Connect with us
Jim Cutler Demos

5 Podcasts in 5 Days

5 Podcasts In 5 Days: Men In Blazers

Jason Barrett

Published

on

Welcome to the second installment of “5 Podcasts in 5 Days“. We began this series by placing the “Bill Simmons Podcast” under the microscope. Now for our second act, we shift our focus to the “Men In Blazers”.

As I analyze these programs, I’m seeking to gain a deeper understanding of what makes them unique, how they sound compared to sports radio shows, how differently the sponsors are involved in each broadcast, and what type of content experience is provided to the audience. I’m also curious to see how similar or different they are from each other.

If you’re a fan/critic of these shows, or get paid to work on one of them, take the analysis with a grain of salt. This is just the opinion of one person – Jason Barrett. My goal in offering these insights and opinions is to give an honest, and objective view of what listeners can expect to hear when they download and listen to each show. Other podcasts that have been created by the show may be different from the one I’m analyzing, but this is a reflection of their most recent work, so what may or may not exist on other episodes is irrelevant.

Now that we’ve established that, let’s dive into the second review. You’ll also find an audio version of the episode to listen to and follow along with if you wish.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/268179653″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]

 

  • TITLE: The Men In Blazers Podcast
  • DATE: June 8, 2016
  • LENGTH: 1 Hour 1 Minute
  • CAST: Hosts = Michael Davis and Roger Bennett
  • SPONSORS: Seat Geek, Guinness, and Amazon. Plugs for ViceSports.com, Disney Store, and The Raven.
  • PRODUCTION: Good theatrical music to open the show, a couple of sound effects, but very simple and dry.

SHOW BREAKDOWN:

:00-:20 = Production music runs to kick off the show, followed by a verbal intro announcing the start of the show

:20-10:00 = Rog and Davo mention that they’re recording the podcast after the U..S.A. defeated Costa Rica 4-0 in the COPA America tournament. During the first ten minutes the conversation shifts into multiple directions including, being hungover, italians nibbling on dry bull penis to get over hangovers, Rog’s pessimistic outlook heading into big games, why the COPA America tournament isn’t great, the reasons why these games shouldn’t take place in NFL stadiums, being subjected to terrible white reggae artists, and crashing the upper 90 website.

10:00-10:50 = Reset of the show, and a preview of what else will be covered throughout the remainder of the program. The guys utilize two sound effects of a beer can being opened, and then poured into a glass, and they naturally weave in which Guinness beverages they’re drinking as they record the show.

10:50-42:35 = Discussion turns to a Wall Street Journal article where U.S.A. Head Coach Jurgen Klinsmann offers a number of quotes that don’t sit well with Rog and Davo. The guys are confused why Klinsmann would make comments prior to an important game. They then transition to covering the USA’s 2-0 loss to Colombia, and why American soccer fans don’t care as much about winning it all as they do seeing progress being made. Next, they focus on the way Jurgen uses his roster, and sticks with his veterans, sometimes to the detriment of a game. This allows them to segway to discussing USA’s win over Costa Rica, and the emotional roller coaster moments the game provided. Davo raises the question “who is going to emerge as the next major American star to follow in the footsteps of Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, and Michael Bradley?” After offering suggestions, a look ahead to the US vs Paraguay is offered.

42:35-44:45 = Davo points out that Brazil played to a draw with Ecuador to start the tournament, and now will play Haiti next. Rog says that nobody in Brazil is talking about this tournament. He adds that it’s an important tournament for US fans but one great myth about Brazil is that they love soccer, when in reality they’re only interested when their teams are winners. The guys then call out Neymar for hanging out with Justin Bieber, and Jamie Foxx, and not the M.I.B.

44:45-47:15 = The topic shifts to Mexico and their impressive opening win over Uruguay. They call it “Donald Trump’s worst nightmare” and mention that he might have underestimated the size of the wall he’s going to have to build, and may have to begin building it in America. They then review the key parts of the game,

47:15-48:45 = Next, the guys turn their attention to Argentina knocking off Chile 2-1. Leo Messi didn’t play, and the guys agree that he wasn’t needed to win this contest. Rog brings up the new fad that’s catching on where European futbol players have started going blonde.

