Boston Sports Media Watch

The latest radio ratings are out, and 98.5 continues to surprise with their solid gains in the sports radio market.

WEEI is doing just fine, though, actually moving up a bit from 5.2 in September to 5.3 in October. The station is fourth overall on the chart while WBZ-FM, 985TheSportsHub went from a 2.5 in September to a 3.6 in October, good for 14th in the market.

WEEI vs. The Sports Hub - Jessica Heslam in the Herald breaks down the two stations, show vs. show.

Round 2 : SportsHub proves that it has arrived - Boston Radio Watch says that no matter how you look at it, WEEI is still the top dog in this fight, and is not going away.

‘Hub’ is climbing the charts - Chad Finn notes that the Sports Hub’s gains did not come at the expense of WEEI, though they’re showing that there is room in Boston for two strong sports radio stations.

Fox 25 dumps top sportscaster - Heslam reports that FOX25 has chosen not to renew the contract of top sports anchor Butch Stearns. The Worcester Telegram & Gazette reports that Stearns is interviewing with Comcast SportsNet, among other places.

Worcester native to join Dolphins - Bill Doyle has Worcester native Jim Rushton set to take over as the Dolphins’ senior vice president of corporate partnerships and integrated media. He’s leaving his job as vice president of sports sales and marketing at Entercom Communications, responsible for all revenues associated with the WEEI radio network.

Sports coverage? Think local. - That Bruce Allen guy in the Metro tells you why national sports coverage is worthless.

Jabs Reserved For Web Foe - Jeff Jacobs looks at a web group calling themselves the Paper Champions Society, who have been mounting a campaign against boxer Chad Dawson.

Elsewhere in the sports sections, here are some of the top stories from this morning:

For the Sox, Hermida a Lottery Ticket Worth Playing - Alex Speier has a look at outfielder Jeremy Hermida, who the Red Sox acquired from the Florida Marlins yesterday.

Six tricky questions for Epstein this winter - Bill Burt looks at Red Sox issues that GM Theo Epstein must address this winter.

At a loss - Bud Barth tells us that if the Bruins “were scoring goals right now, the Bruins would be the terror of the NHL, because the rest of their game has been that good for the last couple of weeks.”

Lack of scoring strikes recently has been striking - Bob Ryan thinks that the Bruins still have time to get things straightened out.

Don’t underestimate the Dolphins - Tedy Bruschi and Mike Reiss warn that there is a whole lot more to the Dolphins than just the Wildcat.

Worry Wart – Game Eight vs. Dolphins - Chris Warner has some more concerns about the Dolphins.

Rookie Myron Pryor preps to pick up ‘D’ line - Ian Rapoport looks at sixth round pick Myron Pryor making a place for himself on the Patriots defensive line.

Brian Hoyer making an impression with Patriots - Andy Vogt has another rookie, QB Brian Hoyer also learning the NFL ropes.

Shelden Williams answers Celtics’ role call - Former Celtic Ryan Gomes tells Mark Murphy why Williams has been successful with the Celtics.

Celtics couldn’t ask much more from their bench - Mike Fine calls this the “deepest and most talented bench the Celtics have had in the past three seasons.”

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BSMW has confirmed that despite yesterday’s announcement of the affiliation agreement between ESPN Radio and WEEI, the former is still  actively seeking a full-time outlet to air their complete programming lineup in the Boston area.

I had asked Dan Quinn of the ESPN Communications department whether they were still seeking a full outlet in the Boston market so that they could broadcast their full daily schedule, including Mike and Mike in the Morning, The Herd with Colin Cowherd and The Scott Van Pelt Show. The answer was a very quick “Yes,” but there were no details available beyond that at this time.

Now, that outlet could very well end up being 850 AM. Chad Finn mentioned it again this morning, and stated it in terms that make it seem like it is all but a done deal. The WEEI programming will move from 850 AM to a yet-to-be-determined FM signal, and ESPN Radio will take over the 850 AM signal.  This move would take place sometime after the Red Sox finish their season, so that the broadcast will not change frequencies for the third time this season.

