WEBVTT - Philly Delight 0:00:02.240 --> 0:00:05.720 If you thought four hours a day, minutes a week 0:00:05.840 --> 0:00:09.240 was enough, I think again. He's the last remnants of 0:00:09.280 --> 0:00:12.879 the old republic, a sole fashion of fairness. He treats 0:00:12.920 --> 0:00:15.800 crackheads in the ghetto gutter the same as the rich 0:00:15.840 --> 0:00:19.840 pill poppers in the penthouse, the clearing House of hot 0:00:19.880 --> 0:00:23.560 takes break free for something special. The Fifth Hour with 0:00:23.800 --> 0:00:28.200 Ben Maller starts right now. That it does, and I 0:00:28.200 --> 0:00:31.000 hope you're doing well. Thank you for tuning into the 0:00:31.040 --> 0:00:34.480 Fifth Hour, because four hours on the Overnight Show are 0:00:34.640 --> 0:00:38.040 not enough, and you are in for a special treat 0:00:38.159 --> 0:00:40.520 on this edition of The Fifth Hour with Me, Ben 0:00:40.600 --> 0:00:44.159 Maller and David Gascon on the I Heart Podcast Network. 0:00:44.680 --> 0:00:48.640 Because the o g one of my inspirations to get 0:00:48.680 --> 0:00:51.920 into the wacky world of sports talk radio, is gonna 0:00:51.960 --> 0:00:56.120 be hanging out with us. The great Tony Bruno, the 0:00:56.560 --> 0:01:00.880 legendary figure Tony Bruno, the forefather of network sports radio. 0:01:01.280 --> 0:01:07.440 Tony started ESPN Radio and started Fox Sports Radio, and 0:01:07.640 --> 0:01:10.280 I've known Tony for years. I was very excited when 0:01:10.319 --> 0:01:12.080 I first met Tony because I had been a big 0:01:12.120 --> 0:01:15.360 fan of his as a listener to Tony over the years, 0:01:15.360 --> 0:01:16.920 and then I got to know him a little bit. 0:01:17.000 --> 0:01:20.360 We worked together at local radio for a couple of 0:01:20.440 --> 0:01:22.600 years and then at Fox Sports Radio in the early 0:01:22.680 --> 0:01:28.560 days for almost ten years or so. At Fox Sports Radio. Um, 0:01:28.680 --> 0:01:31.759 we were colleagues. So it's it's pretty cool to catch 0:01:31.800 --> 0:01:33.800 up with Tony. We're also gonna have some grab bag 0:01:33.840 --> 0:01:35.560 at the end of this. We'll we'll throw in some 0:01:35.640 --> 0:01:39.680 grab bag at the end and some questions. But Tony's 0:01:39.720 --> 0:01:41.240 back in the game. One of the reasons we're having 0:01:41.280 --> 0:01:44.800 Tony on is he's launching a new radio show on 0:01:45.080 --> 0:01:50.120 Sirius XM, and so why don't we start with that, Tony, 0:01:50.200 --> 0:01:52.280 tell me, tell me what this is all about, give 0:01:52.320 --> 0:01:54.840 me the details, give me the inside, Skinny. It's a 0:01:54.880 --> 0:01:57.960 sports show without sports. I mean, we're gonna try something different. 0:01:58.440 --> 0:02:00.440 You know. I could do a little we'll talk, but 0:02:00.520 --> 0:02:02.760 there's too much of that. I could do sex talk, 0:02:02.800 --> 0:02:05.720 and I'll probably do that late night. But sports show 0:02:05.760 --> 0:02:09.160 without sports hasn't been done. And no better time to 0:02:09.200 --> 0:02:11.280 start a sports show without sports than right now, I 0:02:11.280 --> 0:02:14.799 would say. And for those that don't like when can 0:02:14.800 --> 0:02:17.000 they hear the shots? It's on give me on Serious 0:02:17.400 --> 0:02:21.240 Satellite Radio. It starts next week from this weekend when 0:02:21.240 --> 0:02:23.680 we were recording the podcast. But it's gonna be on 0:02:23.760 --> 0:02:27.400 every day, right, Yes, it's gonna be a Monday, April six, 0:02:28.040 --> 0:02:30.800 So the following the next Monday, coming up April six, 0:02:30.840 --> 0:02:34.120 three to six in the afternoon Eastern time, that's noon 0:02:34.200 --> 0:02:38.320 to three in the West. And uh, Monday Friday. I'll 0:02:38.320 --> 0:02:40.040 be in there. My old buddy Harry May's who I 0:02:40.080 --> 0:02:41.600 used to do a show with in Philly for many 0:02:41.639 --> 0:02:43.840 many years. He'll be on the show. MS. Robin will 0:02:43.880 --> 0:02:46.760 be there just making sure everything goes straight. And it's 0:02:46.760 --> 0:02:48.480 gonna be fine. I mean, you know, obviously you've been 0:02:48.480 --> 0:02:52.200 on Sirious. Anybody who's been on other Fox Sports or 0:02:52.400 --> 0:02:55.240 ESPN or any other CBS, you name it, you know 0:02:55.320 --> 0:02:59.680 those channels are all now broadcasted on on Sirius. So 0:02:59.720 --> 0:03:02.040 that well, and you know, as you know, one of 0:03:02.080 --> 0:03:04.520 the best things is when you're on satellite radio. You know, 0:03:04.560 --> 0:03:06.400 the truck drivers who have always been out there and 0:03:06.480 --> 0:03:09.320 making America move. I get a chance to listen and 0:03:09.360 --> 0:03:11.560 don't have to charry worry about finding another station when 0:03:11.600 --> 0:03:14.200 they drive a hundred miles through the middle of America. 0:03:14.280 --> 0:03:16.840 So it's really a great opportunity for people around the 0:03:16.840 --> 0:03:19.480 country to be able to hear you. Uh and with 0:03:19.560 --> 0:03:22.040 the app of course to the apps up for free 0:03:22.120 --> 0:03:24.760 now through the middle of May, so good time to listen. 0:03:24.919 --> 0:03:27.120 Everybody just wants to get their head away from the 0:03:27.240 --> 0:03:30.239 daily numbers and all the depression and all the noise 0:03:30.320 --> 0:03:32.960 out there and just want to escape and have some 0:03:33.040 --> 0:03:35.280 fun every once in a while. I know from the 0:03:35.320 --> 0:03:37.920 old days, Tony h For years there was always a 0:03:38.000 --> 0:03:41.440 joke in sports radio that the month that everyone wanted 0:03:41.480 --> 0:03:43.880 to take off was like July, right right around the 0:03:43.880 --> 0:03:46.680 All Star Game in baseball. There was nothing going on, 0:03:46.960 --> 0:03:48.960 and and guys would be like, oh, I can't I 0:03:49.000 --> 0:03:51.440 can't work. You know, there's not enough sports news going 0:03:51.480 --> 0:03:53.880 on and and now and now we're in this period 0:03:53.880 --> 0:03:57.560 of time where there is. It's it's not that there's nothing, 0:03:57.680 --> 0:04:00.320 but it's you really have to be creative. And so 0:04:00.680 --> 0:04:02.720 I like, I mean, you're gonna do great, Tony, because 0:04:02.800 --> 0:04:06.120 you don't need, you know, a million things. You're able 0:04:06.160 --> 0:04:08.080 to be creative. But some of these guys are really 0:04:08.120 --> 0:04:10.480 struggling right now because there's just not a lot of 0:04:10.480 --> 0:04:14.160 meat on the bone. Yeah, and you're absolutely it's not 0:04:14.240 --> 0:04:16.520 because they're not good at what they do or anything. 0:04:16.560 --> 0:04:19.479 But luckily, you know, I was I was in l 0:04:19.520 --> 0:04:22.719 A with andrews Aciliano the morning the nine eleven attacks happened, 0:04:22.960 --> 0:04:24.960 and we were grouping off and talking about the NBA, 0:04:25.000 --> 0:04:26.240 and all of a sudden we look up at our 0:04:26.240 --> 0:04:29.000 monitors and see, you know, the World Trade Center where 0:04:29.040 --> 0:04:31.479 the whole and smoke coming out, and everybody thought it 0:04:31.480 --> 0:04:33.440 was a joke. So Andrew and I were, you know, 0:04:33.480 --> 0:04:37.080 with backgrounds and reporting and stuff, we're able to transition 0:04:37.600 --> 0:04:40.320 and into from talking about sports into talking about the 0:04:40.320 --> 0:04:43.120 biggest story in our lifetime. And now we were in 0:04:43.120 --> 0:04:45.919 the same situation. I mean, everybody's affected by this. You know, 0:04:46.040 --> 0:04:48.640 nine eleven, we were affected as a country because we 0:04:48.680 --> 0:04:51.200 didn't know what was going on. And then sooner or later, 0:04:51.240 --> 0:04:54.000 it didn't take months and months and months before people 0:04:54.000 --> 0:04:56.599 were feeling confident enough to go out and not worried 0:04:56.600 --> 0:05:00.120 about being attacked, and you know, sports being back in business. 