Rob Tornoe at the Philadelphia Inquirer spoke with 97.5 the Fanatic’s new P.D., Scott Masteller:

“Masteller began consulting for The Fanatic in August before being named program director earlier this month. He’s been evaluating the station’s on-air talent, which has shed some big names recently, including Mike Missanelli and Anthony Gargano. The Fanatic is still looking to hire a new full-time host that can join the station during the day, Masteller said, though the exact times and lineups haven’t been determined.”

There’s quite a bit going on behind the scenes. I’d expect news sooner rather than later about a reshuffling and addition or two.

But yeah, the Fanatic needs to add. When Mike Missanelli left, they brought in Ricky Bottalico and promoted Tyrone Johnson and Hunter Brody. Brodes was then laid off and Anthony Gargano left. Cuz was never replaced. They’ve rolled with the John Kincade/Andrew Salciunas/Best Show Ever daypart lineup ever since, and they’re getting thumped by 94 WIP across the board.

What’s interesting and worth repeating is something I’ve touched on in previous RADIO WARS columns, and it’s the case of macro-level strategy. Does 97.5 need to beat WIP? No. Not at all. They just need to get back to being somewhat competitive, which is what they were a few years ago. You can lose in the fickle Nielsen world and still make plenty of money. Remember, Beasley Media owns WMMR, MGK, XTU, and other radio stations that rake $$$ and do very well. Beasley’s stock price isn’t amazing, but it’s up about 15 cents over the last month and a half, while Audacy, on the other hand, filed for bankruptcy.

Ask anybody over there and they will point to the overall health of the cluster. It’s almost like you’ve got two opposite things going on here. WIP is a juggernaut owned by a bankrupt company, while the Fanatic is struggling, but has ownership that’s much more stable. So if it seems to you like there’s a lack of urgency and the Fanatic is okay with taking their time to figure it out and get it right, that’s an explanation.


Here’s Rob’s full story: How 97.5 The Fanatic plans to compete with 94.1 WIP; Beasley settles lawsuit involving Anthony Gargano