Jim Williams: WTEM 980 goes all local
Jim Williams, The Examiner
May 2, 2006 7:00 AM (18 mins ago)
WASHINGTON -
“The Tony Kornheiser Show,” is on the shelf till T.K. returns after his run on Monday Night
Football. Meanwhile the folks at WTEM have made a bold move, a move that should excite sports
fans all over the area.
Starting Monday, Sports Talk 980 AM WTEM became local from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
The “Sports Reporters,” with Andy Pollin and Steve Czaban will kick things off weekdays from 9
a.m. till noon. That gives the boys three hours to really dive into topics and build on their odd
couple act that has played so well in the late afternoon.
“Andy and I are very excited — this is great for our listeners and for the show,” said Czaban.
“I’ve worked for sports radio stations since the format was invented in 1987, and that includes seven
years at ESPN Radio and local is always better,” Pollin said.
Noon to 3 p.m. belongs to the “Brian Mitchell Show,” the former Redskins All-Pro who has
established himself as a good broadcaster with a bright future. His partner will be Bram Weinstein
who has grown into a fine host making for an interesting mid-day show.
“The John Thompson Show” now expands to four hours and becomes a true drive time power
running from 3-7 p.m. The Hall of Fame coach is of course joined by Rick “Doc” Walker who has
grown to be a real broadcasting force not just locally but nationally and “The Judge,” Al Koken, will
be in the house to give listeners his unique take on the issues.
John Thompson and his team land the quality of guests that few others get and makes for great
listening.
WTEM program executive Chris Johnson has been credited by his bosses for being the force behind
the change and it does not hurt that he has a very deep and talented group of announcers to choose
from.
So the next move belongs to Daniel Snyder and his brain trust at Red Zebra — who no doubt will
pull out all the stops to be successful. The winner of this radio war will be the fans of the DC area.
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Jim Williams is a seven-time Emmy Award-winning TV producer, director and writer.