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Joe Buck: Intimacy Is Gone Because You’re Talking To a Screen

” think the real issue when they’re doing Zoom calls is you don’t know the person who’s the subject on the other side of that call. A lot of that intimacy is gone because you’re talking to a screen, and it’s a total disconnect.”

Eduardo Razo

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The 2021 Major League Baseball season has arrived, and with it comes questions about the way announcers, reporters, and writers will cover each team and game. Last season, media members everywhere were impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, forcing all to operate with controlled and limited access. In a normal world, professionals would engage in intimate conversations with players, coaches, and executives, allowing members of the media to gain the inside track on news, helping them create better feature stories for their brands or in the case of an announcer, being able to relay valuable information to their viewers and listeners during game broadcasts.

But unprecedented times required unprecedent adjustments. Yet as we begin the 2021 season with fans being welcomed back into stadiums, and light starting to appear at the end of the tunnel, signaling that the world could soon be headed to a return to normalcy, the question lingers, “will sports media professionals have a chance to do their jobs the way they did previously?” 

During an appearance this morning on “101 ESPN’s – Karraker & Smallmon” which included midday host and St. Louis Cardinals announcer Dan McLaughlin, Fox MLB play-by-play voice, Joe Buck said not being able to have intimate conversations with people has made it harder to not only connect with players but also to share details with viewers when calling a game inside the booth. 

“I think the real issue when they’re doing Zoom calls is you don’t know the person who’s the subject on the other side of that call” said Buck. “A lot of that intimacy is gone because you’re talking to a screen, and it’s a total disconnect. I would love for it to go back to the way it was. I just hope that these different sports don’t say ‘well, we got along fine during the pandemic without you guys having face to face contact with players and coaches so we’re going to do it that way going forward’.”

Buck continued, “When you don’t have that personal knowledge, and it becomes a quote machine, and nothing of substance on these Zoom calls, there’s something that’s gone that I think we as announcers can relay to an audience that cares, the information they can’t or don’t read, and it’s fresh.”

While Zoom does provide a platform that allows groups of people to come together and have a conversation, intimate discussions are difficult to have in a public setting. Forming personal relationships is significant for journalists and national broadcasters who are looking to garner information that their audience, who might be watching the team for the first time, might not be aware of. 

McLaughlin mentioned towards the end of the discussion that the game of baseball is seen by some younger fans as being too slow, making it even more important for broadcasters to have access because they’re thrust into situations where they have to relay information and share stories during lags in the action, and become the conduit to educating the audience about the players. With access reduced though, it makes it much harder to do the job.

Buck responded to that point by explaining that broadcasters get to know players on a different level due to being around them at the hotel, inside the ballpark, on the plane or the bus. He said MLB is aware of the challenges with the game but the MLBPA isn’t in a rush to make major changes. Buck added that his partner John Smoltz loves the game, but is frustrated with where the game is headed, and the way it’s managed and taught. What specifically frustrates Buck is the game’s lack of logic and how it impacts results.

Entering the 2021 season, Zoom calls with players will continue. With the country receiving vaccinations at a high rate, it’ll be interesting to see whether the league makes these interactions permanent or allows broadcasters and journalists to once again have the personal interactions pre-pandemic. 

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Sports Radio News

Kirk Minihane: WEEI is “Going to be Andy Gresh and Rich Shertenlieb in Afternoons”

“Maybe the two most sensitive c***s in the history of radio. That’s a show we are going to ruin.”

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Photos of Kirk Minihane and Rich Shertenlieb

As the speculation continues on where Boston sports talker Rich Shertenlieb will end up, one former WEEI host said he has the scoop on what is going to happen. Kirk Minihane, now with Barstool Sports, said, “What I heard was, initially, was they were moving Rich Keefe from nights to middays, moving Adam Jones from afternoons to middays and keeping Fauria there, and moving Andy Gresh to afternoons…But now it appears Rich Shertenlieb is going to do afternoons with Andy Gresh.”

On Wednesday, Boston Globe sports and sports media columnist Chad Finn put out a post on X, saying, “Didn’t think Rich Shertenlieb would end up at WEEI after leaving Sports Hub. I do now, most likely in afternoon drive. Audacy management has been telling people to expect changes.”

