She's a Handicapper now..and I'm saying "Champagne, Anyone?"

She's a Handicapper now..and I'm saying "Champagne, Anyone?"

Friday, January 15, 2016

Louisville radio needs more than just The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour


Cards Radio 790 and 93.9 The Ville have 336 hours of broadcast time available to them each week. Additionally, 680 AM also has separate shows than 93.9...so add a few more hours of unique broadcasting time that is available. 

None of the three have any shows about women's sports at UofL.

Howie Lindsey is nice enough to dedicate 15 minutes a week to CARDINAL COUPLE to let us discuss women's sports with him on the Howie Show. Jody Demling mentions women's sports almost every day on his Cardinal Insider program on WKRD 790. 93.9 also offers The Jeff Walz show once a week during basketball season. 

There is a ton of network programming on each channel. There are other locally based broadcasts that feature other websites and men's sports. There are idiots, braggarts, self-proclaimed authorities and high and mighty, pompous prognosticators on the air. There are horse racing shows on Cards Radio and The Ville.

But no women's sports shows.

I took the issue to 93.9 programming director Drew Deener. I got a nice "thanks...but no thanks" brief reply. I asked a "higher up" at Clear Channel about the issue. This person's response (I'm with-holding the name and gender...because it would surprise a lot of you) was that women's sports don't create advertising dollars and Clear Channel is ALL about the money. 

I've mentioned it to Louisville coaches, administrators and athletic department personnel. They all lament that lack of coverage but don't have the "kryptonite" to bring it to fruition.

We appreciate our chance to bring you The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour each week at 100.9 WCHQ - Crescent Hill Radio. We're optimistic that the station will double it's listening radius soon and we might be able to be heard in Prospect, Fern Creek, Fairdale and Valley Station. It's a show we'll never abandon.

But is the prospect of having a one-hour show a week devoted to Louisville women's sports so unappealing that the two channels in town that are sports-oriented won't touch it?

Hell, we're not asking for prime time on WHAS, WAMZ, WQMF or WAKY...just an hour somewhere on a station that gets decent arbitron ratings. 

You can voice your thoughts on this by sending a few e-mails if you think UofL women's sports are worthy of a show on 680, 790 or 93.9. 

Let Drew Deener know. Let John Salzman know. Let Tom Jurich and Dr. Jim Ramsey know. It's time for this glass ceiling to end.

We don't care if it's us or someone else. Just give the women a break here. Equality and fairness aside...there are some wonderful things going on in women's sports in this town. 

Mainstream media needs to recognize and give some time up for it.