By David Scott
Boston Sports Media Watch

• ‘Tis the season for the fill-ins to be a fillin’ the airwaves and surprise, surprise WEEI 850 AM has actually begun rotating in some intelligent voices throughout the day, headlined by Bob Neumeier’s stint with John Dennis on the morning dose of “Dennis & NOT Callahan.” Neumie has long been the most undersung talent in the region, which he long ago managed to parlay (pun intended) into a national, multi-sport gig with NBC.

Neumie’s slow time happens to be right about now, so it works for him to do spot duty, but once football starts, his availability becomes more limited, so we’re told not to expect him to get a regular shift. Which is too bad for ‘EEI, they could certainly use him to boost the stagnant air that emanates in the “Big O” portion of the day and is equally pronounced with the Dale side of the 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. “Dale and Holley” struggle.

Fortunately two other fill-ins have given temporary listenability to Ordway’s afternoon drive antics: Tom Caron of NESN and Bob Halloran of ABC5 (WCVB). Halloran is somehow managing to be a crossover guy at both ESPN 890 and 850, but he’s understated enough to get results at both places. This is a guy who pulls off straight news, sports and talk radio with equal deftness – no easy task, we’d guess.

As for Caron, he continues to impress whether he is dragging Ken Macha by the scruff of the neck through some more on-the-job-training for the ex-manager, or tossing zingers at Eck, Jim Ed or Remy.

“I made my ‘Big Show’ debut last week while the Sox were on the West Coast,” said Caron via email. “They asked me back this week. I really had fun doing it. With another west coast trip coming up [and Caron’s workload lightening during those late games], we’ve talked about doing it again.”

Caron says Macha’s “managerial perspective is terrific.’

To which we respond, “Yeah. But that doesn’t always make for good TV.” Still, Macha did provide a good off-camera laugh this week, according to Globe pinch-hitter Fluto Shinzawa, who skated over for a turn on the Fenway turf Wednesday night:

As Terry Francona entered the Fenway Park media room this afternoon, he was trailed by NESN analyst Ken Macha, prompting Don Orsillo to issue the following crack:
“I thought you were introducing the new manager,” said Macha’s NESN colleague to some chuckles.

That might not be so funny in a couple of weeks if things keep trending downward.

• More and more whispers keep filtering into Shots ears that Steve Wyche of the Atlanta Journal Constitution is the lead candidate for the old Ron Borges slot on the Boston Globe’s Patriots’ beat.

Wyche, who is believed to be high on the list of Globe sports editor Joe Sullivan, has been at the AJC since the summer of 2004 and started off as the University of Georgia reporter before sliding over to the Falcons beat. According to the AJC newsroom newsletter from July of 2004, Wyche, prior to his AJC run, had been at “The Washington Post on the Washington Wizards beat. He also worked for the Miami Herald and the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Born in Minneapolis and raised in St. Louis, Steve attended the University of Missouri and Howard University. He has a wife, Deann, and three sons [under the age of 15].”

At least two other candidates have been scheduled for interviews and the hope by the Globe is to have someone on board in time for mini-camp, but certainly by midway through the pre-season slate of games. One of the other candidates is believed to be an ex-magazine NFL writer with Midwest roots who recently left his 10-year post at the title.

The recent history of “outsiders” coming to the Globe has not been one of extended service on the paper’s sports desk (see: Solomon, Jerome; Holley, Michael; and Smith, Michael), but Wyche (also a minority as were those three writers) clearly has the cajones to handle Boston’s sharpest critics, as he is apparently a cliff diving enthusiast. Wyche has some blogging experience which is always a good sign as is his “doggedness” on the Vick story.

A June 5 email from Shots to Wyche’s AJC account seeking comment has not been returned. Other candidate names have not yet been confirmed by Shots.

. . . An interesting sidenote on Wyche comes in this AJC ombuds piece. Which, in turn, led us to an interesting take on the Michael Vick coverage as a whole. And ended up with this take on minorities in sports journalism.

. . . Interestingly, another prime NFL job was posted this week, although that slot would seem to be more suited for a Young Gun instead of the Wily Veteran-type that Sullivan seems intent on grabbing. About six months ago, the talented Mr. Hashmarks, Matt Mosley left Dallas for ESPN.com, opening the slot being advertised (NOTE: It’s not an Al Dia posting as indicated.)

. . .Speaking of ESPN.com, there’s strong indications that the ex-LA Times’ columnist J.A. Adande (who took the Tribune Company buyout) is joining ESPN.com full-time for a combination of writing and TVing. This may already be known information to some, but it was news to us when we confirmed it this week.

The ESPN Ark is just never full – they can always take on more personnel, more salary and more copy. Two more of each! It’s slightly staggering when you really ponder it. Just look at their overall roster sometime – web, TV, magazine and radio.

• I do hope that when the news of the NCAA’s foolishness regarding the Louisville live-blogger Brian Bennett surfaced this week, that you immediately thought of how this might affect your favorite live-blogger of all-time, Shots. We sure had to try and put our tentacles around it.

