Cleveland Browns Radio Network

[11][12] A five-station network was assembled for the 1948 season consisting of WGAR, WATG in Ashland, WBNS in Columbus, WHIO in Dayton, WFRO-FM in Fremont, WJEL in Springfield and WTRF in Bellaire;[2] stations in Lima, Toledo, Zanesville, Marion and Cincinnati were added the following year.

[25] WHK's role as flagship ended when team owner Art Modell tried unsuccessfully to move the broadcast rights onto WJW (850 AM), a station he had owned since 1977 but consistently lost money on.

[26] Robert Gries, a minority owner, sued Modell on charges of anti-competitive practices on December 15, 1983,[27] while WHK exercised an option to carry the team through the 1984 season[28] which was also Gib Shanley's last as lead announcer.

[45] Coleman's tenure as announcer was complicated by his public support of then-head coach Bill Belichick, whom the fan base disapproved of, along with Chandler's substantial popularity and acclaim.

[47] WKNR and WDOK continued to carry the games for the remainder of the season, but with public service announcements airing after the majority of advertisers cancelled their sponsorships.

[50] During the 1997 and 1998 NFL seasons, WKNR originated Countdown to '99, a weekly hour-long program co-hosted by Dieken and Marc Kestecher over many former Browns radio network affiliates.

[56] Coleman, who was also a co-host on WTAM's morning-drive program, remained as sideline reporter until his death on November 28, 2006, after a year-long battle with pancreatic cancer.

[57] The team honored Coleman the previous month by renaming the field house at their Berea, Ohio, indoor practice facility after him.

[63] Craig Karmazin, founder of Good Karma, proposed the deal with CBS, likening it to the existing CBS–Turner Sports co-op for NCAA men's basketball tournament coverage and saw the Browns being such a strong community asset that it could be workable.

[65] This arrangement between Good Karma and Entercom (succeeding owners of WKRK-FM and WNCX; now named Audacy, Inc.) was renewed effective with the 2020 season.

[3] Donovan went on medical leave following the 2023 season opener to undergo treatment for leukemia, which had relapsed; various broadcasters, including Chris Rose, Andrew Siciliano and Paul Keels served as interim play-by-play announcers in his absence.

[5] Andrew Sciliano was officially named as the team's lead announcer days later; a longtime fan of the Browns, Siciliano said, "I'm honored for the opportunity, but wish the circumstances were different...

1956 ad for WGAR 's Cleveland Browns football coverage, with Bill McColgan providing play-by-play.
Signage for WHK and WMMS at Cleveland Municipal Stadium ; WHK and WMMS were co-flagships from 1991 to 1994, while WMMS was co-flagship again from 2001 to 2012.
Refer to caption
Doug Dieken and Jim Donovan , the Cleveland Browns' primary radio announcing team from 1999 to 2021.