48:45-51:05 = After learning that England coach Roy Hodgson told Jamie Vardy to keep his focus on France despite the Arsenal triggering a release clause in his Leicester City contract, Rog and Davo debate whether or not Vardy is the right type of fit for the Arsenal. Rog asks “is this the type of ending we want for the Jamie Vardy movie?” A discussion about Vardy’s career develops, and the guys agree that he’s best suited to remain with Leicester City but they’re not sure that will be possible.

51:05-52:50 = Will Josie Mourinho end up with Manchester United? That’s the next focus of conversation. The guys discuss his strengths on the field, why he’d be the right type of fit, and the financial commitment that will be necessary to retain his service. Although Rog understands the move, he cautions that it could turn out to be a Michael Jordan on the Washington Wizards type of decision. This leads to discussion about Ilkay Gundogan signing a 4-year agreement with Manchester.

52:50-54:45 = Davo brings up another news story, pointing out that Everton has agreed to a deal with Southampton which will allow Ronald Koeman to become their new manager. Rog understands why some might be confused by the move but offers some explanations of why it happened.

54:45-55:30 = One final news item is brought up before the show wraps up. Davo informs the audience that Swansea City have become the latest American owned Premier League club. The decision awaits approval but Rog thinks it’s a fantastic move because it means that the new ownership group will be absentee landlords trying to lead a club to the promised land.

55:30-57:00 = A preview of what’s on tap for the weekend followed by a Live read for Seat Geek.

57:00-60:00 =With the show winding down, Davo reminds people how they can interact. It starts with promotion of their Amazon emporium page which the guys generate some revenue from. After Rog mentions a book he’s placing in the emporium, and what makes it a worthwhile read, Davo brings up that he will be taking his family to France next week and won’t be available to cover the show with him. This leads to a natural plug for the Disney Store’s Star Wars rolling case, carry on suitcase.

60:00-61:10 = The guys sign off by reminding people to watch the COPA, and their video episodes on ViceSports.com. They also promote their newsletter “The Raven” which is co-produced along with their partner Guinness. Davo wraps up by mentioning that the guys will be providing a special Euro 2016 preview where some of their past guests preview their home countries. Three of those guests are Sheamus from the WWE, Marcin Gortat of the Washington Wizards, and NBC Sports commentator and former footballer Robbie Mustoe. The guys then sign off with a unique and clever exchange that goes as follows:

  • Vanderpunk Rog – War Pig
  • Who wants to sex Mutombo – explosia
  • Courage – take that Gloria
  • Is that your analysis – I love seer sucker
  • Cmon United States of America, Cmon Saint Booby Wood
  • Love you Rog, Love you Davie

SHOW ANALYSIS:

I was eager to review this show because it was outside of my comfort zone. Truth be told, I’m not a soccer fan. I also don’t listen often to sports talk delivered by british personalities. I had heard that the “Men In Blazers” were a rare, and enjoyable listen, and I wanted to discover if the show was worthy of the praise it had received.

It took a little bit of time for me to get used to their delivery, and some of the words weren’t easy to comprehend, but the more I listened, the more entertained I became. Rog and Davo have an incredible chemistry, and their quick wit stands out. Equally as impressive is the way Rog’s brain works. His analogies, phrases, and one-liners keep you on the edge of your seat wondering what else he has up his sleeve. Davo plays the perfect foil and knows when to interject, step back, add his own comedic value, or move the conversation along.

During the span of an hour, I laughed frequently. The word combinations were brilliant, and flew so fast that I had to rewind the show a few times to make sure I heard things correctly. As an example, here are five clever lines that stood out.