0:05:00.320 --> 0:05:02.760 So we don't know right now. That's the biggest uncertainty 0:05:02.800 --> 0:05:05.840 of this this compared to nine eleven, is that we 0:05:06.440 --> 0:05:08.800 felt that the nation needed to get sports back. It 0:05:08.880 --> 0:05:11.560 wasn't that the league's were all shut down purposely it's 0:05:11.600 --> 0:05:14.559 that the decisions were made after a week or two, 0:05:14.880 --> 0:05:17.560 as opposed to now months and months and months, the 0:05:17.600 --> 0:05:20.560 possible and the prospect of losing an entire baseball season 0:05:20.880 --> 0:05:23.400 or losing the NBA in the hockey season. Again in 0:05:23.440 --> 0:05:26.560 the real world, for the average person, that's not like, 0:05:26.600 --> 0:05:28.640 oh my god, o sports is going to destroy the 0:05:28.720 --> 0:05:31.560 wor no. But there's so many people who rely on sports, 0:05:31.560 --> 0:05:34.400 not just for entertainment, not just for the fun of 0:05:34.440 --> 0:05:36.960 watching their favorite teams, but the people who work in 0:05:37.000 --> 0:05:40.240 these arenas and stadiums, and the people who work and 0:05:40.279 --> 0:05:43.240 rely on sports. You know, the gambling people. I'm gambling 0:05:43.240 --> 0:05:45.000 and became a really big deal now, So all these 0:05:45.000 --> 0:05:48.800 casinos are shutdowns. So it's not just sports here and there, 0:05:48.880 --> 0:05:52.839 it's it's everything that's involved. This entire country not able 0:05:52.880 --> 0:05:54.720 to do the things that we used to do. And 0:05:54.760 --> 0:05:56.680 while it was a similar situation for a couple of 0:05:56.720 --> 0:05:59.320 weeks with nine eleven, it's now a situation where we're 0:05:59.320 --> 0:06:02.280 going month after month after month and nobody knows what 0:06:02.400 --> 0:06:04.520 we're going to get back to anything that resembles being 0:06:04.560 --> 0:06:07.960 close to normal. Tony. When when you talk about that 0:06:08.120 --> 0:06:10.640 and what you're doing right now, You've made the unique 0:06:10.640 --> 0:06:13.560 transition which a lot of broadcasters have not done, at 0:06:13.600 --> 0:06:15.400 least in the radio set of things, is going from 0:06:15.480 --> 0:06:19.799 radio to digital and then now to satellite. But what's 0:06:19.839 --> 0:06:24.880 that been link for you working on Twitch? Because I 0:06:25.000 --> 0:06:27.800 follow you and I know you from Afar, and much 0:06:27.839 --> 0:06:29.919 like Ben, I didn't know who the hell Ben was. 0:06:30.080 --> 0:06:33.360 I started back in San Diego with my heart San Diego, 0:06:33.400 --> 0:06:35.440 and lo and behold, I found out Ben used to 0:06:35.440 --> 0:06:37.480 work for the Mighty six ninety back in the day 0:06:37.480 --> 0:06:41.720 when he first got started. But my my impression of 0:06:41.800 --> 0:06:43.919 you from Afar, when you were here at Fox and 0:06:44.080 --> 0:06:46.080 now where you're at in the East Coast was you 0:06:46.080 --> 0:06:49.679 were a a human firecracker and you let it rip 0:06:49.960 --> 0:06:54.520 and you don't sugarcoat anything. And I'm kind of curious 0:06:54.520 --> 0:06:57.160 to the way that you operate now compared to what 0:06:57.240 --> 0:07:00.200 you were like at Fox and and how you been 0:07:00.360 --> 0:07:04.280 on other platforms as well. Or I don't never think 0:07:04.279 --> 0:07:05.839 I've changed, I mean, and one of the things that 0:07:05.880 --> 0:07:08.679 I tried to be consistent at is staying the same, 0:07:08.960 --> 0:07:12.000 I mean. Times change. Digital obviously came along a lot 0:07:12.040 --> 0:07:13.720 of guys in my age group in the six been 0:07:13.760 --> 0:07:16.280 their sixties, A lot of the old school radio guys, 0:07:16.560 --> 0:07:17.960 you know, like I don't want to do Twitter. I 0:07:18.000 --> 0:07:21.920 don't want to do social media. And I knew back five, six, 0:07:21.960 --> 0:07:23.880 seven years ago, and I got on