*Gambling

UPDATED MONDAY NIGHT - Mostly earneest hat-tips to ESPN for its coverage of this particular game’s far-reaching impact. But we emphasize “mostly.” The morning SportsCenter hotsie-totsie tandem of Josh Elliott and Hannah Storm did more of the insulting footsie playing regarding the gambling element, but the reliable daily “Outside the Lines” with Bob Ley hosting hit it head on, leading with the story on the 2:30 p.m. show. But voting at SportsNation indicated the Donovan McNabb OT comments were more disturbing to a vast majority of viewers. (There is a predictable Philadelphia frenzy to bury both the QB and his coach, Andy Reid. This is the same phront-running town that wanted sudden legend Charlie Manuel out of town two seasons ago.)

By dinner time, the network was still walking softly around the two-ton gorilla that apparently is gambling’s innate tie-in with the NFL. “Around the Horn” got into it a bit early in the show, but “PTI” buried a great conversation on the topic by delegating to the fifth story of the first block (with a minute-thirty discussion). Tony Kornheiser was as bold as anyone getting Disney money could be and said the NFL has a “tacit agreement with gambling.”

As does ESPN itself, of course.

• Don’t bother looking for coverage of the gambling angle at NFL.com. We couldn’t find any and the game was terribly underplayed considering it was an historic game (first-ever 11-10 score).

• With news that “PLAY” magazine, the New York Times sports quarterly is ceasing operations, there comes the logical question of what that news may mean for the Boston Globe’s newest offerring, “OT.”

The differences are significant enough - pay (OT is 50 cents) vs. free(ish); newsprint vs. glossy; weekly vs. quarterly - to think it won’t immediately spell doom for “OT,” but it certainly isn’t encouraging news. Our own, random and very unscientific survey of stores carrying the Globe’s offering has revealed significant stacks of unsolds on various racks.

Simple fact is, it may not be the time to be experimenting with print products. The money may be better spent experiemnting digitally.

Something to keep an eye on anyway.

• Back to hibernation now. . . Thanks.

SUNDAY NIGHT, ORIGINAL POST
Time for a brief emergence from the hibernation headquarters in Hull as the Pittsburgh-San Diego finish on Sunday night (which pre-empted the President-elect on “60 Minutes”) will surely be a hot topic to start the week (and, indeed, already emerged on Sunday night.

A good summary of what happened in the final seconds can be found here, but our focus in more on the outright hypocrisy of both CBS and NBC (via Neil Best at Newsday) in avoiding direct mention of the point spread.

During the game on CBS with Jim Nantz and Phil Simms, Nantz only alluded to the interest that the final play would draw for some. He certainly never mentioned the 4.5 point spread (with the home-standing Steelers as favorites) as the confusing ending was made even clunkier by the unspoken intrigue caused by the millions of dollars that were at stake for gamblers across America.

But heaven forbid any of the NFL’s treasured partners should ever let-on that, you know, people like football for more than just the Wildcat Offense. Are they protecting the “integrity of the game”? Don’t they already do that by ignoring the steroid issue in the NFL?

Later, on NBC’s embarrassingly choppy Sunday Night halftime show (Cowboys/Redskins), Bob Costas would only tiptoe around the point spread issue. The lack of commentary was made even more awkward with a shaky edit job with Costas trying to prod Cris Collinsworth into commenting on the matter as Collinsoworth squirmed away on his desk chair.

(Also, on ESPN’s SportsCenter “Blitz,” Chris Berman avoided mentioning the off-shoots of the reversed call.)

There is clearly some kind of agreement (oral or written) in place between the broadcast (and cable?/) networks and the league to not mention point spreads and gambling. Incredibly, ESPN is one of the only hopes in generating a full and open discussion of the bizarre finish and obvious gambling implications. Shows like “Around the Horn” and “PTI” (among others) are obligated to explore the gambling angle through discussion, even with Monday Night Football airing on the ‘Net that same night.

Really, any discussion of the game (written, spoken or crayoned) needs to AT LEAST mention the finish as it relates to the gambling aspect. We’d even argue the AP Story should have mentioned the spread (perhaps in the part where the official admits the final decision was the wrong one?).

• The fantasy impact is probably pretty negligible I would guess, but there’s certainly someone, somewhere who got hosed by not getting credit for a Pittsburgh defensive score. What do you wanna bet it’s the Sports Grouch’s buddy JerkO?

• More of the early chatter on the game’s ending and its ramifications. And here.

• Not surprisingly, no mention of the “Chaos by The Confluence” in this CBS recap:

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.

UPDATE: As I expected, it’s a lot harder to get away from this space than anyone can fathom.

I think both of the week’s posts were relevant and newsworthy. I was honestly a bit surprised at how underplayed the Comcast K.O. of CN8 was and not just because I have friends over there. But the lack of play lends credence to the insignificance of the network in the New England Region. It was strongest (but by no means powerful) in Philly and D.C. and that’s where it will remain in some re-configured alignment.

Anyways, I’d encourage you to keep following the Simmons story and continuing the discourse that has been mostly sensational from both sides of the Simmons fence. [One kind commenter insists that the wife has left me. I only wish I had one in the first place who could have left me. But thanks for the tarot card reading, fella.]

There is also the matter of ex-Pat cheerleader, Caitlin Davis that has been elevated from a TMZ story to one that could potentially wind up on CNN, if not America’s Most Wanted.

So, until broken news needs fixing again, it’s back to the Shanty’s bunker for us. Thanks for your continued patronage. . .

We know we say it regularly and then never follow through, but we really and truly need to get away from this blog for the sake of our “real life” projects. If I’m doing what I’m supposed to be and progressing as I need to, my visits to these parts will be infrequent.

It’s become apparent in the process of writing my first book that I get too distracted by all things under the Scott’s Shots purview. I have no idea how to break that habit but I know a good place to start will be to put this labor of love I like to call a “sports media column” on the shelf. There’s a lot swirling right now at The Shanty and the bottom line is that I have the opportunity to let book-writing be my full-time job for the next half-year and I don’t want the regret of having a non-revenue generating endeavor (Shots) hinder a family feeder (a motivational book with Memphis basketball coach John Calipari titled “Bounce Back”).

I hope you understand and appreciate your support. A couple a months of solitude and we’ll be back at you before the year evaporates.

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.

DEVELOPING. . .

Comcast will be laying off the “majority of its 300 employees” currently working on its CN8 Network. Locally, CN8 will cease operations in Boston in early January of 2009 and the markets of Philadelphia (Comcast’s home) and Washington, D.C. will see significant re-structuring.

