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?


Walsh Family Affair in Boston Dailies

January 11, 2014

What’s newsworthy about new Boston Mayor Marty Walsh? Judging by today’s local dailies, it’s all relative.

From the Boston Globe’s front page:

Walsh vows steps to aid those hurt by Alzheimer’s

Mayor says his own experience will help to shape his plans

 

walshfamily

 

Martin J. Walsh walked in the door to visit his grandmother at her Irish farmhouse, and she did not know who he was.

Mary Ann O’Malley did not remember her own daughter, either. By the time she had reached her early 80s, O’Malley had forgotten much of what she once knew intimately.

“We would walk in the house,” Walsh said in an interview, “and she would ask who we were . . . ”

While Walsh’s struggles with cancer as a child and alcoholism as a young man became well known during the campaign, his family’s history with Alzheimer’s was news to many, who learned of it during his inaugural speech Monday.

 

So Walsh will be placing a high priority on “improving services for people with Alzheimer’s and their families.”

Crosstown at the Boston Herald, Walsh’s family news is less heart-warming than heartburn-y.

Walsh defends choice of cousin for driver

Mayor Martin J. Walsh said he picked his cousin, a Boston police sergeant, to be his official driver — a plum job that usually bodes well for the career of the cop selected — because she was qualified and he wanted someone he could trust in the position.011014mayormg003

The administration confirmed Thursday that the driver, Sgt. Winifred Cotter, is the new mayor’s cousin.

“It’s not nepotism. Winny is a police officer who has an extensive career in the police department,” Walsh said yesterday. “She’s a sergeant. She’s somebody I completely trust. She’s worked in city government a lot longer than I have.”

 

Yes, well, keep this Crony Hall act up (paging Eugene O’Flaherty!) and she’ll work in city government a lot more than you will too, Mistah Mayah.


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?


Ask John Henry: What Exactly Does a COO Do?

January 9, 2014

Boston Red Sox/Boston Globe owner John Henry made a rare public appearance at a Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce breakfast yesterday and made news with his announcement that he might sell the Morrissey Boulevard property and will appoint a new COO of the Globe maeda_09henry_biz2now that publisher Christopher Mayer has stepped down.

The question is, what is a COO?

The Globeniks better hope it’s nothing like the chief content officer position Time, Inc. recently established for its publications.

As the hardtracking staff at Sneak Adtack noted last fall, Time, Inc. CCO Norman Pearlstein is now the person that both the business side and the editorial side report to, “leading some to wonder whether business interests would now trump those of edit.”

According to New York Times columnist Joe Nocera, Pearlstein “praised the model being developed by Forbes magazine, which includes ‘sponsored’ content alongside the work of its staff writers. He said that the business side would not be able to hire an editor unless he went along with it.”

Be afraid, Globeniks. Be very afraid.


Walsh Inaug: Herald Trumps Globe in Local Crookerati

January 7, 2014

Both local dailies did a good job covering Marty Walsh’s inauguration as Boston’s 48th (or 54th or 58th) mayor.

The Boston Globe gave it it nearly four full pages in the A section, along with the requisite sonorous editorial.

The Boston Herald seemed to throw its entire newsroom at the torch-passing: eight columnists, seven reporters, twelve pages, and a cautiously optimistic editorial.

But, not surprisingly, it was in the boldface coverage of the day-long shindig where the Herald proved superior, especially in noting the less-than-luminaries who attended.

The Globe pointed out the Big Three:

Even some whose political legacies are shadowed by controversy showed up. Dianne Wilkerson, a former state senator, who was released from prison last fall after serving time for a bribery conviction, was in the audience. So, too, was Thomas Finneran, the former House speaker who pleaded guilty to obstructing justice in 2007, and former state treasurer Tim Cahill, whose trial on public corruption charges ended in a mistrial, probation, and a fine.

 

Howie Carr also gave a nod to the if-you’re-indicted-you’re-invited set. But the Inside Track had a little something extra:

 

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Score one for the feisty local tabloid. Don Forst must be smiling somewhere.


Globe: No Problem with Walsh’s Koh Dependency

January 5, 2014

According to today’s Boston Globe, Mayor-elect Marty Walsh has named a “relative political outsider” who is “relatively young” as his City Hall wingman – and that’s all good.

