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WFAN (660 ), also known as "Sports Radio 66 and 101-9 FM" or "The FAN", is a
in . The station broadcasts on a
and is owned and operated by . WFAN's studios are located in the combined CBS Radio facility its transmitter is located on
in the . WFAN is also heard on
(101.9 FM); CBS announced a purchase of that station from Merlin Media LLC in October 2012 and began a
of "The FAN" on November 1, 2012.
WFAN was one of the earliest stations to adopt the
.[] Over the years, WFAN has branded itself as the broadcast home to several big names in New York radio, including , , and .
Main article:
The 660 AM frequency in New York originated as WEAF on March 2, 1922, owned by . In 1926 WEAF became the
station of the , one of two radio chains operated by the
(NBC). By 1928 WEAF was purchased by NBC's parent company, the .
As a result of the
of 1941, WEAF became a
and could be heard across most of the eastern half of
at night. In 1943 the , citing
concerns, ordered RCA to sell off one of its radio networks. The company decided to keep the Red Network, and it was rebranded as the NBC Radio Network after the
was divested to , which was later renamed the .
WEAF's call letters were changed to WNBC in 1946, then to WRCA in 1954, and back to WNBC in 1960. During the 1960s, WNBC relied less on network programming and adopted a , followed by a switch to a
music sound. The station spent much of the 1970s and early 1980s flipping between the
formats, with varying success. By the middle of the 1980s up until its closing, WNBC played less music and relied more on personality-driven talk programs with hosts such as , , , , and .
At 3:00 p.m. on July 1, 1987, -owned WFAN signed on at ;kHz, replacing country music station , and billing itself as the world's first 24-hour-per-day sports talk station. (The WFAN
was suggested by the wife of "The Fan's" first program director, John Chanin.) The first voice heard on WFAN was that of , with a sports update, followed by the first show, which was hosted by . Waldman reported for the station, covering the
for 14 years. Other hosts besides Lampley during WFAN's fifteen months at ;kHz included , , , , and .
is also one of the original hosts and was the first woman to host a show on the station. "Hey Liguori, What's the Story" aired the first weekend the station was on the air in 1987 and continued until 2008. WFAN also inherited broadcast rights to the defending World Series champion
from WHN, who had held the rights for several years.
In early 1988 , which now owned NBC through its purchase of RCA two years earlier, announced that it would close the NBC Radio division and sell its stations. In February of that year GE made a multi-station deal with Emmis and, in New York, the WNBC license for 660 was included in the sale. On October 7, 1988 at 5:30 p.m., WFAN moved down the radio dial to replace WNBC at 660 kHz. The last voice heard on WNBC was that of Alan Colmes, who said the final words on 66 WNBC, and they were: "I'm Alan Colmes. Thank you, God bless you, and for the last time, this is 66 WNBC New York. Let's do the countdown." He then counted down the seconds to WNBC's demise with the legendary
(the notes G-E-C) playing in the background. After 66 years, the long history of NBC radio in New York had come to an end.
In the complicated switch that saw WFAN move to the 660 frequency, the 1050 frequency that was formerly the home of WFAN became that of Spanish-language WUKQ, owned by . However, SBS already owned an AM station in the market, -based WSKQ at 620 kHz, and in those days
(FCC) rules stipulated that companies could own only one AM station per market. As a result, SBS received a temporary waiver to run 1050 while exploring the sale of either AM frequency. SBS chose to keep 620 (it is now ), and 1050 was traded to Forward Communications, which owned WEVD, then at 97.9 FM. After that deal was approved, WEVD's call letters and programming moved to 1050 AM (it is now
and ironically, it is also a sports station), and SBS took over 97.9 as . The October NBC-Emmis switch also saw Emmis's
(then at 103.5 MHz.) move to 97.1 MHz., which had been the home of NBC's . Emmis sold the 103.5 frequency to , who also acquired the WYNY call letters and its country music format.