  • “It’s futbol in which the majority of athletes don’t care about chasing a trophy which is not real before crowds that are not there. Kanye West drew bigger crowds for a 2am concert that didn’t happen in New York City in the rain.”
  • “Nothing makes me think about my own death and self loathing more than white canadian reggae artists. If the name Magik wasn’t enough, they needed an exclamation mark after it. If you didn’t see them, just imagine one of Kyle Beckerman’s wet dreams and that’s what played out before America.”
  • “He had the finish of a foreigner, a foreigner who is the best foreigner since I want to know what love is.”
  • “Gyasi Zardes was tearing in on goal with the heavy touch of a tender lover.”
  • “They were worse than David Beckham’s Spanish in a Sprint commercial.”

From a content standpoint, they dove in quickly, and focused the majority of the show on the US team’s performance in the COPA America tournament. They gave the audience ten solid minutes on the last game, and after a reset, move into other storylines involving Team USA. Altogether they kept the discussion interesting for forty two minutes. This shows a commitment on their end to feature the content that will have the broadest appeal to an American audience.

When they finish discussing the US team, they navigate through seven topics involving other international teams in thirteen minutes. The pace during these topics is fast, but Rog and Davo still have time to inform, and entertain.

As it applies to business, this is a very rich content experience. There are a few live reads at the end of the show, and the inclusion of Guinness via a sound effect and verbal plug early on, but it’s not heavily filled with sponsors. That could be by design, or it could speak to a bigger challenge in selling the show. For a listener though, you get a lot of content without disruption.

If there’s an area where this particular show could improve, it’s in the production space. Beyond the verbal interaction between Roger and Davo, there’s nothing extra to it. If you were hoping to hear a guest, audience participation, creative bits, audio clips, etc. you’re not going to find what you’re looking for.

To their credit, they’re entertaining enough without guests or calls. When they discuss subjects though such as Klinsmann’s comments, Team USA defeating Costa Rica, or Mexico defeating Uruguay, they could have easily included audio of Klinsmann, a USA goal, and/or Trump talking about building a wall to make the content experience more creative and engaging.

CLOSING COMMENTS:

If you struggle to appreciate an international flavor of conversation than you’re not going to enjoy the Men In Blazers. Their accents are noticeable, and their cadence, analogies, and everyday conversation is vastly different from what many Americans are used to hearing. If you’re not interested in hearing about soccer, that too will turn you off. It’s the key focus of the entire broadcast.

However, if you enjoy soccer, or can allow yourself to be entertained, the Men In Blazers will give you your money’s worth. Their verbiage, phrasing, analogies, comedic timing, sarcasm, and chemistry are excellent, and you can tell how much Rog and Davies enjoy hosting together. You’re left in stitches every few minutes courtesy of their unique stories, observations, and one liners. They see the world of sports differently, and it takes some getting used to, but they provide a program that is content rich, fast paced, funny, smart, and unique.

The creative can be enhanced, and I wonder how much revenue can be generated for a show like this, but for a listener there’s a lot of meat on the bone to chew on. If I enjoyed soccer more, this would be a weekly must-listen. But since the sport has less appeal to me, that makes it tougher to commit to on a regular basis. That said, I’m convinced that if you gave these guys an hour to talk about a gallon of milk, rebuilding a transmission, or herding cattle, they’d still find a way to make it entertaining.

Sign up for the BSM 8@8

The Top 8 Sports Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox, every morning at 8am ET.

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.

5 Podcasts in 5 Days

5 Podcasts in 5 Days: Real_Sports with Jack and Abe

“Jay Soderberg offers his thoughts on BluWire’s ‘Real Sports’ podcast.”

Jason Barrett

Published

on

Editor’s note from Jason Barrett:

We’ve reached the final day of our ‘5 Podcasts in 5 Days‘ series. A big thank you to our special guest reviewer Jay Soderberg who took the time to listen to five different shows and offer his candid, direct, and unapologetic thoughts on each program. Though some of the input can sting those hosting the shows, Jay’s focus throughout this project has been to lend a few thoughts to help those creating the content improve their presentation.

As podcasting continues to grow due to its limitless offerings of unique, creative, and original content, it still remains a space without structure and a clear understanding of what does and doesn’t work. Unlike radio which uses ratings measurement to justify the effectiveness of a particular show or host, the success or ineffectiveness of a podcast can often be disguised by how a program is ranked on the Apple podcasting charts.

