Former WFAN host Joe Benigno believes the station that helped define sports talk radio in New York still matters, but he does not expect it to ever look the way it once did.
During a recent appearance on The Jake Asman Show on YouTube, the longtime New York radio personality reflected on the legacy of WFAN while discussing both the station’s current direction and his own limited role on weekends. According to Benigno, who still hosts weekend programming on the station, the larger-than-life era that defined WFAN through the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s created a standard that simply cannot be recreated.
“WFAN will never be what it once was,” Benigno said. “The days of Don Imus, Mike Francesa and Chris Russo. The days of Steve Somers and myself overnight. Ed Coleman and Dave Sims. Those days are — you know — we’ll never see anything like that again.”
Benigno emphasized that the changes surrounding WFAN should not be viewed in isolation. Instead, he believes the station mirrors a broader shift across the sports radio industry, which once thrived on dominant terrestrial brands before podcasts and streaming platforms fragmented the audience.
“We’ve all seen the heyday of WFAN and sports radio in general as far as I’m concerned,” Benigno said.
The comments arrive years after Benigno stepped away from his longtime weekday role at the station, where he spent decades building a loyal audience that connected with his passionate reactions to New York sports.
While many longtime listeners still wonder whether a full-time return could happen, Benigno indicated that he has little interest in revisiting the daily grind that once defined his career.
“I don’t miss it at all, bro,” he said. “I’m happy I do my little show on a Saturday, my little podcast. I do not miss the commute into the city like I did it for so many years. It was a great run. I was fortunate to be able to do what I did, but I really don’t miss it. To be very honest with you, it ran its course for me as far as an every day thing.”
Instead, Benigno appears comfortable maintaining his current role at the station. He hosts a weekend program while producing content outside traditional radio. The veteran host said recent conversations with station leadership reassured him. He believes the arrangement can continue indefinitely as long as he still enjoys the work.
“It sounds, to me, after talking to the powers that be at WFAN. It sounds like I can do this for as long as I want,” Benigno said. “Right now I’m enjoying doing it on a Saturday. I do it from home. I’m back to doing five to nine again — back to doing a four-hour show from five to 9 a.m. — so right now, I’m good with it.”
For now, Benigno seems content watching the next era of WFAN unfold while maintaining a smaller presence on the station that helped define his broadcasting career.
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