As Don Imus had already been the morning show host at 660 on the AM dial in New York, WFAN left the show in place when they took over the frequency. WFAN's original morning show on 1050 was hosted by . The show was a straight-forward sports show (not dis-similar to
currently on ), but was not doing well in the ratings. At the time of the switch, sports talk radio was still an untested format with questionable prospects, and the idea of bringing on board a host that appealed to a broader audience would get more people to try the station out. WFAN also benefitted from the inertia from Imus's fans who were used to tuning into 660 kHz on weekday mornings to listen. WFAN instantly took advantage of its Imus inheritance, for example, it featured a special live monologue by Imus character Billy Sol Hargus from
moments after taking over the 660 frequency.
After the switch from WNBC to WFAN, ratings for Imus' show were high enough to the point that they drove ratings for the rest of WFAN's programming day, although the morning show still trailed the top-rated
by a wide margin in New York. This model of using a general-interest morning host for a sports talk radio station (especially at launch) has been used at other sports radio stations across the country and proved that sports radio could indeed be a profitable format.[]
WFAN was also the first station in the country to roll out sports updates every 20 minutes. These updates, called 20-20 Sports Flashes, are now considered an industry standard. When WFAN first started updates were done every 15 minutes. Additionally, in a nod to the former WNBC, update anchors often end their top-of-the-hour updates with the
"And that's what's happening...", which is how WNBC on-air news readers had ended their updates.
Other programming that WFAN had at its launch included a mid-morning show with Ed Coleman and , and an afternoon drive time show with , who in
had become one of the first polarizing, outrageous talk show hosts. During his stay in New York, Franklin was probably best known for an incident where he used a four-letter expletive on air, in error, when trying to say "All you folks" (he was not disciplined for the incident.)
Running a close second was a 30-second Franklin diatribe on whether he had been offensive – "Do I offend anyone? I'm not here to offend you, dammit!" – that has been replayed ever since, especially on the July 1 WFAN anniversaries.
In a further drive to boost ratings, Imus instigated a feud with Franklin, much as he had with
at WNBC in the mid-1980s. Both Imus and Franklin took shots at each other during their shows, Franklin calling Imus "Minus" and Imus recording parodies of radio commercials where he bashed Franklin as a "dinosaur", among other things. Franklin left WFAN in August 1989.
On September 5, 1989, a jointly hosted afternoon drive show with Francesa and
- who had been a weekend/fill-in host to that time - would premiere. The
show became the defining show of WFAN, one of the most consistently popular radio shows in New York, and one of the most influential sports talk radio shows in the country.
The combined success of Mike and the Mad Dog and Imus in the Morning helped WFAN become the number one billing station in America during the 1990s.[] It also proved that the all-sports format worked as a radio format, prompting the explosion of sports talk radio across the country.
Over the years WFAN has continued to have a broad-based sports talk and play-by-play format. In 1992 Emmis sold WFAN to , which would be purchased by
– ' then-parent company – in 1997.
WFAN's broadcast day begins at 6:00 a.m. () with , hosted by former
quarterback
and radio veteran . The midday (10am – 1pm) timeslot is co-hosted by
and . Mike Francesa is the afternoon drive host. The
has been airing a video simulcast of WFAN's afternoon drive program, previously known as Mike and the Mad Dog, Mike'd Up, and now
since March 19, 2002.
On Monday nights during the NFL season, an NFL-based program serves as the lead in to Monday Night Football. The 2012 edition broadcasts live from 's Shannon Rose pub, with Jody McDonald and
hosts during most other evenings, often leading into and/or following live game broadcasts.
works the majority of the overnight shifts and hosts during the evenings on weekends. Marc Malusis and Lori Rubinson host on weekend nights, with Malusis covering late Friday/early Saturday and Rubinson covering late Saturday/early Sunday in addition to a post-Sunday Night Football program. Adam "the Bull" Gerstenhaber hosted weekend evening shows until leaving WFAN for CBS Radio's "The Fan" in Cleveland (). Another WFAN host is longtime New York rock radio fixture .
hosts a radio version of the Talking Baseball show that aired on TV for many years. Midday host Evan Roberts also hosts a solo show on weekends, and WFAN broadcasts a general interest program every Sunday morning.
