NATIONWIDE "CALL"

09/09/2001
By Stuart Miller

United Sports Talk Network's "Conference Call" is expanding from a regional to a national presence. This 4-year old daily syndicated college sports talk show has been carried by 75 stations in 13 states throughout the South. But network President David Hersh said "the timing is right" to take the 7-10 p.m. show national: "The show has proven the popularity of college sports, yet there is a void in the national marketplace."

Hersh, who considered creating several regional clones but realize that national advertisers are less interested in regional buys than national buys, expects to have a100 stations within a month of its Dec.3 national debut and 200 affiliates by 2003. Early on, he expects to be in markets like Austin, Texas, more than Chicago or New York, which both have a heavy emphasis on pro sports. In those areas, United Sports Talk will sign affiliates in nearby towns that have some big city reach. (For instance, there are Wisconsin stations that can be heard in Chicago.)

Overseeing the day-to-day operations will be Time Out Inc., a company headed by college basketball analyst Billy Packer, who was on the show last year. Packer, who is the co-founder of the Tour DuPont and other cycling events, impressed Hersh with his business résumé and his belief in the national prospects. Packer has brought on Maryland-based Corrigan Sports Enterprises to handle sales.

The above is an excerpt from an article which originally appeared in the Sports Business Journal on September 9th, 2001.

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