Sports Radio News
Ben & Woods Pay Tribute To Norm Macdonald
“He could sit up there in front of an audience [when] no one was laughing, and he loved every second of it,” said Ben Higgins.

Published
2 years agoon

Instead of talking about the San Diego Padres’ recent slide from the National League Wild Card race, Ben & Woods on 97.3 The Fan in San Diego took time on Wednesday morning to honor the legacy of Norm Macdonald. The 61-year-old comedian and former anchor of Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live lost his battle with cancer Tuesday, one that he very much kept concealed from public view.
“He could sit up there in front of an audience [when] no one was laughing, and he loved every second of it,” said Ben Higgins, co-host of Ben & Woods. “We were just commenting on how it’s so rare where, even the three of us, can agree on someone.”
Macdonald was fired from Saturday Night Live in 1998 after he refused to stop mentioning the court case wherein former NFL player and color commentator O.J. Simpson was arraigned and found not guilty for the murder of his ex-wife and her friend. The San Diego sports radio morning show played several clips of Macdonald discussing Simpson on Weekend Update, which had both hosts and producer Paul Reindl laughing.
“The L.A. district attorney’s office has given Marcia Clark and Christopher Darden… over 10,000 dollars for ‘lengthy hard-time duty’ in the O.J. Simpson case,” said Macdonald in the clip from Saturday Night Live. “A spokesman for the D.A. said the prosecutor’s bonuses would have been higher, except for the fact that they let a killer go free.”
The other host of the show, Steven Woods, admired the audacity Macdonald possessed in discussing controversial topics such as the highly-publicized court case.
“Honestly, he didn’t care. If he lost a gig, he’d get another gig,” said Woods. “If I said something offensive and lost this job, it would kill me. He was like, ‘I know what I have. I know who I am. I know my humor plays.’ He gave the Saturday Night Live job away for the sake of his comedy.”
Additionally, Woods reminisced on some of the guest appearances of Macdonald on The Howard Stern Show, extolling his innate ability to comedically discuss uncomfortable topics across the world of sports, news and entertainment.
“His appearances on Stern were through the roof. I’ve always loved that uncomfortable humor. I couldn’t take a sleeve of note cards out and read deliberately bad jokes.”
In a tweet, Conan O’Brien, the former host of Conan on TBS, conveyed the impact Macdonald had on the worlds of both comedy and mediated communications.
“I am absolutely devastated about Norm Macdonald,” said O’Brien, who hosted over 1,500 episodes of his late night talk show. “Norm had the most unique comedic voice I have ever encountered and he was so relentlessly and uncompromisingly funny. I will never laugh that hard again. I’m so sad for all of us today.”
Macdonald’s ingenuity in setting up and delivering the punchline of jokes that would get the viewer or listener laughing was something Woods called unique. In reference to a particularly memorable joke told by Macdonald, Woods discussed how guests are managed when appearing on radio or television. In his discussion, he expressed how it is often emphasized to callers and on-air hosts alike to get to their point as quickly as possible to keep the show moving. For Macdonald though, that punchline often took quite a bit of time to get to, something Woods said was always worth the wait.
“We do radio. We have a clock. We’ve got a little room to stretch, [but] TV shows have a much tighter clock,” explained Woods. “But even when Ben, me, Paul or a caller calls in and tells a story, you see me going ‘Let’s go. Let’s go. We’ve got to wrap it up. Let’s get to the meat.’ [Macdonald] goes on with [a] story for five minutes and the punch-line is so corny and dad-jokey, I had tears rolling down my face. The build-up for the payoff is the joke.”
The discussion concluded with both Higgins and Woods offering their final thoughts on the loss of Macdonald, who transformed his industry through his style of dry humor both on television as an update anchor on Saturday Night Live, and as a stand-up comedian.
“He didn’t want people to think differently of him or show pity towards him,” said Woods. “I think his longtime publicist and friend who was with him when he passed away said, ‘He just wanted to be Norm. He didn’t want people to be like, ‘Oh that’s Norm. He’s so funny and he’s dying, fighting this battle with cancer.’’ He was that committed to getting through it and not wanting anybody’s attention or adulation for anything other than his comedy. I think he legitimately didn’t want to make people sad, ever.”
“What’s really sad is that he could have had another 30 years being funny, deep into his later years,” expressed Higgins. “What a comedy legend that left us way too early yesterday.”

Derek Futterman is a contributing editor and sports media reporter for Barrett Sports Media. Additionally, he has worked in a broad array of roles in multimedia production – including on live game broadcasts and audiovisual platforms – and in digital content development and management. He previously interned for Paramount within Showtime Networks, wrote for the Long Island Herald and served as lead sports producer at NY2C. To get in touch, find him on Twitter @derekfutterman.
Sports Radio News
KNBR Cuts Staff, Including Hosts Paul McCaffrey and F.P. Santangelo
Adam Copeland, who was tabbed as Program Director of KNBR earlier this month, revealed the cuts at the end of his program co-hosted by Tom Tolbert Wednesday afternoon.