To help make some sense of it all, we reached out to Jay, who’s served as the Head of Content for BlogTalk Radio, and a digital audio producer, imaging director, and podcast creator for the ESPN Radio network, to put his ear on five shows and let folks know what’s working and what needs some fine tuning. The five programs we chose were Mystery Crate by Dan Le Batard and Friends, The GM Shuffle with Adnan Virk and Michael Lombardi, The Most Valuable Podcast with Charlotte Wilder and Jess Smetana, Locked on Jazz with David Locke, and Real Sports from BlueWire’s Jack Settleman and Abe Granoff.

We hope you’ll find Jay’s reviews of these 5 programs to be informative, honest, and well explained. If you have further feedback you can find him on Twitter @TheRealPodVader or you can email by clicking here. Enjoy!

REAL_SPORTS WITH JACK AND ABE:

Title: NBA Draft Preview, Kyrie Irving Breaking News and the Mike Conley Trade

Date: June 20, 2019

Length: 46 minutes

Cast: Jack Settleman and Abe Granoff

Sponsors: none

Production: Produced Open, music bed at the end

Show Breakdown:

0:00 – Tease on what’s up

:21 – Open featuring a montage of sports highlights

:41 – Introducing your hosts

1:19 – Abe’s NBA draft profile from Jack (he was robbed of living the dream as a child) but Jack mentions he was as a slow 6 footer…player comp: Draymond Green or RJ Barrett…Time for Jack’s draft profile from Abe…player comp: Lonzo Ball or Jalen Brunson…

4:15 – Time to move on to thoughts on the NBA Draft…what hasn’t been said about Zion Williamson already?…Jack believe RJ Barrett is the best player in the draft…Ja Morant break down…

11:50 – Picking apart some other NBA Draft prospects: Cam Reddish (got a pick with him earlier in the day…Abe isn’t a numbers guy, he likes to make decisions on players from what he sees on the court); Brandon Clark (Jack’s favorite player, not the best, in this draft);

20:56 – Busts: Nassir Little (shot up the boards because of hype and his length but doesn’t have a college background); Jared Culver (his size and strength won’t help him in the NBA)

24:20 – Breaking down the point guards – there are other names besides Morant and Garland

28:30 – What will Boston do with their picks? They’re in the limbo area of knowing their true identity – push forward to win with their young core or tank for more young talent?…The East is going to get weaker and the Celtics need to get an established player…the guys are split on Danny Ainge…

31:57 – What they’re most excited about for the NBA Draft…wouldn’t it be fun if the Lakers/Pelicans trade didn’t go through?

34:50 – Brief bit of feedback

35:28 – Breaking news after the pod was recorded and this is being put in afterwards…The Nets are concerned with bringing in Kyrie Irving unless he can bring Durant with him…laughing at the “trolls” who sent Jack photoshopped Kyrie pics in a Nets uniform and Irving is heading to the Knicks…Abe tells him to stop…this lends more to Kyrie going back to the Celtics or back to LeBron…

38:23 – A little more feedback

38:40 – Breaking down the Mike Conley trade…the Jazz could make some noise in a down year in the West…Derrick Favors being swapped out for a superstar before the deadline???…

45:00 – hope you liked it…give us 5 stars…thanks for the listens…want to hear from you…RSPod on Instagram… this has been Real Underscore Sports

Show Analysis:

Before we start analyzing the show, a quick lesson on the Apple Podcast charts. First, they only measure activity on Apple Podcast products (iTunes, iPods, iPads, iPhones, etc). Second, the charts are some sort of algorithm measuring new subscription activity – not a real measurement of audience size. That’s why a show like Real Sports is in the top 20 shows, but doesn’t have an episode in the top 200 episodes.

The team at BlueWire has done something smart to drive engagement on Snapchat and Instagram, running a raffle contest to get people to write reviews and ratings for the podcast on Apple Podcasts. Rob Walch on Libsyn will tell you ratings do not matter when it comes to positioning on the Apple Podcasts charts, but it definitely looks good to see a podcast with 7 episodes and 4211 reviews (as of this writing). Most of those reviews are 5 star because as one of the 1 star ratings put it “He bribes people with giveaways on social media and makes them give 5 stars to be eligible.” 