Minihane continued commenting on the matter, saying, “It’s going to be Andy Gresh and Rich Shertenlieb in the afternoons, which is going to be so awful. Maybe the two most sensitive c***s in the history of radio. That’s a show we are going to ruin…we haven’t done that in a while, we are going to take that show down…Once that show starts, we are just going to blitz them with phone calls because Gresh can’t handle that.

“What they don’t understand, because they are so dumb, is that…Rich Shertenlieb has no fan base…no fan of [Toucher and Hardy] in the morning is going to be like ‘I’m not going to listen to Felger in the afternoons, I’ll now listen to Andy Gresh and Rich Shertenlieb.’ It’s going to be dreadful.”

Recapping what he has heard the rest of the WEEI lineup will be, Minihane said, “…And then in middays you have Adam Jones, failed afternoons. Rich Keefe who has now failed middays, drivetime, nights and is now going to fail again in middays… and Christian Fauria who has never drawn a rating in his life.”

WEEI has not commented on any of the speculation. BSM will have more as the story unfolds.

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Sports Radio News

Former 670 The Score Host Tommy Williams Has Died

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Photo of Tommy Williams
Courtesy: Lakeshore Public Media

Tommy Williams, who was heard for a decade on 670 The Score, died on Wednesday at the age of 66.

Williams began his broadcasting career in his hometown of Gary, Indiana in 1982 at WLTH before moving on to The Score. In 2003, Williams became the PA Announcer for the Gary Southshore RailCats of the American Association where he had his signature call to get the attention of the fans, “People, People, People.”

A story in The Times of Northwest Indiana said, “The longtime RailCats public address announcer and Lakeshore Public Media sports journalist was known for broadcasting countless games, interviewing countless athletes and covering Region sports at all levels. The Gary native and co-host of “Prep Sports Report,” “Prep Football Report,” and “Lakeshore PBS Scoreboard” often signed off shows saying, “Gary, Indiana, you know I love you.”

“The cadence he had in his voice echoed across the Region in a way we may never see again. He was widely known and widely loved,” Tom Maloney, vice president of radio operations at Lakeshore Public Media told the paper.

“He’d want to be remembered as the voice of Lakeshore sports,” his Regionally Speaking co-host and producer Dee Dotson told The Times. “Most people will remember him for covering prep sports all the way up to semi-pros. He’ll be remembered for treating each of his subjects like they were world champions. His depth of knowledge of sports at all levels is commendable. He was a walking encyclopedia of stats.” 

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Compass Media Networks Promotes Three Members to Oversee Play-by-Play Sports Platform

“It is our pleasure to give these three talented executives their day in the sun, knowing that they will continue to work incredibly hard to carry on this tradition of excellence.”

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Logo for Compass Media Networks

Compass Media Networks has announced the promotions of three long-standing executives, Robert Blum, Tyler Brewer, and Chris Kleiber, who will collectively oversee the content creation, production, and distribution of the company’s play-by-play sports platform.

“For over 16 years, Compass Media Networks has set a standard of excellence for national play-by-play sports with Chris, Rob, and Tyler playing a vital part in our success,” said Peter Kosann, CEO/Founder of Compass Media Networks. “It is our pleasure to give these three talented executives their day in the sun, knowing that they will continue to work incredibly hard to carry on this tradition of excellence.”

Robet Blum has been appointed Vice President & General Manager of Sports and will also continue to serve as Vice President of Affiliate Sales for News-Talk and Sports. Tyler Brewer has been appointed Executive Producer – Sports Programming. And Chris Kleiber has been appointed Senior Producer – Sports Programming.

Compass Media Networks broadcasts annually over 100 play-by-play sporting events involving college men’s basketball and football (including the Big Ten Tournament and the Big Ten Championship Game), NFL 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Sunday Doubleheaders, and complete coverage of the Dallas Cowboys and Las Vegas Raiders. The broadcasts are distributed across hundreds of terrestrial sports, news-talk and music stations as well as digital distribution platforms such as SiriusXM, Verizon Mobile, and the Varsity App.

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