WFAN stands out in that all of its sports-talk shows are currently local in origin, not syndicated as is the practice of most sports-talk radio stations (usually except during the morning and/or drive-time periods).
Over the years WFAN has established a tight bond with its listeners, to the point where one of them eventually landed a regular on-air spot. Joe Benigno had been a frequent caller to "The Fan" (especially the Mike and the Mad Dog show) as "Joe from ", and his calls were typically interesting and insightful. In 1994 he was chosen to host a one-hour show during a promotion where listeners were invited to host a show. The test went well, and he later parlayed it into a regular overnight shift, which started in 1995.
WFAN also features the "20-20 Flash", a one- to two-minute update on sports scores and news, which occurs every 20 minutes (on the hour, twenty after and forty after). The update team consists of Rich Ackerman, Harris Allen, Mike McCann, Erica Herskowitz, , , Joey Wahler, Kris LoPresti, and Jerry Recco (the latter also working on the Boomer & Carton show and
weekday mornings). The station also employs beat reporters to cover the Mets (Ed Coleman), Yankees (Sweeny Murti), Jets (Peter Schwartz) and Giants (Paul Dottino).
In 2010, the station was honored by the
with the Marconi award for Sports Station of the Year.
Currently WFAN, airs games of the 's , the 's , the 's . and 's . During baseball season, the Yankees have first priority of airtime over all of the other teams. During the fall and early winter (when NFL, NHL, and NBA seasons overlap) the Giants have first priority, followed by the Devils and lastly the Nets.
Beginning in fall 2013, sister station
is being utilized as WFAN's main "conflict" station for Nets games when they and any of the other teams play simultaneously. -owned
(970 AM) will broadcast any Devils games due to scheduling conflicts with the football or baseball (some preseason Devils contests have been streamed on WFAN's website due to such conflicts).
The station is the flagship outlet for Westwood One's
broadcasts and some of its
college football and basketball broadcasts. WFAN was the sole flagship of the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship carried over Westwood One but beginning in 2006, competitor WEPN took over a majority of the coverage including early round games as well as of conference tournament finals that Dial Glob WFAN would air some of the conference tournament games but would not usually air the early round tournament games opting instead for local programming. WFAN does broadcast some of the tournament, but the majority of it—including the Final Four and the National Championship Game—is carried by WEPN-FM.
WFAN has marketed itself in recent years as the "Flagship Station for New York Sports."
and , respective managers of the Mets and Yankees, make exclusive appearances on WFAN during the season. WFAN usually also contracts at least one Giants and one Jets player to make exclusive appearances on the station during the NFL season, as well as Giants head coach .
The station was also the longtime radio home for the New York Mets, ,
and New York Knicks (the latter two were inherited from WNBC while the Jets coverage was moved from WCBS). Currently, WFAN's primary competition is WEPN-FM, the New York ESPN Radio affiliate which now carries the Jets, Knicks and Rangers plus national ESPN Radio programming, all of which WFAN previously broadcast.
On April 11, 2006, WFAN started streaming live on the Internet. Web streaming of live games, however, is limited due to broadcast rights (Mets and Nets games are offered separately through the MLB and NBA websites as annual subscriptions). As of April 2010 WFAN, along with other CBS Radio stations, stopped streaming live on the Internet to listeners outside of the United States.
Each spring from 1990 until 2007, WFAN conducted the "WFAN Radiothon" to benefit children's charities that seek to ensure the continuity of life in its earliest stages and the treatment and eventual elimination of childhood cancer. The three most recent beneficiaries of the radiothon were Tomorrow's Children's Fund, the CJ Foundation for SIDS, and the . WFAN has also done other radiothons and special broadcasts to raise money for assorted charities.
On August 15, 2008, Mike Francesa announced during the final broadcast of Mike and the Mad Dog that WFAN would broadcast a new fundraising radiothon. The new fundraiser would benefit both the Boomer Esiason Foundation for
research, and the Mike Francesa Champions of the Heart Foundation, a new charity created by Francesa. The first radiothon took place in September 2008.
