I’d like to report that I’m back in full force at this space, but I’m still in the editing process and as I’ve said from the beginning of this amazing project, I can’t justify devoting time to my love (Scott’s Shots) over my real-life job.

Thank you for your continued support and hopefully by the time the Nantasket Beach concession stands open for business, we’ll be back dissecting the local and national media scene on a regular basis.

The Re-Launch of WEEI.com

That sound you heard last Monday morning was BostonHerald.com’s sports offering plunging to the depths of irrelevance. That was the day Boston became a two horse town as far as mainstream media sports sites go. With its total overhaul and Entercom’s apparent commitment to make WEEI.com “. . .the new sports page in town,” as the site’s VP/GM Tim Murphy said, the site is now fully ready to compete with the region’s sports-on-the-web leader, Boston.com.

“We didn’t want the site to be just ‘radio good,’” said Murphy in an extensive March 13 pre-launch interview and “walk-through’ of the new site with Shots. “We’re redefining what a sports page is. I like our chances of being the No. 1 (destination for Boston sports fans) in time.”

Boasting aside, what the new WEEI.com does offer is clean navigation, a comprehensive mix of audio and text and, in time we’re told, a healthy dose of video. It is vibrant, well laid out and deep.

Some of the initial slow loading and optimization issues faced last week are beginning to disappear and a spokesman for the site said, “optimizing load times is a normal 1-2 weeks process for a brand new site.”

For the most part, the beta testing of 100 guinea pigs and the months of design which Murphy oversaw seem to have struck gold. This is what happens when good planning, clear vision and proper investments meet creative and forward-thinking people.

The new site is already using its potential to tout upcoming radio highlights – witness the Bill Simmons on D&C Monday morning plug that was posted in the “This Just In” box on Sunday night. The ability to use the site to promote the radio station and vice versa will truly be the biggest asset WEEI.com will have over its competition. Complete and total saturation with the ability to completely dictate the region’s sports discussion is both a powerful position and a scary concept (mostly on the radio side with the all-too-might Big Show’s mob of meatheads).

With a staff and contributors that still lags behind Boston.com (but surpasses, in most every way the Herald), WEEI.com editor Rob Bradford and his lieutenants have shown glimpses of brilliance in both reporting and analyzing – even before the re-launch.

Experiments that haven’t worked have been abandoned – see: Leitch, Will – and personalities who drive traffic like Mike Felger and Curt Schilling are easy to find and promoted prominently through the lead story picture box. (That box is still having loading issues which lead to blurry, unviewable pictures but those kinks will be worked out with further optimization.)

The aforementioned “TJI” box is placed in a strange position for our tastes, but Murphy explained the concept of the placement thusly, “(The) ‘This Just In’ widget was intentionally designed to overlap the lead story block. It never overlaps the core of the image. Subjective area to assess, but we think it offers a compelling visual while also bring TJI, a differentiating content feature, into a premium position on the homepage.”

Fair enough and a great example of how everything was very well thought out and conceived. Almost no stones seemed to have been left unturned.

Advertisers, according to Murphy, have been receptive to the new look. The site’s serious attempt to challenge Boston.com and the Verizon-sponsored re-launch along with a growing preferred partners list would indicate the ad community’s willingness to dabble with the packaging of radio and web sides to maximize exposure and penetration.

Some early signs that should worry Murphy and Bradford is the slacking already being displayed by some shows’ individual pages in terms of updating audio and some not-yet-ready-for-prime time and inconsistent blogging.

They must also either make a committed effort to utilize the LeeINKS space or abandon the idea all together. That is just the kind of offering that Murphy talked about with us when he said every morning while he was growing up, he’d eat his cereal and read the Globe sports page. A quick A.M. romp around the webosphere for Boston-centric stories and oddities could be hugely popular – and cereal appointment reading But not if it’s ignored for days at a time and not clearly defined.

That’s probably the biggest critique we can offer at this point: when building a new site and creating site loyalty, the consistency and quality of the content is HUGE. (And will lead to the high Time Spent Viewing numbers Murphy wants to deliver – “We want this site to be a much ‘stickier’ experience and show advertisers much more engagement through users’ commenting and other (strategies) to keep them at WEEI.com,” he said.

Murphy would be wise to remember, there’s just too many local and national offerings out there to steal readers and page views and once users are let down a couple of times, they may never return. You have one chance to make a first impression.

Still, if the site maximizes its potential and utilizes all its new bells and whistles to the fullest, it will indeed be the revolutionary creation Murphy is envisioning.

What Exactly is CBS College Sports Trying to Be?

While serving as the cable home for the Tournament and “complementing CBS Sports’ exclusive live game broadcasts with over 75 hours of coverage,” the CBS College Sports Network did more confounding during the Tournament’s first two rounds than complementing.

What the network promised would be “exclusive in-progress game highlights, live look-ins and press conferences from every team at every site from the first-round through the Championship Game,” was instead, on Thursday through Sunday’s offering a complete head-scratcher.

With such a unique opportunity to augment the yeoman’s effort consistently put forth by its Sugar Daddy, CBS, the cable outlet put forth a product that felt and looked low budget, haphazard and discombobulated.

Let us count the ways that CBSCS disappointed:

1. It started from jump street when Thursday introductions of three in-studio, guest coach analysts showed IUPUI coach Ron Hunter on-screen as the frazzled host was clumsily giving the credentials of Marist coach Chuck Martin. It only got worse from there, although in fairness Hunter, Martin and Hofstra’s Tom Pecora did their best under some clearly difficult circumstances. Stage tests and rehearsals were apparently not employed by the network formerly known as CSTV (for whom Shots did freeelance work with over the past two seasons).

(Hunter actually shone throughout the weekend and Martin’s debut was also quite promising. Pecora went a little too hard for laughs, but his bluntness was appreciated. It took us two days to figure out who Tim Miles was in his underwhelming appearance.)

2. The in-game shows were billed as being hosted by Adam Zucker and Tracy Wolfson – both of whom were passable – but a constant rotation of other throw-ins from the shallow CBSCS stable only confused matters. Analysts were here one game, gone the next and if there was any pre-scheduling of on-air time, it wasn’t apparent. Almost every analyst spent more time looking for the camera with the red light on than analyzing and the one who did understand camera position – Steve Lappas – has never taken to the medium despite the network’s repeated efforts to make him TV-friendly. That’s a project that needs to be abandoned.

When Lappas got paired with current Drexel coach Bruiser Flint on Saturday night’s desk, the awkwardness of the duo never dissipated. (Flint, who is phenomenal on TV, was replaced as the UMass coach by Lappas, in a move that signaled a decided downturn in Minutemen basketball that has take years to recover from.) As Dan Wetzel of Yahoo! Sports pointed out, “it was sort of akin to having Mike Davis and Bob Knight discuss the brackets together.”

3. The self-touted “Live Look-Ins” from CBSCS were a complete disaster with most coming at inopportune times or for too short a period. Now that all games are available FREE on the Internet, it would make sense to give viewers extended “looksies” into riveting games on CBSCS. We know CBS refuses to use the once-popular split screens, but does that mean CBSCS can’t? There’s definitely a sponsor who would buy up that space, wouldn’t you think?

Quite simply, it just seems that CBS doesn’t know what to do with CBSCS, so they’re throwing stuff against the wall and seeing what – if anything – sticks. (Viewer call-ins DID NOT stick and must be discontinued immediately. Callers ranged from school kids to morons who wanted to know how far their team could go in the “playoffs.” Ugh.)

The coup de grace came on Sunday night when three down-to-the-wire contests were being decided but the wizards at CBSCS found it more necessary to show not one but TWO, re-packaged features on Tyreke Evans of Memphis and Blake Griffin of Oklahoma. To call it mind-boggling is being kind.

When they finally did go to live look-ins for the fantastic finishes, the CBSCS feed was almost a minute ahead of the national feed on CBS. What a disaster and what an embarrassment to the mothership at Black Rock.

[On a positive note, the rising star Carter Blackburn proved to be the most capable studio host all weekend and his second year of play-by-play work for both CBSCS and CBS (where he gave first-round breathers to aging Dick Enberg) should have him high on every major, respectable broadcasters list for new and emerging talent.]

The potential for CBSCS in future Tournaments – and maybe even this year as they continue through the Final Four – is limitless. If used properly, with pre-planning and clear guidelines, it can truly enhance the viewers’ experience of what is already a phenomenal event. Left in its current state, however, the network’s supplemental coverage does nothing but frustrate viewers and diminish the overall product shown to the nation.

. . . Over at CBS, Greg Anthony gets the most-improved award for his in-studio work. Partner Seth Davis got the most-annoying award when he referred to Greg Gumbel as “Gregory.” And the netowrk had its share of audio problems, most glaringly with Jim Spanarkel who sometimes couldn’t be heard at all.

Dan Shaughnessy, Cartographer

The site dedicated to such things does a pretty good job of critiquing Danny Boy for this laugher of an offering from Friday.

But there’s probably some good to be done from piling on in this instance. Emailers to Shots were equally appalled by the Curt’s BF’s assertion that, “New England’s history in the NCAA basketball tourney is ancient and rare.”

Shaughnessy bases the column on a completely fraudulent premise based in poor geography and worse institutional memory. Does anyone edit the man? And couldn’t he have had the decency to, I don’t know, write something that justified the expense of sending him on the road? Wouldn’t it have been nice to see a senior-year-unsung-hero Tyrese Rice column from Dan? Or maybe a Rakim Sanders of Pawtucket, RI piece? Or is Rhody too small of a state to be considered New England. Or how about something on the UVM transfer (oh look, another New England basketball school) Joe Trapani? Oh, wait, he’s from Connecticut and since that’s not part of New England, well, he probably doesn’t merit an introduction to the once-a-year BC followers who pop up annually.

I really hope Shaughnessy brings a t-shirt back from Minnesota for his chief enabler, sports editor, Joe Sullivan. You know the one. It reads, “My editor sent me to Minnesota and all I produced were two lousy columns that I put next to no effort into.”

Is there not anyone who talks with Shaughnessy about what he might be writing on? Don’t co-workers like Bob Ryan or Tony Massarotti get embarrassed by the drivel their cohort hands in while they actually still get after it? Things are tough all over and morale at newspapers is below sea level – but it can only be compounded for Globies who have to watch as Shaughnessy skates by on three out of every four offerings.

None of the Globe’s college hoops coverage bodes well for this weekend’s East Regional. Let’s hope Adam Kilgore comes up North from FLA and that Ryan doesn’t get sent to Memphis, Indy or Phoenix.

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

Scott’s first book, with Memphis Coach John Calipari, is scheduled for release in the Fall of 2009 and is now available for pre-order.

Shots is not quite ready to re-start regular Friday posts, but the confluence of buzz surrounding Chad Finn, Dan Shaughnessy, Bill Simmons and Dick Albert offered too many fish in too small a barrel for my blogging soul.

In the meantime. . .

• Let’s not look lightly upon Chad Finn’s widely viewed takedown of the Guest Street Goons.

When a single post generates more comments (and possibly more hits) that Boston.com’s uninspiring “OT” blog has probably had in its existence, it’s worthy of our collective attention. (The festering soap opera will be given even more plot lines on Friday when Finn takes part in a Noon chat at Boston.com.)

