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63-440: Infinity Sports Network is an American sports radio network. It debuted as CBS Sports Radio with hourly sports news updates on September 4, 2012, and with 24/7 programming on January 2, 2013. Infinity Sports Network is programmed by Audacy, Inc. and distributed by Westwood One . Programming on the network featured reporters and personalities from CBS Sports, CBS Sports Network , and CBSSports.com . Infinity Sports Network

126-588: A loyalty oath to the United States. Francesa denied ever making such comments, prompting further criticism from Mushnick. In April 2017, Deadspin reported that a recording of the show from September 12, 2001, had been located in the 9/11 archives of the Paley Center for Media . Deadspin writers listened to the episode, and noted that while Francesa and Russo had argued with an American citizen caller about his loyalty to Israel taking precedence over his loyalty to

189-514: A commercial-free 40 minutes. During the simulcast, they announced that Mike and the Mad Dog would reunite for a one-time-only fundraising show at Radio City Music Hall on March 30, 2016. The proceeds would go to the Garden of Dreams Foundation, which benefits programs and charities that help children facing various obstacles, including physical and financial. On January 12, 2016, Francesa announced that

252-762: A few. Mike and the Mad Dog Mike and the Mad Dog was an American sports radio show hosted by Mike Francesa and Christopher "Mad Dog" Russo that aired in afternoons on WFAN in New York City from September 1989 to August 2008. From 2002 the show was simulcast on television on the YES Network . On the radio, the show was simulcast beginning 2007 on WQYK in Tampa, Florida , and from 2004 until 2007 on WROW in Albany, New York . Before Francesa and Russo were paired, Russo

315-432: A lot of time doing”. The two former hosts have not had an official reunion since the 2016 Radio City event, and have not appeared in media together since March 2018 for a brief MLB Network appearance, which Russo said was the last time they spoke at all. On the eve of Russo's 50th birthday, Francesa made a surprise appearance on Mad Dog Unleashed on October 15, 2009. The following day, Francesa and Russo teamed up for

378-404: A much lesser extent, but they did receive mention due to the show's strong relationship with Jim Nantz , an acclaimed golf and college basketball broadcaster, plus a few noted college coaches and NBA coaches, reporters, and broadcasters. It is well noted that Russo is a big fan of tennis; and tennis did get some play on their show (much to Francesa's chagrin) generally leading into and then during

441-417: A national brand (such as TSN Radio or Sportsnet Radio ) but carry mostly local programming, with American-based shows filling in gaps. Compared to other formats, interactive "talkback" sports radio poses difficulties for Internet radio , since as a live format it is difficult to automate; most prominent sports leagues also place their radio broadcasts behind a paywall or provide their broadcasts directly to

504-406: A new sports talk channel called Mad Dog Radio on both Sirius and XM satellite radio. Russo said there was nothing WFAN could have done to keep him after Sirius XM provided him an opportunity to not only do a show, but have his own channel, which he could not pass up. In an interview with Best on November 19, 2008, Francesa insisted that there was no smoking gun, no juicy, untold key regarding

567-489: A one-hour reunion show on Mike'd Up: Francesa on the FAN at 1 p.m. and then again on Mad Dog Unleashed from 6:30 to 7:00 p.m. at Yankee Stadium before the first game of the 2009 American League Championship Series , where both were broadcasting their separate shows in adjacent booths. Russo said that although he loved working at Sirius, he missed talking sports with Francesa. On January 31, 2012, Francesa and Russo met on

630-490: A teenager, but was not a big fan of the game.) While the Mike and the Mad Dog program has been a success, the duo has had their share of problems. Things did not go well at first. Neither of them was happy about the arrangement, and each felt that he deserved his own show. Arguments between the two have spilled onto the air and there were backstage debates about such matters as whose name would come first and which of them would get

693-403: A very rocky last year. I think what might have caused some of that was his feeling, stronger than I knew at the time, that he wanted to go to mornings more than I did." In reflection, Francesa said, "We had 20 years of something that was great. We're linked forever. That's just life. So the idea that people want to paint Mike vs. Mad Dog, who's the good guy, who's the bad guy? You know what? There