Walsh announces his chief of staff

Andover native, 29, has worked in politics, at Huffington Post

Boston Mayor-elect Martin J. Walsh on Saturday named Daniel Arrigg Koh, currently the general manager of Huffington Post Live, handout_koh_metas his chief of staff — the first major appointment in the administration that takes over control of the city on Monday.

“I’m excited to have Daniel joining our administration and bring a fresh, new energy to the mayor’s office,” Walsh said in a statement issued Saturday afternoon. “He has broad experience about City Hall and a deep understanding of managing a large, fast-paced organization. We have great talent joining us, and I know Daniel will help me transform the way we do things in Boston.”

 

And nary a discouraging word after that.

Not so fast, says crosstown rival Boston Herald on today’s front page.

 

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Inside, the feisty local tabloid elaborates.

Walsh names neophyte to key position

Some say mayor-elect taking a risk

Picking a 29-year-old political unknown as chief of staff is a bold, unexpected move and a sign that Mayor-elect Martin J. Walsh’s 010414Walshjm03administration is shaping up to take a new direction in City Hall — although the hire also is not without risks, experts said.

Daniel Arrigg Koh — an Andover native who last worked as general manager of HuffPost Live and a former adviser through Harvard’s Leadership Fellow Program for Mayor Thomas M. Menino — represents a young, intelligent hire with an impeccable resume, said John Nucci, Suffolk University vice president for government affairs.

 

Or maybe this . . .

Daniel Koh might be too young and too green to navigate the pitfalls of City Hall politics effectively, said Thomas J. Whalen, a Boston University social science professor. Walsh should have compensated for his own inexperience in City Hall by hiring someone well-versed in the political landscape, he said.

“This is a huge job. You think you would have someone who is older, more experienced and more connected,” Whalen said, adding that Koh will have to tangle with the city’s union leaders. “You’ll need a tough guy who can knock heads together. Will they respect someone 29 years old?”

 

Well, we know at least one person who doesn’t.

Leave it, as usual, to Herald graybeard Peter Gelzinis to provide some historical perspective in a piece headlined Koh may be right-hand man, but not clear he’ll be a heavyweight.

In his fifth and final go-round as mayor, Tom Menino looked across the river to Harvard and installed whiz-kid Mitch Weiss as his chief of staff. A beloved old pol craved new blood. And yet the man he trusted to handle the day-to-day life blood of politics was an up-from-the-streets-Southie native, Michael Kineavy.

It was a kind of schizophrenia that just about everyone in City Hall came to understand. “Kineavy was the get-it-done on the ground guy,” one longtime veteran said. “He was the guy that made government work in a way everyone understood.

 

The Herald covered a lot of bases on this story. Presumably, the Globe will play some catch-up tomorrow.


Did the Globe Give a Mulligan to Tom Menino on Boston Development?

January 5, 2014

Last Thursday, the Boston Globe ran this Page One piece by its highly respected architectural critic Robert Campbell.

For urban design, Menino era scores highs and lows

 

maeda_19MeninoBRA_biz1

 

In his 20-plus years in office, Mayor Thomas M. Menino began as the healer of Boston’s neighborhoods. Over time, he morphed into the commander of downtown development.

Of course I’m simplifying. But I think that’s the short story people will remember about this mayor and his impact on the architecture of the city . . .

The mayor was involved in virtually every decision about architecture and urban design during his tenure. He wasn’t a visionary thinker, nor was he strong on aesthetics. But he was a master of detail who always seemed to know everything that was happening. He won’t be remembered for any single grand urban gesture. Instead, he presided over a multiplicity of lesser projects that, taken together, have changed the face of the city.

 

For better and for worse, as Campbell’s piece makes clear.

Then yesterday, the stately local broadsheet ran this Page One piece (dead-tree edition headline).

Skyline bears his distinctive signature

Impact of Menino’s development calls still unfolding

When Mayor Thomas M. Menino took office in 1993, Boston’s downtown was in the grip of a recession. Construction had slowed to Screen Shot 2014-01-05 at 12.45.59 AMa crawl, retailers were struggling, and the elevated Central Artery still spewed exhaust onto a waterfront that was more gritty than glitzy.