Twitter in two 0:07:23.920 --> 0:07:26.480 thousand and nine, so we're talking eleven years now, and 0:07:26.520 --> 0:07:30.360 so I've embraced it because that's that's the way everybody 0:07:30.520 --> 0:07:33.640 is doing business now, especially the younger generations. You know, 0:07:33.640 --> 0:07:35.640 I don't want to just program to sixty five year 0:07:35.680 --> 0:07:37.760 old guys. And I've never been that way. When I 0:07:37.800 --> 0:07:40.240 was on Fox, I take call from thirteen year old 0:07:40.320 --> 0:07:42.720 kids listening out there, and you know, things that most 0:07:42.760 --> 0:07:44.480 stations wouldn't do it. I'll ever put a kid on 0:07:44.520 --> 0:07:46.520 the air. Oh my god, we can't do that. So 0:07:46.640 --> 0:07:49.360 I it was not called pushing the envelope. It's about 0:07:49.400 --> 0:07:51.240 just having fun. And I've always done this in the 0:07:51.320 --> 0:07:55.000 same approach, have fun. Let people hear you laugh. When 0:07:55.000 --> 0:07:57.960 people hear somebody having fun on their jobs, they're gonna 0:07:58.000 --> 0:07:59.920 feel good about themselves too. And now more than ever, 0:08:00.360 --> 0:08:03.280 people don't want to hear people complaining about you all. 0:08:03.320 --> 0:08:06.840 You know, the Lakers and the Clippers. Now we don't 0:08:06.840 --> 0:08:08.360 know who's gonna win the who's gonna win the m 0:08:08.440 --> 0:08:11.600 v P. That's all fun and game stuff, but in 0:08:11.640 --> 0:08:13.800 the real world, none of that really matters. And so 0:08:13.840 --> 0:08:16.280 it's about, yes, we cannot We can talk about when 0:08:16.280 --> 0:08:18.880 sports is coming back, when baseball, what's baseball gonna do, 0:08:18.920 --> 0:08:21.880 What's football gonna do, what's hockey gonna do? But we 0:08:21.960 --> 0:08:24.320 have to do it in a fun way now. And 0:08:24.720 --> 0:08:28.280 as you mentioned earlier, people on radio and sports radio 0:08:28.360 --> 0:08:30.280 are having a tough time. You know, we can always 0:08:30.280 --> 0:08:32.679 do the Mount Rushmore's, which are always good, We can 0:08:32.720 --> 0:08:34.560 always do different lists, but not of the time to 0:08:34.600 --> 0:08:37.000 be creative. So I always try to be creative. I 0:08:37.000 --> 0:08:40.199 always try to have fun incorporate other things, which pretty 0:08:40.280 --> 0:08:42.080 much everybody now is doing. And I was doing it 0:08:42.160 --> 0:08:44.880 for thirty years ago. And now you know, you hear 0:08:44.960 --> 0:08:47.960 people having fun talking about stupid shows like you know, 0:08:47.960 --> 0:08:50.360 the Tiger King and Netflix and that kind of stuff. 0:08:50.360 --> 0:08:53.240 Because people who are sports fans don't just only care 0:08:53.280 --> 0:08:56.040 about sports. They care about they have other things in life. 0:08:56.040 --> 0:08:58.520 They go outside, well, not not right now, I'm talking 0:08:58.520 --> 0:09:01.280 about a normal situation. They said at all and watch 0:09:01.360 --> 0:09:03.560 TV at night and they want to be entertained. They 0:09:03.559 --> 0:09:05.880 can't go to the movies anymore, and so you've got 0:09:06.000 --> 0:09:07.880 maybe got to be sort of an entertainer to them 0:09:07.920 --> 0:09:10.360 as well in these times. So do you think it's 0:09:10.400 --> 0:09:12.600 more challenging for a guy like Ben to to be 0:09:12.720 --> 0:09:15.280 more entertained with his Mallard militia because half the time 0:09:15.320 --> 0:09:18.120 they're not even sober anyway, and they love they love 0:09:18.200 --> 0:09:21.560 anything he does that includes list radio and I don't 0:09:22.880 --> 0:09:28.240 and I'm not doing this radio. I don't long with you. 0:09:29.520 --> 0:09:31.720 I don't break into a fight here now listen. I 0:09:31.760 --> 0:09:34.080 love Ben. I remember when Ben was just a young 0:09:34.120 --> 0:09:36.240 pop in l A and I'd come out there and 0:09:36.280 --> 0:09:38.880 he said to me, you know you're the guy because 0:09:38.920 --> 0:09:41.479 you know Roome and I and those guys in that generation. 