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756-634: A week, maybe something around big events." On November 15, 2017, Russo joined Francesa on Francesa's farewell-to-WFAN tour with an event in his honor dubbed “A Night to Remember” at the Tilles Center on the campus of LIU Post broadcast on WFAN. On December 14, 2017, Russo joined Francesa on Francesa's penultimate show at Paley Center in New York on WFAN to say farewell to Francesa. On March 28, 2018, Francesa joined Russo on Russo's show High Heat on MLB Network for an hour. On January 19, 2023, it

819-570: Is Nigeria's first sports radio station and was launched in 2002. DZSR Sports Radio 918 kHz is the first and only sports radio station owned by the Philippine Broadcasting Service . In 2009, Detroit's "97.1 The Ticket" WXYT-FM , thanks to the surprising time slot dominance of shows like Valenti and Foster , in addition to holding the play-by-play rights for the Detroit Tigers , Detroit Red Wings , Detroit Lions and

882-641: Is a different kind of element, a different kind of show. It's all-consuming. It's so different than what I was used to", Russo said. "You forget what you accomplished in that 20-year period. It's almost like I forget I was at FAN for 20 years." In the same interview with Raissman, Russo did not rule out a reunion with Francesa. Russo said, "You never want to say never. You know how the radio business is. So, you never say never, but I haven’t thought about it in my crystal ball, let's put it that way... But I’ll tell you right now, if Mike and I did shows together we would have no trouble picking right up where we left off." In

945-553: Is broadcast throughout the United States on radio affiliates and streamed online. From launch until November 17, 2017, it was operated by CBS Radio until its merger with Entercom. Entercom, which later became Audacy, Inc., continued to manage the network under a licensing agreement with CBS. The rights to the CBS logo , but not the name, expired at the end of 2019; the rights to the CBS cross-branding—which had originally been scheduled to expire at

1008-488: Is carried in multiple forms on both major North American satellite radio networks. In the United States, most sports talk-formatted radio stations air syndicated programming from ESPN Radio , SportsMap , Sports Byline USA , Fox Sports Radio , Infinity Sports Network , or NBC Sports Radio , while in the Spanish language , ESPN Deportes Radio is the largest current network. In contrast, Canadian sports talk stations may carry

1071-429: Is no bad guy." In another interview with Jerry Barmash on June 29, 2012, regarding Russo leaving the show, Francesa said, "I didn’t begrudge him leaving for one second. I never had an issue with that. It just wasn’t handled properly, which I think he now understands it and would readily admit." Francesa said he and WFAN operations manager Mark Chernoff got word through back channels of Russo's plan three months before it

1134-688: Is the oldest and longest running sports talk call-in show in the NY-NJ Metropolitan area, and is believed to be the oldest in the nation. Enterprise Radio Network became the first national all-sports network, operating out of Avon, Connecticut, from New Year's Day 1981 through late September of that year before going out of business. ER had two channels, one for talk and a second for updates and play-by-play. ER's talk lineup included current New York Yankees voice John Sterling , New York Mets radio host Ed Coleman and former big-league pitcher Bill Denehy . Emmis Broadcasting 's WFAN in New York in 1987

1197-581: The Rolling Stone interview on July 13, 2017, Francesa said, "We were two individuals who, in our core, always thought we could be enormously successful without the other one... People feel very personal about the radio people they listen to. You become a part of their life... I've had guys come up to me on the street and say, 'I didn't have a dad, you raised me.'" Francesa came back from his 2017 retirement after 4 months to begin hosting afternoon drive on WFAN, which he did until December 2019. The un-retirement

1260-707: The Detroit Pistons , became the United States' only sports talk radio station to be the highest rated station in their market, according to Portable People Meter rankings. The station relocated to the FM dial in October 2007 after existing on the AM dial for seven years prior, replacing a Free FM "hot talk" station, WKRK. This ratings success has led to WXYT-FM billing itself as the country's best sports station. WXYT-FM's recent influence has led to CBS Radio installing sports radio stations on

1323-605: The Final Four in the NCAA tournament . Imus promised Francesa a new Porsche if Seton Hall made the Final Four, which they did. Though Imus found a way around the bet, the dialogue between the two is considered to be among the classic moments in the history of Imus in the Morning . In August 1989, WFAN (which was owned at the time by Emmis Communications ) was looking for hosts to replace