Beyond the agreement (from the sane) and outrage (from the LCDs) Finn sparked, his unrestrained attack on Entercom’s Sports Leader (radio side) could also signal the proverbial gauntlet having been thrown by the Globe. If there’s going to be a sports media war in this town, it certainly isn’t going to include the Boston Herald or any other of our local pretender sites.

It will be waged by the fledgling WEEI.com and its radio sibling against Boston.com. They are the only two with the brains, brawn and Benjamins to dig trenches and support troops.

While insiders on Morrissey Boulevard indicate the Finn column wasn’t part of any calculated strike against Entercom, the overnight metrics it has surely generated will certainly (hopefully) have heads spinning throughout the newly-formed New Revenue Team . If they can’t recognize a potential revenue-generating feud against 50,000 watts of ignorance, the NRT will be DOA.

The time is right for both sides to start rattling some cages and separating themselves from the have-nots. Why not stoke the flames between long-time rivals when the consumer is hungriest for distractions from the bleakness of reality?

WEEI.com has a well-rounded (if Leitch-less) roster of contributors and once they finally get around to introducing the new design, WEEI.com will be in a position to consistently compete player-for-player with the Globe. (Although Bob Ryan remains a trump card for the Old, Graying Lady.)

Likewise, the Globe has seen the power of the Internet on the sports side (see: Reiss, Finn, et al) and a good, old-fashioned media war against the loudest shouters of ‘em all (WEEI’s radio rabble-rousers) has potential to be, as one of our favorite PR guys likes to say, “a game-changer.”

The reaction to Finn’s missive is no aberration – this city has strong feelings about the lone, true sports talk radio station in the region and the build momentum off that passion would behoove both media conglomerates.

It’s a shame really, because the role of a fight-picker should really be played by the tabloid in town, but the Herald missed the Internet boat and have been swimming out to it – against the raging tide – ever since. From its sporadic early blogging days to the lack of the simplest of website innovation (hello, original video??), the Herald is positioned to be nothing more than the little paper that could – or perhaps can’t. God Bless the Herald for staying scrappy but to think they can ever be anything more than a periphery player with the skeletal staff they employ is pure lunacy.

(I’m still having trouble believing this, but it is confirmed by two separate parties with intimate knowledge that the Herald has been interviewing candidates for a slot containing the Pats’ beat. How they can get away with bringing in new blood – even with unfilled positions – is a bit baffling. Even more perplexing? The number of candidates willing to wend their career through Wingo Way. A risk at any paper, for sure.)

As for a WEEI/Globe escalation of activity, I say, “Bring it on.” Something has to shake up the status quo in this town and if Chad Finn’s WEEI Manifesto is it, then let ‘er rip.

(We feel it necessary to vividly separate the radio side of WEEI from the Web side and to emphasize that distinction in no uncertain terms. Tim Murphy and Rob Bradford have taken a reasoned approach to grabbing market share with WEEI.com. The real culprits we blame for Idiot radio are the majority of Big Show non-talent.)

That said, the battle we be joined on the websites and we’re anxious to see how far both sides will be willing to go.

• You’ve got to admire the commitment and unyielding efforts by the DSW gang in its dogged pursuit of pointing out the lowlights of the current portion of Dan Shaughnessy’s once-esteemed writing career. I do, however, wonder why they get to have all the fun? Seems selfish to me, so I figured I add to DSW’s long-list of self-plagiarism from the increasingly nasty, Shaughnasty:

Thursday’s offering from Curt Schilling’s BFF, reminded us of a column we’d read before. Maybe even twice before. Sure enough, his Thursday column is another in the long line of what we’ll call, “Dan Discover Collegians In Awe and Taking Pictures” pieces. Witness, the annual Shaughnessy-penned columns we are treated to in late February/early March:

March 2, 2007
Hed: Red Sox Feast on Collegians

Dan’s Checklist:
1. Use of “pasty” in some form to describe fair-skinned, winter-paled student athletes from the Northeast
Yes. “Beckett faced seven pasty-white Northeastern University batters. . .”

2. Reference to photos and/or autographs which players will relish for years
No. But did get to reference the “indoor” workouts of the college guys, something he uses again in ’08′s masterpiece.

3. Quote from a player (preferably a senior) indicating the supercalafragilisticness of playing against big-leaguers
Yes. “It’s an unbelievable experience,” said senior captain Dan Milano. . .

February 29, 2008
Hed: Mismatch made in heaven; Northeastern Gets a Whiff, and is Simply Awestruck

Checklist:
1. Use of “pasty” in some form to describe fair-skinned, winter-paled student athletes from the Northeast
Yes. “The pasty Eagles and Huskies. . .”

2. Reference to photos and/or autographs which players will relish for years
Yes, both. “. . . there will be photos. And autographs. . . ”

3. Quote from player (preferably a senior) indicating the supercalafragilisticness of playing against big-leaguers
Yes. “This is living the dream,” added (senior Ted) Ratliff. . . “These are guys we idolize.”

February 26, 2009 (linked above)
Hed: Lasting Images for BC

Dan’s Checklist:
1. Use of “pasty” in some form to describe fair-skinned, winter-paled student athletes from the Northeast
No. And to his credit, Dan did get rolling with a bit of a new angle focusing on an oft-injured sophomore – but he abandoned the theme immediately after the jump and got back into his comfort zone from the Shaughnessy Mad-Libs collection.

2. Reference to photos and/or autographs which players will relish for years
Yes. In large doses. “. . . for the rest of his life (Dane Clemens) can tell people he got David Ortiz out.. .” and later, “. . . a lot of photo-ops around the cage.”

3. Quote from a player (preferably a senior) indicating the supercalafragilisticness of playing against big-leaguers . . .
Yes. “This is awesome,” said Eagles first baseman/closer Mike Belfiore.
(Sadly, Belfiore is listed as a junior. Maybe next year when the lefty reliever/first baseman is a senior and Dan recyles like Cambridge, he can be quoted again!)

. . . Heck, everyone who writes long enough starts to repeat themselves. We acknowledge that. But even beyond repetition and an apparent lack of “institutional memory,” the bigger question is how – for three straight years – can Dan not dig up a better column angle than “pasty boys play against idols?”

Is it really too much to have a guy search under the tarp for something different? Is it?

And if it is, why the heck does he need to be there in the first place? Just run a “Best of. . . ” and save the crucial budget dollars.

. . .On top of his lack of creativity, Shaughnessy (and Joe Sullivan) are guilty of not including a 17-percenter-like disclaimer that Dan’s son Sam is listed as a sophomore for the BC club. If there’s not an ethical reason for such a tag-line to the yearly column, there is certainly a moral obligation. It’s not exactly going to take up the space of a brilliant new Shaughnessy witticism. Here it is for use with next year’s edition: “Editor’s Note: The columnist, Dan Shaughnessy, has a son, Sam, who currently plays for the Eagles baseball team.”

. . . Still waiting for word of further departures from Sully’s Staff, but for now it’s worth noticing the lack of Jim McCabe (now at Golfweek in another of the long line of unexplained or un-mentioned goodbyes not worthy of an editor’s note). With the biggest sports story of the week – Tiger Woods’s return – the Globe used an un-datelined recap from mystery staffer Michael Whitmer on Thursday and the website was using AP as of 3:00 a.m. Friday morning on Tiger’s flameout.

• I’m not saying a thing about him being a prima Donna and I’m even going to give heavy praise for both the Dooze Farewell and his latest for the Mag.

But I will mention how confused I am by the new “Follow Your Sports” ad campaign for the “new” ESPN.com. The former Boston Sports Guy is not a sport I care to follow, thank you. Although with all his subtle jabs and double meanings, it is sort of like a scavenger hunt and I’m sure that’s got a pro league somewhere. (Oddly silent stretch from the FBSG’s own special site for spit-balling the teacher.)

• Why was I sadder to see Dick Albert go than Bob Lobel? And how much longer before the sweeping of the local TV oldies is fully complete? Preemptive bye-byes to Mike Lynch, Mike Dowling, Jack Williams and probably a few of the Boomer Broadcasters. Just don’t take our Maria, you hear me?

• Finally! Mazel Tov Tom, Gi and the entire blended fam.

This will undoubtedly be the thing the Big bOzos cling to: “. . .Her three dogs also wore matching Dolce & Gabbana floral lace collars. . . ”

You know what, if my bride-to-be looks like Gi and I’m as in love with her as Tommy appears to be, I’d wear the damn collar myself. Not afraid to admit it either.

• I really hope Bobby Knight realizes how good he’s going to be if he sticks with TV and how insane it would be to take another head job. Once they get him away from brutalBrent Musburger and with Dan Shulman (they’ll be together for Cal-UCLA on Saturday night), he has the potential to be Al Maguire-like with a couple more ounces of self-deprecation and another year of seasoning.

. . . Hubert Davis, on the other hand? He’s got to rig of giggles before he can take the next step.

• Too bad no one in Boston has the stones to have written this one. I just want to know how Danny got Doc to accept this reclamation project. Phil Jackson wouldn’t have been force-fed the volatile guard. Neither would Gregg Popovich.

I’m just sayin.

• “Globe 10.0″ on Boton.com wasn’t quite ready for its ‘webut,’ but they’ll get it worked out. At some point, a sponsor will want to attach itself to the re-incarnation of what NESN quit on. It’ll just take some time.

. . . Hey, and what happened to NESN’s “The Instigators’” technilogically-enhanced set and the Podiums of Instigation? Now Mouthy, Bingo and Brick are on the Jordan’s furniture love seats and each combatant leans forward on the edge of their seat to roughhouse about the hockey topics. Sit back, fellas. Relax a bit.

• I admit it. I got a chuckle out of the debut of the “Heidi Watney and Snackfood Sophia Fight the Gator” webisode. But the unfortunate wording at the NESN site (and in Watney’s blog) makes an unnecessary and careless “stalker” reference. This is what happens when websites have little or no editing or oversight, but still behave like the operations that do. It happens everywhere a media entity (usually TV) tries to get all bloggy and edgy by having “talent,” interns and wannabes create content.

The general rule for mainstream (read: multi-million dollar subsidiaries) sites has to be: if it’s borderline offensive, use something else. It’d be nice if the blogosphere would adhere to such guidelines, but we know that horse has left the barn.

• This was awful news for UVM athletics and a very valued member of the Shots Loyalists. Fortunately, he too will “bounce back.”

• Great to share some time with you. Now back into the Editing Cones of Silence.

Enjoy the Madness.

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

Scott’s first book, with Memphis Coach John Calipari, is scheduled for release in the Fall of 2009 and is now available for pre-order.

In truth I can’t really afford to be coming out of my “book nook” for any amount of time, but two ongoing stories in Boston sports media need some assessing and Shots realizes it’s our official duty to analyze both (and some bonus topics for the new year).

To spice things up a bit, we’ll present those two stories (Globe v. NESN; Ordway v. Entercom) within the 2008 Shotties, given sporadically since 1990 for outstanding achievement in the realm of Boston sports media (and slightly beyond). As always, we welcome your intelligent comments and insight – buffoons need not apply. Have a happy new year and we’ll do our best to come back strong in the Spring time after we put our baby to bed.

The Shotties: A look back at the calendar year of 2008 in Boston sports media.