0:09:42.120 --> 0:09:44.160 Ben was out there in California when I first met him. 0:09:44.200 --> 0:09:46.679 He was telling me all these one wonderful things about 0:09:46.960 --> 0:09:49.520 having hurt me when I was at ESPN. And now 0:09:49.679 --> 0:09:51.880 Ben's a legendary figure in this business and he's got 0:09:51.880 --> 0:09:53.800 a great following. And that's what it's all about, about 0:09:54.000 --> 0:09:56.760 developing a core audience that likes what you do. And 0:09:56.800 --> 0:09:59.199 I said this earlier. I was talking to somebody else 0:09:59.240 --> 0:10:00.760 earlier today and they said, you know, what is it 0:10:00.760 --> 0:10:02.840 that you want what do you what do you think 0:10:02.880 --> 0:10:05.920 that attracts people to you? And I said, I want 0:10:05.920 --> 0:10:08.199 people to like me. You know, the old Howard co 0:10:08.320 --> 0:10:11.160 Cell mentality was you had half the audience hate you 0:10:11.640 --> 0:10:13.800 and the other half of the audience like you, but 0:10:13.840 --> 0:10:15.520 they were going to listen to you no matter what. 0:10:16.040 --> 0:10:17.560 To me, I've always wanted to be the guy that 0:10:17.600 --> 0:10:19.720 everybody liked. Now, of course, the people who aren't gonna 0:10:19.720 --> 0:10:21.720 like me, but I think for the most part those 0:10:21.720 --> 0:10:24.240 have listened to me over the years, and my p ones, 0:10:24.320 --> 0:10:25.800 as we like to call them in the world of 0:10:26.920 --> 0:10:29.439 ratings and all that other stuff, those are the people 0:10:29.440 --> 0:10:32.040 that have stayed with me wherever I've gone. And now, 0:10:32.040 --> 0:10:33.600 even in the last couple of years, where I haven't 0:10:33.600 --> 0:10:35.880 done any terrestrial radio, it's of a couple of pregame 0:10:35.920 --> 0:10:39.040 shows during the football season locally. You know, I've been 0:10:39.040 --> 0:10:42.599 doing the Twitch thing, and Twitch is a big, big platform. 0:10:42.920 --> 0:10:45.920 They started adding sports content and so I'm on there 0:10:45.920 --> 0:10:47.280 now and I've been on there for a year and 0:10:47.280 --> 0:10:49.360 it's fun because I get to talk to people every day. 0:10:49.360 --> 0:10:51.840 And and the one thing about Twitch talking about the 0:10:51.840 --> 0:10:55.240 generational divide is when I talked to somebody over thirty 0:10:55.559 --> 0:10:57.160 and they say, where are you on now? Say Twitch? 0:10:57.200 --> 0:10:59.000 Will say what the hell is that? When I talked 0:10:59.040 --> 0:11:01.240 to somebody under thirty, they're like, Wow, you're on Twitch. 0:11:01.559 --> 0:11:03.480 And so that's the thing is about getting people to 0:11:03.520 --> 0:11:07.480 know all these new different digital platforms, especially for the 0:11:07.520 --> 0:11:10.760 older generation that doesn't even well, they're pretty much they're 0:11:10.760 --> 0:11:12.880 consuming and anybody who has a phone now except a 0:11:12.920 --> 0:11:17.000 flip phone, is basically digitally connected now, so you're getting 0:11:17.040 --> 0:11:19.400 everything in your hand as opposed to have to worry 0:11:19.440 --> 0:11:22.040 about what time the game ends and finding out where 0:11:22.040 --> 0:11:25.040 the score is. All that information is available to everybody now. 0:11:25.360 --> 0:11:28.360 So breaking news and stuff about this game is over 0:11:28.480 --> 0:11:31.240 the point, spreads and all that stuff. People get that instantaneously. 0:11:31.600 --> 0:11:34.719 We have to provide the other parts of it, the 0:11:34.400 --> 0:11:38.000 the fun and entertaining parts of the world without sports 0:11:38.040 --> 0:11:40.400 every day. Be sure to catch live editions of The 0:11:40.440 --> 0:11:43.319 Ben Meller Show weekdays at two am Eastern eleven p 0:11:43.520 --> 0:11:46.840 m Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the I Heart 0:11:46.960 --> 0:11:49.840 Radio app. Yeah, and Tony, you brought up the early 0:11:49.920 --> 0:11:52.319 days man and I you were a big influence on me. 0:11:52.679 --> 0:11:55.600 I'm a huge Tony Bruno fan. You were awesome and 0:11:55.640 --> 0:11:57.640 you've been very kind to me over there. I remember 0:11:57.640 --> 0:11:59.400 we used to hang out every once in a while. 