After more than 13 years on 99.9 The Fan (WRAL), Joe Giglio and Joe Ovies were released by Capitol Broadcasting Company following their show on Wednesday. Ovies broke the news in a tweet that said, “Today was the last edition of ‘The OG’ and the end of 13.5 years at The Fan. [Giglio] and I did some really great stuff in just over 3 years of the show. Thanks for making us part of your routines.” WRAL later confirmed the change on their site.
Response, outcry, and well-wishes to Ovies’ announcement poured in locally and from across the country, including The Boston Globe’s Matt Porter, USA Today’s Dan Wolken, and North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, who tweeted, “Sports in NC won’t be the same.”
Raleigh paper The News & Observer got further comment from Ovies, saying, “The circumstances of my exit are not ideal but I do leave The Fan and Capitol Broadcasting really proud of my accomplishments with Adam Gold for several years, doing the original Adam and Joe Show, and Giglio and I the last three years trying to push the format forward.”
The News & Observer also spoke to Capitol Broadcasting Raleigh GM Brian Grube who said, “We’ve decided to move in a new direction in afternoons on 99.9 The Fan that focuses on the best way to deliver fast-moving, informative, engaging local sports content that leverages the full scope of CBC’s powerful radio, TV and digital platforms. We’re truly grateful for Joe Ovies and Joe Giglio’s many contributions and wish them both the best moving forward.” He went on to say the next iteration of WRAL afternoons would be a single-chair show.