So who is Jack Settleman? According to his LinkedIn profile, he’s a recent graduate of the University of Texas at Austin in 2018. He’s focused on social media marketing while at the school and is currently the Social Media Community Manager at The Action Network. He clearly knows how to work the social media marketing angle, but understanding how that game works is important to understanding the real chart position of this podcast. I couldn’t find much on Abe Granoff, but it’s clear from listening to the show, they are big fans of the NBA and college basketball.

Closing Comments:

A critical review of the show stated “These guys just basically read off scoresheets” and I’m inclined to agree. The scary secret to that comment though, is that’s exactly what most radio hosts are doing. The difference is, experienced radio hosts sound less stiff and more genuine with their takes. Jack and Abe can at times sound robotic in their delivery. The key to improving that will come from gaining more reps.

I thought this podcast was just like most other ones, lacking innovation. It was just two guys providing their takes on the news of the day. The next generation of sports talk hosts are going to come from podcasts, so I’m hopeful the younger generation of broadcasters will introduce new original ideas instead of following the pattern of what everyone else has been doing.

The disappointing part of the story is that these guys really know how to get their message out to the younger masses – as shown in their ability to generate 1 million followers on Snapchat. But if the younger generation thinks this is what great sounding podcasts should sound like though, I tremble for our future.

Sign up for the BSM 8@8

The Top 8 Sports Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox, every morning at 8am ET.

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading

5 Podcasts in 5 Days

5 Podcasts in 5 Days: Locked on Jazz

“Special guest reviewer Jay Soderberg reviews the Locked on Jazz podcast with David Locke.”

Jason Barrett

Published

on

Editor’s note from Jason Barrett:

5 Podcasts in 5 Days‘ continues with special guest reviewer Jay Soderberg spending day four to analyze the Locked on Jazz podcast by Utah Jazz voice David Locke. For those unfamiliar with Jay, he is the former the Head of Content for BlogTalk Radio, and a digital audio producer, imaging director, and podcast creator for the ESPN Radio network. He’s candid, direct, and unapologetic with his feedback, and focused on trying to help content creators produce exceptional material, even if it means having to get under their skin in the process.

As podcasting continues to grow due to its limitless offerings of unique, creative, and original content, it still remains a space without structure and a clear understanding of what does and doesn’t work. Unlike radio which uses ratings measurement to justify the effectiveness of a particular show or host, the success or ineffectiveness of a podcast can often be disguised by how a program is ranked on the Apple podcasting charts.

Since this space has turned into the audio version of the wild west, we thought it’d be beneficial to bring back 5 Podcasts in 5 Days and find out which audio shows are checking the right boxes, and which ones could use some fine tuning. The five podcasts we charged Jay with listening to and critiquing were Mystery Crate by Dan Le Batard and Friends, The GM Shuffle with Adnan Virk and Michael Lombardi, The Most Valuable Podcast with Charlotte Wilder and Jess Smetana, Locked on Jazz with David Locke, and Real Sports from BluWire’s Jack Settleman and Abe Granoff.

We hope you’ll find Jay’s reviews of these 5 programs to be informative, honest, and well explained. If you have further feedback you can find him on Twitter @TheRealPodVader or you can email by clicking here. Enjoy!

LOCKED ON JAZZ

Title: Kevin Pelton stops by to discuss the Lakers and the NBA Draft by the Numbers

Date: June 19, 2019

Length: 38 minutes

Cast: David Locke, guest: Kevin Pelton

Sponsors: Lenovo, Homie (local? BYU creators), The Store (local), Hotels.com, Shamrock Auto Group (local)

Production: minimal

Show Breakdown:

0:00 – Produced open for 10secs, 30sec pre-produced ad for Lenovo, David Locke teases what’s up on the show and then says he’s going on vacation for a bit

2:17 – Kevin Pelton interview begins…starting with 2 questions about the Anthony Davis trade…the two local Locked On hosts loved the deal but the national guys have been slamming it

8:55 – Reset – that was Kevin Pelton’s trade analysis, now getting into his Draft projections…he’s been really good at finding the 25-35 range, that’s the strength of his scenarios…highlighting some examples of guys that Pelton has projected guys in that range…how good has he been at projecting busts?