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1386-584: The Jacob K. Javits Convention Center for the DHL All-Star Fan Fest. They would do three more shows together around All-Star weekend. Both Francesa and Russo were coy about their future beyond the summer. On August 5, 2008, they would do their final show together at the New York Giants' training facility in Albany, New York . On August 14, 2008, Russo reached a mutual agreement with WFAN to let him out of

1449-615: The Super Bowl , pre-season football camps, U.S. Open Tennis Championship (typically Russo hosted these show solo because Francesa is not a tennis fan; see below), the Yankees and Mets' spring training sites, and playoff games for various New York teams. The Mike and the Mad Dog show primarily concentrated on baseball and football . In an interview with the New York Daily News , Francesa said: Basketball and golf were covered to

1512-713: The 2018 repeal of the United States' Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 , a variant of the format focusing upon sports betting began to emerge. In August 2019, SportsMap (then SB Nation Radio) and Vegas Stats & Information Network (VSiN) launched the BetR Network with affiliates in Las Vegas and Atlantic City at launch, while Philadelphia's WDAS flipped to a sports format featuring local programs involving sports betting. Broadcaster Audacy began to deploy its BetQL Network to more of its stations in June 2021 (using

1575-712: The FM dial in Dallas ( 105.3 The Fan ), Boston ( 98.5 The Sports Hub ), Pittsburgh ( 93.7 The Fan ), Washington, DC ( 106.7 The Fan ), Baltimore ( 105.7 The Fan ) and Cleveland ( 92.3 The Fan ), in addition to simulcasting Philadelphia 's heritage 610 WIP onto the former WYSP . Other non-CBS stations have also migrated to the FM dial, most notably Clear Channel's KFAN in Minneapolis , Greater Media's WPEN in Pennsylvania and Dispatch Media's WBNS-FM in Columbus , just to name

1638-591: The March 30 reunion show would be simulcast on MSG+ TV, WFAN and SiriusXM. On March 30, 2016 – Francesa and Russo hosted the reunion show at Radio City Music Hall . Among the highlights: On June 24, 2016, Francesa and Russo had their radio shows simulcast on both WFAN and SiriusXM Satellite Radio for half an hour (beginning at 4 p.m. ET) to promote their candidacy for induction into the National Radio Hall of Fame . On February 2, 2017, Francesa and Russo met on

1701-406: The Morning during morning drive time to provide as much national clearance as possible; in contrast, it carries less prominent programming in the afternoon drive to accommodate local sports talk, as well as in the evening (for its first two decades, rolling score updates aired under the banner of GameNight ) to allow stations to break away for local sporting events. Somewhat unusually for radio,

1764-695: The air at the Radio Row at Super Bowl LI for 45 commercial-free minutes from Russo's SiriusXM set. On July 6, 2017, Francesa and Russo attended the SiriusXM Town Hall meeting moderated by actor Chazz Palminteri , a week before a 30 for 30 documentary on Francesa and Russo went on the air. Regarding the possibility of reunions, Francesa says, "“first, someone has to make an offer, which no one has yet. But if something comes up, I’ll always listen.” And Russo says, "I think we both know we could easily do shows together. I think it would be sporadic — maybe one day

1827-510: The air at the Radio Row at Super Bowl XLVI . Russo was standing near the WFAN table at around 1:40 p.m. when Francesa invited him to come on. Francesa then went on Russo's show at 6:30 p.m. On June 29, 2012, Francesa had Russo on the air for a segment to finish off a celebratory week in honor of the 25th anniversary of WFAN. On December 3, 2015, Francesa and Russo had their radio shows simulcast on both WFAN and SiriusXM Satellite Radio for

1890-434: The air without him." However, their relationship got strained again in March 2008. It was reported that Francesa and Russo were considering ending their radio show. Russo admitted that from the end of March through the beginning of May, "Mike and I were having a lot of issues. If you're a listener, I don't have to tell you . . . We were fighting like cats and dogs. The tolerance level of each other, Mike to me, me to Mike,

1953-507: The breakup with Russo. However, Francesa believed a contributing factor was a fallout from Imus' firing in April 2007 because Russo wanted to pursue the morning slot alone, but the WFAN management was hesitant to break up the pairing. Francesa sensed that Russo was disappointed. Francesa said, "In retrospect, I think it set us off on a bad path that last year. I don't mean that caused Dog to leave. He left because he had an opportunity ... But we had