The result could be something like what you see with sports radio KNBR out in the San Francisco Bay Area. They run two stations out there, on AM frequencies 680 and 1050, with 680 being local programming, and 1050 being a mix of ESPN radio, (Mike & Mike and Cowherd) plus Dan Patrick, Jim Rome, and local programming.

By having two stations, WEEI/Entercom can sell twice as much advertising space, (and break their ad time offerings into additional tiers) and have two outlets to use when broadcasting sports events that are scheduled for the same time. They’ll have both the local and national presence, and access to the ESPN “talent.”

I don’t forsee any overlap between WEEI.com and ESPNBoston.com – I think both sites will run independently, though don’t be surprised to hear ESPNBoston writers on the airwaves of the two radio stations.

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WEEI and ESPN Radio have announced an affiliation agreement this afternoon. The agreement brings overnight and weekend national programming to WEEI, and allows them access to ESPN personalities such as Peter Gammons and Adam Schefter.

The affiliation will also bring a variety of play by play programming, such as the Major League Baseball playoffs, the NBA and NBA playoffs, and the College Bowl Championship Series. The MLB playoff programming will start this week. (No Mike Adams? What a shame.) 

Beginning on November 2, 2009, WEEI will syndicate ESPN’s overnight programming including AllNight with Jason Smith (1-5 a.m. ET Monday through Friday), as well as select weekend programming in and around its local coverage.

As part of the agreement with WEEI, Adam Schefter, ESPN’s NFL Insider, will join Dennis and Callahan every Friday during the NFL Season beginning this week, and Peter Gammons, ESPN’s veteran Major League Baseball insider, will join The Big Show with Glenn Ordway every week during the upcoming baseball playoffs and once a week next season.

Other ESPN personalities will also be joining WEEI shows on a regular basis, throughout the week and the weekend.

This announcement today could eventually lead to WEEI moving to an FM station and ESPN Radio national programming taking over the 850 AM signal full-time.

Keep checking back here on BSMW for the latest…

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Before you get all excited, this affiliate is WGAM in New Hampshire, which serves primarily the Manchester and Nashua markets.

WGAM (1250 and 900 AM)  announced the new affiliation (which begins on October 8th) this afternoon, and also announced that they will also be a Boston Bruins radio affiliate as well. The station now carries the Patriots, Red Sox and Bruins games as well as the Manchester Monarchs.

With the change, the new weekday lineup for the station will be:

The new weekday station lineup will be…

6A-10A “Mike and Mike in the Morning” with Mike Golic and Mike Greenberg

10A-12N “The Dan Patrick Show”

12N-2P “The Herd with Colin Cowherd”

2P-3P “The Scott Van Pelt Show” with Ryen Russillo

3P-6P “The Home Team”  with Mike Mutnansky and Rich Keefe

6P-7P “New Hampshire Game Night” with Pete Tarrier and George Russell

I listen to the The Home Team on occasion when I’m in the car, and found it a decent alternative to the madness of Boston sports radio. The Dan Patrick Show is not an ESPN Radio program, but is a Fox Sports Radio program, which WGAM is currently an affiliate of. From their announcement, they’re going to keep Patrick in place and only take two hours of Colin Cowherd, which I think is a smart move.

There is no news at the moment on the status of a Boston-based ESPN Radio affiliate. I had thought they might have one in place by this point, but nothing has been announced.

NESN Ratings for Season Opener

NESN earned a 3.9 HH rating in the Boston DMA for Saturday’s Bruins – Hurricanes game, the network’s highest rated Bruins season opening broadcast in 25 years of covering the team. (The actual Bruins season opener on Thursday night against the Capitals was broadcast on VERSUS.) NESN’s 3.9 rating was also the highest average household rating recorded in the Boston DMA during the game’s 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM window, besting all other broadcast and cable networks.

NESN’s Bruins pre-game show WB Mason Bruins Faceoff LIVE also reached a major benchmark on Saturday. The season-opening edition generated a 1.1 HH rating in Boston and was seen in 28,000 homes, more than any Bruins pre-game show during the 2008-2009 season.

