Draft:Ken Carman

• Comment: A lot of unsourced paragraphs. Bobby Cohn (talk) 18:08, 28 November 2024 (UTC)

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Ken Carman is a Sports Media Personality in Cleveland, Ohio. He has been an On-Air Host at WKRK-FM since 2011, and an On-Air Commentator at WJW (TV) since 2022. Carman hosts pregame and weeknight shows on the Cleveland Browns Radio Network, and occasionally fills-in On-Air at Infinity Sports Network.

Early life

Born Kenneth P. Carman II on June 27, 1986 in Canton, Ohio to Ken and Debra Carman. His father, Ken Sr. worked in grocery stores for over 40 years as a member of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 880. His mother, Debra, worked various jobs.

Carman attended Perry High School (Stark County, Ohio) in Massillon, Ohio, graduating in 2004. At Perry, Carman played American football and participated on the Track and field team, although he himself is adamant on his shows that he was a poor athlete.

After graduating high school, Carman attended The University of Akron, majoring in Radio and TV Broadcasting, with a minor in Social Studies Education. He graduated in 2009.

Career

While enrolled at The University of Akron, Carman interned at WRQK-FM, a heritage rock station in Canton, Ohio. His internship was ended after one month due to the firing of his instructor. After his brief internship, Carman joined WZIP, the student organized radio station at The University of Akron in 2005, serving as Sports Director in 2007.

2007–2011

In November 2007, Carman became a Board Operator for sporting events at an IHeartMedia cluster of stations licensed to Akron, Ohio. Carman eventually worked his way up to afternoon traffic and weather anchor for the cluster of stations, while also producing a weekday afternoon sports-radio talk show on WARF. In 2009, he was named host of that show. "The Ken Carman Show" aired weekday afternoons. Carman continued to anchor weather and traffic during this time, often cutting to commercial breaks early to run over to other stations in the building to report on inclement weather or major traffic backups. He has described the experience being like "AM/FM-DeeJay" sketch from Saturday Night Live. He also produced and sometimes hosted brokered Gospel music programs during his tenure in Akron.

In early 2009, Carman became the secondary radio broadcaster for The Akron RubberDucks, a Double-A affiliate of The Cleveland Guardians. Over the Summer of 2009, Carman was named the radio play-by-play voice for Football, and Men's and Women's Basketball at Ashland University, while keeping his hosting and anchoring duties at the radio stations. During this time, Carman states he also unloaded trucks in the morning at an Akron area TJ Maxx , and worked at a Massillon area Stone manufacturing plant to make ends meet.

Carman was Laid off by IHeart in the Summer of 2011, after the company acquired Metro Networks.The layoff came three weeks before he was to be married.

Three weeks later, while still performing his play-by-play duties for the Rubber Ducks, Carman interviewed for, and accepted the late-night timeslot at SportsTalk Radio Station, WKRK-FM (92.3 The Fan) in Cleveland, Ohio.

2012–2016

In the Spring of 2012, The Cleveland Browns announced a partnership with 92.3 The Fan, making 92.3 The Fan the radio flagship for Browns football games. Carman was announced as the host of the weekly coach's show, as well as the Browns pregame show.

It was also during this time that Carman began hosting weekends at Infinity Sports Network (formerly CBS Sports Radio).

Carman left his late-night timeslot to host mornings with Kevin Kiley (sportscaster). Kiley left the station in early 2016.

Carman began hosting "The Ken Carman Show with Anthony Lima" mornings from 6-10am on 92.3 The Fan. The show has won numerous awards and has been ranked in the Top 5 nationally by radio trade publications.

2022–present

In addition to his radio show, Carman began anchoring the sports during the evening newscasts on WJW (TV), after the retirement of local legend John Telich. He also offers Commentaries during the newscasts. He pulled back from his weekly duties at Infinity Sports Network to accept the position. Carman has also been a co-host of Friday Night Touchdown with PJ Ziegler, John Sabol, Telich (who still anchors the show part-time in his retirement), and Dan Coughlin (sportscaster) until his passing in Fall 2024.

On-air style

Carman is often described as having an "everyman" persona, and being "rough around the edges." While generally good-natured, he is known for fiery rants that often leave him exasperated and red in the face. These rants have recently been publicized by 92.3 The Fan's social media pages, leading to short viral stints (especially after Browns losses). Carman states that he is embarrassed by the outbursts, and the attention they receive, and tries to "not be worked into a shoot" (a Professional wrestling term for believing something to be real while it is, in-fact Kayfabe) while being goaded by his co-host Anthony Lima, and his producers.

Critics frequently describe him as a "homer" (a personality who tends to favor their hometown teams). A claim that he accepts and professes pride for.

While he is the namesake of the show, Carman is often made the point of his co-host's ridicule. He is accused of being a fan of University of Michigan football, a claim he vehemently denies. It has also been mentioned that Carman has been offered roles in other markets (notably Milwaukee ), but nothing has ever been reported of these on-air allegations, and they're taken in by listeners as an attempt to make Carman out to be a villain, pandering to his audience while having secret plans to abandon them.

Carman has been a Spokesperson for several local, regional, and national businesses (most notably Ram Trucks, and GetGo Convenience Stores).

Personal life

Carman has been married (Liz) since 2011. They have three sons and reside in Streetsboro, Ohio . Carman often refers to callers from Streetsboro as "my neighbor." He is involved in charitable organizations as Shoes and Clothes for Kids (A Cleveland-Area organization helping school-aged children with supplies), The Keepers Foundation, USA Football, and Cleveland Browns Youth Football.