The Shotty for Least Stable Sports Media Relationship
TIE
A. The Boston Globe and NESN
B. Glenn Ordway and Entercom

The quiet cancellation of NESN’s “Globe 10.0″ in late December and the curious, semi-sign-off of Glenn Ordway were significant on many levels. By this time next year, we will likely look at both “events” as monumental days in the shaping of Boston Sports Media 2.0; hat’s how big the players in these two soap operas are and that’s how impactful the two stories will be on 2009.

First, the Globe’s battle with NESN:

A. Even before the Christmas Eve bombshell about the 17 Percenters looking to dump their Red Sox stake, the rift between the Boston Globe sports department and the Red Sox sports department (NESN) was widening – almost by the day. [For more confounding and confusing looks at the Globe's woes, we'd ask you to check here and here (for the astonishing Barclay's report).

The end of "Globe 10.0" got neatly buried in this Boston Globe's space-wasting, so-called "Media Column", with a two sentence explanation, saying "NESN announced. . . it will cease production of its original programming of "Globe 10.0" by the end of the year. The half-hour show, hosted by columnist Bob Ryan and featuring Globe writers, premiered on the network in June 2007."

Incredibly(!), NESN neglected to post the announcement on its own, pathetic press room page (and the network's oh-so-professional PR arm has long since stopped sending releases of any kind to Shots).

The move, initiated by NESN's higher-ups and delivered (awkwardly and clumsily, according to multiple sources) by Joel Feld, the network's executive vice president of programming and executive producer, was yet another sign of an eroding relationship between the Red Sox broadcast unit and the New York Times Company (dba here in Boston as the Boston Globe). It's a deterioration that was first made public when NESN severed its ties with the Globe on Boston.com, where its on-line presence had lived, and began its own mediocre site at NESN.com.

By dumping the Globe-branded thrice-weekly, half-hour show Feld and and Silent Sean McGrail further bruised egos on Morrissey Boulevard. The tension, Shots is told, has been escalated by the more frequent appearances by Globe personnel on Comcast SportsNet, NESN's direct competitor. We are told it also didn't sit well with Globe folks that both WEEI (Mike Adams) and Boston Herald (Steve Buckley) contributors were being used by NESN.

It's never been a secret that the paper's writers have had discomfort with the NYT Co.'s partial ownership of the Local Nine, but the mistrust and mis-communication between both sides has boiled over in recent months and the end of "10.0" can be seen as the water roiling over onto the stovetop.

For his part, when Shots spoke with Bob Ryan a couple of weeks back, Basketball Bob took the diplomatic approach to the 18 month run he was given. He said the powers-that-be informed him and his producer, Alan Miller, of the show's termination during the course of the week of Dec. 8.

Quite simply, Ryan was told, the move was purely financial. The show debuted in the summer of 2007 with Verizon as the presenting sponsor. That deal with Verizon expired in May, and neither NESN nor the Globe was able to lock down a sponsor to offset the costs of the largely in-studio production. [Ratings for the show were never spectacular, said one NESN insider, but on the days it served as the lead-in to Sox pre-games, it showed promise.]

Neither entity ever put the marketing muscle behind the project that was deserved to give it a legit shot in a difficult time slot (against local news and PTI on ESPN).

Ryan had evolved into a more-than-capable host within about six months of his debut. He – and Miller – used “PTI” and “Around the Horn” as their inspirations and created an enjoyable and informative 30 minute show that deserved a better fate. Ryan’s rapport with Charlie Pierce, Christopher L. Gasper and Lou Merloni began to take on regional similarities to the magic Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon create with “PTI” and the show really hit its stride over the past 10 months.

The much ballyhooed virtual set was never utilized to its full potential (although it is getting new life with “The Insitigators,” where three bartenders stand behind a counter and appear ready to serve drinks. Why are they standing? Why?) Whether it was technical snafus or a lack of commitment to the set, NESN certainly never gave the show all the resources it needed to succeed. They could have created a cornerstone original program, instead they played footsies with it and never gave it a real shot at succeeding.

The upshot is that Ryan will slide back into a 3 times weekly general columnist for the paper and told us he will continue to update his blog for Boston.com.

“I let the column slide,” Ryan admitted. “I haven’t been able to focus as much on the writing and I look forward to getting back to that.

“Listen, I’m a big boy about this,” he said. “This is why I always say that i would never have TV or Radio be my primary gig.”

But the blame does not lie with Ryan on this one, it lies with penny-pinching NESN and its continued curious decisions (vanilla “SportsDesk” anchor John Chandler and overmatched newbie Cole Wright come immediately to mind when thinking of other NESN missteps in ’08).

NESN wants everyone to think its New England’s version of ESPN, but the truth is, it’s a far cry from anything that is being done in Bristol.

And now, to The Big O. . .

B. If it wasn’t for bad timing, Glenn Ordway wouldn’t have no timing at all. With his contract expiring at Entercom, Ordway finds himself in a precarious place as the host of WEEI 850 AM’s afternoon drive, “Big Show.” Long-praised as the cornerstone of the ‘EEI Empire, Ordway and his representative are reportedly locked in delicate, drawn out and precarious negotiation with Entercom Emperors.

The problem is, Ordway has virtually no leverage. Sure, there are still Beantown rumors about an all-sports entrant on the FM dial hoping to nab the Big O and build a station around him. There has even been murmurs of a satellite gig for Ordway, but I think we can all agree he is a regional talent at best. Ordway’s lone, best option is to remain in the big chair with the Big Meatheads he babysits five times a week and get paid handsomely for doing just that.

Time and again, the people Shots has polled on the topic continue to point out that Ordway has no chance of getting what one insider termed “Dennis and Callahan money” in the current marketplace.

So Ordway has to decide whether he can take a “pay cut” from what he might have been able to land had the economy not gone in the dumper and whether his ego will allow for him to be, what he would probably term, “slightly underpaid.” If he’s banking on playing satellite radio or other terrestrial radio off of Entercom, he might as well give up now. No one can justify overspending for a “name” in this economic climate and Entercom has a very realistic replacement waiting in the wings at WEEI.com in Mike Felger.

Ordway is going to need to eat some humble pie and that’s never been a big part of the big fella’s diet. Still, Ordway never struck us as a dumb man and he surely knows what is at stake for the final chapter of his broadcasting career. Will he get STOOPID money? No. But he will have no problem maintaining a lifestyle befitting the King of Boston Sports Talk Radio.

The Tom Ellis Shotty for Overstaying Their Welcome:

Gil Santos and Gino Cappelletti, WBCN 104.1 FM, The Patriots Rock Radio Network

The only thing sadder in local broadcasting than Tom Ellis’s NECN farewell last Saturday night is the fact that the earnest Ellis doesn’t realize how far removed he is from his glory days at the anchor desk.

Gil and Gino appear to be similarly delusional about their broadcasting chops.

WBCN and the Patriots (read: The Krafts) need to begin transitioning out of Gil and Gino and into more capable play-calling and color commentating. It’s no longer a matter of IF the Krafts need to initiate a change in the radio booth, it’s a question HOW they handle it. Even with the deep appreciation Shots has for the history of the duo, it’s painfully obvious that they are doing a disservice to the listeners, not to mention advertisers and the organization.

Look for the names of Mike Lynch (PBP), (hopefully) Sean McDonough (PBP), Gary Tanguay (PBP), Scott Zolak (color) and cerebral Tim Fox (color) to circulate WHEN the change is made. It would make sense if the Pats and ‘BCN do it quietly over the off-season.

(By the way, Tanguay’s turn on Celtics games as PBP man in Mike Gorman’s absence probably wasn’t the best audition tape for a potential booth job with the Pats. Tanguay is steady and suitable for studio work – not so much for PBP.)

[One note on the Tom Ellis farewell: NECN mainstay sports guy Jimmy Young tried to soften the shakiness of Ellis's farewell, and Young's knowledge of the market and Ellis's place in it, was sincere.

But the simple fact of the matter is that the Locals (or regionals) don't have room for the Tom Ellises, the Bob Lobels and the Joyce Kulhawiks. That list will surely grow in 2009, as WCVB looks to get younger and leaner, the way its competitors already have.]

The Shotty for the Worst Kept Sports Media Secret

An easy call, as this has to be the not-so-hush-hush departure of Jessamy Tang from almost-also-ran ESPN 890. Tang, it turns out, was well into in her second trimester of pregnancy when she quietly announced to the 890 staff in late Fall that she would be leaving the station all together. Apparently, employees had no clue of the baby bump.

Launched in the Fall of 2005, ESPN 890 has made very little – if any – headway in denting WEEI’s armor but Tang had weathered some storms, some departures and kept investors and ESPN interested enough to let her continue to putter with a weak signal and barely any marketing dollars.

Now, it will be the full-time function of WallerSutton’s WS2K Media to oversee 890, removing Tang and her J Sports from the equation.

Schrafft Building moles tell Shots that Route 81′s CEO, Ira Rosenblatt who will be the “new” Jessamy. You would have to think this is sink or swim time for the station and it’s a heck of a time to be trying to do either in these rough waters of the Second Great Depression.

Safe money says that 2009 will finally be the year that 890 admits it is nothing more than a tin can and string operation that embarrasses the national ESPN brand with each passing week.

The Shotty for the Biggest Waste of Weekly TV Air Time during Patriots Season

Awarded to any of the awful pre- or postgame offerings from WBZTV Channel 4 where Stammering Steve Burton and Steve “DeAwful” DeOssie are paired together. It’s car crash TV at its worst with every potential utterance a frontal assault on the English language. Add in the station’s insistence on using a constantly shaky handi-cam from the company-owned restaurant/bar in Foxborough and the end result was 16 weeks of unwatchable local football coverage.

The Shotty for Most Pleasant Surprise of 2008

WEEI.com

By any sensible standard, the initial months of the website built by Tim Murphy and Rob Bradford were a success for Entercom and even the hiccups have been forgivable. Do not underestimate what the “acquisition” of Curt Schilling meant and you can be sure that 2009 will have even more innovation and exploration by the MurphFord combo.

While I was quoted in the above-linked Phoenix story by Adam Reilly, I think it’s probably worth including some of my (long-winded replies) to Reilly’s questions that didn’t make his article. His questions are marked by “AR” and my responses are after “DS”:

AR: What do you think WEEI.com has done right?
DS: Let’s look at it this way: In less than half a year they have assembled a diverse and provocative line-up that includes Rob Bradford, Alex Speier, Curt Schilling, Will Leitch, Mike Felger and, incredibly, “Fitzy” (I don’t see his appeal, but I’m probably not supposed to).

That doesn’t even mention the in-the-trenches crew they’ve cultivated (Joe Haggerty on hockey was a GREAT freelance hire as was Paul Flannery on the Celts and more than I ever imagined, Mike Petraglia as a jack of all trades).

The web site has been able to inform, entertain and extend the WEEI brand into a space – The Web – that it desperately needed a presence in. They’ve had some some hiccups (design/layout/navigation is still a mess) and I still question that initial hire of Ron Borges, but if you’re asking for a grade on what they’ve done in a short period of time, in a marketplace that is trembling with fear, I’d say it’s a solid B-Plus. Even that should probably be grade-curved up because they’re doing it all under the direction of Entercom’s notoriously fickle regime. The Big E is making cuts all over, but they have been solidly behind the venture at WEEI.com and they need to be commended for that.

And don’t forget, Murphy and Bradford have consistently pointed to January/February as when they will be fully up and running with bells, whistles and maybe even a few more “big name” additions. You can’t give a true judgment until at least 9 or more likely 12 months. They started with virtually nothing as a foundation and now have a very sturdy base (including some eye-catching story art to tease the content).