Published
28 mins agoon
November 29, 2023By
BSM Staff
KNBR has undergone a series of cuts, which have eliminated the positions of a pair of on-air hosts.
Morning co-host Paul McCaffrey was one of the hosts affected by the reductions. He had hosted Murph and Mac alongside Brian Murphy since 2005. He joined the station after previously working at 1050 KTCT as a weekend host at classic rock station 107.7 The Bone. The morning show’s producer — Erik Engle — also confirmed on X that he was let go as part of the station’s cuts.
Additionally, former MLB outfielder F.P. Santangelo was let go. He was hosting KNBR Tonight in the 6-10 PM timeslot.
“I was informed today that due to budget cuts there will no longer be a 6-10pm show,” Santangelo wrote on X. “That said I’m super grateful for the time spent bonding with all the amazing Bay.”
I want to thank everyone @KNBR for the amazing opportunity to be a part of their station for a second time around! I was informed today that due to budget cuts there will no longer be a 6-10pm show. That said I’m super grateful for the time spent bonding with all the amazing Bay
— F.P. Santangelo (@FightinHydrant) November 29, 2023
According to SFGate.com, the live nighttime call-in show hosted by Santangelo had been heard on the station for more than 50 years. The station aired nationally syndicated programming from CBS Sports Radio on Wednesday night during the timeslot previously helmed by the MLB veteran.
In addition to the departures of McCaffrey and Santangelo, former programmer Lee Hammer also exited. Hammer had been with the station since 1998. He programmed 1050 KTCT from 1998 to 2016, and KNBR from 2005 to 2017. He also spent time programming talk stations 560 KSFO and 810 KGO.
Adam Copeland, who was tabbed as Program Director of KNBR earlier this month, revealed the cuts at the end of his program co-hosted by Tom Tolbert Wednesday afternoon.
“It’s been a really difficult day. I love this building, I love this station, I love working with you, Tom, and I’ve listened to you for years. I love a lot of people, and I love the guys we let go of today,” Copeland said, according to RadioInsight. “I’m looking forward to the future, but I really think we need to tip our cap and applaud the work that those guys have done.”
During the summer ratings period, KNBR finished with its best book of the year. However, the station remained behind competitor 95.7 The Game in every daypart except mornings, which will now undergo a change with the departure of McCaffrey. In the overall prime ratings in the men 25-54 demographic, KNBR finished 15th with a 2.6 share behind The Game’s 11th-place 3.2 share.
Sports Radio News
Dan Patrick to Appear in December Episode of The Simpsons
“I’ve had a couple of sessions, and I only had like four lines, five lines.”

Published
8 hours agoon
November 29, 2023By
BSM Staff
For a sports radio host, Dan Patrick has quite an impressive list of IMDb credits. He will add a new one next month, when he appears on The Simpsons.
During The Dan Patrick Show Tuesday, the legendary sportscaster mentioned that several of the voices for the show are reaching senior citizen status, putting future seasons in question. Patrick joked that the show’s guest booker, Todd Fritz, could be a natural replacement for Julie Kavner as the voice of Marge Simpson.
After joking that Fritz would want to change the script too often, Patrick revealed he would appear in an upcoming episode, and changing the script wouldn’t be an easy proposition.
“I’m on an episode that — I think — comes out on Christmas Eve (of) The Simpsons” Patrick admitted. “I’ve had a couple of sessions, and I only had like four lines, five lines. They wanna hear what they wanna hear.”
Should @BrooklynFritzy ditch the show and audition for the voice of Marge Simpson on @TheSimpsons? pic.twitter.com/9ObsHS8CLW
— Dan Patrick Show (@dpshow) November 29, 2023
Patrick continued by noting that when he worked at ESPN, former co-worker Kenny Mayne was notorious for wanting to change the scripts of commercials during the “This is SportsCenter” campaigns.
“Kenny would always go ‘Hey, how about this?’ or ‘What about this?’, and I’d say ‘Let’s just stick to the script. They really have a good track record here.'”
He added that the voiceover artists on the program have deserved the millions they’ve made during the show’s long-running tenure.
“They’re extremely talented. They do a variety of voices there…that show has been on for how many decades? (It’s) still funny (and) relevant,” Patrick said.
On his IMDb page, Dan Patrick has 36 acting credits to his name, with the majority coming from projects with Adam Sandler.
Sports Radio News
Matt Jones: ‘I’m Not Ashamed to Have Epilepsy’
“It’s a medical condition, and there is nothing I can do about it. I take medication, and that helps, and I wanted to show people that you can have a condition like that and still succeed…”

Published
8 hours agoon
November 29, 2023By
BSM Staff
In a Netflix documentary series released in September, Kentucky Sports Radio host Matt Jones is seen having an epileptic seizure. He has shared why he allowed the video to be shown.
In an interview with Lexington TV station WKYT, Jones says he wants others with epilepsy to know they’re not alone.
“I think the world is a better place when people realize they are not the only ones feeling whatever it is they are feeling,” Jones said.
He shared that talking about the effects the condition has on him breaks down the stigma.
“You know I’m not ashamed to have epilepsy; it’s a medical condition, and there is nothing I can do about it. I take medication, and that helps, and I wanted to show people that you can have a condition like that and still succeed and still go through life, and you should not be ashamed of it,” he said.
The Kentucky Sports Radio host said his first seizure happened when he was 22, which is rare because most people with epilepsy suffer it at an earlier age. He said the seizure he suffered while filming the Netflix series Wrestlers — which features a behind-the-scenes look at Ohio Valley Wrestling and attempts to save the promotion in which Jones is a partner — was one of the worst he’s ever experienced.
Matt Jones told the TV station his only hesitation in showing the footage was he didn’t want his mother to see it.
“The director talked to me about airing it. He basically said are you okay with airing it? My initial inclination was no, not because of me, but because of my mother, and I didn’t want her to have to see it. She had never seen me have one,” Jones concluded.
November is Epilepsy Awareness Month. 1 in 26 people in the United States suffer from the condition.