0:11:59.440 --> 0:12:01.480 I was I was honored we'd hang out. A was 0:12:01.520 --> 0:12:03.679 at Hooters in Santa Monica, which I don't even think 0:12:04.000 --> 0:12:07.200 there anymore, at the Third Street Promenade back in the day. 0:12:07.240 --> 0:12:10.400 But I should thank you. I've been at Fox. I 0:12:10.520 --> 0:12:12.600 started right around when I think it was a week 0:12:12.679 --> 0:12:15.199 or two after the network started. But the only reason 0:12:15.240 --> 0:12:17.360 Fox Sports Radio exists, for those that are new and 0:12:17.400 --> 0:12:21.280 maybe don't realize the history, it's because of you, Tony. 0:12:21.360 --> 0:12:23.640 You are the reason that this entire network, which has 0:12:23.640 --> 0:12:26.600 been on the air now for twenty years exists. When 0:12:26.600 --> 0:12:29.600 you made the move to come to Fox Sports Radio 0:12:29.640 --> 0:12:32.640 and do the show, you were the centerpiece, you were 0:12:32.640 --> 0:12:36.080 the rock star, and everything else was built around uh you. 0:12:36.320 --> 0:12:39.360 So I should thank you because it's gotta feel good that. 0:12:39.600 --> 0:12:41.120 I mean, I know you haven't been at Fox for 0:12:41.160 --> 0:12:43.040 a number of years, but the reason this thing is 0:12:43.040 --> 0:12:47.599 even around is because of your your impact. Well, I 0:12:47.600 --> 0:12:50.200 mean it wasn't just me. I mean obviously Greig Kitchen 0:12:50.320 --> 0:12:53.880 and the people who put the Fox Radio Sports Radio together. 0:12:54.440 --> 0:12:57.400 I left the FPN after ten years and they called 0:12:57.400 --> 0:12:59.199 me and said move out to l A. And you know, 0:12:59.320 --> 0:13:01.280 I've been l A a million times that I never 0:13:01.360 --> 0:13:02.760 lived there. So I moved out to l A. I 0:13:02.840 --> 0:13:05.079 made in my home for eleven consecutive years, from two 0:13:05.120 --> 0:13:07.520 thousand all the way to two thousand and eleven. And 0:13:07.600 --> 0:13:09.000 I worked with a lot of great people. I mean 0:13:09.040 --> 0:13:10.719 I was on the morning show because they wanted me 0:13:10.760 --> 0:13:13.360 to be there, and so I did it with Andrews Siciliano, 0:13:13.360 --> 0:13:16.080 who's now on the Bigger and Better Things the NFL Network. 0:13:16.360 --> 0:13:18.559 And so I've worked a lot of great people no 0:13:18.679 --> 0:13:21.600 matter where I've been, and to see them continuing to excel. 0:13:21.960 --> 0:13:24.240 So I don't I don't make things better. I've been 0:13:24.440 --> 0:13:26.880 fortunate to be in great spots. I've been handed the 0:13:27.000 --> 0:13:29.640 keys to ESPN Radio, to Fox Sports Radio is the 0:13:29.679 --> 0:13:32.720 first voices on and so I was. I was privileged 0:13:32.760 --> 0:13:35.839 to work with a lot of really talented people around me, 0:13:36.240 --> 0:13:38.560 which made me better. And I hope that I always 0:13:38.559 --> 0:13:41.600 felt that the younger generations who asked me about how 0:13:41.640 --> 0:13:43.440 did you get to where you are? I'm always willing 0:13:43.480 --> 0:13:45.079 to do that. You don't why because I had people 0:13:45.760 --> 0:13:48.320 helping me when I was fifteen years old and said 0:13:48.320 --> 0:13:50.440 I wanted to be in radio. I'd called radio stations 0:13:50.480 --> 0:13:51.840 at night. You know, there were a lot of there 0:13:51.880 --> 0:13:53.360 was a lot of sports radio, but I'd called the 0:13:53.440 --> 0:13:56.120 DJs and talk about music and tell them how I 0:13:56.160 --> 0:13:57.920 wanted to be in this business. So I got a 0:13:57.960 --> 0:13:59.640 lot of help when I was a kid, and now 0:13:59.679 --> 0:14:01.679 I try to help others by just telling them to 0:14:01.760 --> 0:14:03.959 be themselves. You know, everybody the one question I'm sure 0:14:04.000 --> 0:14:05.439 you guys get this too. You know, how do I 0:14:05.640 --> 0:14:07.480 be like you? How do I be like Ben Maller? 