Then, an improbable chain of events unfolded: The Big Dig, massive cost overruns and all, replaced the rusting steel of the artery with a series of parks; people and new stores began moving back into the city’s core; and developers created bold plans for North Station, Downtown Crossing, and the South Boston waterfront.

Today, those sparks of renewal are exploding in a historic spate of development, with more than 5,700 homes under construction and huge office, retail, and housing complexes rising from the South Boston Innovation District to Dudley Square. While he was not directly responsible for all of those projects, Menino played a central role in rebuilding a city that is now among the world’s top markets for real estate investment.

 

That’s a very different picture, yeah?

Yeah.


Scot Lehigh Nails Tom Menino

January 4, 2014

Praise the Lord and pass the ballots: Boston’s long Meninorama is about to end.

Tom Menino’s hagiographic sendoff has for the most part been toe-clenching, as a former colleague of ours might say. Sure, there have been the occasional whacks: Robert Campbell got in a few in his architectural digest of Boston development over the last 20 years, and Dig Boston got in more than a few digs in its valedictory.

But generally, Mistah Mayah has gotten the equivalent of a Duck Boat Parade from the local media.

So it was refreshing to read Scot Lehigh’s op-ed column about Menino in Saturday’s Boston Globe, especially these passages about “the counterproductive parts of his record.”

Topping that list is the way Boston’s public conversation suffered under a thin-skinned, insecure, often peevish mayor. City actors and observers quickly learned that Menino saw himself less as mayor than as sultan — and could be as petty and imperious as one when angry.

And he was nothing if not easily vexed.

Proposing a project, initiative, or idea that hadn’t first been cleared with the mayor was enough to put one crosswise with him. He was, meanwhile, hypersensitive about criticism and quick to take umbrage at those who differed on policy matters.

 

Truth is, Tom Menino may have been the smallest mayor in Boston’s history.

Twenty years or no.


What Can the Herald Do for (Ayla) Brown?

January 3, 2014

Well, announce her engagement for starters.

From Thursday’s Boston Herald Inside Track:

Ayla Brown ‘available’ no more

Former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown has no more “available” daughters. Ayla Brown’s BF, former minor league pitcher Keith Weiser, Boston Herald Mediadropped to his knee onstage at the Tuckerman Theatre during the country singer’s New Year’s Eve set and popped the question. And Ayla said, “Yes!”

“Thank you to Keith Weiser for making my dreams come true,” Ayla, a former “American Idol” contestant, wrote on her Facebook page yesterday. “I didn’t think 2013 could be any better until this happened at my show last night. I love you Keith and I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you!”

 

Proud Papa Scott told the Track that “Ayla’s future hubby had been planning his surprise for some time.”

It certainly came as a surprise to the Boson Globe, which had nothing on the happy couple.

Chalk one up for the Track, yeah?


Globe Runs MBTA Sellout Ad

January 1, 2014

Tip o’ the pixel to Nancy Goldner, who had this Letter to the Editor in Tuesday’s Boston Globe.

Where’s transparency on T’s naming sale?

IN THE wake of the failure of transparency and accountability that led to the loss of $25 million of MBTA pension money uncovered by the Globe, we need to restore the “public” to the quasi-public MBTA. (“Ex-T pension chief recommended $25m investment that went bust,” Dec. 20). Now there is another troubling disregard of the public dimension. The MBTA is turning our T stations and rail and bus lines into commodities for sale to private corporations that can come up with the $1 million price tag. In return, they will get naming rights, branding, advertising, and online and on-site promotion rights.

A small advertising notice announcing the Corporate Partnership Program appeared in the Globe Metro section on Dec. 26. Selling off the public spaces thousands of riders pass through everyday will subject us to relentless advertising pitches whenever we ride the T. Don’t riders deserve a say before the MBTA further commercializes our public spaces?

Nancy Goldner

 

That sent the hardscrambling staff to the 12/26 edition of the stately local broadsheet, and this ad:

 

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Half a million for the Tom (Not a Racist) Yawkey Station? One million for No.9 Park Street Station?

Cheap at half the price, as Soupy Sales would say.