AR: Where, if anywhere, do you think they’ve been less impressive?
DS: It’s not really “less impressive,” but some of the execution has been lacking because they don’t really have a full-time “Big Picture” guy. Rob and Alex are writing and editing a good deal and that takes time away (understandably so) from thinking about how to package and present stories and use WEEI’s multi-media resources. Instead of bringing on more out-front folks that don’t quite fit**, I’d like to see them bring in a dedicated content configurer who could focus on gaining eyeballs and increasing the site’s visibility. [NOTE: The addition of Christopher Price is an encouraging sign that could help in the area of big picture planning as Price will have editing duties.]

**Just as an aside, I haven’t seen the Leitch presence pay off. I emailed with Will early on about finding his groove within the context of both Boston and WEEI and he admitted then it would be a process. Mailbags have been weak and the columns haven’t quite knocked my socks off. The thing(s) he did with Flannery fell way short and he’s almost too timid as the “Outsider” – like he doesn’t want to offend the good people of Boston? Please. These people deserve to be offended with their boorish behavior.

I am leaning toward his shortcomings in this market being a result of WEEI’s Meathead Factor. There’s just too many Pete Sheppard worshippers that don’t understand the innate genius of Will and he may be trying to cater to them too much.

ALSO, From what I can gather, a good deal of the radio guys aren’t very receptive to being “used” on the web without compensation. Pretty ludicrous from a crew that should just be happy to be employed at all.

AR: And how much of a threat do you think they pose to the Globe and the Herald?
DS: They’ve already done loops around the woeful Boston Herald’s sports-web presence. That wasn’t even a contest. And, to their credit, they’ve certainly pushed the Globe on several fronts (live-blogging, for instance) but for now Boston.com’s reach and established name are too big and too entrenched to allow for a start-up like WEEI.com to truly register. If Entercom stays the course and lets Bradford manage his personnel and find a nuts-and-bolts overseer, it will be the Globe and WEEI.com duking it out for the No. 1 spot in the region’s sports infotainment delivery.

The Shotty for Most Frustrating Re-Design of a Sports Section

The Boston Globe (specifically Sunday notes columns)

Amid all the turmoil and comings and goings that Joe Sullivan has had to deal with for the Globies, it’s the static, glacially evolving sports page that may be the most egregious error of the past year. Instead of figuring out more and better ways to integrate the print product into the electronic copy, Sullivan’s crew continues to tiptoe around making bold changes and instead settles for inconsistent and incomplete moves. The print needs to drive the web and the web needs to drive the print and right now, that synergy is still lacking.

As for the debacle that is the Sunday notes columns, Sulivan allowed for some new designs and elements, but not all of them are treated equally across sports and the result is hard to follow, sloppily laid out notebooks that frustrate more than they inform. I’d like to see them blow up the notes entirely and figure out a way to make them relevant and newsworthy again. As you’d assume, I’ve got tons of ideas, but no one’s asked me for them. Yet.

The insistence on giving Stan Grossfeld space for his Sunday photo play of “What they were thinking?” is a Sully stubbornness at its worst. Each Sunday we ask, “What are YOU thinking by continuing with this feature?”

On the web side, there seems to have been a reluctance to embrace the Cover It Live software for live-blogging, something WEEI.com continues to experiment (successfully) with.

Sully is probably looking at one more major defection in the next calendar year (Rookie of the Year Marc Spears has drawn national interest, according to industry sources), but after he deals with that, he needs to get everyone on staff thinking about one thing and one thing only: Making the Globe sports page come alive on the web every hour of every day.

The Shotty for the Region’s Most Complete Media Talent

Mike Reiss, Boston.com/Boston Globe

Retire this award and call it “The Reissy.” We’ve long been unabashed and unyielding advocates for the work of Reiss, but this past year he took everything up a notch to a point where larger, more significant, national job opportunities are surely in the offing for the Umie stalwart. His blog skills are legendary, but he has spread his wings more on TV reporting for NESN and offering astute, measured and reasonable commentary on any number of outlets (chiefly for undeserving WBZTV and the passable WCVB “Patriots All-Acccess”).

The best part? Reiss still remains one of the most liked, most humble and most respected media members in the entire region – no easy task with the piranhas that populate the local scene.

• And finally, some quick Shotties in various categories:

Best New Blood in the Market
Adam Kilgore, Boston Globe – His baseball coverage has already been fantastic, but we’re actually looking forward to having him spice up the college hoops coverage in the region, especially with Boston as a host site in March. Sully can’t hog all the college hoops for himself.

Worst Old Blood in the Market
Pete Sheppard, WEEI – Sheppard will have to accept this on behalf of his fellow unqualified morons who he shares studio space with daily. It really is a group honor for the Meat Men, who continue to exemplify the very worst elements of sports coverage in the region and indeed, the country. When Sheppard appeared at the “VIP table” of a recent Phantom Gourmet episode with one of Eddie Andelman’s annoying offspring, we were left to wonder what exactly the VIP stood for? Very Ignorant or Virtually Incompetent Person?

Oh, and of course, Butch Stearns.

You’ll Be Missed Shotty
Take your pick here. The market lost Jeff Horrigan from the Herald when he abandoned the business and the city. Likable Laura Behnke, who shone for NECN and Comcast SportsNet headed west. The talented and capable folks over at CN8, where Shots always enjoyed playing TV dude, got discarded. Jeff Goldberg also got bumped at the Hartford Courant and Steven Krasner at the crumbling ProJo sports desk. Those are some tough losses to overcome for any market, but especially one that values quality people doing quality work.

Maybe the biggest loss of all was the little man from down South Coast way, Danny Pires. I still find myself wanting to hit Dan with a wise-ass email or phone call and long to read and hear his wise-ass response. Rest peacefully, DP.

You Won’t Be Missed Shotty
Hazel Mae, NESN – The power of a very good agent at IMG helped Hazel land a job with the January 1-launching MLB network but we stand by our assessment that Mae is far from a national talent. She will need a strong producer and good behind-the-scenes folks to make her a marquee talent for Tony Petitti’s gang.

Let’s also throw Babbling Bob Lobel into this category, although he will never fully go away, no matter how much we wish for it. And of course, despite a re-appearance this week, we say a hearty farewell to Mustard and Johnson.

And, for other reasons entirely, Bob Gamere.

Lastly, this is probably a good place to put the former Boston Sports Guy, Bill Simmons. What? He hasn’t gone anywhere? Oh. My bad. All those hissy fits and Shawshank rebellions during 2008 had me thinking Simmons just had to get out from under the wrath of the Mouse Ears.

Guess it was all just artistic differences. Maybe in Ought-Nine, Simmons can just appreciate how good he has it and focus on the writing that he can still do so well.

Most Questionable Moves by One Newspaper
The Boston Herald – From the (mis)handling of the John Tomase affair and the (mis)hiring of Ron Borges, the Wingo Wayers did some very tabloidy things over the course of 2008, but the payoffs have not been substantial and the paper continues to lag far behind in Web presence. They are the little train that could and we always like rooting for the underdog, but the Herald needs to start making some serious hay on the web side and spicing up its back page if it wants to have relevance in this town. The Herald hired Borges to be his provocative, bombastic self and instead they’ve been given Timid Ron – and they still have never addressed Borges’s boxing connections, despite still using him for coverage of fights put on by his former employer, Oscar De La Hoya. Readers deserved explanation when Borges was hired and they still deserve one today.

Funniest Oversight by a Local Media Organization.
The Tiny Member photo, Boston Globe.

Some other favorites from 2008 in Shots’ coverage:

Callahan v. Simers

Kimball v. Halloran

Sad exit from ProJo for Sean McAdam

Wilbon takes on Kimbo

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

Scott’s first book, with Memphis Coach John Calipari, is scheduled for release in the Fall of 2009 and is now available for pre-order.

As if to show just how serious they are about being an Internet player, WEEI.com today (8/18/08) announces the addition of Deadspin founder, Will Leitch, to its rapidly expanding line-up of writers. Leitch – tabbed as “The Outsider” – will write twice-monthly (every other Wednesday) for the site and offers up a “Hello, Boston” piece today. In short, Leitch told Scott’s Shots joining the WEEI.com team was an easy decision, as he had previously felt the power of ‘EEI and it shook him to his soul. Sort of.

“When I was on the book tour,” Leitch explained via email over the weekend, “I bet I did 8 to 10 radio interviews a day for the first three weeks. Only one of them earned any appreciable traction: WEEI.

“Every Boston friend I have is oddly meticulous about the station; they know who’s on at pretty much every hour, and can psychologically break down every broadcaster for biases, weaknesses and favorite in-break snack,” said Leitch. “It’s pretty difficult to find any community like that anywhere. Plus, you know, they asked.”

Doing the asking was Rob Bradford, the site’s content overlord as well as a featured writer. Bradford had never met nor spoken with Leitch, but he recognized the slightly deranged Midwesterner as one of the most important Internet sports voices of the decade and figured, “. . . you never know. Couldn’t hurt to ask,” said Bradford in an extensive phone interview on Friday. “The goal for WEEI.com is to get the best people, to be creative and to be ahead of the curve. Will has built his reputation with his creativity.

“He will provide an outsider’s view on Boston sports,” he said. “We sometimes lose ourselves in our own little world here. He’ll bring perspective as to how we’re being perceived from (beyond Route 495).”

Leitch, who left Deadspin this summer for a spot at New York Magazine, is also contributing to The Sporting News and working on another book “about baseball.” He is well aware of the sharpened fangs (and unique users) that will surely accompany his arrival at WEEI.com.

“Oh, I’m certainly not counting on any sort of acceptance. I honestly have no idea how this will work,” he said. “They’ve given me pretty free reign with it, but, from the get-go, I’m making it as clear as possible that I’m no expert in Boston sports. That’s why I hope it will be fun. I think when you’re in the middle of the maelstrom, it can be difficult to fathom how the rest of the world sees you.

“Right now, Boston is the most compelling sports city in America; it’s not even close,” he said. “I’m hoping to tap into that. Look at the Manny situation. When he started acting up, the rest of the planet was like, ‘Well, there he goes again. They’ll figure it out, like they always do.’

“Boston fans knew better; they knew the atmosphere had changed. That’s amazing to me. The city’s fandom is a palpable, breathing thing; it’s fascinating to watch,” said Leitch, 32. “I want to try to figure that out. I’ll probably fail. But hopefully it’ll be fun trying. And hey: I’ve been writing online for a long time. I can certainly take whatever criticism comes my way; I’m sure I’ll deserve just about all of it.”

With Leitch joining the ranks of Boston’s bloggers, the city will now have claims on both the Grandfather of New Media Sports “coverage” (Bill Simmons) and the Godfather of the genre (Leitch).

“I’d be pretty honored to be compared to Simmons, until you realize how poorly one measures up to Simmons, and then I’m screwed,” said Leitch. “Simmons oozed Boston sports from his pores back in the day; I won’t be doing that. I couldn’t if I tried. But hey, nobody wants a St. Louis Sports Guy. If people are expecting me to be a new Simmons, they’ll be sorely disappointed. But I don’t think anybody expects that.”

Mostly, as Leitch will learn, the Boston sports media consumer wants full effort and full interest in the topics. Leitch seems to know that and appears to be reaching a tipping point for side projects.