Infinity Sports Network - Misplaced Pages Continue

2016-466: The consumer, depriving standalone Internet stations of potential programming. Pre-recorded sports talk programs (usually interview-centered) can be syndicated as podcasts with relative ease, and sports teams have also launched their own online digital networks with sports talk centered around their own properties. As with most other radio formats, sports radio uses dayparting . ESPN Radio, for instance, insisted that its affiliates carry Mike and Mike in

2079-414: The controversial Pete Franklin in the afternoon drive time period. Mark Mason, then the program director, floated the idea of teaming Francesa with Russo. At first, the station management thought the idea was crazy because they were no-names at that time. However, because of Francesa and Russo's popularity on the weekends and on Imus in the Morning individually, the station management decided to pair

2142-452: The end of 2020, ended on April 15, 2024. At this time, the network rebranded as Infinity Sports Network; the name is a nod to Infinity Broadcasting Corporation , a corporate predecessor to CBS Radio. Infinity Sports Network airs on more than 300 stations nationwide. The nominal flagship station of Infinity Sports Network is WFAN / WFAN-FM in New York City (although WFAN-AM-FM only carry some brief reports and occasional weekend shows from

2205-474: The end of its run, the program aired from 1:00 to 6:30 p.m. on WFAN, WQYK in Florida, and YES Network . In the wake of Imus' firing in April 2007 , Mike and the Mad Dog was also broadcast in the mornings from 6:00 to 10:00 a.m. for two weeks between April 16 and April 27, and again on May 21 and May 22, 2007. The afternoon portion of the show ran from 2:00 through 6:30 p.m. The morning portion of

2268-470: The first sports talk radio show in history launched in March 1964 on New York's WNBC (AM) . Soon after WNBC launched its program, in 1965 Seton Hall University 's radio station, WSOU , started Hall Line , a call-in sports radio talk show focusing on the team's basketball program . Having celebrated its 50th anniversary on air during the 2015–2016 season, Hall Line , which broadcasts to central and northern New Jersey as well as all five boroughs of New York,

2331-614: The four majors. Francesa is an admirer of horse racing , and the program devoted time to racing talk during the Triple Crown season, the summer meet at Saratoga Race Course in upstate New York, and the Breeders' Cup . International sporting events such as the Tour de France got little mention except when there was a scheduled interview or major story. Both Russo and Francesa have admitted to not being experts in hockey , but playoff games involving

2394-399: The general public. Prominent sports radio stations typically get their greatest listenership from live play-by-play of local major professional sports league or college sports franchises; less prominent stations (especially on the AM dial) may not have this option because of poorer (or for daytime-only stations, non-existent) nighttime signals and smaller budgets for rights fees. Following

2457-401: The late-night and overnight hosts have more prominence on a sports talk network, due to a near-complete lack of local preemption. Sports radio stations typically depend on drawing an audience that fits advertiser-friendly key demographics , particularly young men with the disposable income to invest in sports fandom, since the format does not have the broad appeal to reach a critical mass in

2520-596: The local teams were discussed and noted NHL guests sometimes appeared. Boxing was not talked about much, as both hosts consider the sport not to be what it once was. Although Freddy Adu and a few other soccer celebrities did interviews on the show, the FIFA World Cup and the sport itself received little to no attention on the program; the local MLS team, the New York Red Bulls , were rarely mentioned at all. (Russo said in his first book that he played soccer as

2583-425: The morning drive program several more times, either together or taking turns solo, until Boomer Esiason and Craig Carton took over the timeslot with their show on September 4, 2007. On June 22, 2008, sports columnist Neil Best of Newsday reported that Francesa and Russo were considering ending their radio show. The reports stated that the relationship between the radio duo had soured during Spring 2008, and

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2646-500: The network when it shifted focus to its own in-house BetQL Network , which features discussions of gambling , in 2021. The BetQL stations continue to carry some Infinity Sports Network programs, including The Jim Rome Show and its late night programming. Other affiliate stations include: Weekend broadcasters can and do vary regularly ** = Audacy operates pursuant to a local marketing agreement with Martz Communications Group . Sports radio Hosted by Bill Mazer ,