It’s fairly easy to laugh and mock the NCAA and its antiquated policies and procedures and it’s also easy to find some solid analysis of the situation, even from within the NCAA and by an interesting guy with some Boston ties (including the ecumenical daily double of BC and Brandeis), Josh Centor.

Indeed, the NCAA is being pennywise and pound foolish and the hope is that in due time, they will understand this. But the NCAA is not the only entity that needs to face up to the reality of legitimate bloggers deserving legitimate access, and not just for the purposes of live-blogging.

The biggest component to keep in mind is that live-blogging is “programming” meant to ACCOMPANY the live broadcast of a game. When done effectively, the live-blogging both informs and entertains and acts as the wise-ass buddy sitting next to you in your living room at T.C.’s Lounge on Haviland. As for the violation of proprietary rights, the live-blog is logically exempt because it is NOT live, in fact it can often take several minutes from the time a live-blogger begins writing to the posting of the material – no matter how short the post.

The distinction is both a legal escape and an important distinction as the live-blog phenomenon moves forward. The idea, in the very near future (and already to a small degree) is for the game-attendee, from the comfort of his stadium or arena seat, to be able to use a handheld device and “play along” with the live-blogger. Or, if the user is at home watching the event on TV, he or she can follow along on a home computer. The next level becomes interaction between the live-blogger and the user. From there, the marketing and ad folks can screw it all up by plastering banners and finding sponsors for live-blog communications. But at least the money streams will have been tapped by then, in preparation for the next wave of information and entertainment delivery.

(Let’s not be so crude to think that all of this isn’t tickling Mr. 38 Picthes, Curt Schilling’s fancy a bit. Schill is the odds-on favorite to be the first pro player to live-blog his own game – not when he’s pitching, but then again, who knows?

Go ahead, keep laughing. It’s where this is all heading and you better know it by now.)

. . . USA Today had the following “Sampling of blogging policies set down by various sports organizations that apply to credentialed journalists:

“•NFL: According to spokesman Greg Aiello, blog items can be time-delayed, for example, recaps after a quarter ends.
“The policy is for reporting that would undercut our rightsholders. “As far as I know, we’ve never escorted anyone out of a press box for it.”

•Major League Baseball: Spokesman Pat Courtney said MLB has “specific rules for rights holders and non-rights holders. Non-rights holders may give updates and reports periodically, but no real time play-by-play, no pitch-by-pitch. The same rules, which are publicized at the events, apply to bloggers.”

•NBA: Reporters are free to blog pretty much what they wish, including play by play, according to spokesman Mike Bass.

•U.S. Golf Association: Media relations spokesman Craig Smith says reporters at this week’s U.S. Open are welcome to blog from the media center but no computers or handheld devices can be brought on the course. A reporter could, if he wished, blog Tiger Woods’ hole-by-hole, as long as he wrote from the press room.

•University of Tennessee: Associate athletics director Bud Ford says the school’s Internet policy will be printed on the back of media credentials this season. It basically prohibits any “account, description or excerpts” and “any form of photography.”

“We own rights to play-by-play and its distribution,” says Ford. “We’ve sold those rights to TV and to radio. And we are putting them on our website.”

Tennessee will allow end-of-quarter updates much as it would allow a (non-rights-holding) radio station to do.

NCAA statement on its Internet policy: “The NCAA reserves the right to deny any entity from producing live statistics for NCAA championship play. In the event the NCAA takes on the responsibility of producing a live statistical representation from an NCAA championship event, no other entity will be permitted to do so. Live statistics are considered a protected right …

“For clarification purposes, a live statistical representation includes play-by-play, score updates, shot charts, updated box scores, photos with captions, etc.”

Contributing: Hal Bodley, Thomas O’Toole, Oscar Dixon, Joe Fleming and Scott Zucker”

• Old sideline friend and laddie mag poser, Jill Arrington took a big star turn this week when she served as red carpet hostess from the pre-taped “Rescue Me” premiere on the occasion of Denis Leary’s season-debut.

“Rescue,” by the way, is a pretty good bounce-back girlfriend in the absence of our love, The Soprano’s.

• How long until Coach Bill goes all Joseph Abboud on us?

• It will be the distinct pleasure of the ever-improving Boston Sports Review Show on 890 ESPN to broadcast live from Higs Tickets, “just steps from Fenway,” for Saturday’s show (June 16). There will be plenty of Bonds banter, a guest line visit with the New York Post’s finest columnist, Mike Vaccaro, who’s got a new book (the enthralling “1941”) and never lacks for an educated opinion on all things Sox-Yanks.

Dial us in at 890 AM or stop by Higs – we’re not beyond including Shots’ readers for on-air mischief.

. . . Shots is also scheduled to be live from Fenway for the 11 p.m. “Out of Bounds” on CN8, Friday night (game length permitting), so tune in to see when the house lights go out and I screech like a little girl. Happens every time.



David Scott writes from a seaside shanty on the shores of Hull, 
Mass. and can be reached at shotsATbostonsportsmedDOTcom

You can listen to Scott every Saturday morning from 9 to 11 a.m. as he co-hosts the Boston Sports Review Show on ESPN Radio 890 AM with ESPN’s new All-Sports Reporter, Mike Salk.