The Brookline-based studios of CN8 and business offices are home to a full-time production staff, the sports department (”Out of Bounds,” 11:30 p.m. show) and the “Backstage” staff (including market institution Sara Edwards).

In all, Shots estimates there are between 40 and 50 people based at the Boston office. There is also a regional office in Norwell that will be affected. The rest of the cuts will come from CN8’s other outposts and some staff will be retained or re-arranged.

In a statement provided by Comcast Sports Group’s Vice President of Communications Tim Fitzpatrick, the company said:

“We are restructuring CN8’s operations from a single multi-regional network into two local networks that will serve local viewers with more targeted public affairs and sports programming. This restructuring will strengthen the network’s focus on providing credible, informative and relevant local public affairs and sports content of interest to viewers in the Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Washington/Baltimore regions while continuing to feature some of CN8’s signature personalities.

“We will discontinue operations in markets where Comcast has other locally focused programming, or where CN8 has had a minimal presence. While there will regrettably be jobs eliminated as a result of this restructuring, impacted employees will have the ability to apply for other Comcast positions, or receive full severance benefits and job placement assistance.”

DISCLAIMER: Shots is a regular guest on the sports talk show “Out of Bounds” for CN8. Over the past half decade of babbling for the cameras we have developed relationships with many of the sports-side staffers. But we have always kept a “curtain” between my editorial needs and my paid-appearances. As such, none of my Boston-based sources were used in compiling this report. Shots appears on this evening’s 7 p.m. OOB show (where UMass coach Derek Kellogg will be a guest).

The plan, which was announced to employees yesterday and began to filter out in earnest today, means New England will no longer receive the CN8 channel. Comcast SportsNet New Engalnd’s Skip Perham confirmed that CSN is in the process of looking to see which of CN8’s live sports programming it will be able to absorb and integrate into its schedule. “I would think we’ll be able to take the majority of it,” Perham said.

CSN has been slow to build its “news-gathering operation” it boasted about a year ago and it’s unlikely they are in a position to be taking on talent, producers or technical folks that will be let go from CN8. That’s unfortunate, because CN8 has a host of up-and-comers at all positions who would add value to any staff.

But, according to two out-of-market CN8 sources, there have been indications that consolidation was looming when CN8 (which is seen in 8 million households along the Eastern seaboard) was put under the Programming umbrella during the summer. It seemed like an odd fit at the time, said CN8 moles, and this “transitioning” would seem to confirm it was only a stop-gap maneuver.

Also, in October, an Eastern Division re-structuring washed away 300 jobs.

. . . To prove just how in flux things have been at CN8, you need look no further than the Nov. 1 re-launch of its website. Why worry about a website for a Network that will be completely different in a few months?

. . . Comcast also holds a 50 percent stake in NECN, so there could be some, slight, absorption of the local CN8 workforce there.

. . . At least two shows have already been retained (Larry Kane’s once-a-week half-hour slot and Robert Traynham’s once-a-week offering), according to Fitzpatrick, and discussions with other full-week hosts like Lynn Doyle and presumably Gregg Murphy are ongoing.

. . . It appears January 6 would be the date the changes take effect, but subtle switches could begin appearing sooner.

. . . Shots is told that news of the layoffs came to the Boston staff via DVD from Jon Gorchow, vice president and general manager of CN8. There was also, we are told, an email distributed.

The story of the DVD suggests the bad news was first supposed be delivered in person by a henchman, then was going to be executed via video-conference and ultimately was shown en masse to the Boston group from a recorded DVD.

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.

We thought long and hard about temporarily suspending our book-writing sabbatical for the sole purpose of once again pointing out the (recurring, laughable) prima donna ways of the former Boston Sports Guy, Bill Simmons. Really, we did.

But when we got the following, carefully crafted three-sentence statement from an ESPN spokesperson (Paul Melvin) on Sunday night, we felt compelled to sort through the smoke ESPN puffed in the face of Simmons.

[BACKGROUNDER: In a nutshell, on Saturday, Simmons used his own, personal website to vaguely explain why his regular ESPN.com Friday picks column wasn’t running - and to give his weekly picks (along with the Sports Gal/Wife’s). With spite dripping from each word, Simmons wrote at his personal blog: “. . . Please know that I handed in that column as scheduled - on Thursday night, on time, like I always do — and on Friday afternoon, ESPN.com decided not to run the column. These are the facts. . .”

Trying to avoid a fuss - which is already brewing - ESPN would only reply to Shots two requests for comment with, “Editorial decisions are made every day about what content does and doesn’t appear on the site, when it runs and how it appears. This is no different. Our relationship with Bill continues to be a great one and he continues to be a singular, central voice that plays a very important role at ESPN.”

Using our Bristol Campus decoder rings, we loosely translate that response to: “This SOB is bitching and moaning again?!?! Wasn’t he just given months off to write his book?!?! Doesn’t he ALREADY have one of the best jobs at the Dot-Com - if not on the Internet?!?!? Hasn’t he gone back to Kimmel yet?”

PrimaSimmons - who was forced to dump a porn star dude earlier in the week - apparently is having yet another case of happy feet from the Left Coast headquarters of Simmons Inc. And you know what? That’s fine.

But why do we have to hear about it every time? Why does it always have to manifest itself in swipes and spitballs from the Sports Guy? Why does he have to take subtle digs and use phrases like “these are the facts?”

Who was disputing they were the facts, Simmer? Only you, at this point.

Can’t you hammer out your issues with your editor behind the curtain and not bring it into your writing (which, in fits and starts, is still some of the best stuff on the Web. Especially pertaining to the Celtics).

Everyone’s got issues in this economy, Bill. Everyone’s fighting The Man. Life sucks.

But not everyone wants to hear of the Sports Grouch’s inherent problem with being paid handsomely to write and yap about his buddies, his dad and his crummy life as an Internet hero.

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.

The TBS explanation is included in Bruce Allen’s post on the matter.

In what can only be considered a major snafu, TBS’s coverage of the ALCS is was being pre-empted by technical difficulties. MLB.com is confirming that the network is having “transmission problems.”

Coverage was interrupted during the scheduled half-hour pre-game show and a weak, lacking explanation of “technical difficulties” didn’t begin appearing (sporadically) until about 15 minutes later. A similarly sporadic score update began at 8:20 p.m. A series of in-house ads ran for the first several minutes of the snafu, then the network went to an ancient edition of “Bloopers” and finally settled on a Steve Harvey re-run.

The game finally appeared on TBS at 8:23 p.m. with the Sox trailing, 1-0 with one out in the bottom of the first.

