Nearly seven weeks after his sudden exit from 94.1 WIP shocked listeners across the Delaware Valley, Howard Eskin has announced a new gig.
Eskin is launching a new podcast, which he says will be called “The Howard Eskin Show.” Details are scarce, but Eskin says the new show will launch live Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. on X, Facebook, and Instagram. He also said his first guest would be longtime TNT analyst and former Sixers great Charles Barkley, who also recently helped launch Jason Kelce’s new late night show on ESPN.
“We’ll do what I always did, and probably a little more unfiltered, because I don’t have anyone hanging over my head,” Eskin said in a video shared on social media Tuesday night. “I can say anything I want to say, and I’m going to say it to you.”
Eskin announced his departure with WIP on Dec. 20, saying simply he was “moving on” after 38 years with the station. The Inquirer reported Eskin’s swift exit came less than two weeks after he forcibly grabbed an employee of Audacy, WIP’s parent company, during an argument at Chickie’s & Pete’s in South Philadelphia following a remote broadcast with Eagles defender Brandon Graham.
Eskin called the claims a “vicious smear campaign” in a social media post on Jan. 4, denying any “physical altercation” with a female employee at the station.
“The employee interrupted me during an important conversation with Brandon Graham and I raised my voice irritated at the interruption,” Eskin wrote. “She stormed away and I followed her and tapped her arm to get her attention to apologize and explain why I was upset. I did not grab her. I apologized three times. She wouldn’t accept my apology or hear me out.”
Eskin had previously been banned by the Phillies from covering the team at Citizens Bank Park after having made an unwanted advance toward a female Aramark employee. He later apologized for the incident, telling listeners on WIP, “I’m truly sorry that this did occur.”
In addition to saying goodbye to his Saturday morning show, Eskin also lost his job as a sideline reporter for WIP’s Eagles radio broadcast. The station has replaced him with WIP host and Fox 29 weekend sports anchor Devan Kaney through the Super Bowl.
Quick hits
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Basketball Hall of Famer Hubie Brown will call his final NBA game Saturday when the Sixers take on the Milwaukee Bucks (2 p.m., ABC) alongside Mike Breen. Brown, 91, has been part of ESPN’s NBA coverage since the network landed the league in 2004. Before that he called games for CBS and TNT, but told The Athletic’s Richard Deitch he doesn’t want to be the focal point of the broadcast. “This is a big game,” Brown said. “There’s a lot more for this game than me just saying goodbye.”
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FS1 host Colin Cowherd is set to return to his show Thursday live from New Orleans after a sudden illness forced him off the air in the middle of Monday’s show, according to co-host Jason McIntyre.
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Speaking of FS1, the network placed executive vice president Charlie Dixon on leave after being accused of inappropriate behavior by two former employees who have filed separate lawsuits, The Athletic reported.
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Fans continue to not care about the Pro Bowl. Sunday’s flag football game between the NFC and AFC averaged just 4.7 million viewers across ABC, ESPN, and DisneyXD, making it the least-watched NFL all-star game ever, according to Sports Media Watch’s Jon Lewis.