Comments on: Assessing the sports-talk competition

By: O'Rion

O'Rion — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 02:19:22 +0000

Well, EEI wanted to do something –short of going FM in Boston–so they got the RS back on the station (from Entercom’s WRKO).
So much for losing the rights for “late payment.” 2016 (corrected!) looks like a long run to me.

By: mike from norwell

mike from norwell — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 13:34:05 +0000

One other thought that comes to mind is exactly how valuable radio rights are to the Patriots in the first place. Think baseball is really the only sport that you can essentially picture the game in your mind over the air, given the set position of players on the field. Realistically, are you going to go out in your car to listen to the Pats or watch them in High Def? I know which one I’d choose. Of course, now that my son for the first 8 weeks will be playing football on Sunday afternoons, will probably be listening a little more than usual to the Pats. That plus the shear number of games (162 v. 16) tilts the advantage to the Red Sox rights.

One thing that is of interest is how long WEEI’s Patriots Monday contract runs for. Assume that Kraft will be upping the ante on that renewal when the time comes.

By: Dan Kennedy

Dan Kennedy — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 12:59:00 +0000

Mike: Up on the North Shore, we get to listen to the Red Sox on WBOQ (104.9 FM), although, fortunately, the station has its own programming the rest of the time.

By: mike from norwell

mike from norwell — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 12:19:12 +0000

When discussing the supposed signal advantage of WBZ-FM over WEEI, seem to be overlooking their FM presence over most of New England. I’m down in Duxbury, and by the time I clear Norwell I have a choice of clear signals either via the Cape (96.3) or Westerly RI (103.7). WBZ-FM’s signal isn’t quite the slam dunk advantage over NE.

By: Al

Al — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 01:26:15 +0000

exactly… and the thing is Mike knows his stuff about baseball. But they want the clown act.

By: Dan Kennedy

Dan Kennedy — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 23:12:36 +0000

I have to confess that I find Mike Adams pretty entertaining. But it’s safe to say that WEEI encourages his worst tendencies.

By: Al

Al — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 23:09:28 +0000

in a nutshell, here’s how the stations contrast while listening for a bit just before 7 PM. DA is discussing the Red Sox rotation and whether or not Beckett might need a bit more rest. Mikey is talking about how he hopes CC Sabathia strains his ass and then posits that he thinks his ass weighs 80 lbs. Brilliant sports talk.

DA is the best new sports radio host in this area in a long time.

By: Dan Kennedy

Dan Kennedy — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 17:01:56 +0000

Ben: It has an impact on what they choose to talk about. Just anecdotally, I’ve noticed more football talk on WBZ-FM, more baseball talk on WEEI. The talkers want to promote the games.

By: ben

ben — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 16:41:57 +0000

I’m not sure why the Red Sox broadcasts which Entercom puts on 680 (except for Wed on 850) would have an impact on which sports radio station you choose to listen.

By: Dan Kennedy

Dan Kennedy — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 01:51:37 +0000

O’Rion: The folks at WEEI woke up on third base and decided they must have hit a triple. They’re a success because people in Boston love to talk about sports and are willing to overlook how wretched much of the station’s programming is. WBZ-FM doesn’t just have “a very nice signal” — it has a far better signal than ‘EEI. I wonder if Entercom might respond by finally putting WRKO out of its misery and moving sports down the dial, where the signal is much better.

Does Entercom’s agreement with the Red Sox really have another 107 years to go? I’m sure that if you’re John Henry, there are days when it feels like it.