The Batter’s Box debuts on NESN October 12th.

NESN is bringing on another trivia game show, as The Batter’s Box presented by Cabot Cheese will air weeknights at 6:00pm starting Monday October 12th. The show will run for three weeks, and be hosted by comedian and radio host Stephen Donovan.

16 players will face off over 4 rounds of trivia action, a mix of sports and pop-culture. The Batter’s Box questions are in a multiple choice format. The contestants are from all over New England, and selected from tryouts earlier this summer.

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In his column today reporting on the shutdown of 890 ESPN, our pal Chad Finn tosses an interesting twist into the local sports radio state of things. He writes:

According to multiple industry sources, ESPN is in discussions to air some of its national programming on WEEI-AM 850 during nights and weekends, with WEEI intending to move to an FM station within months. (Entercom Communications, which owns WEEI, also owns two FM stations in Boston: WAAF 97.7/107.3, and Mike 93.7.)

ESPN Radio would then take over the 850 spot on the dial. The new ESPN 850 station would then be affiliated with the ESPN Boston website, which launches Monday.

Now THAT would be a big shuffle, which would just be latest in a series of frenzied moves by WEEI as they take on the new competitor in the market, 98.5 The SportsHub WBZ-FM.

I talked about the possible FM switch for WEEI a few weeks ago:

Will WEEI Add FM Simulcast In Boston?

That post looks at the options for WEEI in the FM market here, and what the possibilities might be. The move suggested above wouldn’t just be a simulcast, it would be a full switch to FM, with ESPN radio taking over 850…which would be sort of interesting. Why would WEEI want another source of sports radio competition in town, one with a signal that they previously occupied? Would WEEI want to hand ESPN’s Mike & Mike in the Morning a spot where they could compete better with Dennis & Callahan? Unless they feel that having two programs locally to compete against WBZ-FM’s Toucher & Rich is the way to go.

Mike & Mike is the one show that ESPN seems to insist on local affiliates airing.

Dan Kennedy doesn’t think this is a smart move for ESPN.

It’s going to be really interesting to see how this all shakes out.

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WEEI today announced the lineup for their “NFL Sunday” football program.

The lineup has changed quite a bit over the years, with Ron Hobson and Kevin Mannix being replaced with the likes of Tom E Curran and Paul Perillo. Dale Arnold was the original host, and Greg Dickerson, Michael Felger and Doug Brown have also hosted the show in the past.

Dale Arnold will return as the show’s host this year, and he will be joined by his weekday co-host Michael Holley. WEEI.com’s Christopher Price will also be on the show, as will former Patriots tight end Christian Fauria.

The show will air from 9:00am to Noon on Sundays. WEEI’s “The Real Post Game Show” will also return, with Pete Sheppard, Fred Smerlas and Steve DeOssie.  

NESN adds Ted Johnson

NESN today announced that former Patriots linebacker Ted Johnson will join the network as a regular contributor to NESN SportsDesk this football season. He will join anchor Cole Wright, reporter Kathryn Tappen, Mike Reiss  and The Providence Journal’sShalise Manza Young as regular contributors this season.

Johnson will regularly team up with Reiss on Saturdays for a look ahead at the coming week’s game followed by a Sunday or Monday appearance to analyze what happened in that week’s game. Johnson and Reiss will also team up for a mid-week report to provide commentary on the latest Patriots and NFL news.

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The new 98.5 The SportsHub has been on the air for a week now, and it’s time for a few knee-jerk reactions and thoughts on how they’re stacking up to WEEI.

Toucher and Rich vs. Dennis and Callahan

Right now the best things I can say about T&R is that they’re trying, and that they’re not D&C. The show is clearly a work in progress as they make the transition to more sports talk. I like that that they usually have several guests over the course of the morning, and make the effort to talk sports.

It seems like I don’t fit either demographic for these shows right now. I’m too young for D&C’s bitter, angry old man act and target audience, and a bit too old for the fratboy humor attempts by T&R. Some of their comedy bits have been painful.

