KILT (610 AM) will end Rome's 14-year run with station

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Jim Rome, whose hard-edged, opinionated talk show has been a fixture on KILT (610 AM) for almost 14 years, will be dropped by the CBS Radio all-sports station after Friday’s show after more than a year of declining ratings.

Rome’s syndicated show will be replaced by a new local show hosted by Mike Meltser and Brad Davies called MAD Radio. Morning show hosts Marc Vandermeer and John Lopez will work from 6 to 10 a.m., followed by Meltser and Davies from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Rich Lord and Josh Innes from 2 to 6 p.m. and Barry Warner and Shaun Bijani from 6 to 10 p.m.

Rome is now heard on more than 200 stations nationwide in addition to his ESPN television show, but Houston was one of his first major market affiliates outside the West Coast when he debuted on KILT in March 1997.

The show quickly became one of the most popular parts of KILT’s lineup, and Rome visited Houston at least four times for promotional stops, including an October 1998 appearance that drew more than 4,000 at Sam Houston Race Park.

However, KILT program director Gavin Spittle said Rome’s listenership, as measured by Arbitron ratings for the men 25-54 demographic that is the key demo for sports radio advertising rates, has been in decline for more than a year as ratings for the rest of the station's dayparts have increased, particuarly in the wake of the Texans’ recent upsurge.

“This is a performance-based business, and we have exhausted our options,” Spittle said. “We like Jim and thank him for all he has done for the station. He has been a huge fan of Sports Radio 610, and we have been huge fans of Jim Rome.

“Unfortunately, for whatever reason, the ratings in Houston have slid to the point where a change is necessary."

For the December ratings book released this week, KILT ranked first among Houston’s four all-sports stations and 10th overall in the weeklong ratings for men 25-54. The station has been in the top 10 for three consecutive months as the Texans, whose games are heard on KILT, have climbed to the top of the AFC South Division standings.

In weekday ratings for the same demo, KILT ranks ninth overall in morning drive, eighth overall in afternoon drive, 12th from 7 p.m. to midnight and 14th from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., and the midday demo that includes the Rome show is the only one in which it does not lead all four Houston sports stations.

“I wish I had better news for the Rome listeners, but I hope they will enjoy our live and local lineup,” Spittle said. “We have the ability to talk about our local teams all day long. Even though we are Houston’s sports leader, I’m so proud that we continue to look for ways to improve.”

Former Rice and NFL player N.D. Kalu will work on Mondays and Fridays with Davies, who returns to full-time radio work after an earlier stint on KBME and recent work on Texans studio shows with KILT, and Melstser. Brien Straw will replace Meltser as the news anchor during KILT’s morning show, and Robert Henslee will remain on the afternoon show.

Rome is on vacation this week, so he has made his final on-air appearance on KILT. A spokeswoman for Premiere Radio Networks, which syndicates the show on more than 200 stations nationwide, was not available for comment Wednesday afternoon.

Premiere’s options to place Rome on another sports station in Houston appear to be limited. Premiere is owned by Clear Channel Communications, which owns KBME (790 AM). However, that station’s midday lineup anchored by Matt Thomas is beating KILT in the ratings, so a change is not likely.

KFNC (97.5 FM) airs the final hour of ESPN Radio’s Colin Cowherd show from 11 a.m. to noon, followed by local programming, so a change is unlikely. KGOW (1560 AM) is the flagship station of Yahoo Sports Radio, which features Houston-based host Craig Shemon from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., so it is not a feasible option for the Rome show.

Rome was a dominant figure during his early years on KILT, which changed to all-sports in 1994 and took a flyer on Rome when longtime station manager Dickie Rosenfeld added the show in 1997.

"We were trying to carve out a niche, and I think he helped put us on the map," Lord said in 2007. "His show was radically different from anything we had heard, and he got a lot of attention early on.”

Rome’s listeners, in fact, sparked a coup of sorts at the station in 1998, when Rosenfeld attempted to tape-delay an hour of the show. Listeners’ protests persuaded Rosenfeld to back down and air all three hours live, a practice that continued throughout the show’s tenure on KILT.