13:43 – Reset, again with a tease of what’s coming up…but today’s show is brought to you by Homie (host read ad) also brought to you by The Store at 60 and 200 South and 20th East

16:43 – Kevin, who’s top 10 in his numbers and who’s top 10 generally accepted?

23:47 – Distracted by computer noises…teasing what’s coming up but I can’t stand this throw to commercial “…that and more when we’re back on the Locked On Podcast Network.”

24:15 – Hotels.com (pre-produced), Shamrock Auto Group (host read), Locked On NBA Net on Draft night

26:50 – Why is there not a big difference between 19 and 22 year olds?

29:29 – Who’s Fred Van Fleet or Monte Morris this year? Not sure there’s anyone Kevin feels that strongly about this year but here are some guys Kevin likes more than others.

34:54 – Guys who will go in top 20 that Kevin’s numbers just don’t see it.

36:31 – Go follow Kevin @kpelton…going on vacation

37:00 – Promo for Locked on Cougars, reminder that your smart speaker can play your podcasts (but it’s cut off before Dave finishes the explanation)

Show Analysis:

When I was first introduced to podcasting at ESPN 15 years ago, I remember thinking the brilliance of it was that you no longer needed to have your peanut butter mixed with your chocolate. Meaning – I can have my football without having to listen to the baseball or the basketball or the hockey. David Locke has taken that one step further with his Locked On network, making podcasts for individual teams, mainly in the NBA and NFL. David is the voice of the Utah Jazz and has a professional radio background and it’s apparent listening to his show.

David has multiple resets with his guest (which for a podcast listener can become a little annoying), teasing upcoming content before commercial breaks and then extremely professional reads on those ad deliveries. David has worked on this network for quite some time and the mix between the pre-produced ads from Megaphone and the local ads (which I’m assuming David has acquired on his own) gives the podcast a strong local feel (literally naming the streets to find The Store).

While this does sound like a re-purposed local radio show, it’s hard to complain about that lack of innovation because the focus is on one local team. That said, David did have a national guest on to talk about the NBA Draft and never asked a specific question regarding the Utah Jazz. To be fair, David’s interview did center mostly on later round options in the draft (the Jazz had the 23rd pick and a couple of second round choices). And to really hit the minutiae, he never tells us Kevin Pelton is from ESPN.

There are a lot of assumptions being made and for a regular listener, that’s probably great. For a brand new listener though, they might feel lost. Every new piece of content is an opportunity for a new listener.

Speaking of formatics, I HATE hearing these phrases around commercial breaks on the radio and especially on a podcast – “we’ll be right back” “and we’re back” “we’re going to take a break” “the break is all done”. You and especially the podcast listener never left! A majority of podcast listeners don’t even hit the fast forward button available to them to skip the ads so why give them a warning flag that a commercial is coming up?

I’m a big proponent of the tease before a commercial break. Give the audience that cliff hanger. They can’t wait to hear Kevin’s deep draft gems. Just leave it at that. “In a moment, Kevin’s going to tell us his deep draft gems” – lay out. Commercials. “Kevin, what do your numbers say about the potential Superstars around pick number 23?”

Closing Comments:

As a frequent podcast listener, the difficulties David faces with a network like this is finding clones of himself. While David is a professional broadcaster, there are others in his network that could use some polishing. Having worked on the business side of the podcast industry, I know how difficult it can be to find a sales team that will focus on local businesses to feature in a local podcast. Many podcasters carry that load upon themselves while most podcast sales agents (like Megaphone or Midroll) will focus on a national type sponsor. For a podcaster with no previous media experience, you can see how difficult a task that would be to undertake.

