790/The Zone and Star 94 become new Falcons radio partners; CBS Atlanta picks up pre-season games
The Atlanta Falcons, after eight years, has dropped 92.9/Dave-FM as its radio partner and is moving to Star 94 and 790/The Zone. Those two stations will simulcast Falcons games starting this upcoming season.
CBS Atlanta will also pick up the pre-season games and special weekly Falcons shows which had been on NBC affiliate WXIA-TV.
Financial terms for the four-year deal were not disclosed though given how much more popular the NFL is now, it’s likely a richer deal than what CBS Radio signed in 2003 for radio rights.
The Zone has been providing exclusive sports content for CBS Atlanta over the past year.
For the past two years, the Zone was already a partner with the Falcons, helping CBS (which owns Dave FM) with sales.
Others reportedly in the running for the Falcons included Dave FM, 680/The Fan (owned by Dickey Broadcasting) and Clear Channel Atlanta, which owns 640/WGST-AM and Project 9-6-1, among others.
The Falcons first aired on radio in 1966 on what was then 790/WQXI-AM and stayed there for a decade.
According to CBS Atlanta, which broke the story, “fans will still hear the familiar voices of Falcons broadcasters Wes Durham (play-by-play) and former Falcons quarterback Dave Archer (color analyst) calling all of the Falcons action on both stations.”
Given 790/The Zone’s limited coverage area, Star 94, with its 100,000 watt signal,will fill in the gaps. While the NFL has a sizable female audience, football is still a heavily male-oriented sport. Star 94 draws 70 percent females. It’s a bit of a mismatch. But this affects pop station Star only on Sunday afternoons for 20 weeks or so out of the year (including pre-season games, not counting playoffs) and maybe a stray Monday or two. This is not like the Braves, which takes Rock 100.5 out of music commission 160-plus days out of the year.
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By Rodney Ho, rho@ajc.com, AJCRadioTV blog
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66 comments Add your comment
E-Roll
March 8th, 2011
2:19 pm
As a person that have given BOTH sports talk radio channels a chance, I have to say that I can not listen to 680 The Fan without falling asleep so I don’t get all of this venom from it’s listeners. I love Chuck and Chernoff but I can listen to the 2 Live Stews during that time frame also. I love the Mayhem in the AM show (outside of Steak) and I love laughing to Mike Bell in the late afternoon / evening. I personally think that the morning show would work a lot better with the return of Domino and Cellini teaming up alone but I still pick that show over the snooziers over at 680.
Now to address the Falcons switch, it doesn’t matter to me one bit. As long as Wes and David Archer are still broadcasting the games then I am happy. NO BIG DEAL PEOPLE!!!
Matt OBrien
March 8th, 2011
2:30 pm
Wow!!! Steak has become huge. This email strain reminds of the vitriol that used to surround Boortz. He rode it all the way to the bank. I like that Steak isn’t 24/7 sports. Its better than talking Hawks and Thrashers for 3 hrs, or taking calls to identify which teams embody the traits of “modern dynasties”.
Who cares?
March 8th, 2011
2:40 pm
Who listens to the Falcons on radio? The games are on TV for free, and 70,000 people go to watch them live. Who the heck is sitting around listening to the Falcons on radio?
At least baseball has a tradition of radio, and with 162 games serves as a “backdrop” to summer. This seems like a non-story to me….
PTC DAWG
March 8th, 2011
3:04 pm
IF I’m in my car, etc…ie not in front of a TV..then the radio is the best alternative I know of for listening to the game.
Donald Finley
March 8th, 2011
4:21 pm
Why? who wants too listen to that garbage station? all the shows stink, and the hell with the Buzzards! they want make the playoffs Matt Ryan suck!
Who cares?
March 8th, 2011
6:00 pm
I understand that *if* you are in your car then listening to the game makes sense. My point is that this is very few people. Most Falcons fans, or NFL fans. make it a point to NOT be in their car during the game – instead they are at home watching on TV, at a sports bar, or at the game. Certainly there are *some* people listening on the radio, but not enough to make this a ‘groundbreaking’ announcement. And certainly not one that will revolutionize sports radio in this town….
Ted
March 8th, 2011
7:57 pm
Two losers…790 the Zone and the Atlanta Falcons. 790 the Zone is garbage.
Richard Dawson
March 9th, 2011
8:55 am
790 is unlistenable by those with a brain.
Jeff
March 9th, 2011
2:13 pm
Maybe soon 680 will realize that its simply not working with Laurentino and Mazzone. They’ve got to make some sort of change.. Perry’s hate the jocks to provoke a response has sent me to 790 until the King comes on.
chills
March 9th, 2011
4:57 pm
ahh, the courage of the bloggers. you hate this, that, and the other, yet you still seem to know SO much about BOTH stations. stay in mommies basement….(not all of you, just some…and you KNOW who you are!!!)
Big Dog
March 10th, 2011
1:45 am
So…….it seems the rights to the Falcons games probably got over-paid for just so Dickey/Cumulus couldn’t have the entirety of Atlanta sports on it’s airwaves. I wonder if this will work out as well as the St. Louis stations did for 790’s bottom line.
Either way, the games were going to wind up on a “chick” station, as Q100 is the only station at Cumulus with the signal strength to carry it.
Just my .02……………
sport side
March 10th, 2011
9:09 pm
hopefully they don’t get the racist 2 stews to do anything on the falcons broadcasts, or I will not listen. No barking or trashing anything not white.
Tube Steak Shapiro
March 12th, 2011
7:49 pm
How dare any one talk about me in this way! I am the Alpha & Omega, the greatest thing that EVER came to Atlanta. Had I not come here, you peasants would not have ANY IDEA what sports talk radio was about. I have staffed TWO radio stations in this town, MY 790 & the other station down the dial staffed with my rejects. I love having Wes Durham & Tony Barnhart bow to me. I was the one that made the Two Live Stews, cha cha. I can’t wait until my son, Tube Steak Shapiro, Jr. arrives later this year. If this is a little girl, I will punch Mrs. Tube Steak in the mouth until she has a little boy to carry on the fine, upstanding Shapiro name. To the peasant that compalined about me: I have one thing for you cha-cha. It’s great to be me & sucks to be you!
Danny Del
March 13th, 2011
11:29 am
Simple…790 foe da broke Bro’s and 680 for the Professional Whitey
Danny Del
March 13th, 2011
11:47 am
Falcons…You dance with the devil, you get burned. Bad choice Blank.
atlfunlvr
March 13th, 2011
12:40 pm
790 is just another reason to get satellite radio