Some of our speculation regarding Good Karma Broadcasting’s pair of Cleveland sports radio stations is already coming true. Well, at least a part of it.
In an earlier item, we’d noted that we’d expected Good Karma to operate WWGK/1540 “Cleveland’s ESPN Radio 1540” “with a primarily network lineup, carrying sports events and programming overflow from WKNR, as its broadcast hours permit.”
Some of that “spillover” from 850 to 1540 is happening as soon as this weekend.
Long-time OMW reader/tipster Nathan Obral tells us that WWGK is carrying an Ohio State University basketball game against Michigan State on Saturday, starting at 3:30 PM. The swap of the OSU game to WWGK was made necessary by WKNR’s obligation to the Cleveland State University Vikings basketball team – they’re playing Wisconsin-Green Bay that same afternoon.
WWGK will carry the Buckeyes basketball game until signoff, though they should be able to fit it right under the wire – since college basketball games usually don’t last much more than a couple of hours. If WKNR carried the OSU contest, it would have to break off early due to the CSU pre-game show likely starting at 5.
We heard some of the other evidence of this ourselves today on “Cleveland’s ESPN Radio 1540”. The station is promoting the “ESPN Super Bowl Party” at Fox and Hound in Mayfield Heights. You know, the same party being promoted on WKNR under its own name.
But there’s one WWGK-only oddity here, noted on ESPNCleveland.com:
Stop by and meet ESPN Radio’s Neil Bender as he hosts the Wine and Gold post game show from 5 until 6.
That’s right…the Cavaliers post-game show that usually airs on WKNR immediately following the game will air on WWGK instead on Sunday. You know, there’s the little matter of that football game, which WKNR will air, preventing it from airing on Good Karma’s more powerful station.
(For what it’s worth, we believe we’ve heard Clear Channel talk WTAM/1100 also promoting radio coverage of the NFL’s biggest game on Sunday. Could both stations be airing the game?)
Anyway, it’s the first Good Karma Cleveland sports radio crossover that we know about, at any rate, aside from Tony Rizzo appearing on both stations – but both times, not yet a full-time employee of either station…
Speak Your Mind