That’s an advantage the Locked On Network has with David at the helm. He’s on to something good, delivering the type of niche content sports fans are looking for. The podcast is also offered daily during the NBA season, giving fans the chance to enjoy the content they want on their own schedule. If local stations aren’t careful, he’ll steal their audience and then their sponsors.

Sign up for the BSM 8@8

The Top 8 Sports Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox, every morning at 8am ET.

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading

5 Podcasts in 5 Days

5 Podcasts in 5 Days: Most Valuable Podcast

“Jay Soderberg offers his assessment of the Most Valuable Podcast”

Jason Barrett

Published

on

Editor’s note from Jason Barrett:

The third day of ‘5 Podcasts in 5 Days‘ with special guest reviewer Jay Soderberg has arrived. Jay is the former the Head of Content for BlogTalk Radio, and a digital audio producer, imaging director, and podcast creator for the ESPN Radio network. He’s candid, direct, and unapologetic with his feedback, and focused on trying to help content creators produce exceptional material, even if it means having to get under their skin in the process.

As podcasting has continued to grow due to its limitless offerings of unique, creative, and original content, it still remains a space without structure and a clear understanding of what does and doesn’t work. Unlike radio which uses ratings measurement to justify the effectiveness of a particular show or host, the success or ineffectiveness of a podcast can often be disguised by how a program is ranked on the Apple podcasting charts.

Since this space has turned into the audio version of the wild west, we thought it’d be beneficial to bring back 5 Podcasts in 5 Days and find out which audio shows are checking the right boxes, and which ones could use some fine tuning. The five podcasts we charged Jay with listening to and critiquing were Mystery Crate by Dan Le Batard and Friends, The GM Shuffle with Adnan Virk and Michael Lombardi, The Most Valuable Podcast with Charlotte Wilder and Jess Smetana, Locked on Jazz with David Locke, and Real Sports from BluWire’s Jack Settleman and Abe Granoff.

We hope you’ll find Jay’s reviews of these 5 programs to be informative, honest, and well explained. If you have further feedback you can find him on Twitter @TheRealPodVader or you can email by clicking here. Enjoy!

Title: It’s the perfect time for Anthony Davis to shave his unibrow and rebrand

Date: June 20, 2019

Length: 1 hour, 6 minutes

Cast: Christine Wilder and Jess Smetana, Brandon (the Producer)

Sponsors: none

Production: a music bed to start and end the show

Show Breakdown:

0:00 – Revisiting a trip to Boston for the NHL Finals…more in a bit, but first, the NBA Finals which feel like they finished a long time ago and now free agency is top in the news cycle…Woj Bomb in the middle of Finals that Kawhi won’t resign with the Raptors and he hasn’t even accepted the trophy yet…torn ACL’s are the worst…Did you understand what was happening at the end of that Game with the technical foul?…revisiting last week’s conversation on all sports fans are a**holes, according to tweet, Canadians find Toronto is the a**hole of Canada…

8:25 – Don’t like the uniforms that say “North” – not even the most northern NBA city…Taking pride in local teams like the Portland (Maine) Red Claws…

12:27 – Should we do more NBA free agency stuff since we just talked about the NBA??? Anthony Davis got traded…Jess wouldn’t be a great GM because she likes to be frugal…Would you want to play with LeBron? No, because he’ll make you play in Space Jam 2 and it won’t be as great as the first one…Davis now has the perfect opportunity to look the best he’s ever looked and shave the unibrow…

17:34 – An idea for an app – Kyrie Irving and James Harden ghosting their teams…ghosting is so easy in any relationship, but you really should just say something so that the other person doesn’t hang on…the app will get all the relevant info on the relationship and send the let down information for you…Kyrie could use this with Danny Ainge…

22:00 – Sorry to Charlotte who watched a sucky blowout in Game 7 of the NHL Finals (pretty clear Charlotte is a Bruins fan)…

23:50 – Brandon the Producer jumps in as he doesn’t like mosquitos and Jess just got bit by one…back to the NHL…What would you eat if you just lost the NHL Finals?…Anheuser Busch headquartered in St. Louis?