• An absolutely incredible situation that is unforgivable for the way it was handled rather than the fact that it happened. The network did an shoddy job of informing viewers of what the problem was and offered no alternative coverage (i.e. a radio or audio-only feed). The network apologized profusely and then Chip Caray had the nerve to say “you didn’t miss much.” Aside from four outs and a home run, of course.

Bush. League.

MLB should be asking for some major recompensation.

. . . Boston fans main link to the action can be found in the most real-time manner at WEEI.com’s live blog or on radio via the WEEI radio network.

We’ve had to push back the Shots Sabbatical (see prior post) to allow for this entry featuring an email back and forth between Shots and Michael Wilbon regarding Wilbon’s recent on-air at ESPN comments regarding Kimbo Slice specifically and mixed martial arts in general.

After a Friday afternoon email from Shots, Wilbon responded late Friday and then was also good enough to follow-up with a Saturday night email too.

OPENING EMAIL FROM SHOTS:

Mike -

Sorry to bother you. [An ESPN PR person] said it would be okay to contact you [via this email address].

I’m wondering if you could expand on your comments about Kimbo Slice from (Thursday’s) “PTI” show. It seems like you were making some pretty bold statements and I’m wondering what you have to back up your claims.

Anything you have will be helpful.

Thanks in advance.
David Scott

Wilbon Response #1

David…Sorry it took me so long to get back to you…I’m getting this at home and not at my desk in the studio…I don’t have all the details here at home but we had a story about the scurrying around to get a replacement for Kimbo’s opponent…I called the whole thing a fraud because of that and because of the way Kimbo went down…just as I’ve called prize fighting, which I covered for years and loved, a fraud in some instances…like Evander Holyfield fighting for a title these days…Holyfield fighting for such a thing and the division in general suggests a fraud on the consumer…So does scrambling around like rats to find a last-second opponent for Kimbo, then the alleged star of the division being knocked around like a rag doll by some relative nobody…As a columnist I would never let that slide. There was a whole lot going on there which raises suspicion, and I read now where there’s an official investigation of the whole thing…It smacks of an exhibition, not a competition…MW

SHOTS REPLY:

Thanks Mike. Appreciate the response.

I’m far from an MMA expert - or even a fan - but the criticism I’m reading of your comments seems to stem from A) you’re not well-informed about the sport (for instance, the difference between EliteXC and UFC) and B) you’re dismissing the fact that 4.3 million watched the fight - a very respectable number and far better then hockey or soccer for instance. (That number is what MLB is averaging on TBS for the first round of playoffs, in fact).

I guess I’m asking if you would be so dismissive and condescending to the NHL? Or MLS? Or Arena Football?

Can you see where MMA fans and supporters would be a bit outraged and perturbed? Can you also comment on whether or not you would use such harsh terms with a “mainstream” sport?

Have you received a lot of correspondence re: this subject? Seems like the MMA fans are pretty protective of their sport. . .

Thanks again for your time.

Wilbon Response #2

Hi David…Believe me, I expected the criticism. But while I appear on TV 5 days a week I’m a columnist. Tough stances are what we do. I don’t need to be well versed in MMA to watch and listen and make an observation. And, I don’t care if 20 million people watch. Millions watch professional wrestling but that doesn’t mean we don’t question the outcome. The number of people watching makes it popular and well received, but doesn’t mean the event is above question. I’m not paid by MMA. I don’t care how many people watch. Why is my making the same observation about boxing, which I do know tons about and have covered and criticized, ignored in this discussion? And ANYBODY who watches “PTI” knows I have ripped (as well as praised) every single sport out there, from the NFL to MLS to NBA to the NHL to Arena Football, etc. I’ve ripped apart folks whose events get a whole lot more than 4.3 million people watching. So while there are plenty of valid criticisms of my opinions, pulling punches on various sports ain’t one of them. Whoever makes that criticism either isn’t familiar with my work or has an agenda. It’s bull*&^@ and can be completely refuted by simply pulling five tapes of “PTI” (or five of my columns) from the last 7 years. Anyway, in terms of the amount of criticism that might be coming my way, that seems to be something that people who do TV and critique TV really care about. I could care less. I’ve written a column for 18 years. I’m sure you know this ain’t the first reaction to something I’ve written. It’s their right and I encourage the give and take. But if angry readers were going to move a columnist off his mark he and his work wouldn’t be worth a damn. So if the MMA folks are upset they’ll let me know. It won’t be the first dust-up, nor the last. I think it’s a fascinating study, though, the way people apparently think now that their criticism can back people down who criticize something they love. Sorry. Not here. I don’t mind in the least the give and take with fans of whatever sport it is voicing their opinion…Conversation has to be a two-way street… In Atlanta people get upset because I call Atlanta the worst sports city in America. They write. Some scream. A very few agree. I build my argument, make my case and people accept or reject it…But it’s not like I’m going to run and hide because people send some angry e-mail…Are people in media that gutless now. If people don’t think 28 years of covering sports gives me some knowledge and insight they’ll stop watching/listening/reading. I guess we’ll see what happens over the next few days when I return to the show Monday…But thanks for engaging in the discussion. Sorry to ramble. Don’t hesitate to correspond in any case…Take care. MW

. . .It’s pretty clear to us that Wilbon is not being reckless with his words and is well aware of the impact his comments can have. His explanations are backed up well and really the only gripe we can come up with is that there is no way Wilbon would ever use such strong language (suggesting the fight was fixed) with one of the four major sports or - worse yet - a valued partner of Disney.

His other points are well taken;especially that he is a columnist - both in print and electronically - and in that role he excels like very few of his peers. It’s what makes “PTI” wor especially when he is with The Original, Tony Kornheiser.

• This note got mistakenly dropped from Friday’s column. Our apologies:

One of the best PR folks in the market, CN8’s Senior Public Relations Manager Robin Moleux and her husband Doug (owner of Northern Lights Entertainment), welcomed their second son to the world on September 8. Colin Andrew Moleux wweighed in at a John Carchedi-esque 6 lbs, 6 ounces. Big brother Jackson is reportedly already putting together a pitch for a new CN8 show called “Brothers Out of Bounds.” Congrats, Mama Moleux and the clan.

• This one confounded us the most over the weekend: In one sentence of this Frank Dell’apa follow-up in the Globe on Bob Cousy being let go by Comcast SportsNet, The Cooz claims he was being paid “what they spend monthly for office supplies.” Later, Dell’apa reports “. . .Cousy, who said he received about $50,000 annually from Comcast, will continue to work for the Celtics on a personal services contract.”

Fifty G for 10 games and (probably) some CSN goodwill appearances? That’s a heck of a lot of Post-it notes, Cooz.

