OT: Lions Moving to WJR; Apparently Upset That 97.1 Criticizes Them So Much

Submitted by BursleyHall82 on

The Lions are leaving 97.1 next season for WJR. The people at CBS Radio (97.1) are saying it's because the Lions are upset that the talkers on 97.1 criticize them so much. So it would seem the Lions hate Mike Valenti as much as we do.

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/nfl/lions/2015/11/19/source-lio…

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JFW

November 20th, 2015 at 12:01 PM ^

I've never been a huge Art Regner fan. I remember him going on and on about how much the 'Wings sucked after they had a key loss in the 90's. "They don't have any heart!" (Don't as me when). Anyway, a couple of weeks later he was interviewing a couple of guys from the Wings team and his nose was so brown it must have looked like a potatoe. When a caller asked "Hey Art, why didn't you ask them all those questions about heart like you were ranting about' he lost his crap on the caller. 'You have no idea how hard this job is!!!'

 

Whatever. 

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JFW

November 20th, 2015 at 11:57 AM ^

When at Michigan, and when first married, they had Sports Wrap and a couple other decent shows. And I loved being able to get Michigan football anywhere. I was seriously bummed when I went to visit my Mom a couple years ago and I flipped on WJR and there wasn't UM. I just did it out of habit. I eventually got the game but also alot of static. 

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stephenrjking

November 20th, 2015 at 11:16 AM ^

I'd have to see the actual facts before I believed that the station that just lost the Lions lost them simply over editorial content. It is certainly in their interest to present that image, but it is quite possible that the Lions just decided that WJR was better business. Certainly is weird to think of them on WJR, but I'm pleased with this; I can pick up WJR at night in Duluth, so I will be able to hear the occasional broadcast. I realize that the rights fees are a huge part of the equation but in my opinion it has been a mistake for entities like the Tigers and Michigan sports to ditch WJR, and a mistake for WJR to let them go. WJR is of course a clear channel, so the whole state can listen to the broadcasts after dark, and the the combination of a team loved by the whole state and a flagship station heard by the whole state was powerful. Now, I have no idea how the money has worked. Obviously, selling programming to a whole network of local stations is profitable for teams. But I grew up with live sports on WJR and it was a big deal. The Tigers have a huge, lasting fanbase in part because millions of people grew up listening to Ernie Harwell on WJR. I became a Red Wings and hockey fan (a major influence in my entire sports experience) listening to them at night on my radio on WJR. And I miss listening to Michigan on WJR. The Lions stink this year, so it's smaller news. And today's media landscape is radically different than it was 10, 20, 30 years ago. But I think this is a good move.

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Hulk Henne

November 20th, 2015 at 11:59 AM ^

They chose to keep the Wings and Tigers over the Pistons. It sounds like the Lions were leaving for WJR all along and Valenti's agent is using the story to get him a new contract.

 

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LSAClassOf2000

November 20th, 2015 at 12:01 PM ^

Supposedly Valenti's agent is out there with this interesting tidbit, found at the end of this tweet and in the Carin's article in the link. Mort Meisner - the agent - claims that the Lions would frequently call CBS' Detroit market manager to attempt to rein in Valenti:

 

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yourmom_is_hot

November 20th, 2015 at 12:07 PM ^

with Moss, it's levels of douchebaggery.

 

He is for sure connected and has inside sources, but his biggest issue is that he takes things too far.  His stuff is 50% good / 50% this guy needs a beating.

 

he's the type of guy who was the smart ass in highschool who never got put in his place,

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skurnie

November 20th, 2015 at 12:17 PM ^

Valenti is terrible, of course, but I typically agree 100% with his Lions analysis. 50 years of losing breeds criticism and I'm glad he hasn't held back.

Valenti/Foster show aside, I do like Samuelson and Wojo quite a bit...they're good together. I hope Valenti leaves and they bump Jamie and Wojo up, especially since their shows are so often cut short by the Tigers/Wings. 

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Howard4Heisman

November 20th, 2015 at 12:24 PM ^

You're wrong. V&F get great ratings and are one of the top 10 radio shows in America. They're not a hinderance to the station - they carry it. Everyone here hates Valenti because he went to MSU and this is a UM blog. The rating suggest that Valenti is pretty damn good at his job. Personally, I think he's by far the best talent on the station.

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MGoDillon

November 20th, 2015 at 12:31 PM ^

Valenti (besides when he spazzing out in anger) is very good in my opinion. He has very down to earth takes on topics.. Both Sports and non sports related. And most of the time is pretty fair on his points. Every now and then he can bug ya but I still think he is very good.

On the other hand, I think Foster is TERRIBLE!!!!!!! God that guy sucks. Sounds like a great guy, but is just terrible at radio. He always thinks he's "speaking for the people", but he just sounds like an idiot. And never has any of his own takes, he just goes with what the majority are going with. I just think he is not fun at all to listen to and very underwhelming.



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Rabbit21

November 20th, 2015 at 1:11 PM ^

Agree with this take. I always found him entertaining and generally pretty down to earth, especially on the pro sports side. I've just learned to give the station a short listening leash when M-MSU football comes up but it's hard to say it wasn't earned.

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MGoDillon

November 20th, 2015 at 12:35 PM ^

So maybe someone one here can answer my pointless question..

I think that Jamie and Wojo are extremely entertaining. They don't fight like terry and foster do, they're very positive and fun but still have good takes. I will admit that they get very off topic and silly sometimes but I think it's entertaining.

So my question is, why is Jamie and Wojo, who is a very well respected Detroit area journalist, in the 6:00 slot? Also, most of the time they're only on for an hour or so because there is a Tigers or red wings game on at 7. So how in the hell can they (mainly Jamie) keep a job only working those hours, and why aren't they utilized better?



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MGoDillon

November 20th, 2015 at 12:38 PM ^

My last take on 97.1 is that Bill Mcallister sucks Ass on the morning show. Again, very nice guy, but just gets annoying in my opinion. He thinks he's funny and he's just not, and he doesn't seem to be that sports- savvy. I like Stoney a lot, pretty entertaining with great takes and a good amount of sports knowledge, but I just don't care for Bill at all. How in the hell are they on the morning show?



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MEGATRON HE16MAN

November 20th, 2015 at 12:46 PM ^

He's the first person to throw insults at a caller but as soon as you say something remotely critical of him, he cuts the call then proceeds to hurl insults.

I'm just hoping one day he runs into one of the caller he has insulted and they knock his teeth in.

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WolverineHistorian

November 20th, 2015 at 1:17 PM ^

If acting like an ass and cutting people off mid-sentence every single time you disagree with them is a fire-able offense, Pat Caputo should have been fired LONG ago.

My stance on Valenti, I've proceeded with caution in regards to him for years. Take out anything involving Michigan/MSU and I find myself agreeing with him on most subjects. But he finds several instances a day to take a jab at Harbaugh and his "sheep," followers smack dab in the middle of ANY topic. So I don't even bother trying to listen to his show and I haven't for a while.

It's ironic the Lions are just now speaking up about this. Valenti has been shooting his big mouth off for a decade now.



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uncle leo

November 20th, 2015 at 1:23 PM ^

When Michigan loses, you can turn him off for a day or two. Otherwise, he's great listening. And hate the guy all you want, he knows a ton about sports. And he's hyper-critical of MSU when they suck.

And to those who say he's slipping and 97.1 is better off without him, his show is the 8th rated sports talk show IN THE COUNTRY.

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