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MICHAEL DUNNE: I'm Michael Dunne. Whether at the game itself, the corner bar or at the office water cooler, people have been talking to each other about sports since the games began. And in reality, the idea of calling into a radio or TV show to talk about sports isn't all that old, but boy, has the tone and tenor of sports talk changed over the intervening decades. What once was a venue to talk about trades, the arm strength of the local team's quarterback or the pitching power of the local baseball team has now become a competition to say the most provocative and often angry invective in the hopes of driving social media clicks today on the show, you'll hear from Eugene's long serving sports talk host Steve Tannen, who's been doing it for decades and has seen and experienced the changes firsthand. Steve Tannen, who hosts the show sports talk on 95 three, the score from three to six weekdays. Three to 6pm weekdays. Steve, thanks so much for coming on and talking with us.
STEVE TANNEN: Yeah, pleasure. Big fan of Public Radio, KLCC. I think it's an important asset. And of course, with what's happening in Washington, even more so that we support
MICHAEL DUNNE: And I'm, I'm a fan of yours. I've been listening since my family and I got to Eugene about 10 years ago, and I know you've been doing this for a long time, and my first question is: to someone like you, a war torn, steely eyed veteran of sports talk, how has it changed since when you first started?
STEVE TANNEN: Well, I actually did my first sports talk show in town on another public radio show, the high school station, November of 1993 and I happen to be from North Jersey. So, when all sports radio started, July 1, 1987 what is now WFAN in New York, I was there from the first moment as a listener. So, to say, it's come full circle from guys reading baseball box scores and basically talking to each other and waiting for updates to some of the more flamboyant personalities that we see today. It's been an interesting 38 years to say the least, but I got to tell you, sometimes I listen to some of the shows and within the industry, and I want to cringe, because I think Michael at times there's a credibility issue. And by that, I mean when someone is giving an opinion, sometimes I'm not sure if it's what they actually mean or if it's their hot take, to try and get clicks and kind of get a rise out of the audience. So that is where it's kind of cycled to where we are now, where I question some of the credibility and motives.
MICHAEL DUNNE: Yeah, I mean, obviously there's been a lot written and said about hot takes and about this sort of, you know, it's no longer really about sports, to some degree. It's about conflict. And I listen to your show, and I know you've been critical of voices. I'm thinking of the Pat McAfee’s of the world on ESPN, you know, and Stephen A Smith. Who many younger people may not know, I mean, this was a phenomenal journalist and a great writer, I believe, with the Washington Post, who has really sort of almost reinvented himself as someone who's just going to yell at you for hours. You know, talk more about that, because it seems like that's where the industry is, as opposed to sort of a community, you know, people just wanting to get on with a sports host such as yourself and talk about the team, it seems like we just want to rant and be ranted at.
STEVE TANNEN: Well, let's put it this way, when your nickname among those who may not be fond of your work is Screaming A Smith, your point is well taken. And I remember because prior to moving out here in 1990 I lived in a suburb of Philadelphia, King of Prussia. And I remember Stephen A as an incredible NBA journalist, who, you know, did the great work, had incredible insights. But, well, I'll put it to you this way, there are times when I'm up in the morning going about my business, and I'll have the four-letter network on, and my wife will just be why is he so loud that plays into it, but the hot take, the I think, Skip Bayless also then of the four letter network. Now Fox was the first guy. I mean, for those familiar with the 1980 SMU scandal, where they got the death penalty because guys like Eric Dickerson and Craig James were caught getting paid to play after they had been warned, Skip Bayless was one of the lead journalists, an investigative reporter doing quality work, who all of a sudden got fame, got money, and earned that, I guess, via his obnoxious, less than credible takes. I think they fall into the trap. And you know, for you and I, we could sit here and earn what we do. I'd like to think I wouldn't be tempted and said, if somebody said, you know, be a little more flamboyant, be a little more obnoxious, and we'll pay you $3 million a year. So that's, I don't think you can dismiss those who sacrifice credibility or reputation for a very substantial paycheck.
MICHAEL DUNNE: But what you do, you're very conversational with the people who call you, mostly, they're Duck fans or whatnot, and you have a conversation, and then, you know, if someone's not calling, you fill the time talking about current events sometimes and weaving that all in. Is there still room for that? I mean, obviously there's room for you and what you're doing. Do you think that there's room nationally for that sort of sense of community, again, between fans and somebody on the radio?
STEVE TANNEN: Yeah, I think there are shows who can be somewhat sensationalistic, but I think at its core, the best sports radio is forget there's a microphone. Forget you're trying to pitch anything. It's just a bunch of us hanging around my den or hanging out at a bar, watching a game, talking about and sharing our love for the sports that we now get paid to cover. And as far as when it's not a specific interview or when I'm not taking a phone call, we refer to them as digressions, and I think a lot of people do enjoy talking about their favorite players, the rivalries, and maybe slipping in your love of maybe a particular television show or movies or music, because it is talk radio, it should be conversational, which sometimes get lost when, let's say, the volume gets cranked up a tad too loud.