The midday slot has been one of the better slots from a ratings perspective for WFAN. However, this slot's hosts have often found controversy.
In the mid-1990s, popular hosts
had their show cancelled. WFAN then announced that New York
sports anchor
would co-host the new midday program. The show seemed all set to go when, at the last minute, Berman decided to back out of the show. He cited that he would have to work a near 14-hour day, combining his 10 a.m. start on radio with his WNBC-TV duties, which consisted of him appearing on all three of the station's evening newscasts. WFAN would not let Berman out of his contract, and as a result, the slot was split into two shows: Lupica hosted from 10 a.m. to noon, while Berman hosted from noon to 2 p.m. The split format did not work, and eventually Berman's show would be cancelled and Lupica's show soon followed.
sports anchor , who also worked an evening sportscast, was more than willing to assume the midday show duties. In 1995, he was joined by longtime overnight host Steve Somers and the show became known as "The Sweater and The Schmoozer", playing off Salzberg's habit of wearing sweaters on the air and Somers' on-air nickname.
The midday show featured one of the most famous incidents in WFAN history. It occurred when Salzberg "banned" Eli from Westchester from calling his show due to his comments that Salzberg considered to be inappropriate. Salzberg notoriously said to Somers, during another
World Series appearance talking about Braves' manager : "What about Cox, Steve? You like Cox ... don't you, Steve?"
In 1999, with the ratings not being what WFAN management expected, the Salzberg/Somers show was cancelled and both men were fired. However a large outcry from listeners over the termination of the popular Somers—including comedian , a native of —led to WFAN management giving Somers the evening shift, which (despite frequent pre-emptions for live games) he continues to hold to the present day. In middays, Salzberg and Somers were replaced by Suzyn Waldman and . Waldman had been with WFAN since its infancy, as she was the first update anchor, and had served as the station's Yankees beat reporter and the Knicks' studio host. McDonald, son of a former Mets general manager and also one of the original WFAN personalities, was the weekend overnight host before leaving for sister station
in , nearer to his southern New Jersey home. Both Waldman and McDonald had their fans and detractors at WFAN.
Waldman would leave WFAN in late 2001, joining the Yankees television broadcast team the following year. She would be replaced by Sid Rosenberg who, despite his
reputation, had a vast knowledge of sports. Many felt there was great chemistry between McDonald and Rosenberg. However, the ratings still weren't what WFAN expected and in 2004 McDonald was let go, later to join WEPN, Sirius Satellite Radio, and
in Philadelphia before returning in 2012. Overnight host Joe Benigno would replace McDonald.
Rosenberg was forced to resign from WFAN on September 12, 2005 after being given an ultimatum by station management for not showing up to host the New York Giants' pregame show the day before. Benigno hosted the show solo for over a year, and on January 2, 2007, part-time overnight host Evan Roberts became Benigno's new midday co-host. The pairing continues to consistently out-rate rival station WEPN, who broadcasts
and local programming opposite it.
On July 1, 2007, WFAN celebrated its twentieth anniversary. On the weekend of July 4, past WFAN hosts such as Suzyn Waldman and Jim Lampley did guest-hosting stints, and the station's current hosts provided career and station retrospectives throughout the weekend. The station also invited listeners to vote on the "Greatest New York sports moments", and the "Top 20 New York sports celebrities", during WFAN's 20-year history.
On 25 June 2012, notable current staff announced their favorite moments, interviews, and teams.
On 28 June 2012, it was revealed that
would join
program on June 29, 2012 as part of the festivities. It marked the first time they had appeared together since 2009, when Francesa was still the number one sports talk show host in New York. Later in the day, Carton and Esiason would join Francesa on his show, .
The same day—Carton surprised everyone by welcoming back host , and Rosenberg later joined Francesa for a short interview the next day. Other notable former hosts who joined Mike Francesa included Christopher "Mad Dog" Russo and Don Imus.