2709-519: The network). Since WFAS shifted to conservative talk in 2021, New York City has had no full-time Infinity Sports Network affiliate station, although the network is heard around the clock on an HD Radio digital subchannel of WFAN-FM. WFAS, along with WHLD in Niagara Falls – Buffalo , were among numerous Cumulus Media stations that had been part of the network's core affiliates but flipped to conservative talk. Audacy also distanced itself from

2772-560: The on-air brand The Bet ), alongside an expansion of their daily schedule. Stations with such formats may still affiliate with a mainstream sports radio network to fill the remainder of their schedule, with the aforementioned WDAS otherwise carrying Fox Sports Radio (as well as Philadelphia Union soccer), BetR including programming from co-owner SportsMap on its lineup, and BetQL being often carried alongside CBS Sports Radio on its owned-and-operated stations. 88.9 Brila FM : Sports Radio 88.9 Brila FM, owned by Brila Broadcasting Services,

2835-418: The pair and Russo would defer to him in most arguments. Russo was known to make bold statements when hosting the show solo but would back down when Francesa was co-hosting. Nevertheless, Russo also exhibited a vast knowledge of sports. One of the show's marketing pitches stated: "Some shows report sports scores. We settle them." The pair sometimes left their Astoria, Queens studios to do remote broadcasts from

2898-611: The pairing possible. Russo said, "Imus was very, very, very, very important to the development of FAN... He solved a lot of problems for the company." Francesa said, "Without Imus, there's no Mike and the Mad Dog , there's no FAN, and I'm telling you, there's no format... Dog and I came through the toughest school there is: the Imus school of radio." Originally it was broadcast weekdays from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time . Because of its popularity, WFAN extended its starting time twice, first to 2:00 p.m., and then to 1:00 p.m. At

2961-416: The power seat—the one facing the control room. Each had an entourage of advisers and friends who pushed him to ask for more. Sometimes Don Imus needled them on his program or walked by them in the hall and said, "You are so much better than [the other guy]." However, Imus did play peacemaker during several of the more public fights. Regarding the relationship between Francesa and Russo, Francesa said, "It

3024-517: The prior perception, Russo said, The show became a staple of the New York sports scene. Francesa says, "We always brought that intensity, that bravado, that fierce individual personality to our show, and that's what I thought made it so good." George Vecsey of The New York Times once described Russo's voice as "a bizarre mixture of Jerry Lewis , Archie Bunker and Daffy Duck ." His voice has also been described as " Donald Duck on steroids ." Both Francesa and Russo credited Imus for making

3087-403: The remainder of his contract. Russo insisted it was solely a personal decision and said, "This has nothing to do with Mike and I hating each other... This is about doing something different. I'm 48 years old and there are not going to be too many more opportunities to break away. It's time to try something else, but it was a tough decision to make." On August 15, 2008, Russo phoned Francesa on

3150-463: The rumors were created as a contract negotiation ploy or a publicity stunt. On June 27, 2008, Francesa acknowledged the show was at a "crossroad", and could not guarantee the show would last through the summer. Francesa also stated he and Russo had not spoken since reports of their possible breakup came out. On July 11, 2008, Francesa and Russo reunited for their first show together since news of their possible breakup came out. They did their show from

3213-485: The show to say goodbye. A highly emotional Russo began to break down on air as he talked about his partnership with Francesa. At the same time, while Russo left WFAN, Francesa signed a five-year deal to stay at WFAN and continue to host the afternoon drive-time show called Mike'd Up: Francesa on the FAN . On August 19, 2008, Russo signed a five-year contract worth about $ 3 million per year with Sirius XM to host an afternoon show called Mad Dog Unleashed and headline

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3276-417: The show was nationally syndicated and news-oriented. While in the morning drive slot, they inherited some of the staff from Imus in the Morning , including news anchor Charles McCord , sports anchor Chris Carlin and engineer Lou Rufino. The syndicated broadcast was available to the handful of former Imus in the Morning affiliates who had not had a chance to pick a new morning show. Francesa and Russo hosted

3339-407: The station to comply with each's demand to be paid as much as the other. The show started with its theme song and then with Russo's intro. The show involved Francesa and Russo talking and arguing with each other or with callers about sports, and occasionally non-sports topics. They were also known for their hard-hitting questions in interviews with their guests. Francesa was the more cerebral of