“My plate’s pretty full right now. I’m working on the next book. . . I’m writing a page for The Sporting News in every issue and, of course, working at New York mag, which is more fun than I could have imagined.

“Everyone here is so freaking smart; I’m honored they think I could possibly keep up. (I can’t.),” he said. “And, of course, I’ll keep popping by Deadspin whenever (Leitch’s replacement) AJ (Daulerio) lets me.”

• Okay, now that you have digested the Leitch role for fledgling WEEI.com. it’s probably a good idea to do a little re-set here before we get too deep into all of this. The web site is on the verge of announcing several hires in addition to this list we have already compiled in prior posts:

– Rob Bradford (Full-time, content editor/writer)
– Alex Speier (Full-time, editor/writing)
– Mike Felger (Weekly Patriots Report Card and Mailbag)
– Ron Borges (A post-game column and a Friday offering)
– Jeff Goodman (Basketball offering)

Shots has also confirmed through WEEI.com that the website is also bringing aboard:

– Mike Petraglia (Contributor with audio and writing)
– Carlson Mozdiez (Full-time – was Webmaster/Marketing/Promotions and will add blogging and continue with technical side expertise)
– Gary (Marbry) From Chapel Hill (Contributor of Nuggetpalooza)
– Kirk Minihane (Contributor, Fantasy Football writer)
– Some type of “Onion”-like Boston-focused contribution
– Sean Casey of the Red Sox (likely for video-logging)
- An offering from ‘EEI producers.

Also, there will be some special debut Monday introductory offerings from Leitch, Felger, Borges et al.

(The transition to some new content will take time, as you’ll see in cruising the site – best bet is probably to go to the “Columnists/Blogs” tab.)

The immediate result of all this is what launches today at WEEI.com, but both Bradford and Vice Prsident/General Manager, Tim Murphy, emphasize this is only a beginning of what they both ultimately envision as a major destination site for Boston Sports Fans.

“This is a ground-breaking, not a ribbon-cutting,” said Murphy in an exclusive interview with Shots last week. “Hopefully by the end of January, we will be (at full capacity). First, we have to become ‘must-bookmark’ and I think we’re well on our way to that (with this first round of development).”

For now, the Entercom entrance into the arena has set off a slight flurry of shuffling at the Globe.

“I want to make this point clear,” said an invigorated and fiery Bradford. “These initial moves weren’t done just to have people talking about us for a day or two. I believe Ron (Borges) is amongst the best at what he does. His game column in the Globe was always must-read. The day he left that paper, it became a worse paper.

“We approached Will because he is one of the most creative and talented writers out there today,” said Bradford. “We’re getting the best people at what they do and that will mean a combination of old school journalists and new media people as well.”

Tempering the simmering competition a bit, Murphy is presently content with sharing the market’s Internet pie.

“We’re not trying to emulate Boston.com or BostonHerald.com and we don’t necessarily have to beat them or replace them,” said Murphy. “We’ll offer a unique perspective and be a source of both news and entertainment and we’ll do it with a new cast of editorial voices to add to the compelling and informative audio content we already have from WEEI.”

As for the early controversy that accompanied news of the Borges acquisition, Bradford is steadfast in his belief that Borges is committed and, quite possibly driven to silence his detractors.

“When I talked to Ron, the only thing I needed to know from him was whether he was ready to kick some butt,” said Bradford. “He is. Some people will forget (about his past) and some won’t and I get that. But I think he is motivated to put some of that stuff to rest and that motivation serves us well.”

(A Scott’s Shots attempt to interview Borges was rebuffed by WEEI.com’s PR agency of record.)

The all-in approach to the web-side is a new one for an Entercom entity, but as Murphy pointed out, WEEI is a pretty advanced laboratory to experiment in.

“In many ways, WEEI is an anomaly in the radio world,” Murphy said. “The depth of penetration in 25-54 year old male demographic is incredible. It’s the model for (this segment of) radio in many ways.

“Any media company that reaches a broad segment is at a point now where they have to act quickly to leverage these assets they have,” said Murphy. “That’s what Entercom – and David Field – is doing by investing in the web. This is the way broadcasting in general is going.”

Murphy said the WEEI.com is generating 250,000 unique visitors per month now (8,300 per day, which seems high for a mostly static site) and he hopes to have that number at 1 million per month by the end of 2009. The task is daunting, but Murphy thinks he’s got a leg up.

“What scares me is that there’s a large graveyard full of the web entries that had huge traffic but couldn’t monetize it,” said Murphy. “WEEI has already done that and this will allows us to further that. The site as it is, is currently profitable.”

. . . Murphy promised an updated look and feel for the site, an optimization of the audio search feature and easier navigation.

. . . Murphy on Borges and Felger: “Ron and Mike will perspective that will be somewhat in contrast to a lot of what is on the air and that will help give a 360 degree perspective on the Patriots.”

. . . Murphy on Borges: “We’re very comfortable bringing Ron on board and he’s eager to re-establish himself. He was must-read in the Globe. We’re aware of his past and he’s excited to move forward.”

. . . Bradford on what appeals to him about the opportunity at WEEI.com: “It’s a clean slate, we can mold things the way we want. We’ve got resources, we’re not doing this on the cheap and we’ve also got all this amazing audio to use, which no one else has.”

. . . Bradford on the reaction from people who discover he left an Old Media stalwart for a New Media start-up: “People get it. They know what this opportunity is. It’s cool that people are seeing what I saw when I took the job.”

. . . It’s reasonable to expect a Celtics columnist to be brought on in the coming weeks. Shots confirmed that Jackie MacMullan was pursued aggressively but currently she is too busy on her own book project to contribute to WEEI.com. That likely is a fluid situation and could change at any time. Peter May is probably also in the mix, but we’d rather see an up-and-comer grab the Celts spot.

. . . Bradford will be with the red Sox in Baltimore on his first official WEEI.com road-trip.

• Here are the Next Three Things, WEEI.com should seriously consider doing (in order of import):

1.Get an exclusive deal with a video partner, preferably Comcast Sports Network. There are already logical tie-ins with the regional network (Felger, Bradford) and a partnering would benefit both sides (especially CSN, which has yet to deliver on its promise of a “news-gathering” division). It allows for even more cross-promotion and gives the station another good Celtics tie-in.

2.Get a woman. Yahoo! Sports has done wonders with its morning Sports Minute update featuring a competent, attractive young lady. WEEI.com can do the very same things on a local level and probably use the very same sponsor already supporting the Y! offering – Dunkin’ Donuts.

3.Get an on-air show that prominently incorporates WEEI.com. This will have to be a “test kitchen” type of experiment, but one that could pay big dividends. By using a block of programming (weekend or late night, we’d guess) the station would be able to simultaneously promote the website and engage users with polls, email questions and on-line interactivity. Let Bradford and Speier have run of the studio and see what they come up with. It would have to be better than the current Saturday offerings of Musty, The Tracer and Butchie The Mayor, right?

• John Dennis admitted last week that he – and others at WEEI – were, at first, skeptical of what WEEI.com would actually be. The cynics rolled their eyes, Dennis said.

“But we were dead wrong,” Dennis said. “This is not out of altruism that they are doing this. This is the next revenue stream and they see that.

“It’s not unlike what the Red Sox have done,” he said. “They saw they could earn revenue from putting signage on the Wall. They saw they could get naming rights money. You drill holes and see what comes up from (beneath). For WEEI.com, they aren’t cutting any corners. I think it has potential to be (a game-changer).

“I think, in their wildest dreams, they probably see that it could become as a local version of ESPN.com, with all these ways to cross-promote and sell,” Dennis said.

He laid out a scenario where he could envision an existing major sponsor at the station expanding its reach by sponsoring some exclusive “Dennis and Callahan” audio at WEEI.com

• LEITCH LEFTOVERS:

. . . We couldn’t help but notice that Leitch now has slices of New York and Boston in his repertoire, we asked if LA was far behind?

“Well, all columns about LA would start three paragraphs in and end four paragraphs early. And those would be a bitch to edit,” he said.

Hear that Manny? Will Kills L.A.

. . . We let Leitch “out of here” with a closer that asked him to name three ways St. Louis (he is a lifelong Cards diehards card-carrying member) and Boston sports fans are alike and three ways they are different.

His reply:

SIMILARITIES:
1. Fans are extremely knowledgeable, devoted and respectful of history.
2. You get the sense that every fan at the home stadium would never want to be anywhere else than sitting in those stands.
3.The football team can do whatever it wants, but it’ll never compare to the baseball team.

DIFFERENCES

1. Cardinals fans STILL lustily cheer a groundout to the second baseman if it moves the runner to third. Boston fans are not that lame.
2. It is still possible to get tickets to a game at Busch Stadium.
3. Your signature city beer is still brewed and owned by Americans. (If Cincinnati still counts as “America.”) Ours? Not so much.

• According to the Boston Globe review of GSTF, Leitch has termed some of local sports figures thusly:

“. . . he describes Manny Ramirez as a ‘dingbat Red Sox slugger,’ Sox pitcher Curt Schilling as not ‘satisfied until he is deemed king,’ and Bill Belichick as the ‘Napoleonic Patriots coach’ hated by ‘anyone who happens not to work for him’. . .”

• Asked by the New York Post’s always-entertaining Lenn Robbins to name his “(f)avorite sport other than football,” Boston College linebacker Brian Toal answered, “Beer pong” in a Sunday Q&A with New Jersey LBs. Funny, or a trend or both?

• Herald Sports Editor Hank Hryniewicz responded to an email from Shots regarding the recent departures on Wingo Way by saying, rather defiantly, via email, “I’ve known Tony (Massarotti) as a friend for nearly two decades and as a co-worker for almost as long. Although I will miss the daily give-and-take I’ve enjoyed with Tony along with his contributions to the Herald, we’re already in the process of interviewing candidates to fill the vacancies on our sports staff.”

• The WEEI/NESN Radio-Telethon for the Jimmy Fund really knocked it out of the park by surpassing it’s $4 million goal by $800,000. Well done, folks. Especially the NESN people who were able to let the pictures tell so many stories.

• The WEEI.com press release on the “ground-breaking”:

WEEI.com Announces All-Star Roster Additions

Deadspin.com founder Will Leitch and former Boston Globe sportswriter Ron Borges headline latest additions to WEEI.com

BOSTON (August 18, 2008) – WEEI.com announced today the additions of six first-rate journalists joining its staff, along with the first upgrade to the website’s content and design. Joining WEEI.com editor Rob Bradford and columnist Mike Felger are a collection of top print and online journalists with excellent experience and reputations both in Boston and nationally.

Will Leitch, the founder of popular sports blog Deadspin.com, will be joining WEEI.com to provide an outsider’s look at Boston sports and its fans. Leitch has authored three books, including “God Save the Fan” and is currently a contributing editor to New York Magazine.

Ron Borges is a 24-year veteran of the Boston Globe, serving as the Patriots beat writer, national football writer and boxing reporter. He will serve as a columnist for WEEI.com covering the Patriots and national football news. Borges has received many awards and praise throughout his writing career, including being named Massachusetts Sports Writer of the Year by the National Association of Sportswriters and Sports Broadcasters five times since 1999.