On October 10, 2009 WFAN moved from its studio location for its first 22 years, the landmarked
in . The station began broadcasting from CBS Radio's then-new Hudson Square studios in Manhattan's
neighborhood. Along with the move, the station changed its longtime call-in phone number from 1-718-937-6666 to 1--337-6666.
On October 6, 2012, CBS Radio announced the purchase of WRXP (101.9 FM) from Merlin Media for $75 Million. CBS began operating 101.9 under a
(LMA) at 11:57 PM on November 1, 2012, with the
changed to .
On September 11, 2013, the Yankees announced a multi-year broadcast agreement with CBS RADIO for Yankees games to be simulcast on WFAN and WFAN-FM beginning in 2014. All of the regular season and postseason games will be broadcast, as well as other related shows involving the team. WFAN takes over for sister station .
On October 3, 2013, , a
expansion team set to begin play in 2015 that is owned by
and the Yankees, announced a radio broadcast deal with WFAN.
Main article:
On the April 4, 2007 broadcast of Imus in the Morning, Don Imus made a sexually and racially controversial comment in reference to the
women's basketball team. Imus made the remarks during a conversation with the show's producer, , and Sid Rosenberg (who was on the phone).
Two days after making the comments, Imus issued a public apology. By that time, however, there were various calls for his dismissal, particularly from civil rights activists
and , who threatened to protest both CBS Radio and
(which aired a video simulcast of the program), and to boycott companies who advertised on the program. WFAN offered its hosts and listeners a sounding board for their own feelings and comments, which were both for and against his dismissal. Chris Russo, in particular, expressed his disappointment at Imus for waiting two days before retracting his comments.
Imus was initially given a two-week suspension which was scheduled to begin on April 16, allowing him to work the annual WFAN Radiothon on April 12 and 13. On consecutive days Imus appeared on both Sharpton's syndicated radio show (April 9) and NBC-TV's
(April 10) to reiterate his regret for the remarks. But on April 11, MSNBC announced the cancellation of the video simulcast of Imus in the Morning. The following day, CBS Radio dismissed Imus, at the time leaving WFAN with a very large programming—and money-earning—void in its schedule.
Imus' last WFAN program was aired on the opening day of the radiothon. Imus's wife
joined his longtime co-host, comedy writer, and news reader, , to anchor the final segment of the radiothon on April 13. Imus revived his program at
in December 2007, and took his fundraiser with him—with the charities intact—and conducted a radiothon there in May 2008.
From that point on, the 6:00 to 10:00 a.m. time slot was filled by various hosts. McCord and Chris Carlin remained on all the replacement shows as assistants and staff, in similar roles as they were on Imus's show, and the replacement shows continued to be syndicated via Westwood One. Mike Francesa and Chris Russo were the first to fill the spot, hosting for the two weeks (April 16–27) immediately after Imus' firing. Francesa and Russo also worked the shift separate from each other, as did fellow WFAN staffers Richard Neer, Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts, and Carlin, who worked both alone and with co-hosts, notably Kimberly Jones and
sports columnist .
WFAN and Westwood One also brought in outside personalities into the slot. Among them were Boomer Esiason, , , , and
sports radio host . As MSNBC also held its own claim to the slot, the cable network was able to have its own replaceme these programs were hosted by in-house personalities , , eventually Scarborough would become the permanent replacement host on MSNBC with .
On September 4, 2007, Esiason took over as the permanent host of the WFAN morning show, with veteran radio personality
(previously of
in ) serving as co-host, and
remaining to do sports updates. The new program is not distributed nationally by Westwood One. Charles McCord left the station shortly after the announcement was made and has since rejoined Don Imus at WABC. Carlin was also given his own show in the one-hour time slot immediately preceding Esiason's show. The television simulcast, which had been on MSNBC since the early 1990s, was not imme it was not until September 2010 that WFAN reached an agreement with
to simulcast Boomer and Carton each four-hour show was simulcast live with a condensed one-hour "best-of" program airing later each day and throughout the weekend. In January 2014, the show's televised simulcast moved to .