Fact is, it was a cost-saving measure and yes, it was handled poorly by CSN who did its best to gloss over (and then downplay) the news of Cousy’s separation. But there isn’t a good way to justify that expense for 10 games of air time.

• Caught two seconds of Who’s Better Than Butchie Stearns on WEEI 850 AM on Sunday and we quickly switched after he reported on “Fred Smerlas’s buddy Jim Haslett’s St. Louis CARDNIALS” pulling an upset.

Sure would be an upset if a baseball team beat a football team.

Who’s better than you, Butchie? Just about everyone.

. . . Except WBZTV’s Steve Burton who wasted no time in creating must-miss TV with pink-toned Steve “DeAwful” DeOssie on “Patriots Fifth Quarter” Sunday night. So exasperated and flustered was Burton with the Pats’ loss, he could barely get words out of his mouth.

Come to think of it, that silence was the best part.

Brutal. Just brutal.

• And on that note, The Sabbatical begins in earnest.

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.

A SHOTS FIELD TRIP TO. . .

This has never been the regular series it should be, but every once in a while Shots does leave Hull and venture into the crowded streets of - and around - Boston. It usually ends poorly with a traffic jam or general bitterness, but sometimes we do discover new and exciting ventures when we venture off-peninsula. On Tuesday of this week, we had just such an opportunity at the offices of YouCastr in Cambridge. Our tour guide was a co-founder of the “The You” and serial start-up guy, Brad Johnson. Regular Shots meanderings follow, so feel free to skim ahead if you’re not into featurey/business story content.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Across Hurley Street, outside the makeshift conference room’s windows at YouCastr headquarters, the building with the Biopure logo on it sits as a cautionary tale for any 21st century start-up. Biopure appears to have stumbled sloppily in chasing what all new ventures covet: financial success.

Brad Johnson, however, is too busy unwrapping a chicken burrito and glancing at his handwritten notes about YouCastr to even think about Biopure. Or the inherent obstacles of standing out in today’s (overly) crowded digital sports media sector.

“You have to have a level of comfort in taking risks in the start-up world,” says Johnson, YouCastr’s co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer, who previously founded Intrepid Learning Solutions and has been on the inside with major players like EMC, PepsiCo, Polaroid, and KPMG. “We don’t pretend we’ll be a huge media company. In fact, our dream is to be a part of large media company like Disney or FOX.”

For now though, the angel-funded, small (under 10 person) start-up is still crawling into its walking phase. Already, the YouCastr crew has developed a robust community of both amateur and professional New Media providers and consumers. At present, the nascent site is a conglomeration of 21st century Ham radio operators who are experimenting with broadcasting globally while thinking locally. They exhibit varying degrees of professionalism and entertainment and they mostly do a good job of taking blogging into its 2.0 phase (video, audio and interactivity).

The bulk of the site is currently audio-driven, but there are written elements as well with video on the horizon. With a mix of opinion-based talk-radio-influenced shows and live broadcasts of high school, college and amateur sporting events, YouCastr’s fledgling “community” is offering up original content heretofore unavailable for widespread consumption.

“We’ve had several hundred listeners who tuned in for an American Legion Baseball tournament,” said Johnson, 46 and a native of Jamestown, New York who did undergrad at St. Bonaventure. “And we’ve had smaller numbers for things like a Whiffle ball tournament and some high school football games. (So-called) ‘Olympic sports’ participants at colleges are loving it because they have a way for their fans to follow them when they’re on the road.”

(The site seems perfect for campus radio stations to use for coverage of non-revenue sports created entirely by students at reasonable costs.)

Added up, the numbers will begin to become attractive for advertisers (and/or potential investors in YouCastr), according to Johsnon, because the users are from all over the country and hit a desirable, hard-to-reach demogrpahic (mostly 14-29 year-olds, Johnson indicates). Still in the Beta phase, Johnson said YouCastr is averaging a respectable 30,000 unique users per month.

That number is likely to jump considerably in the coming weeks as video is incorporated and the chance for live video streams from users becomes available. Already, the audio format is simple-to-use for even novice podcasters and the video offerings will be similar, according to Johnson. In some ways, YouCastr is creating a live-version of YouTube with an emphasis on sports. Although, as Johnson admits, “it translates into all sort of news coverage, entertainment, politics.”

Instead of having 10,000 people listen to one broadcast or show, Johsnon says YouCastr is looking to offer thousands of options to niche audiences. In September, YouCastr had 1,200 broadcasts, Johnson says.

“We had a grandmother from Hawaii write in to thank us for allowing her to listen to her daughter’s softball game from the University of Alabama.”

The concept for YouCastr was conceived, according to Johnson, on the Back Bay roof deck of co-founder Ariel Diaz. “We’d bring a white board up there and just write down ideas of what we thought it could be,” said Johsnon. “There are a lot of broadcasters that bring an event to thousands of people. We realized that what no one was doing was bring a thousand different things to a hundred people each.”

The broadcasts incorporate the ability to chat with users, conduct polls and, for purposes of sports talk shows, accept callers. There are logical extensions being incorporated for hand-held device usage. “One group of our broadcasters have already come together and they have basically created a “station” with regular time slots, cross-promotion and crossover banter,” says Johsnon, “just like a talk radio station would have.” YouCastr has also forged deals to livestream existing radio stations’ content, including that of 890 ESPN, an early signee that helped shape what YouCastr could best provide for commercial stations.

“I didn’t realize how quickly and (virally) the community would spring up,” says Johnson.

That community is expanding with an army of foot soldiers being assembled on college campuses to help spread the gospel of YouCastr through giveaways and buzz-creation. “It’s a good way to put feet on the street at a low cost,” says Johnson. “We’re all over Facebook, MySpace, Twitter - that’s how our users communicate and that’s where we have to be (telling our story).”

It’s a story that Johnson hopes won’t include the travails of its across-the-street neighbor in Start-upVille.

• The tireless and incomparable Michael David Smith picked up on some irresponsible accusations from Angry Michael Wilbon on Thursday’s “Pardon the Interruption.” Shots too was taken aback by the Wilby Words.

We get the feeling that the between-segments “bumper” between Wilby and on-satellite Dan Le Batard wasn’t meant for audio. These are some of the most damning words Wilbon uttered (taken from MDS’s transcription and copacetic with what Shots heard as we were in the backyard in listen-only mode for the segment).

“I don’t know what Kimbo’s ties are,” Wilbon said. “Kimbo still could have taken a dive while others are trying to prop him up. He could have gotten paid.”

His “ties?” That’s not a very nice word to be insinuating about an event that, in one night, had at least the same amount of viewers as the average MLB division series number on TBS (4.3 million).