Baseball writing veteran Alex Speier assist in handling the Red Sox beat and serve as Online Content Manager for WEEI.com. Speier is a graduate of Harvard University and has covered the Red Sox for several local and national publications, including the New Hampshire Union Leader, Boston Metro, Boston Herald and Baseball America.

“We’ve assembled a great new team at WEEI.com,” said Bradford. “It is an amazing collection of talent and I think that New England sports fans will enjoy the new voices and content our website is putting out. WEEI.com will be a great complement to the best sports radio station in the country.”

Also joining WEEI.com are Mike Petraglia, Jeff Goodman and Gary Marbry. Petraglia has more than 15 years experience covering Boston sports and will be contributing real time updates and breaking news to the site. Goodman is a basketball writer for Fox Sports and will write a column on professional and local college basketball. Marbry, better known as “Gary from Chapel Hill,” is WEEI.com’s stat geek. He’ll contribute to the site regularly examining sports through a number cruncher’s perspective.

WEEI.com will work as a complementary medium to WEEI Radio Network, taking the market’s top audio content and having it readily available online, while using the radio station to drive traffic to the website. Audio content, including weekly interviews with Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and Terry Francona, will be easily available for users. WEEI veteran Carlson Mozdiez will handle this aspect of the site, shifting from the marketing and promotions department to take on the role of Digital Radio Content Manager.

“This isn’t a ribbon cutting, it’s a ground-breaking,” WEEI.com Vice President and General Manager Tim Murphy said. “These are just our first steps in creating a website that will provide the more local sports content than anyone else in Boston. Our aim is to, over time, make WEEI.com a must-bookmark site for news, opinions and fun features about the local sports scene.”

Among the new content today on WEEI.com is “Patriots 360,” a complement to the radio station’s Patriots Monday and Friday. Felger will grade the Pats every Tuesday in his report card and also answer questions in a weekly mailbag. Borges will write a GameDay column, as well as other pieces centered around the Patriots throughout the week. In addition, Patriots 360 will feature updates from Gillette Stadium throughout the week and a collection of links to stories, statistics and features to make WEEI.com a must read for Patriots fans.

WEEI.com is also creating a dedicated Red Sox area on the site as the team drives toward the playoffs. Bradford and Speier will provide original content throughout the week, along with audio, links and other features. WEEI.com will also have exclusive content from Red Sox first baseman Sean Casey and other players, offering insight from the clubhouse and showing behind the scenes look at the defending World Series champions.

Log onto WEEI.com to see the website’s first upgrade and for all new content and contributors.

Entercom is one of the nation’s largest radio broadcasters with operations in San Francisco, Boston, Seattle, Denver, Sacramento, Cincinnati, Portland, Kansas City, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Austin, Norfolk, Buffalo, New Orleans, Providence, Memphis, Greensboro, Rochester, Greenville/Spartanburg, Madison, Wichita, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Springfield and Gainesville/Ocala.

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

Scott’s first book, with Memphis Coach John Calipari, is scheduled for release in the Fall of 2009.

In yet another stunning blow to the battered Boston Herald sports section, general columnist and Red Sox specialist, Tony Massarotti is leaving One Herald Square, crossing over Route 93, will land smack dab on Joe Sullivan’s sports staff at the Boston Globe/Boston.com. Adam Reilly at the Phoenix had the inter-Globe memo announcing the move on Thursday evening and Bruce Allen did a nice follow-up as well (including bumps for Amalie Benjamin and Chad Finn) and so did Dan Kennedy.

Massarotti, who was at Fenway last night for the Herald, spoke of the move to Scott’s Shots in the 9 o’clock hour.

“I gave my notice (Thursday) to Hank Hryniewicz,” said Massarotti. “I’ll still do the Baltimore and New York series for the Herald and should start with the Globe at the beginning of next month.”

Massarotti, who has danced with the Globe before, will fill a mainly on-line role for Boston.com’s Red Sox coverage, but there is also a print element to the job as well.

“The idea is to have a bit of a hybrid position between the web site and the paper with an on-line emphasis,” he said. “It will be largely baseball to start but there’s no real restrictions on this position. There are million things to do with it. There will be a lot of trial and error.

“This issue of what my job title would be came up during (talks with Sullivan),” Massarotti said. “I don’t know if there is one for what I’ll be doing and I don’t care if there isn’t.”

The switch mean that Mazz’s relationship with WEEI 850 AM will have to cease (due to Globe policy forbidding appearances on the station, in place since 1999) and it will also diminish whatever role Mazz had on Comcast SportsNet, as he will now be have to give first dibs to NESN.

Interestingly, Massarotti confirmed to Shots that he had been in “extensive” discussions with WEEI.com as well. “Eventually, I had to look at it and say that WEEI.com is a start up. The Boston Globe is a long-established media outlet and they’re not going anywhere,” he said. “I couldn’t see leaving a place I had been for almost 20 years, to go to what is basically a start-up.”

. . . In one fell swoop, Sullivan continues Wingo Way’s Summer of Discontent by stealing another of Hank Herald’s Top 3 talents AND enhancing his own staff’s recently-diminished Sox coverage. This is the media world’s equivalent of losing a superstar within the division and for Hank Herald it is another is a series of blows that leaves his already-thin staff looking gaunt.

Mazz, a 1989 Tufts alum, has been at the Herald since 1989 and has blossomed during the rise of Boston’s Big Three, frequently appearing on ESPN (which will continue) and somewhat regularly stirring up the masses. In 2001, he was named the best sportswriter in Massachusetts, according to the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association, becoming the first Herald sportswriter to win the honor over a decade. He covered UMass basketball during the Calipari days and in 1994 slid over to the Red Sox beat for the paper.

“I’ve literally known (Hank Herald) since I was 17 years old,” said Mazz, who grew up in Watertown and Waltham. “The hardest part of this whole thing was leaving the Herald. Hank is a friend of mine, not just my boss. But (the Globe position) was a unique opportunity and I couldn’t say no to it.

“This is a progressive and proactive attempt to integrate the paper and the web,” he said. “Too often at papers, there is a segregation between the two sides. Hopefully this will erase that line.”

. . . One Globe mole summed up the news this way, “It’s nice to be talking about an addition (for a change).”

True dat. In these days of lay-offs, buyouts and paper sales, it is interesting to note that the Boston Globe is finding a way to hire high-level talent by putting them on the web side and simultaneously buoying the print side (and TV) AND weakening the immediate competition.

. . . ANALYSIS OF GLOBE HIRING MASSAROTTI:

Gordon Who? After a prolonged separation from Gordon Edes, Joe Sullivan moved relatively quickly in filling the spot vacated by Edes and turning it into a web/print “hybrid” as Massarotti called it. He also set the wheels in motion to provide a young, eager back-up for Private Benjamin while leaving Nick Cafardo in place to continue his “On Baseball” (and other) role(s).

Mazz hasn’t exactly been a blogging maniac at the Herald, but he has shown glimpses and the enthusiasm in his voice on Thursday night at the Globe opportunity would indicate he’s ready to make the most of his new job. There’s no question he’s got the voice and gumption to make his presence felt.

Sullivan’s enhanced use of Finn is also encouraging and the ambiguity of his new title “sports news reporter” allows for a vast use of his considerable talent – from blogging to storytelling to “list”ing.

Overall, Sully had himself a day and the war between Boston.com and WEEI.com can now be advanced to a combative stage because. . .

• Scott’s Shots has confirmed the emerging rumor that ex-Boston Globe and accused plagiarist Ron Borges will be part of the re-launched effort at WEEI.com.

“I think (it’s) a pretty bold move,” said WEEI’s Gerry Callahan via email. “I know I look forward to reading him.”

“He’ll make the Patriots nervous and I’m sure Bill Belichick will be pissed off having him back around,” said Callahan’s co-host, John Dennis. “(Borges) is someone who compels you to log on and read what he has written. Yeah, he’s stubbed his toe a few times. But he knows what he’s doing and he’s still extremely well connected throughout the league.”

Although neither Dennis nor Callahan were sure on the specific role that Borges will play for the website, a separate WEEI.com source confirmed Borges will be writing a Patriots-centric column, twice weekly for the site (one post-game and one later in the week). Borges and previously-announced acquisition Mike Felger, will anchor the site’s Pats’ coverage. It’s still not clear how much – if any – air time Borges will receive on WEEI.

“I’m not sure how much cross-pollenization there will be,” said Dennis. “But I would have him on our show, sure.”

Shots has also confirmed two other “gets” for WEEI.com’s editor Rob Bradford: The first is a full-time hire in Alex Speier, the Union-Leader writer and Boston Herald contributor, who will – like Bradford – both edit and write for the site exclusively.

Also joining the roster will be Foxsports.com’s Jeff Goodman who will do for WEEI.com what he had been doing for the Herald during college basketball season, namely providing a national notes column. Goodman is allowed, per the terms of his deal with Foxsports.com, to provide content for another outlet and it appears he will now do so for ‘EEI.com, instead of the Herald. (The move is thus a double-blow to the forever in-flux sports pages of the Little Tabloid That Could.)

More staffing and contributor names are expected to emerge in the coming days. The WEEI.com site will gradually roll out its new elements and design over the coming months and hopes to be fully operational by the end of January 2009.

. . . ANALYSIS OF WEEI.COM TAPPING BORGES:

Well, WEEI.com’s Vice President and General Manager, Tim Murphy, continues to make eye-opening and “sexy” hires as he ramps up his website to do battle with the big boys in Boston sports media. In grabbing Bradford, Murphy immediately gained a popular and New Media-savvy captain to steer his ship content-wise. Felger, too, was a wise and relatively safe move and served the dual purpose of puncturing the (ahem) competition (890 AM ESPN and the Herald) while fortifying the site’s Pats’ analysis and click-worthiness.

As for Borges, Entercom is going to get a quick bang for its buck, but the true test will be whether Borges can be consistent and controversial without going too far over the edge (as he clearly did with the Globe).

Leopards rarely change their spots and Borges has shown almost no commitment to the site that bears his own name. Why should we believe he will “get after it” for a new employer? Better yet, what kind of statement does it make when one of your top five hires is associated with such an inglorious moment in Boston sports media history?

But a lightning rod drives traffic and Muprhy and Bradford apparently believe they can control Borges and use him to their advantage. There’s no question he will draw attention to the site.

We will – as always – reserve full judgment until Borges and WEEI.com have had some time to prove themselves, but for now count us as a skeptical observer at best.

. . . For all the bluster, bullying and bravado that can accompany the Borges hire, it is the full-time position given to Speier that will most likely be the biggest benefit for Entercom. Long-considered a rising star in the market, Speier had maintained a full-time job at a local university in addition to his myriad writing gigs. Like Bradford, he has never been afraid to go outside the box and the pairing of the two on Red Sox coverage puts WEEI.com on near-level footing with almost every outlet in the region, right from jump street.

. . . Foxborough frequenters can’t remember the last time Borges has been seen at Patriots Place, but surely with this new gig (in addition to the other work he has been doing), Borges’ return to The Razor will be forthcoming. That will be must-see video of the HC’s presser when Borges makes an inquiry to B-sqaured. Hope WEEI.com is wise enough to get footage of it!

To paraphrase Rick Pitino, the negativity on this blogs SUCKS!