3402-417: The two together. The show was dubbed Mike and the Mad Dog and debuted on September 5, 1989. However, the decision to pair them on an afternoon show was a surprise to the two men, and a risk. Things were rocky at first. According to Francesa: While Francesa's brand of sports commentating was considered hard-hitting and serious, Russo's was considered lighter, unconventional, and more entertaining. Regarding

3465-527: Was an arranged marriage and almost a quickie divorce." Russo admitted that such a proposition of breaking up between the two would have been celebrated in 1992. However, Russo said in an interview, "I think that, in the long term, the station sees us as a tandem and would not want to break the brand up... And to tell you the truth, after almost 20 years together, Mike and I are like a married couple: It would be too hard to leave him. I never thought I would hear myself say this, but it would feel very strange to be on

3528-530: Was an overnight/weekend and fill-in host. He caught the attention of Don Imus , who was impressed with his vibrant personality and brought Russo onto the Imus in the Morning show as its sports reporter. Meanwhile, Francesa was a midday and weekend host at WFAN, and was known to be knowledgeable but somewhat dry on-air. Like Russo, Francesa got the attention of Imus when he made an on-the-air bet with Francesa that Seton Hall University 's basketball team would not make

3591-590: Was announced that Francesa would be joining Russo and Stephen A. Smith on the February 1st broadcast of ESPN 's First Take . Mike and the Mad Dog was No. 1 in the market among men between 25 and 54, which notched a 6.9 share in 2007, up from a 6.2 in 2006. The show was very lucrative for WFAN, which sold up to 18 minutes of advertisements each hour. According to New York magazine , Francesa made $ 1.4 million and Russo made $ 1.3 million in 2005. Each host's contracts expired at different times, making it difficult for

3654-489: Was being used as a platform for criticisms of their television coverage, prompting a call from Francesa asking Russo to not discuss the topic. Russo refused and an on-the-air argument followed. Francesa would eventually leave CBS Sports and concentrate on his radio career full-time. The day after the September 11 attacks , sportswriter Phil Mushnick claimed that the duo had stated, on-air, that all Jewish Americans should take

3717-463: Was criticized by Russo, reflecting after Francesa's second retirement announcement that he never should have returned, calling his decision "unhealthy" and revealing that the two had not spoke outside of aired reunions for almost a decade. In response to the criticism, Francesa mocked Russo's career, saying that “Dog spent a lot of time opining on my career in the last 10 years; I’ve never once given an opinion about his — not once. It’s something he spends

3780-408: Was low." But Russo insisted their relationship had improved. Francesa agreed that this was among the worst of their "four or five" fights over the years. In 1991, while Francesa was still at CBS Sports hosting the 1991 NCAA tournament —Russo was very critical of CBS 's coverage. The discussion began to gain momentum and soon snowballed over a number of days. CBS was unhappy that Francesa's show

3843-457: Was made public. But Russo kept quiet until the end. Russo declined to be interviewed. In an interview with Bob Raissman on June 30, 2012, Russo said that the decision to part ways with Francesa was the biggest one of his life, which was made by himself. He still asked, "You think I did the right thing?" Russo said, "It's almost like in the last four years, it's almost like I’ve forgotten I was at FAN for so long. This (Sirius/XM's Mad Dog Radio )

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3906-429: Was the first all-sports radio station. The success of the station and its programs, such as Mike and the Mad Dog , caused many to appear around the United States; while only one other radio show besides Mike and the Mad Dog attended the 1990 Super Bowl , about 100 attended the 2004 Super Bowl 's radio row . Sports talk is available in local, network and syndicated forms, is available in multiple languages, and

3969-566: Was the likely cause of the split. Although Russo's contract with WFAN ran until October 2009, Francesa's contract situation was unclear at that time. Newsday contacted Francesa on vacation, where he stated "no comment". On June 23, Russo, doing the show alone, denied the rumors. He said that he and Francesa had been "fighting like cats and dogs" until early May, but that their relationship had since improved. "Nineteen, 20 years, you're going to have your issues occasionally", he said. "You gotta get through those issues." Some fans have suggested that

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