27:45 – Gary Woodland wins the US Open…didn’t realize it ends on Father’s Day every year…don’t assume because Charlotte is a woman she doesn’t know what she’s talking about with sports…they spoke this outcome into existence in a previous show…shout out to Gary…also, who still names their kids Gary?…he’s also never drank a warm beverage, does soup count?…

32:07 – Let’s talk about the World Cup…our girl Julie Ertz scored a goal vs Chile…the bad tweet from someplace, CBS?, that Zach Ertz left training camp to watch his wife in the world cup – hello, she has a name…we’re beyond this now and Julie Ertz has way more Instagram followers than Zach (but he has more Twitter followers), but Instagram is the way more used platform (well, we’ll discuss that in a moment…)…can everyone just follow us on Instagram?…

37:26 – Do we have any personal news because all it says on the little Google Doc is personal news and nothing below it…

39:27 – We have to cancel something…LaVar Ball…people forgot that he’s been canceled already and he’s still saying stupid things…need to cancel OJ Simpson again because now he’s on Twitter…

44:18 – Some Agro Facts this week…well, basically we’ve found really good brands of dried seaweed

47:29 – Underrated… this week it’s sour cream, the unsung hero of Taco Tuesday

49:53 – Future Wedding to each other…this came up from a viral tweet about going to a wedding with me and still liking me after…

51:32 – The Patriot of the Week…viral video of guy at a baseball game who caught foul ball and chugged a beer

55:36 – Shout out to Summer of #20WineTeen…how do you spell that out?

59:30 – Unofficial Official Mike Trout Fan Club…thanks to everyone pointing out what we should be paying attention to…he’s been really good at the baseball and his W-A-R has been really good…he pet a dog named Moo Moo…

1:02:12 – What is that noise (that the audience can’t hear)? The phone in the podcast room is ringing…

1:03:00 – Mike Trout had a really good transportation tweet…

1:03:58 – Time to go (because they said so and there’s the music bed)…give us high ratings and boost our Instagram

Show Analysis:

When creating a podcast it’s important to know who your target audience is. This podcast is clearly targeted towards millennial sports fans, is internet driven (lots of social media talk), and uses swear words. There isn’t a problem with that at all, but even millennial’s like to hear some cool sounding production elements.

In listening to the show, it’s clear that Jess and Charlotte do some form of prep for their show – because you can hear their transitions from topic to topic. They also mention the “Google Doc” in this episode.

So why don’t they have production elements for their regular segments? If the producer doesn’t have time to create them, why not ask the audience for some help? It’s a great way to forge an everlasting bond with your audience and frankly, sometimes you get some really great work for free.

One thing I struggle with when listening to podcasts that tend to be more on the jovial side is when they tackle subjects that are more serious. In this episode for instance, sexism in sports. I agree that Julie Ertz and any woman playing professional sports should be given the respect of being called by their name, but it’s hard to take Jess and Charlotte seriously when they’re talking about wanting to marry the guy who catches the foul ball and chugs his beer or oogling over Mike Trout petting a puppy. It’s just a little awkward.

Also, I’m assuming there were inside jokes or previous jokes when talking about Mike Trout “being good at the baseball” and his “W-A-R was really good”, but a first time listener may hear that and stereotype it as “another female sports show”. It’s a delicate line to balance and begging for more Instagram followers doesn’t help.

Closing Comments:

While this is definitely not “old guy, stuffy sports program”, there’s still a lack of innovation for a sports podcast. It sounds similar to most other sports radio products with the exception being the show features two women and they’re talking to a younger audience. The sourcing of social media is clever to help drive engagement from an audience that is using the internet to listen to the show, but adding some production would really help this show sing.

I do think there is great potential here with a few tweaks that could help drive how sports radio evolves for future generations. There needs to be a little more effort than just sitting down in a studio for an hour with microphones recording a conversation. It’s a good start, but it can be taken to the next level with a few adjustments.

Sign up for the BSM 8@8

The Top 8 Sports Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox, every morning at 8am ET.

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading
Advertisement

Advertisement

Upcoming Events

Barrett Media Writers

Copyright © 2024 Barrett Media.