Ad Disclosure
RADIO WARS: 97.5 the Fanatic Goes Promo Official with “Make the Switch” Campaign
Published:
97.5 dropped this on Wednesday afternoon:
The context here is that Bill Colarulo has several times gone directly after 94 WIP without naming WIP, condemning rage bait and ripping OTHER HOSTS in town for disrespecting Super Bowl MVP Jalen Hurts in the name of cheap engagement. These were radio rants that were later clipped by the Fanatic and shared on social media.
This particular video takes all of that and packages it into promo format, complete with graphics and the full voiceover treatment. They’ve got Ricky Bottalico and Sylvana Kelleher taking part, so a concerted, group effort here to adopt the “make the switch” branding as an official thing and run with it.
Interestingly enough, I received a decent amount of DMs and text messages from fellow fake news media members after publishing the last story, titled “RADIO WARS: Bill Colarulo Invites 94 WIP Listeners to “Make the Switch” and Abandon Rage and Clickbait.” The consensus was that they found the strategy to be refreshing, something different after several years of WIP wiping the floor with the Fanatic.
But the obvious question is whether or not it actually works. Scribes were skeptical, since WIP is a well-oiled behemoth of a machine, like the final boss of Twisted Metal (good TV series btw). But the one thing they did say was something that Russ and I have talked about a lot on Crossing Broadcast and The Russ Joy Show, and that’s the idea of the Fanatic trying to carve out an identity. They don’t really have one, and never did.
WIP, as you know, is very consistent in their approach. Every daypart has lead host paired with a former Philadelphia Eagle, and they will batter you over the head with football 24/7 while mixing in a healthy diet of performative outrage. It worked then and it still works now. The Fanatic, or at least Unfiltered, is trying to be the anti-WIP, so if nothing else, at least it’s a change of pace.
Does RADIO WARS make a triumphant football season return? Or does Unfiltered fail miserably as WIP continues to hammer nails into the Fanatic coffin? We’ll find out soon enough. Play the song!
EDIT – by the way, Google has this new thing called “preferred sources,” which allows you to customize which websites show up in your top stories section. Make sure to add Crossing Broad for all of your important journalism needs!
Kevin has been writing about Philadelphia sports since 2009. He spent seven years in the CBS 3 sports department and started with the Union during the team's 2010 inaugural season. He went to the academic powerhouses of Boyertown High School and West Virginia University. email - k.kinkead@sportradar.com