“Ties” suggest something untoward (as does the fix discussion Wilbon initiated, of course) and without substantiated evidence, Wilbon is treading very lightly on some serious legal grounds. he certainly wouldn’t make such claims about the NHL or, shudder at the thought, the Arena Football League.

Reached via email on Thursday night ESPN spokesman, Mike Soltys, said, “PTI has been doing something different the past month with little segments in the middle of commercial breaks that have the appearance of being accidental look-ins, but (are) all planned. I didn’t see show, but I assume that is what happened.”

. . . Kimbo and Wilby on CBS for the next installment? Might make for a better match than a rematch with the Smoothie King. Might have to rename Wilbon “Mimbo” for the evening.

. . . Sure sounds like a better investment to do an EliteXC event for short money and grab an audience comparable to one of America’s Three Major Sports, right? Elite is actually the poor man’s version of the industry standard, UFC, and its Boston-connected president, Dana White.

. . . Good work by the Herald’s Dan Duggan to get White on the record on Wednesday.

. . . How about old WWZN 1510 AM friend Jon Anik making his mark on ESPN’s MMA show? Anik certainly never got his due in this market as the video confirms.

. . . Lot of MMA talk out there if you’d like a crash course.

• Am I the only one laughing out loud at HBO’s new “Life and Times of Tim?” Not to mention I’m in love with his cartoon girlfriend Amy (yep, a new low for Shots - Cartoon Girl crush). Best I can tell, Tim is a cross between Ray Romano and Jerry Seinfeld. Oh, and Tom Werner is an executive producer, so you’ll be supporting Red Sox Nation by watching.

Trust me on this one. Sunday nights.

• There’s just no need for the three man booth we’ll be getting from TBS for the ALDS [Chip Caray (play-by-play), Ron Darling (analyst), Buck Martinez (analyst) and Craig Sager (reporter)]. Darling and Martinez are equally unimpressive and to try and create one full color analyst out of two halves is a waste of air time. Caray has been underwhelming for the most part and there’s not one iota of homerism when we tell you that Don Orsillo is very close to meriting the Caray role. Very close.

Ernie Johnson has been his usual stellar self in-studio (although you just know he misses Kenny and Charles) and Dennis Eckersley has again proven he’s a National guy with a capital “N.” ESPN really should make another run at The Eck and figure out a way to use him - even if he doesn’t want to go Bristol all the time.

. . . Outdoor pre-season hoops with Charles however could be worth a looksie.

• My goodness, Lou Merloni has really burst on the scene, hasn’t he? Framingham Lou went toe-to-toe with Basketball Bob Ryan on “Globe 10.0″ this week and Lou-Lou held his own across all sports.

. . . Brian Daubach on the other hand, not so good in his WEEI 850 AM shifts.

• Comcast SportsNet announced on Thursday that Tommy Heinsohn will work zero road games this season for the first time in 28 years. In addition, Shots has confirmed that the network’s nine-year relationship with add-in color commentator Bob Cousy has ended. Cousy had averaged about ten games per year for CSN, according to a spokesman for the regional network.

Heinsohn will continue to do color commentary for home Celts’ games alongside Mike Gorman and Heinsohn will provide in-studio analysis for road games, alongside Gary Tanguay. Donny Marshall gets color duty for the full slate of CSN’s road games and Greg Dickerson continues as sideline reporter for both home and away contests.

. . . CSN is also boasting “new in-game graphics, including a new logo; new in-game scoreboard; and new in-game animation. During every Comcast SportsNet Celtics telecast, fans can chat with Comcast SportsNet talent . . . during the game via ComcastSportsNet.com.”

. . . Shots has confirmed that Marshall will not return to the network’s “Celtics Now” weekly, in-season magazine show and that a sole, male host will fill the role previously held by Marshall and Laura Behnke (who left the market, see below). The as-yet-named replacement is from outside the network, Shots is told.

• Behnke is now a few months into her stint at WNTV, the NBC affiliate in San Francisco, and in an email correspondence with Shots reported that things are going well on the Left Coast.

“It’s been interesting so far, but I must admit I do miss many things about Boston, especially the sports passion,” said Behnke, who shone brightly in her NECN and CSN time in Beantown, even making a smooth transition into fill-in duty at WEEI 850 AM. “I still keep a close eye on the New England teams, and had a great time covering the 49ers/Patriots game last Sunday.”

Behnke said she was on Lane Kiffin Watch the past month or so in addition to her sports anchor duties and added that she is learning how to navigate her way through Candlestick Park and McAfee Coliseum.

“This is a much more laid back market, something I’m definitely not used to,” said Behnke. “Bottom line, so far, so good in San Francisco; though part of me will always be in Boston.”

• The Boston Globe’s “OT Magazine” has made its first major mistake by bringing aboard ex-WBZ-TV sports anchor Bob Lobel as a columnist. Lobel - who has incredibly managed to land a morning radio gig - lost all credibility (or what remained of his cred) when he overinflated and mis-reported some Manny matters in July. Now, upstart ‘OT’ brings Lobel aboard and immediately gets demerits for such a useless addition. Name recognition is one thing, one trick ponies are quite another. We have no problem with a responsible and credible contributor like Tom Caron for ‘OT’, but why on earth would a “new” publication with a group of fresh voices go for the such a trite cliche of Boston’s sports media past.

• Monday night’s ALDS celebration once again brought out the worst in local sports anchors from Fenway. Between the giddy screaming of NECN’s Chris Collins and the over-the-top fawning of everything Red and Sox from WHDH Channel 7’s Joe Amorosino it was enough to force all sane-thinking viewers over to Channel 4, which had the good sense (or lack of resources) to go with its regularly scheduled programming of David Letterman at 11:30. (Not surprisingly , Dan Roche got some of the best stuff from the post-game, which ran fresh during Monday’s evening news broadcasts). NESN did a pretty solid job of mixing in analysis and interviews, even utilizing Framingham Lou on-field with Kathryn Tappen (while Heidi Watney once again was relegated to soaking clubhouse duty).

• Lastly, we know we say it regularly and then never follow through, but we really and truly need to get away from this blog for the sake of our “real life” projects. If I’m doing what I’m supposed to be and progressing as I need to, my visits to these parts will be infrequent. I hope you understand and appreciate your support. A couple a months of solitude and we’ll be back at you before the year evaporates.

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.

The developing East Coast-West Coast feud between Boston’s Gerry Callahan (WEEI 850 AM and the Boston Herald) and Los Angeles’ T.J. Simers (LA Times) is starting to provide a nice sideshow to the Sox-Angels series.