MICHAEL DUNNE: Do you feel like and again, your career also spans, sort of the daily barrage of social media. And I know it's important for you and your job, obviously, you're having fans who are contacting you via social media platforms or text as opposed to just calling. But I mean, has that, I don't know, has it made it harder to have that kind of conversation?
STEVE TANNEN: Obviously, social media can compress down, you know what? What a point that that someone might want to make, and it obviously can, also ramp up all sorts of terrible things.
MICHAEL DUNNE: How have you been able to sort of navigate that, and what has it meant for you and what you're trying to do?
STEVE TANNEN: Well, the funny thing is, I'm I have a Facebook account, I'm starting to feel like you have to be an older demographic to still be engaged on Facebook, sure, but on the X platform, I think the problem is, Michael, the gray has been deleted. It's black or white, and there are certain people who are on there who are trolls. And it's like, if you read a particular article, that might kind of raise the temperature a little bit, and you go to the comment section, or you follow or hear from certain accounts on what's now called the X platform. It's the sewer of life. It's the, you know, it's, it's the toilet. It's, it's the lowest of the lowest of the low where, you know, people are just saying what they want to say to get a rise out of whoever they're targeting. But there's still that part, and I try to ignore that I do. Not long ago, there was a gentleman who worked in town. He was a columnist for The Register guard. He did a show on this station, George Schroeder, I'm not sure if you remember him. He probably left about a decade ago, okay, but very early on, he was on Twitter before I was and he says, I will give you one piece of advice, don't punch down. And I've learned that if somebody is really looking to get at you and being purely nasty, you can just annoy them. You know, they're, they're, they're not in your face at a bar or at your place of work. You can just and especially if somebody's got a very, very, very, very minimal following, the only way they get a voice is if you respond, yeah. So I've learned there should be there isn't an ignore button on a laptop or a device, but I've got one in my head and in my heart, which kind of allows me to avoid the misery of social media, and I kind of enjoy the upside, the actual contact, the communication and the sharing of ideas.
MICHAEL DUNNE: When you started in this business, very few sports talk shows were talking about, for example, international soccer. They weren't talking about women's basketball, necessarily. That's kind of changed. Do you see that as a positive? There are more sports, it seems that are sort of capturing the attention of sports fans.
STEVE TANNEN: Oh, I think that's great. And as far as maybe we can date to 1994 when America first hosted the World Cup on the men's side and kind of rose in popularity. Then, of course, with the women, the brandy Chastain goal to win the first World Cup in 1999 kind of turned a plugged a lot of people in. And all of a sudden it was like, Oh, I guess it's okay for a guy to root for women's sports, which is such an antiquated, idiotic concept, but it doesn't mean, in a, let's face a somewhat misogynistic society that absolutely exists. And then, of course, I do think here in Eugene, when it comes to women's basketball and volleyball, of course, the Sabrina Ionescu era, where we all got ignited. Now we follow her into the WNBA. What we've seen the last two years with Caitlin Clark, first at Iowa, now with the Indiana Fever. I think people know that the coverage has expanded when you watch Big Time college softball, the game moves along at such an incredible pace. You know, it takes two hours to put the pitchers on top of the hitter. I just think people have expanded their minds a little bit to realize that entertaining sports doesn't have to be pigeon holed to men's sports.
MICHAEL DUNNE: Obviously, a lot of your coverage, the U of O, and specifically the big sports, football, basketball, are huge parts of what you cover. And I'm curious, because another thing that's happened in in the span of your career is, you know, the transfer portal, the idea that you're not necessarily going to see, you know a wide receiver or an outside linebacker coming in as a freshman and staying with the program for four years and really getting to know them. And I, I kind of wanted to get your take about what that's like for what you do, because in addition to the kind of the knits, and that's a bit having to learn so many new names and people. What's it like seeing such a turnover on these squads?
STEVE TANNEN: Yeah, I'll tell you the truth. Once upon a time, I mean, going back to when I first started watching sports as a kid, you know, the 1970s even into the 80s, where you knew who was going to be on the Knicks, who was going to be on the Jets, who was going to be on the Yankees from year to year. Then as free agency exploded, all of a sudden, it wasn't someone who comes through your system, stays on your franchise for 10 years. So, I was raised as a pro sports fan, and from the 90s into the 2000s into the 2000 and 10s, you know, the roster could turn over year to year. Then, of course, we had the Ed O'Bannon case and the legalization of name, image and likeness, which, in essence, with the transfer portal, is free agency at the college level. So right now, a lot of people who were maybe in a town like Eugene or Norman, Oklahoma, or, you know, primarily a college town, are experiencing what people who've been following the pro game closely have known for decades. Now it's different. I don't think it's impacted the passion of football fan bases, just because of magnitude. There are still 85 scholarships. You know, with the walk-ons 100 and while the roster turns over, there are still guys who came along who were freshmen. You know, you look at Oregon with Matayo Uiagalelei, some of the offensive linemen who we've known since their freshmen, and as long as a program like Oregon is turning over at quarterback and running back and wide receiver, and they're winning, the fans will be okay with it. But I think in basketball in particular, because the rosters are so small, I think it's made it a little more difficult to make a connection. Well, I mean, for example, you take the Oregon men's Final Four team of 2017 led by Dylan Brooks, when Peyton Pritchard was a freshman. I mean, those guys came in as young players. They were here two, three and four years, and they felt more part of the community, part of the program. There was a much more substantial connection with the fan base.
