This is Tony Bruno's "Last Stand," right? RIGHT?!!??

[Pratte4Life]

Gee, I thought Tony Bruno put ESPN Radio on the map and was their big gun in the days when it was weekend programming.

Similarly, I thought he was the big gun that allowed FOX to start off with a bang and made it a great listen as compared to ESPN about 10 years ago.

A failure on those two networks? I think not.

[shoothoops]

Please, Tony is the very best at what he does, great pipes, funny, and the quickest wit next to DP, anyone hating
on Tony, doesn't understand the mix of sports/ regular guy talk he pulls off without fault. Why does he bounce,
simple, why do any of us with talent, decide we dont need a research nerd telling us how to do radio.
It's, simple, hire the best, stay out of the way.

[thesportswhisperer]

I love the few Bruno haters who have some sort of agenda to bash the guy. He's one of the nicest people in the business, smart, funny, respected by all and a virtual legend in sports talk radio whether you like his style or not. If I read correctly a few years ago, he started ESPN radio, left after 8 years in disgust of Disney micromanaging - allowing a shill like Mike Greenberg to emerge as some sort of star: simply because "Greenie" is the perfect, safe, ESPN, company kinda guy.

He built Fox radio in LA and after 4 years, geniuses at Clear Channel decided Van Earl Wright would be more "LA" and pimp the Lakers in an effort to get higher ratings that the 2 share Bruno had managed to get, despite being a real "national" show. That fiasco has led to at least 5 other failed attempts to salvage morning drive and any legit affiliates who aren't CC owned stations. Now that have a lame local Indy show as their am drive challenger?

Sporting News was a dumb decision - in my opinion. Bruno obviously got duped into trying to make that turkey look appealing to anyone who would buy that small-market-inundated farce and make it a legit competitor. He got them major market affiliates they NEVER had(except when they owned NY, Chi and LA) and they didn't bring him back once they sold the joint and also have played musical chairs with failed host after failed host.

Bottom line: Clear Channel has no desire to provide good radio, ESPN doesn't HAVE to, and Sporting News just accepts the crumbs left over. The only mission of these networks is to provide programming, period. ESPN wins due to the NBA and baseball deals giving cheap station filler programming and local gm's(aka former interns) reason to act important as an "ESPN branded" station exec.  Clear Channel waited 8 years before forcing its many owned sports stations to run the Network programming(the good ones) and by then, it was only another way to fire hundreds of local hosts and producers to save money. The result: KLAC local programs thrust into the world of "network" syndication, CC stations with no budgets forced to have LA centric shows who don't care about anything outside of LA, and thus dreadful radio all over the nation.

Bruno now working a brutal night shift with no upside except he doesn't answer to Fox or any other bosses from what I gather in the times I listen.

Too bad for him, but  I would hope after decades of doing this, he doesn't have to see what else is out there in this vast wasteland. As a long time radio guy myself who always admired Bruno in his many stops, he seems like a guy who proves his point and doesn't just suck up to the empty suits who run these big companies until they fail and get fired. 

Awfully glad I don't do this anymore and feel sorry for the young guys who think they will be the next Jim Rome or Dan Patrick making 7-figures. Those days are over with cheap and safe the wave of the future, satellite all but dead, and the biggest companies in a cut mode, not build something good mode.

[Leebo65]

I love the few Bruno haters who have some sort of agenda to bash the guy. He's one of the nicest people in the business, smart, funny, respected by all and a virtual legend in sports talk radio whether you like his style or not. If I read correctly a few years ago, he started ESPN radio, left after 8 years in disgust of Disney micromanaging - allowing a shill like Mike Greenberg to emerge as some sort of star: simply because "Greenie" is the perfect, safe, ESPN, company kinda guy.

What a great post. Funny too. Greenberg is a joke. The show is so much better when he is out. How do you let someone of Bruno's talent go..? ESPN could have built a massive empire around him.

[oakas]

I have to agree with you guys. Tony is the best. Some of the stuff he comes up with is classic radio.

Tony and Ben Maller are by far the best there is right now on sports radio.

[lifeguardofradio]

He is the Keith Olbermann of sports radio. He always implodes when the going gets tough.

[tomficker]

He is the Keith Olbermann of sports radio. He always implodes when the going gets tough.

True, but like Keith he can also be wonderfully engaging to guests. I think Bruno is exceptional at interviewing. I don't even know if he realizes that! I think the show goes downhill when he lets the callers derail him into nonsense. Overall, it's still very listenable but I think the Sporting News and ESPN versions were better.
There's plenty of worse things to listen to then Tony Bruno at night.