Catch yourself up on the Manny Ramirez-fueled matter here and then check out this Thursday afternoon rebuttal from Callahan (after a request for comment from Shots):

“T.J. is like that friend in junior high who meets his first girlfriend and loses his mind,” Callahan said through email. “I liked him a lot better before he fell in love.”

There’s no record of a Simers-Ramirez couple registered at Williams-Sonoma as of yet, so we are going to state the obvious and say, “The ball is now in the court of Mr. Simers.”

. . . Just do a search of Simers to absorb the pure showmanship he constantly wields.

. . . And how about his complete takedown of the Herald, which he calls a “shopper.”

That’s journalistic trash talk of the highest order.

• Local live-blogging of games has been elevated to a new level with the WEEI.com Game Day blog and especially the yeoman’s work of Alex Speier on Wednesday night. Not merely a play-by-play re-hash of what everyone is watching at home, the GDB offers insight, analysis and pithy humor - exactly what live-blogging should and can be. Tony Massarotti just isn’t there yet and we suspect Mazz would admit as much.

We’re also of the opinion that live-blogging needs to be done with the fabulous CoverItLive web-based software and word is that WEEI.com (and at least one other entity in the market) have been experimenting off-line with it.

. . . Speaking of WEEI.com, the Will Leitch experiment is apparently going very well for the Entercom dot-commers. Leitch will add an every-other-week mailbag to his every-other-week Outsider column, giving him a weekly presence for the site.

. . . The dot-com also confirmed three other new contributors who have already started:

“WEEI.com has added Woburn Daily Times Chronicle sports writer Joe Haggerty to report on the Boston Bruins, while HOOPSWORLD Senior Reporter Jessica Camerato and Boston magazine Online Editor Paul Flannery will join FOXSPORTS.com’s Jeff Goodman in covering the Boston Celtics,” WEEI.com said in a release.

“We’ve compiled a first-rate collection of reporters to cover Celtics and Bruins at WEEI.com,” Editor Rob Bradford said. “With these talented additions, as well as our current staff, I feel that WEEI.com will be a must-read website for any Celtics and Bruins fan.”

• The “Borges Countdown” being run by the Herald this week has been a bit laughable. At a real tabloid, the marketing people would be going bonkers over The Bully arriving at Wingo Way. But at the teetering Herald, all the buzz-creation has to be done by editorial and it amounts to a one-inch box trumpeting the days until Borges’s debut.

Sure would make us feel a lot better if the editorial side were a bit more forthcoming about Borges’s immediate past and a little less smug about adding the provocateur.

• Shots is being told to expect a smaller cut size for the Boston Herald once its printing completely shifts out of the current set-up. It will likely be closer to the relatively new size of the New York Post, we’re told - about a full-inch smaller. The re-shaping of the Herald means even less space for printed content which should, in turn, mean more electronic content (if transitioned properly).

. . . Sean McAdam should be starting up with the Herald any day now and you can expect his re-emergence on radio to follow shortly thereafter.

• CORRECTION: Last week we mentioned that Mark Cofman is editing OT magazine and sloppily reported he was a lecturer at Emerson College. Cofman is actually teaching at Endicott College, but reports to Shots that his class load is significantly diminished now that he is heading up OT.

Shots regrets the error but not as much as the Globe regretted its Kevin O’Connell error from last Sunday. Tough week for the section overall, it appears.

Cofman is a 1979 graduate of Emerson and he is a former Herald sportswriter, who covered UMass basketball back in the days when Shots was a little tyke running around Boyden making copies and inhaling chlorine.

• There is already one substantive reason to give ESPN Original Digital’s Mayne Street a shot and her name is Alison Becker (playing the role of producer Sarah). Scott Van Pelt was pretty damn good in the episode we screened as well and kooky Kenny Mayne has always been a huge talent in our eyes.

See for yourself:

• Ashamed that we missed this one: Ex-CN8 host and reporter Phil Burton (of the famous Burton family) has left the Boston market and landed in Orlando with the ABC affiliate. Burton was one of the nicest, most down-to-earth guys in Boston’s electronic sports media and we wish him all the best down South.

• Time to shed a tear for the no-longer-running I.M. Bettor from the Herald. Insiders say that Bettor’s bad results over last few seasons, coupled with a dearth of freelance money in the budget, sealed the Bettor’s fate.

• The New Hampshire Union Leader welcomed a new Patriots writer and Boston sports correspondent this week in Brian MacPherson. The North Carolina grad is an Exeter, N.H., native and for the past two years had been covering Division II football and basketball for the St. Cloud (Minn.) Times. Prior to that, MacPherson worked as a Pulliam Fellow at the Arizona Republic and as a reporting intern at Sports Illustrated. His work in St. Cloud earned him the 2007 New Journalist of the Year award from the Minnesota Associated Press Association.

“Alex Speier did terrific work during five seasons reporting on the Sox for us, and Ian Clark, who remains an invaluable member of our Sports staff, has provided excellent coverage of the Patriots for more than seven years,” said UL Deputy Managing Editor-Sunday and Sports Vin Sylvia. “Providing quality coverage of both beats will be a challenge, no doubt, but Brian is extremely talented and hard-working, and I’m certain he’s up to the task.”

Clark will continue to file a weekly Patriots report card while taking on additional reporting duties for the paper, according to Sylvia.

• Old friend and Salem State grad Paul Biancardi has landed a very promising gig at the Worldwide Leader as the National Director of Recruiting for ESPN Basketball. Biancardi, now living in Charlotte, will get some air time on select high school and college games, where he will surely excel with his engaging personality and deep knowledge of all levels of the game.

• Happy 20th birthday to one of our favorite shows of all-time, ESPN’s “The Sports Reporters.” Joining John Saunders on this week’s show will be Mitch Albom, Mike Lupica and our own Basketball Bob Ryan. In fact, the very first show in 1988 (with Gary Thorne hosting) included ex-Globie Jackie MacMullan on the panel.

“We were the first sports show with this format – respected journalists addressing the major national stories,” says the show’s executive producer, Joe Valerio. “There’s no agenda. The strength of the show is our unbiased view. We don’t root for teams; we root for good stories.”

Mostly we just root for Lupica not to be part of the panel - sadly he gets a LOT of reps.

• The Duxbury (Mass.) DPW hard at work, in conjunction with the Duxbury’s Clipper’s publisher.

• Pete Thamel strikes again for the New York Times. While the Globe is busy cornering the market on Lifetime stories, the Big Daddy NYT actually does some dirt digging.

• TBS completely missed the boat with no live shots or split screens from Milwaukee as the Mets finished off their collapse on Sunday afternoon. Half the story was the fact that the Brew Crew was on the verge of the playoffs and TBS completely fumbled that portion of the drama.

