Sports Media News

CHRIS “MAD DOG” RUSSO NAMES FINAL TWO FOR “SO YOU THINK YOU CAN TALK SPORTS?” CONTEST ON SIRIUS XM

Josh Bertaccini and Jim Murray vie for the opportunity to host his own show on Mad Dog Radio this fall

Five gets slashed to two…

SIRIUS XM’S Chris ‘Mad Dog’ Russo announced today the names of the two finalists who will vie for the grand prize in the Mad Dog Radio ‘So You Think You Can Talk Sports?’ contest.

Josh Bertaccini, the West Orange, NJ native who now hails from Aberdeen, SD, and Jim Murray, from Wakefield, MA, were selected to advance from the group of five semifinalists who auditioned on Mad Dog Radio on August 20.

Russo will announce the contest winner on Tuesday, September 7.  Following a week of on air training with Mad Dog, the winner will headline his own national sports talk radio show, hosting eight three-hour shows on Mad Dog Radio this fall.

Josh Bertaccini

Hometown: Aberdeen, SD

A New York-area native and self-described “sports radio junkie,” Bertaccini grew up listening to Mad Dog talk sports every day.  He’s been a sports radio host in Syracuse, North Dakota and Arkansas and currently works for a station in South Dakota.

Jim Murray

Hometown: Wakefield, MA

Born and raised in the shadow of Boston, Murray is a fan of the area teams but insists he’s no Boston “homer.”  In fact, he’s happy to explain why he thinks Chicago is a better sports city than his beloved Beantown.  Murray has experience as an on air host and currently works in an off-air role for a Boston area station.

Visit www.sirius.com/maddogradio to hear audio clips of the finalists.

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CHRIS “MAD DOG” RUSSO ANNOUNCES SEMIFINALISTS OF HIS “SO YOU THINK YOU CAN TALK SPORTS?” CONTEST ON SIRIUS XM

Five semifinalists will audition live on Mad Dog Radio this Friday, Aug. 20

Winner gets his/her own sports talk show on Mad Dog Radio this fall

NEW YORK – August 17, 2010 – SIRIUS XM Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI) personality Chris ‘Mad Dog’ Russo, who headlines SIRIUS XM’s Mad Dog Radio sports talk channel,  announced today the names of the five semifinalists who will compete for the grand prize in the Mad Dog Radio ‘So You Think You Can Talk Sports?’ contest.

The semifinalists were selected by a committee comprised of Russo and other Mad Dog Radio staffers from entrants from around the country who submitted audition cds.

The Grand Prize winner, who will be announced live on air on Tuesday, September 7, wins a week of on-air training with Mad Dog himself followed by the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to host his or her own national sports talk show this fall on Mad Dog Radio, SIRIUS channel 123 and XM channel 144.

“Lots of people think they can talk sports,” said Russo. “But arguing with your friends about sports and hosting a professional show for millions of listeners are two very different things.  Nearly 600 people have taken their best shot at their dream job.  These five emerged as the best and they are about to be given the spotlight.  We’ll see who shines the brightest.”

Listeners can tune in this Friday, August 20, to hear the semifinalists audition live at the SIRIUS XM studios on Russo’s daily show, Mad Dog Unleashed (2:00-7:00pm ET).

The five semifinalists are:

Josh Bertaccini

Hometown: Aberdeen, SD

A New York native and self-described “sports radio junkie,” Bertaccini grew up listening to Mad Dog talk sports every day.  He’s been a sports radio host in Syracuse, North Dakota and Arkansas and currently works for a station in South Dakota.

Jim Murray

Hometown: Wakefield, MA

Born and raised in the shadow of Boston, Murray is a fan of the area teams but insists he’s no Boston “homer.”  In fact, he’s happy to explain why he thinks Chicago is a better sports city than his beloved Beantown.  Murray has experience as an on air host and currently works in an off-air role for a Boston area station.

Joe Pisano

Hometown: Sugar Land, TX

Pisano has never before hosted a sports talk show but he’s no stranger to performing for an audience, having worked as a stand-up comic and actor.  Growing up on Long Island, NY, Pisano was often told that his “big mouth” would take him places.

Lindsay Sullivan

Hometown: Louisville, CO

A native of Connecticut, Sullivan moved to Colorado after attending CU.  An avid sports fan and athlete since she was little, her greatest sports memory is attending Game 6 of the 1996 World Series to see the Yankees beat the Braves.  She currently works in the restaurant business.

Nick Vella

Hometown: Denver, CO

Originally from Los Angeles, CA, Vella spent most of his career in the restaurant management business before moving to Colorado to pursue his dream of being a sports talk radio host.  He has hosted for a local web-based radio station.

Starting Monday, August 23^rd, the audience can visit www.sirius.com/maddogradio to hear audio clips of the auditions and vote for their favorite performers.

Russo will select two finalists who will return to the SIRIUS XM studios on August 31 where they will co-host that day’s edition of Mad Dog Unleashed.  From that broadcast, Russo will select the winner, who will be announced to the country on September 7.

