SYRACUSE -- Out of the dozens of ESPN Radio affiliates nationwide, only 16 were invited to the network's Connecticut headquarters for its second annual "Audio Avenue" event on Wednesday. Among those 16: Syracuse's ESPN Radio CNY 97.1 and 100.1 (WSGO/WTLA/W247BC/W259AX). The locally-produced Upon Further Review broadcast live from the event that afternoon.
From left, ESPN Radio CNY program director and co-host Chris McManus, along with co-host and NewsChannel 9 (WSYR-TV) sports director Steve Infanti, during Wednesday afternoon's broadcast. Just outside of the sports network's headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut, stations were provided tents, equipped with the necessary tools for stations to send a live audio feed back to their home markets.
A handful of network-level ESPN personalities joined McManus and Infanti for interviews during Wednesday's show. The trip to Connecticut wasn't just about doing the show live from ESPN: the network says visitors received a tour of ESPN's facilities, along with a luncheon to discuss various topics related to sports talk radio production. Top-level executives from the network were on-hand to join in the discussions. Four of the 16 affiliates in attendance were O&O's.
There are more pictures on the ESPN Radio CNY website, and Infanti shot some footage and interviews which appeared on NewsChannel 9 later that evening.