0:14:07.920 --> 0:14:09.520 And I always say, how do you be like Tony? 0:14:09.720 --> 0:14:12.600 You can't You're not you can be yourself. You can't 0:14:12.640 --> 0:14:15.199 be another Tony Bruno, but you could be yourself and 0:14:15.400 --> 0:14:19.000 just be don't don't create an act, don't do something, 0:14:19.080 --> 0:14:21.360 don't be what you're not, because if you try to 0:14:21.440 --> 0:14:23.520 do this for a long time, people will always know 0:14:23.640 --> 0:14:25.880 who you are what you are. You just try to 0:14:25.880 --> 0:14:27.800 stay consistent. And that's all I've tried to do for 0:14:27.880 --> 0:14:30.880 almost fifty years now. See Tony that that's the one 0:14:30.920 --> 0:14:33.080 thing I wanted to ask you about, because you're so 0:14:33.320 --> 0:14:38.160 seasoned in this game, is that I find at least 0:14:38.360 --> 0:14:41.280 where where my perception is with with guys like you 0:14:41.720 --> 0:14:45.240 and a colleague of ours here, Rob Parker, is that 0:14:45.800 --> 0:14:48.160 you guys aren't looking behind you. You're like, you're not 0:14:48.240 --> 0:14:50.440 looking over your shoulder, You're not looking behind you. You're 0:14:50.440 --> 0:14:52.640 just looking straight ahead. And you have not to say 0:14:52.680 --> 0:14:54.600 you don't have any worries. But you're not worried about 0:14:54.720 --> 0:14:58.640 the outside noise. But what about people that are just 0:14:58.880 --> 0:15:01.160 up and coming. They're going to get in because there 0:15:01.240 --> 0:15:05.040 are there are teams, there are organizations, and there are 0:15:05.200 --> 0:15:08.320 networks that like, you need to have a positive spin 0:15:09.120 --> 0:15:11.520 no matter what, or you have to shade your beliefs 0:15:11.600 --> 0:15:15.960 towards one side of the aisle and you compromise what 0:15:16.120 --> 0:15:18.720 you do as an individual or who you are for 0:15:18.800 --> 0:15:20.920 the sake of the greater good, or in some instances, 0:15:21.040 --> 0:15:24.560 especially nowadays, your paycheck, Like how do you how do 0:15:24.640 --> 0:15:28.640 you toll that line? Well, I've been fortunate that for 0:15:28.720 --> 0:15:31.920 the last five years, you know, I haven't worked for 0:15:31.960 --> 0:15:33.840 a big company where I'm you know, where I'm dealing 0:15:33.920 --> 0:15:35.840 with ratings every day. Not think that's bad, I mean 0:15:35.920 --> 0:15:38.960 that's the world we live in. Almost every radio station 0:15:39.040 --> 0:15:41.800 that's on the air that's not a public radio station 0:15:42.600 --> 0:15:46.160 has to deal with you know, contracts. If you work 0:15:46.240 --> 0:15:48.440 for a radio station and everybody deals with this now 0:15:48.520 --> 0:15:50.640 for the most part, you work for radio station that's 0:15:50.680 --> 0:15:53.440 the rights holder to a specific team, and you're a 0:15:53.560 --> 0:15:55.880 talent and you want to criticize the team. You know, 0:15:56.080 --> 0:15:59.720 right now you're under immense pressure because the partnerships between 0:16:00.000 --> 0:16:03.120 ADEO stations and sports franchises is now at a point 0:16:03.160 --> 0:16:06.400 where they don't want anybody who is going to criticize 0:16:06.520 --> 0:16:09.840 the product on the air. And so you're basically are 0:16:09.920 --> 0:16:12.520 hanging yourself out there every day having to walk that 0:16:12.640 --> 0:16:15.560 tight rope. Not that you're looking to be negative, but 0:16:15.680 --> 0:16:17.880 when things are really bad to not be able to 0:16:17.960 --> 0:16:20.840 say things on the air that everybody at home is thinking, 0:16:21.080 --> 0:16:22.640 but they know that you're