In recognition of that (but in no way abandoning my inner-bitter), we give to you a brief, final feel-good Scott’s Shots entry for this day in which we urge you to completely ignore us in favor of reading (or re-reading) this from WEEI and the Boston Herald’s Gerry Callahan. And then by filling out this donation form as we did in honor of “Papa,” who was served righteously by the good folks at the Pawtucket Dana Farber facility:

“I deny it if any one asks,” said John Dennis on Thursday afternoon, “but I missed him. I compare it to a double play combination that gets separated because of injury or trade. You lose that comfort level.”

It was last summer around this time and Dennis’s co-host on the 6 a.m. to 10 .m. “Dennis and Callahan” show at WEEI 850 AM was in the midst of dealing with what we now know was a malignant polyp on – of all things – his throat. (It was also during the time that D&C were in a tumultuous negotiation process with Entercom.) From April through September, Dennis’s Joe Morgan had lost his Dave Concepcion in Callahan, and Dennis was one of the few to know the full details of his partner’s absence (which, among other things, resulted in the duo missing what Dennis called, at the time, “the most important thing we do all year long, the Jimmy Fund Telethon.”)

Now, a year removed from the contentiousness and posturing that dominated the ultimate contract renewal for the powerful pair, Dennis realizes he learned more about his sidekick during that four-month hiatus, than he had in ten years on air at ‘EEI.

“More than anything it exposed a human side of Gerry – and I don’t mean this derogatorily, but there is the tough, gruff exterior than accompanies Gerry on the surface,” said Dennis, after just completing an emcee role at Thursday’s “Trophy Talk.” “He was scared to death and was facing mortality and everything that comes with it.”

As for Dennis, he felt the best thing he could do was to shepherd the show through Callahan’s absence. “That was actually a good distraction for me from Gerry’s situation,” said Dennis. “I still had to make sure that no matter who I was on with, that we were doing a good show.”

. . . Dennis acknowledged that this year’s goal of $4 million goal is ambitious but the way the now- two-day event has become a part of the summer in Boston sports is helping – even in a fluctuating economy. “People now expect this event, there’s no need to explain it to people any more. They know it, they look forward to it and they realize what it’s about.

“It will be tough to reach that goal with the gas prices are, the political climate, the on-coming concern of winter heating bills,” said Dennis, who lost his father to the disease in March of 2005. “But this touches EVERYBODY. During the kick-off on Thursday, the phones were ringing off the hook.”

Let’s keep ‘em ringing folks.

Thanks,

Shots

• In celebration of Chad Finn’s promotion, we offer a tribute in the form of a Completely Random Olympic YouTube video, complete with dancing girls in bikinis and trashed Westerners. (Hint to Shots’ Journalist friends in Beijing – Get thee to the beach volleyball venue, QUICKLY):

• Oh, and the end of an era. Best sports talk radio tandem EVER.

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

Scott’s first book, with Memphis Coach John Calipari, is scheduled for release in the Fall of 2009.

With a week to digest the rather compelling WEEI.com news that Shots led the way on late last week, it’s clearly time for a Winners and Losers edition of “As the Boston Sports Media Market Turns”:

WINNER
Glenn Ordway

The biggest – in every sense – winner is none other than Glenn “Pay Day” Ordway, whose contract is expiring with WEEI 850 AM. Ordway has the leverage of a Posey and the WEEI.com component of the equation could very well make Ordway famously wealthy, should he manipulate the web extensions to his benefit. (Similar to Posey, Ordway is going to want the extra year AND the extra dollars.)

Some of the things Ordway can now roll into his contract demands would be additional monies for live-streaming (or TV broadcasting) of The Big Show; exclusive on-line chats with the Big-O; a “Big O Big Blog”; Interactive elements to his show; and whatever other scams Ordway and his handlers can figure out.

With all that the Big O has meant to the station, ‘EEI pretty much needs to show him the money.

In short, Ordway is probably just weeks away from becoming the town’s highest paid sports media personality ever. And considering some of the stupid money that’s been thrown around this town (Hello, WCVB and WBZ!), that’s saying something.

LOSER
Local Mainstream Sports Websites

Boston.com’s sports package on the web probably doesn’t need to start quaking in its big boots just yet, but we’d suggest that the Boston Herald’s digital sports division might want to get a move on things. Without Bradford’s blog, the meager Herald site is sure to lose traffic and loyalists.

Further, Bradford’s pending arrival in the New Balance Building means that he’s going to be given the keys to some very interesting toys, aka resources. Video, written word, spoken word and community development options will all be elements available to Bradford. (Might be worth looking at what the Worldwide Leader is doing with something it’s calling “Streak for Cash.” In essence, it’s building brand loyalty and offering fabulous cash and cache prizes.

Bradford thought out of the box on the beat and he will have to continue to go where others fear to tread in his new content editor role for WEEI.com. Best yet, he will still be allowed to spread his wings as a writer.

WINNER/LOSER
Hank Hryniewicz

It’s a mixed bag for Help Me Hank, the Herald’s resourceful sports editor. On the one hand he loses Bradford, a true talent and a voice that popped from his pages (web and print).

On the other hand, he has a built-in escape hatch that can plop John Tomase right on to the Red Sox beat and keep him away from Foxborough, where the whole situation is bound to be a festering sore unless Tomase is quietly shifted off football and back onto baseball. We’re told it’s Tomase’s sport of choice and he has done some of his best work from the clubhouse, not the locker room.

The Bradford departure affords everyone at the Herald a more workable situation with Karen Guregian able to take lead duties and Jeff Horrigan and Tony Mazz able to augment her efforts. Throw in Buck and a couple of Callahan classics and the Pats beat is covered pretty securely while the Sox beat gets the best available replacement for Bradford (although Herald freelancer Alex Speier is a close second).

WINNER
Local Off-Mainstream Sports Websites

WEEI.com operatives are trying to convince us that the content-providers (i.e. columnists and commentators) for the new-fangled website won’t just be old graybeards looking for a check. We’ll believe that once the re-launch is complete and there’s not a Borges or a Peter May to be found on the site. Still, the promise of new blood is encouraging for some of the established local sports blogs that might be able to add content for WEEI.com VP/GM Tim Murphy and Bradford’s newborn baby.

Creative sorts like the people behind Soxaholix, or, dare we say it, 38pitches.com, would be able to bring established audiences to the WEEI site and help to quickly build a loyal audience. It’s almost a shame that Chad Finn jumped to Boston.com because he’s the kind of pick-up that would indicate ‘EEI.com recognizes a “true” blogger-type.

WINNER
Michael Holley

After Gerry Callahan (who probably doesn’t need the headache of writing anything beyond his limited Herald offerings), Holley is the in-house candidate who could help WEEI.com the most. Give him an exclusive column once a week and use him for whatever video component Bradford settles upon and the result would be some original content from an original fella with worthwhile takes. Holley is a five-tool guy and he’s smart enough to know that some groundfloor, reasonably-priced web work for the employer will serve him well down the road.

LOSER
The One Trick Ponies Currently at WEEI

While intrusive laughing, general ignorance and single-mindedness play well on sports talk radio, the effectiveness of our generic, moronic, Meaty Men for use on the website is going to be negligible. Beyond re-packaging the snorts and soundbites of Smerlas, DeAwful and The Dwarves, it’s not like any of those big, bad, bullies could ever blog or otherwise communicate effectively. Sentence writing, we’re guessing, wasn’t high on the course list at Connecticut School of Broadcasting.

The beauty of what WEEI.com is going to be able to do, is that it won’t have to strictly rely on in-house (non-)talents to fill the web pages. Murphy and Bradford will be able to line up freelancers and gifted souls who aren’t beholden to fart jokes and homophobia. Even if the majority of WEEI’s radio talk isn’t intelligent and barely entertaining, the website has the hope and ability to be both.

WINNERS
Jason Wolfe and Julie Kahn

Say what you will (and Lord knows we have) about Entercom’s Boston Duo of Dynamic, but this significant move into the digital market could very well be a coup for the company and ‘EEI in general. The ability to use the WEEI brand across platforms and do so in a new, and much-needed way for the market is the kind of move that will keep ‘EEI on top for a long time to come.

Still, the question of whether the Entercommie culture will overcome guys like Murphy and Bradford or whether they’ll be able to overcome IT, will eventually foretell the success or failure of the initiative.

LOSER
ESPN 890

They lose their only legit local-originating show’s host and he not only jumps ship, he jumps back to the dominating competition. As Felger said to Paul Flannery at BoMag, most (including Shots) figured 890 would last a year. They’ve been around three years now but their effectiveness and place in the market is still as poor as when they began. “That was a tough road to hoe,” said Felger late last week. “I got my brains beat in for three years by WEEI and Glenn. I enjoyed 890 and having my own little show. Yeah, a (better) signal would have helped but it’s all about the competition at WEEI. They have such resources to draw on.”

An 890 spokesman this week indicated the station would have new line-up information in two or three weeks, but for now capable Kevin Winter has been hosting a show inexplicably called “Prime Time Live” in the old Felger slot from 3 to 6 p.m. All the usual suspects have been mentioned as possible permanent replacements for Felger, but the longer the delay in announcing the changes the more likely it is that 890 will be forced to shutter once and for all.

WINNER
Hamilton College

WEEI is now Hamilton College East. Both Murphy and the guy who brought him into the New Balance building Jim Rushton are Hamilton College grads. Both graduated in 1992. Go Continentals! (Worst. Nickname. Ever.)

[One clarification on Murphy's career path from our reporting last week. Here's how Murphy confirms his profession progression in resume form: 1994-1999, Titleist & FootJoy Worldwide, last title was Senior Brand Manager; 1999-2006, NYTimes Company/Boston Globe Media, last title was VP of Advertising & Marketing; 2006-2007 Monster.com, VP of Strategic Marketing; 2007-2008, Comcast/Golf Channel, Director of Digital Media; Current, WEEI.com, VP/GM.]

• The Hartford Courant’s Red Sox beat guy, Jeff Goldberg confirms that he is taking the paper’s buyout (effective at the end of the Sox season) and it’s likely he’s not the only sports desk member of the Hartford staff that takes the option.

Said Goldberg via email, “I grew up in West Hartford, went to Hall High (and eventually Central Conn. State Univ.) and started an internship in the sports department (at the Courant) the summer before my junior year at Hall (16 years old, I’m 39 now). I did just about everything up the sports department food chain – took high school scores over the phone, filed photos, did agate, copy-edited, then started writing on a regular, full-time basis about 10 years ago.

“But, all good things must come to an end, I’m afraid,” said Goldberg, who hopes to continue writing in the Boston market. “UConn won the first 70 games I covered (Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird crew) for the Courant. (Goldberg) switched to the Sox beat in 2007 and between UConn and the Red Sox, I’ve covered four championship teams in six-plus seasons. Not bad.”

Mark our words, as guys like Felger and Goldberg leave newspapers, there will not be 20 years-at-one-paper writers for a foreseeable stretch and the mere thought of Lifers like Bob Ryan and Dan Shaughnessy is laughable in today’s race-up-the-totem-pole world of sports journalism.

“Leaving the Herald is by far the hardest part of all of this,” said Felger last Friday. “I’m 39 years old. This would have been my 20th year at the Herald. It’s going to be weird not being in the paper. It really is.

“But the brand of WEEI is huge. They are No. 1 in the market and what they’re doing is the future.”

