The Myth of the Nassau Mausoleum

Abstract

Relatively little historical research has focused on sports radio despite its growth in the American media landscape. From its inception in 1987, the world's first all-sports radio station, WFAN in New York City, broadcast derisive commentary about a major hockey arena, Nassau Coliseum on Long Island. This historical article describes how three WFAN hosts, Don Imus, Mike Francesa, and Steve Somers, encouraged their listeners to view the venue as “Nassau Mausoleum,” a term that Somers popularized. Anecdotes from primary sources, including interviews with Somers and his producer, demonstrate that sports radio commentary can impact how listeners think and behave, exemplifying the two-step flow of communications. This article also considers how public relations executives from Nassau Coliseum and its National Hockey League team, the New York Islanders, tried to combat the negative remarks.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Nicholas Hirshon

NICHOLAS HIRSHON is a Scripps Howard teaching fellow in the doctoral program at the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University. A former reporter for the New York Daily News, Hirshon is the author of two books, including Images of America: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (2010), a history of the Long Island sports arena that has hosted the New York Islanders (hockey), the New York Nets (basketball), the 1983 NHL All-Star Game, and Wrestle Mania 2 in 1986. His research focuses on sports media history.