Main article:
During their 19-year run as WFAN's afternoon drive team, Mike Francesa and Chris Russo had enjoyed a relationship—both on- and off-air—which varied from respect to contempt. The two hosts did not get along well during the early days of their partnership, and had several differences which potentially put their program in jeopardy. In spite of the disagreements, the duo always seemed to patch things up for the benefit of the station and their listeners.
In early 2008, several reports surfaced that Francesa and Russo were on the outs again, and these reports came as both men's contracts with WFAN were in the early stages of renegotiation. On June 22, 2008, sports columnist Neil Best of
reported that the Francesa/Russo relationship had cooled, and they were considering ending their radio show. Francesa, reached by Newsday while vacationing, refused to comment. Russo, doing the show alone on June 23, denied the rumors. But on the June 27, 2008 broadcast, Francesa (working alone as Russo was on vacation) 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. Both men were coy about their future beyond the summer. Francesa and Russo then continued their normal summer routine of alternating vacation weeks, and on August 5, 2008, they would do their final show together at the New York Giants' training facility at the .
On August 14, 2008, Russo reached a mutual agreement with WFAN to let him out of his contract, which ran until October 2009. 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, Russo phoned Francesa on 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. On August 19, 2008, Russo signed a five-year contract worth about 3 million per year with
to headline 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.
WFAN's success—especially after the 1988 frequency switch—proved that sports-talk radio could in fact be a steadily profitable and popular format. This in turn fueled the explosive growth of sports-talk radio in the 1990s and 2000s (decade). Once a novelty, every major market (and many smaller markets) now has at least one sports radio station, and often more. ,
have all launched 24-hour national sports talk radio networks, while
(the latter of which WFAN will be a member) are set to launch in fall 2012. There are also nationally syndicated radio shows, such as
and . Additionally there are dedicated sports radio streams on satellite radio, such as NFL Radio on
on . With the migration of music stations to FM and other carriers all but complete, sports talk radio are considered to have been critical in saving the AM band as a viable broadcast medium.
It is worth noting that, for all the success and influence that WFAN has had, its signature Mike and the Mad Dog show experienced limited syndication outside of New York state (the show had been carried over
in ). This was primarily due to a desire by the hosts to keep their show New York-centric.
WFAN once produced some of Fox Sports Radio's programming, notably Chris "Mad Dog" Russo's Saturday show, but the relationship did not last even one year for the same reason that Mike'd Up is syndicated nationally only through the YES Network—the hosts often talk about the NFL on a national basis, but stick mostly to local coverage of baseball. Nevertheless, callers from as far as
made it to air.
Callers are an important facet of WFAN programming. A few callers have earned a reputation over the years and become as familiar to listeners as the hosts themselves.
Jerome from Manhattan
Jerome Mittelman, known on-air as "Jerome from Manhattan," is a die-hard Yankees and Knicks fan. Jerome is known for his on-air take-no-prisoners blistering rants and raves, as well as his unique take on the English language. One of his favorite exclamatory phrases is "frickin' frack!" He refers to the bullpen as the "ballpen", and once shouted that the Yankees are "... done! D-O-E-N [sic], DONE!" His relationship status is intriguing enough for Steve Somers to once give Jerome $60 to take a lady out on a date, only for Jerome to keep the money and not go out on the date. Former host Sid Rosenberg once asked Jerome if he was upset that he was not taking his eagerly anticipated trip "... to Colorado?", and Jerome replied, "No, [it was] to Denver." He does "... not like jets. They make [him] seasick." Jerome, when he still called WFAN regularly, was known as being the only caller to have an audio intro, much like those played at the top of each show. Mr. Mittelman's health problems had kept him from the WFAN airwaves on a regular basis from late 2004 until mid-2008; when he again started to call in more frequently. Occasionally when he calls into Steve Somers' program, a special introduction is played to the tune of .