MICHAEL DUNNE: You also, you know, have seen this sort of tectonic shift, the dissolving of the PAC 12, and now the U of O playing an entirely different conference. It's been a couple seasons. How do you feel about how that all went down? But also, just in terms of, you know, is it? Is it a net positive?
STEVE TANNEN: Because Oregon, now you know more of the country, perhaps gets to see them, because, let's be honest, in the conference they play now, that's kind of the marquee conference in the United States. Well, could I be selfish? Please do for a moment, just looking at it through a green and yellow lens, it's been fantastic for Oregon, okay, I mean, the big 10 and the SEC are, you know, you look at it and you think of the NBA, MLB, the NFL, two big conferences, and the ACC and the big 12 are still substantial. But there's two power brokers I could pinpoint at the moment. It was June 30, 2022 this might sound nuts. Why do I remember? It was the day my wife was having knee replacement surgery. So, I was sitting in my den waiting for the surgeon to call to make sure she was okay, when all of a sudden, ding, ding notification, USC and UCLA announced they're leaving the PAC 12 for the big 10. And I'm like, All right, that somebody's pulling our leg. Is it April 1? But all of a sudden, the credible sources started to verify. And then you were like, oh, okay, that's all right, there's still a PAC 10. Will they bring in, you know, San Diego State, or Gonzaga or somebody, and keep this historic legendary, what I think is the greatest college conference ever going. And within a year, Oregon and Washington announced they're going Cal and Stanford, very logically, from the Pacific ghosts to the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Arizona schools go to the big 12, and it's gone. So, if I may be frank, forever, I will be pissed off at the original Commissioner, Larry Scott, the guy who took over, the presidents who allowed this to happen because they got a little bit greedy, and they thought that the negotiations for TV rights wasn't substantial enough, and who got left out in the cold, but Washington state and Oregon State. So, for Oregon to land in the big 10 as one of the true power programs in the country, for me to cover and to make all these new connections with the other 14 schools in the big 10 has been awesome. But on the whole I think, I think the whole thing was awful, how it went down.
MICHAEL DUNNE: Steve, my last question for you is this, we, we've, we've kind of been around a lot of different topics, and some of them are harsh. And we were just talking about this, some of them talked about, sort of bespeak, the negative aspects of sports. And I really wanted to finish on this. You've been doing this for a long time. You're still doing it. What keeps you going? You know? What do you still like about the job of a sports talk host, and what do you still like about just being a sports fan?
STEVE TANNEN: You know, I wish I had my wife at my side, because she would give you a simple answer. He's perpetually 12! The kid who couldn't wait to play his game the next day, whether it was basketball, whether I was playing golf with my buddies, whether we were playing Little League, I still actually enjoy watching the same game that we all grew up with. Yes, there are things that are infuriating, there are injustices, there are awful things associated with sports, mostly off the field, but when it comes down to it, I could still watch the Yankees. I could still watch the Giants I had just because I got food poisoning once and another time because of covid. I've been to every home game at Autzen since 1995 I mean, there's that part of me, the little kid who gets the joy of the game still at age 64 and I'll tell you, what, if you turn the radio on one day and it's announced that Steve's not here, it's because I lost that. But here's hoping that's down the road a bit.
MICHAEL DUNNE: Indeed, indeed. Steve Tannen, he's the host of sports talk on 95 three the score, it airs three to 6pm every day. Steve, really appreciate you taking the time to talk with us.
STEVE TANNEN: I appreciate you reaching out. Like I said, big fan of KLCC Public Radio. You guys, I think, are an incredibly important community asset, and people should support you in every way they can.
MICHAEL DUNNE: Thanks for that plug. Take care.
STEVE TANNEN: All right, take it easy.
MICHAEL DUNNE: That's the show for today. All episodes of Oregon On The Record are available as a podcast at KLCC.org. Monday on the show, you'll meet a recovery diver who offers his services free of charge to recover drowning victims when search and rescue and other official first responders can't find the person. I'm Michael Dunne, and this has been Oregon On The Record from KLCC. Thanks for listening.