. . . And what’s with the no sport coat thing for Ernie, Eck and Cal on Tuesday night?

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 what has to be one of the more humorous apologies in Boston Globe history, the paper today apologized for a photo in Sunday’s paper that depicted Patriots’ back-up quarterback Kevin O’Connell throwing a pass in practice.

The apology (third item in “For the Record”) reads:

Editor’s note: A photo on Page C6 in Sunday’s Sports section showed Patriots rookie quarterback Kevin O’Connell wearing a wristband with inappropriate language written on it. The photo did not meet the Globe’s journalistic standards and should not have been published.

Careful inspection of the Barry Chin-shot photo reveals a sticker on O’Connell’s left wrist (over his play-call wristband) that reads, “My dick is tiny too!”

Adding to the regrettable photo was the caption: “The Patriots are refining Kevin O’Connell’s mechanics, but they believe he has the tools to be a top-flight quarterback.”

A copy of the photo can not be found on-line, but if you have your Sunday Globe handy, it’s readily viewable in the upper left corner of Page C6.

• Shots has three upcoming TV appearances if you’re so inclined to watch:

Wednesday, October 1 - NECN morning show, 7:45 a.m. hit (approx.)
Thursday, October 2 - CN8’s 7 p.m. “Out of Bounds”
Friday, October 3 - CN8’s 11:30 p.m. “Out of Bounds”

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.

Long-time Providence Journal writer Sean McAdam is headed north on 95 to become a baseball columnist and writer for the Boston Herald.

Early Thursday afternoon, McAdam confirmed to Scott’s Shots that “[he and the Herald] are talking, but nothing is in place.” That changed later in the day and a memo confirming the departure was sent to ProJo staffers late Thursday afternoon. A separate source close to the negotiations also confirmed to Shots that McAdam will be on the Herald staff, possibly as soon as the start of the playoffs.

McAdam could not be reached for comment on Thursday night, as of post time.

Sources have confirmed to Shots that McAdam has been looking for new employment after the ProJo squashed McAdam’s outside work at WEEI 850 AM and ESPN.com over the summer. At least one upper management ProJoer, Shots is told by industry sources, found fault in McAdam being on-air at WEEI during the afternoon drive on baseball’s trade deadline day. That person - not directly associated with the sports department - evidently had a problem with where McAdam’s allegiance rested and subsequently put the kibosh on McAdam’s outside gigs (the very same gigs that provided exposure for the buzzless, sagging Belo Corp. property).

(McAdam’s last ESPN.com column appeared in early August and that coincided with his last WEEI appearance. There has also been a dearth of McAdam at other outside media outlets in the area, although he did remain a guest at Comcast SportsNet.)

In fact, the day after the trade deadline, an ESPN ticker item was giving credit to the ProJo (thanks to McAdam) for information about veteran players meeting with Sox management over the Manny situation. The amount of traffic that kind of mention (and others) can generate for a website is substantial. It’s the ProJo’s fault for not maximizing McAdam - not McAdam’s fault for earning some extra income the same way most of his competitors do.

McAdam, a father of two, who turns 49 in November, has been with the ProJo company since the early 1980s (first, in a radio role) after he graduated from Providence College (Class of 1981). (Scroll down here for a good bio on McAdam from his off-off-Broadway gig of a couple of summers back.) He’s been on the Sox beat since 1989 and is one of the most-respected (and connected) baseball men on the East Coast.

If the reason for his pending departure from the ProJo is because some tyrannical, Stuffed Suit doesn’t understand the inherent benefits of multi-media-platform guys like McAdam, then it’s probably time to start digging the grave for that paper’s sports section - if not the entire operation.

. . . The Herald, Shots has been informed, has no problem with McAdam’s WEEI work or his contributions to ESPN.com. “They’re fine with it as long as he keeps his first allegiance to the Herald,” said one source with direct knowledge, “the way he did all those years for the ProJo.”

. . . The move to the Herald for McAdam makes sports editor Hank Hryniewicz 2-for-2 on his replacements for the Goodbye Four (Mike Felger, Rob Bradford, Tony Massarotti and Jeff Horrigan).

Earlier in the week Hank Herald tapped lightning rod Ron Borges, who was born to write for a tabloid, and now he nabs McAdam, whose breadth and depth on the Sox certainly offsets the Tony Mazz loss (who, by the way, may be most valuable for the Globies on the TV side). McAdam will take over the baseball notes column and also have some type of web presence for the Herald.

Hryniewicz still has one more slot to fill and Shots is told by several informed insiders that a New York tabloid baseball writer is in the lead for that slot. However, there is still a movement afoot on Hank Herald’s desk to go with a football specialist and move John Tomase off the Patriots and back to the Sox. That hire should be made in the coming week.

The key now for Hryniewicz will be maximizing the content delivered by both McAdam and Borges to prop up the sagging Sports section of BostonHerald.com. Neither Borges (at least at his own personal blog) nor McAdam (at the ProJo) have been what you would call “prolific” bloggers. But both are surely capable of breaking stories through the Internet and reacting with voice and authority when stories are broken. Problem is, the Herald’s website has shown little in terms of audio and video content on the Sports side, leading many to surmise they don’t have the manpower to fully implement such rudimentary Web accessories.

But make no mistake, the success of these hires will be determined on the Web page, NOT the printed page.

. . . The “McBrothers”, Joe McDonald of the ProJo and Kevin McNamara will probably be leaned on a bit more to make up for the missing McAdam coverage by ProJo sports editor, Art Martone. Martone has now lost Tom Curran and McAdam - two of his stalwarts - in the course of 24 months. It’s quite possible there won’t be a McAdam replacement made until late Winter, Shots is told.

• Heck of a Thursday night football game for ESPN. Jacked, pumped and totally blindsided. If only college football mattered around here.

• The Herald trumpeted its hiring of Borges as a general sports columnist with an eight paragraph announcement on Page 68 of Wednesday’s paper with quotes welcoming Borges from both Hank Hryniewicz and the paper’s editor, Kevin R. Convey.

However, neither of those veteran, grizzled journalists addressed plagiarism charges leveled against the ex-Boston Globe writer by his former employer.

Instead, the un-bylined announcement/celebration touted Borges for his “in-your-face coverage” that has both “entertained and aggravated” - they seem to have omitted “ethically violated a peer” - “local fans for almost 25 years. . . ”

An email to Hryniewicz on Wednesday afternoon seeking comment on Borges’ past plagiaristic ways was not returned. The email requested comment from either Hryniewicz or Convey.