• Familiar Providence voice Scott Cordischi confirms to Shots that he will be hosting a show on WPRO on Saturday mornings from 9-11:45am. “It will be called ‘Scott Cordischi On Sports’ and starts Saturday (July 19th),” he said via email. “I am very much looking forward to talking sports with Rhode Islanders and Southern New Englanders once again here in Providence. I have missed talking about things like the Sox, Yankees, the Celts run to a championship, the PC coaching search, the NFL Draft, etc. It’ll be nice to do it again.”

• While I agree with the general sentiment that ESPN Ombudswoman Le Anne Schreiber has been mostly effective and aggressive in her role, I couldn’t help but giggle this week when she brought up the fact that ESPN announcers sometimes do game coverage from the confines of a Bristol bunker.

The practice has been going on for years and we had exposed it two years ago, but the tactic is still employed and there is very little way for viewers to know what is ral and what is Memorex. It was misleading then and it is still misleading now. Schreiber’s ignorance on certain rudimentary matters is still puzzling to me and it makes me wonder just how effective she really is and how seriously her Ombudsing is taken by the higher-ups.

• A different take on Josh Beckett from Friend of Shots (FOS), Matt Waxman.

• Speaking of former CSTV cohorts, look at what goodies the former network (now CBS College Sports) is pulling out starting this Monday:

CBS COLLEGE SPORTS NETWORK RELIVES THE ACTION AND EXCITEMENT OF THE 2008 NCAA® DIVISION I MEN’S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP WITH “NCAA MARCH MADNESS® REWIND”

Extensive Programming Block Begins Monday, July 21, and Features EveryGame from the 2008 Tournament

CBS College Sports Network relives March Madness this summer with a special encore presentation of the 2008 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship. “NCAA MARCH MADNESS REWIND” features all 63 tournament games, from the first-round to the championship game, in their entirety, beginning Monday, July 21 (NOON, PM ET). A full programming schedule is available at www.cbssports.com/cbscollegesports.

Kansas’ thrilling overtime win against Memphis in the National Championship Game will air twice, Friday, Aug. 1 (10:00 PM, ET) and Saturday, Aug. 2 (6:00 PM, ET). Other memorable games include:

First Round – #12 Western Kentucky over #5 Drake (101-99, OT)
Airs Wednesday, July 23 (10:00 PM, ET)
Drake erased a 16-point deficit in the final eight minutes of regulation to push the game into overtime. Down 99-98 in OT with 5.7 seconds left, Western Kentucky’s Ty Rogers hit a desperation three pointer from the wing to notch the win and give the Hilltoppers their first tournament victory since 1995.

Second Round – #1 UCLA over #9 Texas A&M (51-49)
Airs Sunday, July 27 (4:00 PM, ET)
Down for much of the game, the Bruins survived the Aggies with the help of Darren Collison’s late game heroics. Collison’s shot with 9.5 seconds left gave the Bruins the lead for good, propelling them to the Sweet 16.

Second Round – #3 Stanford over #6 Marquette (82-81, OT)
Airs Sunday, July 27 (6:00 PM, ET)
Stanford’s Brooke Lopez hits the winning shot with 1.3 seconds left in overtime. The Cardinal overcomes the first half ejection of coach Trent Johnson and a six-point halftime deficit.

Second Round – #10 Davidson over #2 Georgetown (74-70)
Airs Monday, July 28 (9:00 PM, ET)
Led by Stephen Curry’s dominating second half performance, Davidson upsets Georgetown. Curry outscored Georgetown 25 to 22 over the final 14:24 of the game.

. . . For the record, I’m still not ready to watch the Memphis-Kansas game. Maybe another decade or so.

• Brand new farmer’s market starting up in Hull on Friday – see you there.

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

Scott’s first book, with Memphis Coach John Calipari, is scheduled for release in the Fall of 2009.

In an unprecedented move for the Boston market, Boston Herald Red Sox reporter Rob Bradford is leaving the paper and will head up the burgeoning dot-com staff at the soon-to-be re-launched and re-focused WEEI.com, several sources have confirmed to Scott’s Shots.

WEEI.com’s Vice President/General Manager Tim Murphy would only say to Shots that “WEEI.com is ramping up and building a website reflective of, and an extension to, the radio platform,” already in place at sports talk leader WEEI 850 AM. Murphy said an announcement was “imminent” regarding initial hire(s), but job postings for several WEEI.com positions have already been widely circulating.

When contacted by Shots, Bradford deferred comment to Murphy (who, for the record, reports to Entercom’s Julie Kahn). However, two separate Herald employees confirmed that Bradford will finish out the month at the paper and then begin at WEEI.com in early August.

Bradford has been one of the region’s biggest beneficiaries of main stream media’s acceptance of blogging. In moving from the Lowell Sun to the Lawrence Eagle Tribune to the Herald, Bradford, a 1992 Springfield College graduate, stayed true to his out-of-the-box heritage and the result has been a four tool star (print/blog/radio/TV) who is now ready to take on the considerable challenge of extending and enhancing the established and strong WEEI brand with editorial content.

The move is important on several levels and Shots has already been told to expect more dominoes to fall in the market as Murphy and WEEI.com snag other local talents from established media organizations to join the dot-com line-up. The result, Murphy hopes, will be a combination of straight news delivery blended with opinion (blogs) and other, logical extensions of ‘EEI’s terrestrial audio content (and personalities).

“The idea is to distribute our audio content more aggressively,” said Murphy, 38, who joined WEEI.com in late Spring, jumping ship from the Boston Globe’s digital division. “I learned a lot in (six-plus years) at the Globe about how a traditional media organization can leverage (digital assets). WEEI.com can do a better job in optimizing our already outstanding audio content for the web.”

The re-launch doesn’t have a firm date yet, but changes will become more and more apparent in the coming weeks and months, according to Murphy, a native of Canton who went to Hamilton College in up-state New York. Murphy discussed a re-design of the site and also the use of regular contributions from “reputable talent,” as well as video content and written word as features of the improved WEEI.com portal.

Murphy said he foresees the site evolving into a hybrid of ESPN.com and “The Daily Show,” but also praised the efforts of both Deadspin.com and, interestingly, NPR.com’s use of its audio content on the web. All are worthy models to borrow from in an effort to make a distinct and different destination for local sports consumers and it’s the very kind of talk that makes the WEEI.com earnest entrance into the web wars so very compelling.

• First and foremost, Bradford’s leap marks the first time a full-time Boston writer has jumped from print to local web – and Bradford’s going to a radio station, no less. The move is eye-opening, as well as quite telling. Five years ago and certainly 10, the Herald-to-’EEI switch would have been considered ludicrous. Now, it’s probably Bradford’s best career (and lifestyle ) option and one that many of his peers would relish. (Bradford is a husband and father of three young children.)

The fact is, there’s more stability with Entercom’s digital future than there is with the current state of the combined operations of the Herald’s digital and print units. Shots has been told that ‘EEI is well-funded by Entercom for this serious foray into the web and if it fails, it won’t be for a lack of commitment by the Entercommie Emperors and their deep, gelded cofers.

[It's unclear what Bradford's specific role will be with the website, but as the site's first hire, it's logical to assume he will do a fair share of content management and editing, in addition to his own blogging, on-air radio spots and other web duties. To some extent, Bradford will be given a just-shaken and cleared Etch-a-Sketch to create his own job picture and role. It's something Bradford is comfortable doing after "hybridding" a role for himself at the Herald. His "Bradford Files" blog will likely carry with him and baseball will surely remain a focus, but Bradford will also be able to spread his wings a bit into other arenas in the area.]

Here are some other ramifications within the market and beyond that are signified by a real commitment to the Web by THE engine that drives sports discussion in this city, WEEI, and its expansive network of affiliates:

• There’s no questioning the notion that WEEI.com has been a sleeping giant simply because of the reach and power of Entercom’s Sports Leader throughout New England. Constant reminders to visit a newly-focused WEEI.com during all hours of radio programming will have the ability to generate thousands and thousands of site visits daily. Not to mention the likelihood that advertisers want multi-platform opportunities. Murphy’s bility to package highly-rated radio programming with original content (and existing archives) will be very attractive to a stable-ful of loyal ad-buyers.

“WEEI already has a point of view and a voice that is informed and irreverent,” Murphy said. “That voice can be captured in many ways on-line and then it can be consumed on different platforms (through the website) as we mirror what is done on-air.”

• With the Herald facing pending layoffs, it’s uncertain whether the Harry Houdini of sports editors, (fellow double-Her) Hank Hryniewicz, might actually get to make a hire to fill a the sports desk’s lost body – an opportunity he’s not always afforded on the belt-tightening Wingo Way.

Should any further Herald poaching occur, Hank Herald will be forced to delve even deeper into his bag of tricks. Anyone for the Track Gals on the Bruins beat???

• With both the Sox and the Celtics as deep-under-the-covers Entercom partners, we’re guessing there will also be a basketball hire in the offing for WEEI.com. It will also be imperative to have a Patriots person, but the site will clearly have plenty of audio options from WEEI’s myriad Pats’ player pop-ins. There will need to be several technical positions filled and we’d expect a large pool of freeelancers to contribute various content to the site. The “talent” positions are going to require multi-tool guys who are comfortable with new(er) technologies and able to podcast, videocast and, yes, wordcast.

• The Julie Donaldson story has been handled with remarkable class, restraint and propriety and we can’t help but think that part of the reason is because it was the Boston Globe (and Mark Shanahan) that was ahead of the story. In a week that saw the Herald’s Track Gals snag a big one with A-Rod’s Boston bimbo, it was Shanahan who first brought to light the horrific details of Donaldson’s alleged issues with Ivan Lattimore. The Herald played catch-up and did so quietly with a non-hyped Jessica Heslam-at-the-court-room piece for Thursday’s paper.

We did notice that the downplayed videotaping of sex by the couple revelation presented an interesting challenge for the reporters as Shanahan wove it into his Day Two story. Heslam steered clear of the tape, which would likely be part of any trial that may result from this week’s revealing hearings. The Track Gals picked up the ball for Friday’s Track and got into the effect all of this could have for Donaldson and Goldklank-scarred WHDH-TV.

. . . Shots did attempt to get some comment on the status of Ivan Lattimore from whatever is left of SlamBall but IMG representatives did not respond to email requests through contact email addresses. It does seem a bit irresponsible of everyone to just assume that Lattimore is still with SlamBall – or even that SlamBall still exists.

• ESPN’s PR peeps went to great lengths this week to say that everything was quite normal with The Former Boston Sports Guy Bill Simmons taking a two-and-a-half month respite. “It’s pretty standard for us to work with our writers and personalities and give them time to work on books they are writing,” said a spokesman for the dot-com. “This has been planned for a long time and is nothing out of the ordinary. This was a planned break so he can finish his second book for ESPN Books. In the mean time, he’ll continue with the B.S. Report podcast but will not file his normal columns for ESPN.com or ESPN the Magazine. If something warrants it, he may write one-offs during that time, but he is not scheduled to write while he works on finishing the book.”

The irony of all ironies is that Simmons is now writing less for his employer than Rick Reilly, who he had mock-mocked to Dennis & Callahan in early June.

• Very nice of the Guvnah to stop by Hull for a sunset chat on Thursday. Our guy, the talk-radio legend, Robert Hedlund, was also under the Bernie King Pavilion, which afforded us the chance to wish the good Senator a happy birthday. You do the same if you see him, ya hear?

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

Scott’s first book, with Memphis Coach John Calipari, is scheduled for release in the Fall of 2009.