Guzzi or Guzzn’t He?

June 30, 2015

From our Local Dailies DisADvantage desk

After 19 years as president and CEO of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, Paul Guzzi is stepping down. As a sort of parting gift, he ran this full-page ad in today’s Boston Herald.

 

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Crosstown at the Boston Globe – no ad. Then again, why pay for what the Globe will provide for free. Bottom of today’s Business front:

 

 

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Top of C2:

 

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Guzzi is moving on the become board chairman at the Citi Performing Arts Center, where he’ll undoubtedly run many more ads in the stately local broadsheet than the thirsty local tabloid.

Regardless, all best to all involved.

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Marty Walsh Channels Orwell on 5-Ring Referendum

March 24, 2015

(Previously . . . in the Marty Walsh Gazette . . . )

Today’s Boston Herald features more slop from City Hall on the Store 2024 rumpus.

A full page worth, in fact.

 

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From Matt Stout’s piece: “The ‘Team Walsh’ meeting [tonight] comes amid the increasing likelihood of a 2016 ballot initiative as both Attorney General Maura Healey and Gov. Charlie Baker threw their support behind a referendum yesterday.”

And Jaclyn Cashman writes in her column, “Walsh has even warmed up to a ballot question regarding bringing the games to the Bay State. He learned Bay Staters get furious when they feel their voices don’t matter.”

But . . .

Here’s the official statement City Hall released today:

STATEMENT FROM MAYOR WALSH ON OLYMPIC REFERENDUM

“Hosting the Olympic Games presents an opportunity to envision and build together the next chapter in Boston’s history. The success of our bid for the Olympics depends on the support of residents and we should only move forward in a way that will bring the greatest benefit to the City and its neighborhoods. Over the next year, I encourage residents to engage in a conversation to learn more about what the Olympics could mean for Boston and the entire Commonwealth, and to put forward any suggestions or concerns. The Olympics offers a catalyst to unlocking our full potential and only through collaboration can we take advantage of this chance to elevate Boston to new heights.”

 

Excellent! The Statement on the Olympic Referendum doesn’t actually mention the Olympic Referendum.

Then, several hours ago, this popped up on the Herald’s website:

Boston 2024 sets date for statewide referendum on Olympics bid

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The head of Boston 2024 today set a date for a binding statewide referendum on the Boston Olympics — and vowed to give voters in Boston veto power over the controversial project.

“We believe now is the time that 2024 would like to propose a referendum in 2016,” Boston 2024 chair John Fish told the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce. “What that is saying is that: let the voters vote — not just the voters of Boston — but a referendum statewide. What we will commit to is if the statewide referendum passes but the voting bloc in Boston doesn’t want the Olympics, we won’t host the Olympics.”

 

There you go. Or there the Olympic bid goes.

Take your pick.

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Car Dealer Gets Ad-itorial Package from Boston Globe

January 20, 2014

From our What a Coincidence! desk

Several weeks ago the hardworking staff over at Campaign Outsider posted an item headlined Sign o’ the Time: Everything for Sale at Newsweekly, which included this ad from the December 29 Boston Sunday Globe:

 

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Imagine our surprise, then, when we saw this in yesterday’s Boston Sunday Globe:

Seven things you should know about Ray Ciccolo

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Over the last half century, Village Automotive Group has grown into one of the state’s largest automobile dealers, with more than 400 employees at eight locations. President Ray Ciccolo recently chatted with Globe reporter Erin Ailworth about how it all started. Here’s what she found out:

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Ciccolo was only 24, but he already owned two coin-operated launderettes when he walked into the Gene Brown Rambler/Volvo dealership in Newton Centre looking to buy a “little, fuel efficient” Volkswagen to replace an old Buickhe had rebuilt from junkyard parts. Instead, he listened to a friend working at the dealership. Ciccolo left with a gas-guzzling Lincoln Continental — it got just three miles to the gallon — and plans to purchase the business . . .

 

And etc.

Not to get technical about it, but there are really eight things you should know about Ray Ciccolo.

We’re not saying there was any explicit pay-for-play arrangement here, but it’s hard to believe that a business editor wouldn’t know if an interview subject had run full-page ads in the paper, especially such self-aggrandizing ones. That might give the average editor pause, yes?

Well, in this case, no.

Coals to Newcastle, there’s also this on Page One of today’s Globe Score section.

 

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When Globe owner John Henry gave a speech to the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce the other week, he talked about new sponsored sections like Score that would deliver added valued to advertisers. That led the hardreading staff to wonder what exactly Globe sponsors would get .

We’re wondering even more now.

 

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Ask John Henry: What Exactly Does a Globe ‘Sponsor’ Get?

January 13, 2014

As the hardwalking staff set out on its post-prandial promenade last night, we happened upon WBUR’s rebroadcast of Boston Red Sox/Boston Globe owner John Henry’s address to the local Chamber of Commerce last week. Most news reports mentioned that the Globe would explore new ways of attracting advertisers and sponsors to help build its revenue base, but the Boston Business Journal was a bit more forthcoming:

[Henry] heralded the Globe’s ongoing roll-out of a new, sponsored sports product — The Score — while saying little about how the new section will differ from the newspaper’s traditional sports coverage or why advertisers might direct their marketing dollars toward one option versus the other.

 

Question #1: Where is the sponsored content in The Score? We’re looking at Sunday’s edition of the “sponsored sports product” and all we see is an ad for Sullivan Tire, an ad for Jaguar Woburn, and a whole lot of nothing else.

Question #2: What exactly will Globe sponsors – assuming there are any – get for their money?

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Ask John Henry: What’s Your Missus Doing for the Globe?

January 10, 2014

Both local dailies reported yesterday about Boston Red Sox/Boston Globe owner John Henry’s plans for his new newspaper acquisition, which he detailed at a Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce breakfast on Wednesday.

And both local dailies reported about Henry’s philanthropic plan to support local non-profits.

From the Herald:

[Henry] spoke vaguely about finding new ways to recruit sponsors and advertisers for Globe content, and unveiled a gift-voucher program for subscribers to support their favorite charity.

 

From the Globe:

Henry said the Globe will employ new approaches aimed at increasing advertising and will encourage companies and organizations to use ad pages in different ways. He also unveiled a program to give Globe subscribers vouchers they can direct to their favorite nonprofits. Those charities will be able to cash in the vouchers for advertising space with the Globe.

 

What the piece in the stately local broadsheet failed to mention was this:

 

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That full-page Globe ad (page A12) signed by Mrs. John Henry says more about the Mister’s plans for the Globe than any news story.

Can Tonya Mezrich, Arts Editor be far behind?

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Herald (At Last!) Has Memorial Ad-vantage Over Globe

April 30, 2013

After eating its crosstown rival’s dust for two weeks, the Boston Herald finally got more love on the tribute advertising front than the Globe. All the stately local broadsheet has today is this quarter-page ad from Boston Sports Clubs:

 

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The feisty local tabloid, on the other hand, has this full-page ad from the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce:

 

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Chalk one up for the little guy, eh?

 

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