not allowed to say it 0:16:22.680 --> 0:16:24.720 because you're worried about losing your job. I think that's 0:16:24.720 --> 0:16:27.760 how the business has changed more than ever before. You know, 0:16:27.840 --> 0:16:29.800 it's run by corporate America. That's the way it is. 0:16:29.880 --> 0:16:32.720 You just look recently, uh enter Com just got rid 0:16:32.760 --> 0:16:36.600 of a bunch of people, uh Beasley earlier on on 0:16:36.760 --> 0:16:39.600 March thirty one, the end of the quarter year. You know, 0:16:39.800 --> 0:16:41.840 they're trying to cut back and so it's all about 0:16:41.840 --> 0:16:44.120 a world not just in radio, but particularly in radio, 0:16:44.320 --> 0:16:47.120 where people are losing their jobs every day because companies 0:16:47.160 --> 0:16:50.360 are under pressure to help their shareholders, and the way 0:16:50.400 --> 0:16:52.800 they make more money is spending less money. So I 0:16:52.920 --> 0:16:55.200 think that's how the business has changed. And it's not 0:16:55.320 --> 0:16:57.240 like I'm happy that I don't have somebody hanging over 0:16:57.320 --> 0:16:59.200 my head or telling me what to talk about every 0:16:59.240 --> 0:17:01.560 fifteen second. It's just that I've done all that and 0:17:01.600 --> 0:17:03.600 I've been through that whole error from the beginning of 0:17:04.040 --> 0:17:05.800 how this starts and how you have to deal with 0:17:06.119 --> 0:17:08.440 working and I've always worked well with people. I've never 0:17:08.480 --> 0:17:10.920 really had problems. I've had some issues with management, but 0:17:11.040 --> 0:17:13.680 only because I was hired and then management would trying 0:17:13.680 --> 0:17:15.720 to tell me to change what I was doing. And 0:17:15.800 --> 0:17:17.600 that's one of the things I've always stayed to stayed 0:17:18.200 --> 0:17:20.520 loyal to. If you hire me because you like what 0:17:20.600 --> 0:17:23.280 I've done and you see my track record, then don't 0:17:23.320 --> 0:17:25.159 try to change me and to make me what you 0:17:25.320 --> 0:17:27.600 want me to be. And I think that's the biggest 0:17:27.600 --> 0:17:29.800 problem that a lot of talent have now. They get 0:17:29.880 --> 0:17:32.200 hired to do one job and then once they get 0:17:32.240 --> 0:17:33.520 on the air, it's like, well, that's not what we 0:17:33.640 --> 0:17:36.760 really want you to do. And so that's the power 0:17:36.880 --> 0:17:40.800 that I think we've lost as entertainers, as performers, as journalists, 0:17:40.840 --> 0:17:43.920 whatever you want to call us hosts. There's a lot 0:17:44.000 --> 0:17:46.200 of people who walk on eggshells every day trying to 0:17:46.240 --> 0:17:49.040 do their jobs because they fear saying the wrong thing 0:17:49.400 --> 0:17:52.440 and being fired over something that ten twenty years ago 0:17:52.480 --> 0:17:54.520 was not really a big deal. Be sure to catch 0:17:54.640 --> 0:17:57.199 live editions of The Ben Miller Show weekdays at two 0:17:57.240 --> 0:18:00.800 a m. Eastern eleven pm Pacific. Yeah. I know you've 0:18:00.840 --> 0:18:04.119 mentioned this, Tony, but you are You are a firecracker 0:18:04.200 --> 0:18:06.800 on social media now you can do you People are 0:18:06.880 --> 0:18:09.359 jealous of you because you're able to say whatever you want. Now. 0:18:09.560 --> 0:18:11.520 Is that gonna have to change now? Because you're going 0:18:11.600 --> 0:18:13.280 on satellite, You're gonna be able to keep doing the 0:18:13.359 --> 0:18:16.560 same stuff you've been doing here. How's that gonna work? Yeah? 0:18:16.600 --> 0:18:18.400 I mean one of my biggest things, Ben, and I'm 0:18:18.440 --> 0:18:20.360 not you know, And it's it's funny how the world 0:18:20.400 --> 0:18:22.840 has changed where you go on social media. And my 0:18:22.960 --> 0:18:25.159 biggest problem is with media now. It's not what the 0:18:25.200 --> 0:18:27.560 people on Twitter. You know, anybody can say whatever they 0:18:27.600 --> 0:18:30.119