Radio Row: The annual zenith of sports media
Radio Row, the primary media hub for the Super Bowl, was held this year at the Moscone Center in downtown San Francisco. The high-energy, action-packed event was only accessible with the proper media credentials. Athletes and celebrities, available for casual interviews, roamed the convention-esque setting as live shows of top sports media platforms had their cameras rolling.
Radio Row runs for several days with notable figures funneling in and out, but last Wednesday afternoon offered the kind of snapshot that explains the draw. In one corner of this spacious room, sports analyst Pat McAfee was having a lively conversation on his own show with actor Rob Riggle. Simultaneously, radio personality Chris “Mad Dog” Russo was set up across the room, hosting a media segment of his own. Placed in between these two shows, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith underwent a televised interview as staffers scrambled behind the cameras to ensure a smooth segment.
There were well over 20 platforms designated for media outlets with even more NFL players on the scene, participating in football’s biggest week of the year. Players, such as Philadelphia Eagles’ Saquon Barkley and Jacksonville Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence, settled into Radio Row, with Barkley even getting in a video game session (Madden, of course).
Radio Row has not always looked like this. It originated in 1992 for Super Bowl XXVI in Minneapolis as a practical solution for radio stations needing space to broadcast Super Bowl updates to their local audiences. It has since turned into an expansive multimedia marketplace where livestreams and social media clips matter as much as traditional journalism, if not more.
Influencers and internet personalities made their presence known at the Moscone Center. Playing against Barley in the Madden session was YouTuber Matthew Meagher, widely known as MMG. Meagher has over three million subscribers on YouTube. “The Costco Guys,” who have garnered a few million followers on TikTok and Instagram, made an appearance at Radio Row. Though their content is not directly related to football, their appearance helped bolster views for the event.
Although there are sure to be mixed feelings about Radio Row’s evolution into a clip factory, there is no doubt that Radio Row remains the place to be when Super Bowl week rolls around.
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