I haven’t settled on one show or the other just yet. My listening habits for the last week have pretty much been whichever show is talking sports at the moment, or is having an interesting guest or discussion. It’s nice to have that option.

Advantage: Push.  

Tanguay and Zolak vs. Dale and Holley

I mentioned on Twitter yesterday that Gary Tanguay has been everything I feared he would be on the radio. It’s true. He’s dreadful. Whether he’s wondering “whether Tito has the BALLS to put right lineup on the field” or how long the “leash” is on Francona and whether or not he’ll be fired. It makes my ears hurt, which is too bad, because I really like Zolak. He’s likable, and not prone to saying stupid things just for reaction which is Tanguay’s calling card.

Dale Arnold certainly has his critics among the readers of this site, but I’ll listen to him over Tanguay everyday. It’s not a contest.  This week Holley has been out, but Tom Caron and today, Christopher Price have made the shows much better than Tanguay’s mock indignation.

Advantage: Dale and Holley.

Felger and Massarotti vs. The Big Show.

Felger is Felger. He also loves to make stupid comments (”Josh Beckett is mentally weak“) and take unpopular stands just to be a contrarian. That’s not good radio. Glenn Ordway does a lot of the same things, which make sense because Felger learned his radio craft in the ample bosom of Ordway. However, what makes the 98.5 show more tolerable is that Massarotti is willing to challenge Felger’s comments and stances, whereas Ordway surrounds himself with yes-men sycophants who agree with everything he says.

For the most part, I really like Massarotti on the radio. There isn’t a lot of the fan-insulting, condescending arrogance that comes across (intentional or not)  in a lot of his Boston.com columns and blog entries. (Today’s column about the Yankees farm system is an example. He actually talked this subject on the radio, and it didn’t come across in the neener-neener way it does in the column.) On the radio he seems to deal more with facts, and as mentioned, isn’t afraid to take on Felger’s dumb comments. They talk sports, not Fred Smerlas’ tailgate venture or steakhouse, and mix the topics up a least a couple of times in the course of the show. They also bring on guests to break things up a little, which is something The Big Show rarely does. The Big Show will hammer the same topic for four hours without a break, while F&M try to introduce new topics in the course of the show. This makes F&M a more worthwhile listen than The Big Show. Except for the whiner line.

Advantage: Felger and Massarotti

Damon Amendolara vs. Mike Adams.

This one is simple. Do you want to hear about and talk sports, all sports, or do you want to hear Adams getting an Orlando Magic tattoo on his ass and bitching about Manny?

Amendolara has been the single biggest pleasant surprise on the new station, which is huge. There was a lot of skepticism out there about bringing in a kid from New York who grew up rooting for the New York teams and is a huge soccer fan, who had most recently been doing a show in Miami to come here and do Boston sports radio. He’s been great. Amendolara is knowledgeable about what’s going on, not just locally, but all across the nation in big time sports. He’s also hard working, having done all the weeknights, plus a show each day of the weekend.

Advantage: Amendolara.

It’s early yet, but there’s some good things going on here, and at the very least, we can say it’s nice to have an alternative to turn to and get a different topic and take.

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Yes, Virginia, there is a sports radio station launching tomorrow here in Boston. It’s remarkable how quiet this launch has been. The station website is not up and running yet, the twitter account has been dead quiet for the last two weeks, and no press releases or announcements have come this way.

(As an astute commenter points out, the site is up, but they have their re-direct wrong. The above link re-directs to http://www.cbsports.com/boston instead of  http://www.cbssports.com/boston - which is up and running.)

But the new station is launching tomorrow, and here are the details:

WBZ-FM, aka 98.5 The SportsHub will go live at 1:00pm tomorrow afternoon as Michael Felger and Tony Massarotti lead into the pregame show at 4:oopm  for the first Patriots preseason game, which starts at 7:30pm.