Convey, who recently whistled in the wind about a sacred bond between the Herald and its readers in the wake of the embarrassing John Tomase affair, crowed in the Wednesday announcement that, “Borges’ arrival is one more reason why the Herald’s sports coverage is a must-read in this town. I’m looking forward to having him on the staff and watching him shake things up.”

Hryniewicz gushed, “I’m thrilled to have him on our team. . .what intrigues me most about adding him to our staff is the idea of turning Ron loose on this town and giving readers a dose of his unique take on the local sports scene.”

According to the announcement, Borges will start writing for the Wingo Waywards from San Francisco for Pats/Niners next weekend.

. . . The Herald was never overly hard on Borges during his tribulations at the Globe. But it was fairly diligent in following up. And, of course, Borges’s new bully teammate, Howie Carr, took a nice swipe at the time of the suspension. This is from Carr’s March 16, 2007 column, titled “Pols’ St. Pat’s time nothing to laugh at”:

. . . It’s sad, though, that none of these hacks who’ll trek to the Convention Center on Sunday can write their own lame stuff anymore. And by the way, if any of my material sounds familiar, take it up with my joke writer, the Globe’s Ron Borges. He has assured me everything came off a joke Web site that everybody has a right to steal from. . .

. . . We’re still waiting to hear if Herald part-timer and Cold, Hard man Kerry J. Byrne will be at the “Welcome to the Building” party for Borges.

. . . Borges will likely be asked to give the Herald some boxing coverage - and every tabloid worth its weight needs outlandish coverage of the outlandish sport - but it better keep a close eye on who and whom, Borges is still in cahoots with.

EVERYTHING that Borges does needs to pass the smell test in order for Hank Herald’s (and Kevin R. Convey’s) risk to pay off.

• As with all start-ups, we are willing to give the Boston Globe’s new weekly sports offering, OT some time to crawl before it walks.

Still, for the sake of maintaining my cranky ways, there have already been three noticeable missteps:

1. How about NO BUZZ whatsoever? Shouldn’t NESN have been promo-ing the bejeezus out of this launch? I mean, the inventory is there during the games, wouldn’t you think? What’s one more product for Jerry Remy to read? Were there any Globe in-house ads?

That wouldn’t have even taken an investment. [This leads to the bigger question of branding. It would have been a lot more sensible to name the magazine "Globe 10.0" and tie it in directly with the Bob Ryan show and maximize the year-plus already invested into "10.0" - which, by the way has OT's Charlie Pierce as a regular foil for Ryan. Now, OT could be part of a larger plan with expansion in other cities, but still, the "10.0" brand has already developed some cache here and it would have made sense to leverage that.]

2. (Bruce Allen pointed this out already, but it bears repeating:) The line about Sports Illustrated from the Globe’s Jay Fogarty in the Thursday story about the launch. What did he even mean? There shouldn’t be a single new media venture that tries to emulate SI because SI doesn’t even know what it is right now. Fogarty needed to emphasis the additional avenue that OT gives advertisers to get into people’s homes - and stay there for a week. The Globe’s ability to package its print and digital offerings is what will ultimately decide whether “OT” has a sudden death or a long life.

The only thing SI is these days is very thin and very disheveled - with a readership that is dying off or jumping ship to the Internet. Is that what Fogarty wants? Doesn’t sound like the best business model to me.

. . . (I knew the name sounded familiar and there’s good reason. I used to contribute to a magazine named OT. Failed miserably as I recall. But that happens with just about every place I’m at. Trend? I think not.)

3. Competing with thyself. How many different sections of the Boston.com site can Chad Finn appear on? When someone asks me if I read Finn today, I am going to have say “Which one?” There’s a point of diminishing returns with over-content and the Globe is now perilously close to that point.

. . . ON THE OTHER HAND - the early staff roster for editor (and ex-Herald writer and current Emerson lecturer) (NOTE: Cofman is actually lecturing at Endicott College - although he did graduate from Emerson in 1979) Mark Cofman is very strong. I’ll probably plunk down two quarters just to read Charlie Pierce (he of the 120 somewhat-related comments in his first offering), Tony Mazz and Finn. But the supporting cast includes ever-steady and under-appreciated Maureen Mullen, Celts’ stalwart Scott Souza, Tom Wilcox on the Patriots and a newbie Umie with whole lot of Kevin Cullen’s pluck in him, Danny Picard on the Bruins.

That right there is a solid justification for $26 bucks a year (assuming they go every week through holidays). Everything else is gravy.

So it’s priced right and the bylines are respectable.

Now let’s see what it can deliver as far as content, originality and - this is where it all shakes down - ad revenue.

. . . We were able to catch up with Souza on Thursday and he indicated by email that he will maintain his full-time role at Gatehouse Media’s MetroWest Daily News and the Daily News Tribune of Waltham (the latter of which he has been the sports editor for since 1999) as well as with the rest of those papers.

“One of the editors of (”OT”) was apparently a fan of the way I have covered the team the past three years and emailed me about the chance to write a weekly notebook and occasional feature for (the magazine),” Souza said. “With the volume of sports copy floating around out there these days, it was nice to be noticed. The folks here thankfully understood that it wouldn’t affect the amount of effort I dedicate to both the Celtics and local sports coverage I provide at Gatehouse.

“I was most impressed at the concept of trying a new print publication in this media climate. With all the bad news that comes out of the industry these days, it is intriguing to be a part of something aiming to buck the trend,” he said. “Hopefully, any success it enjoys will be a positive sign for print publications in general, which I have always felt still have a rightful place in the media environment even with all the advances and benefits of Web reporting and blogs. . .The editors seemed very upbeat about the potential to tap into a different demographic and it would be satisfying to play a small part in helping them do that.

“In a way, the idea of it reminded me of the very impressive publication Jerry Spar used to produce at Boston Sports Review, which I know you were involved with . . . Hopefully, with the corporate backing this will have the legs to keep going.”

RIP, BSR. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

• Been following the YouCastr evolution and the Paul Shirley show may be the first development that keeps us coming back for the foreseeable future. Dude’s funny and irreverent and we did enjoy the book version.

• Rob Bradford confirmed to Shots that WEEI.com’s Celtics coverage will be anchored by contributors Jessica Camerato and Boston Magazine’s Paul Flannery.

• An experiment in sports blogging with the PawSox.

• The movie, “American Pastime” will air on ESPN Classic this Friday night at 9 p.m. ET. Kerry Yo Nakagawa is a big Sox fan and was the associate producer for the film (in addition to having a cameo role). Compelling story indeed.

• Sounds like the return game for this one could be headed to the Boston Garden. That would be very sweet, indeed. And we’re guessing the Tigers will sneak in a meal at Coach Calipari’s new-found North End favorite, Pizzeria Regina.

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.