Following a week of on air training with Mad Dog, the winner will headline their own national sports talk radio show, hosting eight three-hour shows on Mad Dog Radio this fall.

Chris “Mad Dog” Russo joined SIRIUS XM Radio in 2008 to launch the exclusive national all-sports talk channel Mad Dog Radio (SIRIUS channel 123 and XM channel 144).  Known for having helped popularize the sports talk radio format across the country, Russo is a fan favorite for his feisty, unflinchingly candid approach to talking sports and the unrestrained, rapid-fire delivery that earned him the nickname “Mad Dog.”  Mad Dog Radio is available to listeners nationwide and covers the spectrum of sports with talk, interviews, news and live broadcasts from the biggest sporting events.

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SIRIUS XM RADIO’S FACTION CHANNEL TO BROADCAST SPECIAL SUMMER X GAMES 16 RECAP SHOW

Listeners will hear the best of SIRIUS XM’s coverage of the Summer X Games 16, including interviews with Pierre-Luc Gagnon, Jake Brown, Travis Pastrana

Tony Hawk exclusive audio: the skating legend/SIRIUS XM host offers his thoughts on the 1-2 finish of Pierre-Luc Gagnon vs. Shaun White in the Skate Vert Final, updates listeners on his recovery from fractured pelvis, embeddable audio link here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDVVMeG6HC0

SIRIUS XM’s Faction—the 100% commercial-free music and action sport lifestyle channel—will offer listeners a special recap broadcast of its behind-the-scenes coverage of the Summer X Games 16 on Monday, August 2 from 12:00 pm – 3:00 pm ET and again from 10:00 pm – 1:00 am ET on Faction, SIRIUS channel 28/XM channel 52.

Faction’s Summer X Games 16 recap special will feature commentary from Tony Hawk, BMX pro Mike “Rooftop” Escamilla, and SIRIUS XM host/former X Games competitor Jason Ellis, plus interviews conducted at this year’s event by Ellis and other members of the Faction crew with many of the weekend’s big medal winners and action sports personalities, including:

• Chad Kagy, BMX Freestyle Big Air Gold Medalist; Travis Pastrana, Moto X Freestyle Gold Medalist; Pierre-Luc Gagnon, Skate Vert Gold Medalist (3^rd consecutive win); Garrett Reynolds, BMX Freestyle Street Gold Medalist; Andy MacDonald, Skateboard Vert Men’s Bronze Medalist; Jake Brown, Skateboard Big Air Gold Medalist; Jamie Bestwick, BMX Freestyle Vert Gold Medalist; Lynz Adams Hawkins; Skateboarding Vert Women’s Silver Medalist; Robbie Maddison; Moto Best Trick Silver Medalist; and Brian Deegan, Rally Car Super Rally Silver Medalist.
• Bam Margera, pro-skater, SIRIUS XM host (Radio Bam); Johnny Knoxville, Jackass co-creator, actor, SIRIUS XM Outlaw Country host; Jackass cast members Steve-O and Preston Lacy; Dave England, pro-snowboarder and Jackass cast member; Jackass director Jeff Tremaine.
• BMX Big Air legend Mat Hoffman and other BMX stars including: Brad Simms; Anthony Napolitan; Ryan Nyquist; Scotty Cranmer; Kevin Robinson; Rick Thorne; Dennis McCoy; Coco Zurita and Aaron Ross.
• Josh Hansen, Moto X racer; skating legend Bucky Lasek; Zack “Catfish” Yankush; Nitro Circus’ Erik Roner, Special Greg, Jim DeChamp and Jolene Van Vugt; Steve Swope, IMG executive, co-founder Hoffman Bikes; and Sal Masekela, ESPN X Games Announcer

Skating legend/SIRIUS XM host Tony Hawk called Faction live from the X Games to comment on the 1-2 finish of Pierre-Luc Gagnon vs. Shaun White in the Skate Vert Final and to update listeners on his recovery from a fractured pelvis suffered in a skate crash a week ago.  Click here for the audio:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDVVMeG6HC0.

SIRIUS XM’s Faction is where heelflips, handplants, half-pipes and hard rock join hip-hop and the biggest names in skateboarding, surfing, freestyle skiing and more. Faction is the music that defines the action sports lifestyle. Faction listeners will hear exclusive shows from Tony Hawk, Bam Margera and more as well as music from System of a Down, Offspring, NOFX, Metallica, 50 Cent, Green Day, Beastie Boys, AFI, Korn, Snoop Dogg, My Chemical Romance, Sex Pistols, John Mellencamp, Foreigner, Genesis, Bruce Springsteen and more.

In other Faction news, young phenom and mixtape superstar Mike Posner, whose music has risen to the top of the charts,  will launch his own Faction show on September 10. The Mike Posner Show, which will air Friday nights at 9:00 pm ET, will feature Posner playing the jams he likes and talking about his life as he navigates the best-selling music charts and his newfound popularity.

For more information,  please visit www.sirius.com/faction or www.xmradio.com/faction.