That is just a one day schedule, as they’re using the Patriots as a springboard to the new lineup. Here is what the day-to-day lineup will look like:

• Toucher & Rich, 6 am – 10am with Jon Wallach doing Sports Headlines
• Gary Tanguay & Scott Zolak, 10am-2pm
• Mike Felger & Tony Massarotti, 2pm-6pm
• Damon Amendolara, “DA” – 6pm-12am

Yes, The SportsHub did manage to steal Jon Wallach away from WEEI. Funny, I never noticed he was missing from the 850 AM airwaves.

Damon Amendolara, slated to do the evening show, is a New York native and sports fan who has been doing a show on WQAM in Miami.

We’ve also learned that Jerry Trupiano will be doing a Saturday show with for WBCN personality Hardy. It’s been rumored that much of the weekend programming will be filled with shows from other CBS Radio outlets. We’ll wait and see what happens on that front.

At 3:00am tomorrow morning, Boston sports highlights will be heard on 98.5, leading into Felger and Massarotti at 1:00pm as noted above.

Update: 4:00pm a few more details, thanks to the long-awaited press release.

Tony Massarotti will continue to write for the Globe and Boston.com

The SportsHub will become Sporting News Radio’s affiliate in Boston and will feature some of that network’s shows and play-by-play.

The release states that: ”On Thursday, August 13, 98.5 The Sports Hub will debut at 6:00 a.m. and the day will culminate with the broadcast of The New England Patriots’ first pre-season game of the year against the Philadelphia Eagles.” That doesn’t agree with what I have above, so I guess we’ll see what happens.

Statements:

“Boston is the greatest sports town in America and we are very excited to bring Boston sports fans a new content experience, both on-air and on-line with 98.5 The Sports Hub,” said Mark Hannon, Senior Vice President and Market Manager for CBS Radio Boston.

“98.5 The Sports Hub is going to be a fun, fast-paced FM Sports radio station with a rock edge to it, added Mike Thomas, 98.5 The Sports Hub Program Director. The talent lineup and the support staff are some of the best in the business and ready to give Boston sports fans a great alternative to the same old same old.”

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With the threat of a well-funded FM competitor with a strong signal coming on the scene, WEEI and the the Boston Globe have apparently buried the hatchet:

WEEI announced today that the station and The Boston Globe have agreed that Globe sports writers will appear as guests on all WEEI talk shows, effective immediately.

“I think this is a great win for WEEI and the Globe,” said VP of Programming Jason Wolfe. “The Globe’s sports department has a deep tradition of exceptional coverage of the Boston sports scene and it is my pleasure to welcome them back to our airwaves. I know our listeners will appreciate their insight and expertise.”

Very interesting, indeed. Coincidence that his happens now? I don’t think so.

Update: Chad Finn posted the following on Twitter:

To clarify WEEI’s press release: Globe writers can be in studio/co-host for D&H, but call-ins only for D&C and The Big Show

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We’re a little more than a week away from the launch of the new 98.5 FM The SportsHub, and more details of the programming are coming together.

This post is composed of information cobbled together from various rumblings, and from sources which have already given good information on the goings-on at the new station.

Apparently the midday and afternoon drive shows, hosted by Gary Tanguay and Michael Felger respectively, will not have rotating co-hosts, but will each have a permanent co-host. There will be some in-studio guests mixed in, along with call-in guests.

Separate sources have said that Scott Zolak will be Tanguay’s partner on the midday show. The former Patriots backup QB is already heavily involved in WBZ’s Patriots coverage, and on the pre and post game radio broadcasts. Zolak did the Bill Belichick interview on last week’s edition of Patriots All Access, and brings a good base of football to the station. He’s already worked extensively with Tanguay, so the two shouldn’t have a problem finding chemistry.

Felger’s co-host isn’t set in stone just yet, but it appears Boston.com’s  Tony Massarotti is the favorite to land the role beside his former Boston Herald colleague.

Massarotti could be very good in this role, as for the most part, his on-air personality is more reasonable and less bombastic than a lot of the things he writes. He’s expressed some frustration at the style of radio employed by the Big Show in the past, so it’s possible that he and Felger – two former beat reporters – could simply stick to sports, and tone down the daily “Soap Opera” style of radio that is the Ordway stylebook of radio.

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