Eli from Westchester
(), known when calling as "Eli from Westchester", was another famous repeat caller. Citing
as the underlying factor behind any number of sports happenings, he was occasionally banned from calling for periods of time. One of the most famous times he was banned was by former mid-day host Russ Salzberg. However, he was also given an on-air tryout for the job which would eventually go to Joe Benigno. Strand, from , played college football at
and spent two years in the NFL with the
Miriam from Forest Hills
"'Miriam from Forest Hills" is a blind
fan from Queens. The first Islanders game Miriam ever attended became the topic of a
column in .
Dave from Harlem
, former , has been known to call into the station on occasion. He has also used the alias "David from Manhattan." After the end of his term, Paterson sporadically appeared as a guest host and in-studio g Paterson accepted a job with
in August 2011.
Doris from Rego Park
Doris Bauer () was one of the best-known late-night regular callers to WFAN. Calling in as "Doris from Rego Park" for a decade, Bauer was recognized by her chronic hacking cough, an encyclopedic knowledge of baseball, and her loyalty to the Mets. She called to talk sports on the overnight show with hosts like . Such was her status as a beloved member of the WFAN talk community that, when she died at 58 of complications from lung and breast cancer, it was host
who broke the news to his late-night audience at 1 a.m., Doris' usual call-in time.
Omar from Brooklyn
"Omar from Brooklyn" is another regular called on the Boomer and Carton Show. An avid Bills fan, Omar's trademark is to call in on a Monday to rant (often incoherently due to his thick accent) about the Bills shortcomings and his hatred for other New York teams. During these calls there is usually Middle Eastern music playing in the background, courtesy of WFAN. Boomer and Carton had Omar in studio as a guest, and Omar received a pie in the face from Boomer. Omar also received tickets from Boomer to a Jet and Bills game in 2011. Omar's wife is also known for her trademark chicken dishes, which he is yet to bring into studio despite Carton's constant requests.
WFAN's signal can be heard clearly on much of the
after sunset because it is a
(FCC) "Class A"
During the day, WFAN's
signal can be heard faintly as far south as
and as far north as the
corridor (the
and ), about 150 miles north of New York City. WFAN can also allegedly be heard clearly on the northern beaches of North Carolina's
during the day and the southern beaches around
at night. Signal strength varies depending on factors such as weather and elevation. Still, a good car radio can pick up WFAN cleanly in most of , at times as far west as central , and throughout , as well as parts of the , most parts of , , , and
markets, especially at night (WFAN does not broadcast on reduced power overnight, and thus needs very few
stations for the teams it broadcasts).
Callers from these locations are not uncommon, especially as some of the on-air staffers have backgrounds in those regions ( does radio play-by-play for the ,
basketball and has done radio play-by-play for
basketball and football, while Chris Carlin handles
football games). Alternatively, the callers listen to the streaming internet feed on WFAN's website, using either
apps for iPhone and iPad, or watch one of the station's TV simulcasts ("Mike Francesa" on Fox Sports 1 and 2 or "Boomer and Carton" on CBS Sports Network).
In addition to having its broadcast heard on 660 AM in New York City, WFAN's programming is also transmitted via a secured internet feed to CBS owned and operated stations. These stations simulcast the same over-the air feed that is heard in
including all of the live team coverage including the , ,
and the . The internet stream legally cannot include professional sports coverage because the , the , the
provide their own in-house on-demand and yearly subscription services for live and archived radio and television broadcasts. WFAN's simulcasts make it one of only a handful of terrestrial based radio
in the United S
in New York also syndicate terrestrially, though through different providers.
WFAN HD FM simulcasts
106.7-HD3 /
105.9-HD3 /
94.1-HD3 /
Rich Ackerman
Harris Allen
Andrew Catalon
Gregg Giannotti
Erica Herskowitz
Chris LoPresti
Max Herman
Marc Malusis
Mike Mancuso
Mike McCann
Lori Rubinson
Bob Salter (public affairs director)
Gregg Sussman
Joey Wahler
Adrienne Watson
, 7/10/2012
. Radio Ink 2007.
YouTube: Pete Franklin Goes Out on Top
. The Wall Street Journal. March 8, 2011.
. . April 6, 2006.
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