bondurant

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Charles Barkley

It’s possible you could see Charles Barkley appearing occasionally on CNN.

Reports from The Wall Street Journal and Variety this week indicate the cable news network is close to finishing a deal that would have Gayle King on the network. Rumors have said that the network would like to have Barkley join her, but Barkley says nothing is decided on his end.

In an appearance on Bickley & Marotta on Arizona Sports on Tuesday, the Suns legend and NBA on TNT analyst said he and King are friends so this wouldn’t be a situation where the duo would be coming in green.

“I’ve gotten to know her well through the years through my relationship with Oprah (Winfrey) and she’s just cool,” Barkley said. “I said, ‘I would consider doing a show with Gayle, one day a week starting in the fall.'”

But Barkley, 60, reiterated what he’s made known for a while now: he doesn’t plan on sticking around in the TV business for too much longer. His contract with Warner Bros. Discovery runs through 2024-25. So this CNN opportunity could be pretty limited in scope, which is what Charles desired.

“It’ll only be one day a week if I decide to do it,” Barkley said. “I said, ‘No, I don’t want to be on TV more. I want to be on TV less.'”

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Sports Radio News

John Kincade: Thursday Night Football Flex Vote About ‘Licking Jeff Bezos’s Boots’

“For these billionaires to be licking his boots? Embarrassing. They can’t do this. It’s obnoxious.”

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John Kincade

A report claims that at the NFL owners meetings, a proposal to give the league the ability to implement flex scheduling for Thursday Night Football was proposed. 97.5 The Fanatic’s John Kincade was flabbergasted at the idea.

The proposal would allow the NFL to move scheduled games in the final weeks of the season from Sunday to Thursday. The league would also have to change the rule that teams could only play one Thursday Night Football game per season to accommodate the change.

During The John Kincade Show Tuesday, the host claimed that even considering the idea was simply a matter of the owners kowtowing to Amazon owner Jeff Bezos, whose company — Prime Video — broadcasts the package.

“They’re licking Jeff Bezos’s boots,” Kincade said. “I can only imagine buddies running trips and fans go ‘Ok, I’m going to the Eagles game on Sunday. I’m flying in Friday, spend two nights in a hotel, and fly out Monday’. Oh no you’re not, the game’s been moved to Thursday night. This is freaking ridiculous, and shining Bezos’s shoes is freaking embarrassing. For these billionaires to be licking his boots? Embarrassing. They can’t do this. It’s obnoxious.”

Kincade continued by marvelling at the idea even being floated to the public.

“To me, it’s just such a dumb idea. But sometimes those things happen in sports.”

The 97.5 The Fanatic host is not the only sports media member who has shared their displeasure with the proposal this week. Monday Morning Quarterback’s Peter King aired similar sentiments, saying “We can all agree this seems insane.”

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Sports Radio News

Mike Francesa: BetRivers Podcast Is Enough For Me Right Now

“I’ve had a couple offers in the last couple of months. I’ve turned them all down. Anybody that’s asked me for steady work or to do something Monday through Friday I’ve said no.”

Jordan Bondurant

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Mike Francesa

If you were hoping to catch Mike Francesa hosting a daily TV or radio show in the future, that ship has likely sailed.

Asked by a listener on his Mike Francesa Podcast if he would go back to doing a show on television similar to his Mike’d Up program on NBC New York, Francesa said it’s not in his future.

“I would doubt it,” he said on his Monday episode. “At this point, I’m not as visible. So it wouldn’t make as much sense as having me now as it would then. And frankly, I’m doing what I do now, and I love doing it.”

Francesa reunited with his former WFAN co-host Chris “Mad Dog” Russo on ESPN’s First Take back in January, but Mike said the podcast he’s doing for the BetRivers Network checks all the boxes of what he’s looking for work-wise at the moment.

“It’s actually enough,” he said. “I’ve had a couple offers in the last couple of months. I’ve turned them all down. Anybody that’s asked me for steady work or to do something Monday through Friday I’ve said no.”

“It would have to be something very unusual for me to do on a regular basis,” he added.

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