Catching up on several developments in the sportscasting scene of interest locally while “Media Views†was on vacation the last 2½ weeks:
BERNIE’S BACK: Longtime ºüÀêÊÓƵ sportswriter and radio talk-show host Bernie Miklasz, who was one of the numerous casualties when KFNS (590 AM) dropped its local jock-talk lineup in July, has returned to one of his broadcasting roots — KMOX (1120 AM).
Miklasz, best known for his 26-consecutive-year sportswriting run at the Post-Dispatch while also moonlighting on radio before shifting exclusively to broadcasting nine years ago, has rejoined KMOX (1120 AM). But this time he’s a a contributor, not a host.
“I’m still in the early stages but it feels great to be back with KMOX,†he said. “The station played a major role in elevating my career and I had a chance to work with giants in the profession. ... I’m coming home, so to speak. The place is very dear to me. I wouldn’t have enlisted with another station. It was KMOX — only — for me.â€
People are also reading…
Miklasz is appearing at varying times Mondays and Fridays on “The Dave Glover Show,†at 11:35 a.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays on “The Chris (Rongey) and Amy (Marxkors) Show†and at 11:45 a.m. Sundays on “Sports on a Sunday Morning,†hosted by Tom Ackerman. And he’s making occasional appearances on “Sports Open Line,†KMOX’s early evening program on nights it does not have a live sporting event — a show he used to host.
Miklasz also now has a in which he does sports commentary and continues to be a contributor to the website run by WXOS (101.1 FM) sports-talk host Dan McLaughlin.
Another show that was on KFNS is resurfacing. “Talking Football†with former Rams coach Mike Martz and recently retired Post-Dispatch sportswriter Jim Thomas, who covered the team through its entire ºüÀêÊÓƵ run, is moving to — Cardinals broadcaster Mike Claiborne’s sports-content website. A new episode is set to be posted each Friday through the NFL season.
CHASE CHATTER: Former standout Mizzou quarterback Chase Daniel’s media career continues to blossom.
Daniel, who was a backup QB extraordinaire for six NFL teams across 14 seasons before his run ended after throwing 12 passes for the Chargers in 2022, has become a cast member of “The Facility,†a new show in FS1’s massively retooled weekday talk-show lineup.
Daniel joins former NFL players Emmanuel Acho, LeSean McCoy and James Jones on the program that airs from 9-11 a.m. He also has a show on and is serving as a college football game analyst for CW network this season and has a with Dianna Russini for The Athletic. He previously was on NFL Network and has done podcasts with Trey Wingo and contributed to website.
BUCK IS ON REKINDLED SHOW: ºüÀêÊÓƵan Joe Buck, who next week begins his third season as the TV play-by-play voice of “Monday Night Football†(Jets-49ers, 7:15 p.m. on KDNL, Channel 30 and ESPN), is a panelist on the debut episode of the reincarnated “Sports Reporters†show that aired on ESPN from 1988-2017.
The first installment of the new version, anchored by Jeremy Schaap (son of Dick Schaap, the program’s first host), is on . It features four of the top NFL play-by-play broadcasters — Mike Tirico (NBC), Ian Eagle (CBS) and Kevin Harlan (CBS, Westwood One Sports) as well as Buck — and ties to the season’s kickoff weekend.
They all appear remotely on this show, which has little resemblance to the original version of “Sports Reporters.†That format featured sportswriters — not broadcasters — discussing issues of the day and they were in studio.
Clips from this episode and future “Sports Reporters†segments will air periodically on other ESPN shows, including “SportsCenter.â€
SO-SO FOR SOCCER: City SC made a rare appearance last Sunday outside of Major League Soccer’s streaming-only package on Apple TV, and produced a lackluster ratings performance.
The struggling team upset the Western Conference-leading Los Angeles Galaxy in a game televised nationally on Fox, but just 1.5% of the ºüÀêÊÓƵ market watched the match on local affiliate KTVI (Channel 2) according to viewership-tracker Nielsen. That’s about a third the audience size of what the Cardinals drew on Bally Sports Midwest in a game that overlapped.
The soccer contest also was streamed on Apple TV, as are all MLS matches, but that company does not release viewership figures. So it is not known what that total audience was.
What is known as that the team continues to draw small numbers for the few times it is seen on a conventional TV channel. City SC’s appearance Sunday was its third and final one this season on a cable or over-the-air outlet, and those were seen in an average of just 1.1% of the market. Last year, the team’s four matches (including a playoff game) were at 2.1.
City returns to action Saturday when it plays at New England (6:30 p.m. ºüÀêÊÓƵ time on Apple) and its lead MLS commentator and native ºüÀêÊÓƵan Taylor Twellman and his “Think Taylor†charity are to be honored at the game. He was a standout player for New England before his career was cut short because of concussions.
DIRECT(V) HIT: Customers of DirecTV have been without many Disney-owned channels — including some heavy with sports programming like ESPN, ESPN2, ABC and SEC Network — since a contract dispute between the parties led to a blackout that began Sunday.
This is the latest in a long line of such squabbles in which the company providing the programming (in this case Disney) is charging more than the distributor (in his case DirecTV) is willing to pay, among other caveats.
The matter has come to a head at a key juncture on the sports calendar — the beginning of the football season, the final week of the U.S. Open tennis tournament and the beginning of the home stretch in baseball’s playoff races.
It’s similar to last year, when a dustup led to Disney channels being pulled from Charter (Spectrum) at the start of the football season. That situation was resolved in about two weeks.
City SC on TV
YEAR | DATE | OPPONENT | CHANNEL | RATING |
---|---|---|---|---|
2024 | April 14 | Austin | KTVI (2) | 1.4 |
2024 | July 20 | at Kansas City | FS1 | 0.4 |
2024 | Sept. 1 | LA Galaxy | KTVI (2) | 1.5 |
2024 | Average | 1.1 | ||
2023 | May 20 | Kansas City | FS1 | 1.4 |
2023 | June 11 | LA Galaxy | KTVI (2) | 3.8 |
2023 | Aug. 20 | Austin | FS1 | 1.1 |
2023 | Oct. 29 | Kansas City (playoffs) | FS1 | 2.1 |
2023 | Average | 2.1 | ||