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Slaten vs. Savard: This time... its personal!
Savard-Slaten feud nearly erupts into fight
BY DAN CAESAR
Post-Dispatch
Monday, Sep. 19 2005
Local sportscasters Steve Savard and Kevin Slaten had a nose-to-nose,
obscenity-laced argument Monday afternoon at Rams Park, with Savard later
challenging Slaten to a fight.
“Take your best shot,” Slaten said as they were face-to-face.
“Do what you want to do, tough guy,” Savard countered as the confrontation
quickly escalated in the media room.
“Anytime, anywhere,” Savard said as they were separated.
KTVI (Channel 2) sportscaster Maurice Drummond, then Rams media relations
director Duane Lewis, intervened and the ruckus ended.
Bad blood has been simmering between Slaten, a sports-talk radio host at KFNS
(590 AM, 100.7 FM), and Savard, the sports director at KMOV (Channel 4) for
some time. Savard also is the Rams’ radio play-by-play broadcaster, and Slaten
has been saying that affects Savard’s objectivity in covering the team for
KMOV.
Savard previously hasn’t commented publicly about Slaten, saying he’s wanted
“to take the high road” — until now.
On his radio shows recently Slaten has been ripping Savard, saying he is
slanting his coverage of the team in his television job. So when Savard arrived
at Rams Park on Monday, he approached Slaten.
“I just walked up to him and said, ‘good to see we didn’t have to draw you a
map to get to Rams Park,’” Savard said afterward in reference to Slaten’s
infrequent visits there. “He’s never said a word to me face-to-face before. I
wanted to give him the opportunity today.”
The incident quickly escalated and lasted about 2-3 minutes.
“He started screaming, said I threatened him — which I never did,” Savard said.
“I told him to follow through on his threats he’s been making on the air and
behind the scenes.”
Slaten had a different view: “I never threatened him, what I said is that he’s
a big shill.
“He walks in here like he’s some kind of emperor,” Slaten added. “What he is
really is a punk. He’s an embarrassment to the organization. If they had any
courage, they’d fire him immediately.”
Slaten and Savard dispute what was said Monday.
“All I know is it’s a threat,” Slaten said. “I took it personally, and I wouldn’
t back down.”
Savard said Slaten is wrong.
“Any allegation to say I threatened him is another attempt by him to twist the
facts,” Savard said. “Any allegation he makes to spin it that I threatened him
is a lie.”
Savard said he isn’t sorry about the confrontation.
“What do I have to be regrettable about?”’ he asked. “His track record of
personal and professional conduct is well documented and so is mine and they
stand in clear contrast. I’ll be in my job well after he’s fired or arrested,
whichever comes first. I left him with two words — anytime, anywhere.”
He says he’d like to fight Slaten, at the annual Guns ’N Hoses boxing event
that benefits the Backstoppers charity.
“Three rounds,” Savard said. “The loser shuts his mouth.”
Slaten countered, “I think he needs to get out of junior high or off the monkey
bars in third grade. If he thinks he’s intimidating me, he’s wrong.”
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