The hardreading staff noted a few hours ago that the BostonHerald.com homepage had the headline “Kerry in the crosshairs if nominated for state” right next to its coverage of the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy.
To its credit, the paper has now corrected that unfortunate pairing.
Homepage at 4:20 pm:
Sad, sad day.
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BostonHerald.com homepage at 1:35 pm:
Of course, the Herald couldn’t know, when it wrote the “Kerry in the crosshairs” hed, what would transpire only hours later. But it’s a damn good argument to stop using gun references in headlines.
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That old Pontifox, Benedict XVI, was all tweetness and light yesterday as he took to Twitter to bless the faithful (over one million served so far).
Of course everybody’s reporting on the gala debut – except the Boston Globe. Its print edition had no mention of it – versus the Boston Herald, which splashed it all over Page Two:
Faithful flock to @pontifex
Pope Benedict XVI’s debut tweet kicked His Holiness’ coolness factor up a notch yesterday, but the 85-year-old’s messages of faith will have more merit if he actually socializes with his growing flock of followers, social media experts say.
“It’s one thing to know the Pope’s on Twitter but when the Holy Father — or one of the cardinals — responds to me on Twitter, it’s like, wow, then I’m connected,” said Todd Van Hoosear, principal of Cambridge social media consulting firm Fresh Ground. “That’s social. That’s where they really ought to take it eventually.”
And just so the circle will be unbroken, that same Todd Van Hoosear went to @pontifex and plugged his Herald appearance (see bottom tweet):
That sort of digital communion is a beautiful thing. As opposed to some of the truly nasty stuff going up @pontifex.
Meanwhile, back at the Globe, they still haven’t jumped on the Popewagon. The only Pope-a-Tweet they have is a preview from last week.
The hardworking staff will let you know if they seek our indulgence.
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Not only did the prosecution of former Massachusetts Treasury Secretary Tim Cahill on ethics violations end in a hung jury, so did the Boston Herald’s coverage of the verdict.
From Hillary Chabot’s column today:
Defeat seen as big blow for Martha Coakley
Attorney General Martha Coakley’s stunning courtroom defeat in the Tim Cahill trial dealt another blow to her political career — spoiling her hopes of rebooting her image and marring her chances for a gubernatorial run, political observers said yesterday.
“Anyone eying the field for the ‘14 gubernatorial race certainly is no less enthusiastic about doing it after today,” said Dan Cence, a key state Democratic operative, after Coakley failed to net a corruption conviction against the former state treasurer.
Added Democratic consultant Mary Ann Marsh: “Obviously it’s a loss for her in that some people will think that while people are sick of politics as usual, this jury thought she was overreaching.”
Then again, from the Herald’s editorial on the trial:
Far from innocence
This was never going to be a slam dunk. This case against ex-Treasurer Tim Cahill was always tricky to understand, a complex stew of politics and of governing. And then there was the “but everybody does it” defense.
And so at the end of the day we can’t fault jurors who wrestled for seven days with weeks of testimony for not being able to reach a verdict. Nor should anyone fault Attorney General Martha Coakley for bringing the case in the first place — although there will be many who fall into that camp.
Yeah – like the Herald’s own Hillary Chabot.
Not to get technical about it.
Bottom line: Score one for the separation of news pages and editorials.
1 Comment | Uncategorized | Tagged: Boston Herald, Dan Cence, Hillary Chabot, Martha Coakley, Mary Ann Marsh, Tim Cahill | Permalink
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So maybe the Mike Napoli signing isn’t sealed and delivered just yet.
From John Tomase’s column in today’s Boston Herald:
Catch to Mike Napoli signing?
Injury issues may put contract in jeopardy
Mike Napoli was the Red Sox [team stats]’ primary target of the offseason, and he might become their first casualty.
No one on Yawkey Way had anything to say on the matter last night, but alarm bells have been sounding ever since the one-week mark of his three-year, $39 million agreement passed without an official announcement.
Last night the estimable Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports speculated that Napoli’s deal might have hit a snag, noting that he was supposed to be introduced at a Fenway Park [map] news conference yesterday.
Interestingly, what reportedly did happen yesterday was Napoli’s physical. Which has led to all kinds of speculation, as the Herald piece notes.
Meanwhile, crosstown at the Globe, the dead-tree edition had nothing on the Napoli deal, but the website caught up this afternoon with this piece:
Red Sox trying to close Mike Napoli deal
The Red Sox are trying to work through some issues that have prevented them from formalizing a new deal with Mike Napoli, according to a major league source, but nothing is resolved yet.
It seems like for days now the Red Sox have been on the verge of an announcing that Napoli had been signed to a three-year, $39 million deal, but none has come.
A newly acquired Red Sox player usually comes to Boston for a physical and officially signs the contract. Then, the player is introduced at a Fenway Park press conference.
Call Napoli the player to be quizzed later.
2 Comments | Uncategorized | Tagged: Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Fox Sports, John Tomase, Ken Rosenthal, Mike Napoli, Red Sox | Permalink
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While the Boston Globe is makes its Pulitzer push with a three-part megaseries about felonious illegal immigrants, the Boston Herald has been scooping up stories hither and yon.
From the feisty local tabloid’s Yon desk: yesterday’s Page One story on Gov. Patrick tolling the bell for Mass. Pike tollbooths.
Gov. Deval Patrick plans to take toll on toll takers
Gov. Deval Patrick is putting toll takers on notice and quietly moving forward with a pricey plan to install electronic tolling across the state, despite a budget crisis that’s triggering massive cuts in spending, the Herald Truth Squad has learned.
Patrick’s transportation officials inserted a new clause in a Nov. 21 union contract proposal, obtained by the Truth Squad, that gives the administration power to “have the unlimited right … to eliminate manual toll collection” on all Massachusetts highways.
Both Patrick and the Globe gave the Herald a shoutout today (although the paragraph-eight mention in the Globe was more like a whisperout).
From the feisty local tabloid’s Hither desk comes this scoop:
A possible switch to music is all the talk around WTKK
Keep your ears tuned for some big changes at WTKK-FM (96.9).
WTKK NewsTalk owner Greater Media could soon be switching back to all-music because, experts said, “toxic” all-talk formats aren’t attracting enough younger listeners.
Speculation about a format shift reached a fever pitch yesterday when news broke that Internet domain names such as 969Bostons Beat.com, 969TheBeat.com, and Power969 had been gobbled up.
Not good news at all, at least from our standpoint. (Full disclosure: The hardyakking staff does a turn every Friday morning on the Jim & Margery show.)
Others, however – like the redoubtable Dan Kennedy – would disagree.
UPDATE: Dan writes, “I specifically said I hope J&M land elsewhere — you make it sound like I’ll be glad when they’re gone.”
Sorry – that was entirely unintentional. It’s the rest of that lot he won’t miss.
Dan also adds this:
“Some scoop for the Herald, eh? That’s what I thought until this got posted [on Media Nation ].”
Sorted.
Sorta.
1 Comment | Uncategorized | Tagged: Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Dan Kennedy, Deval Patrick, Greater Media, illegal immigrants, Jim & Margery, Mass. Pike, Media Nation, toll takers, WTKK | Permalink
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Ever since we found out that Mrs. Tom Brady had a Bundchen in the oven, we knew there’d be a race in the news media to announce the arrival of the Littlest Ugg Model.
And on the local dailies front, we now have a winner.
The Namesniks at the Globe beat the Track Gals (without Megan!) at the Herald like a Boston traffic light.
The Globe item:
Sure, the story’s up on the Herald’s website now:
It’s a girl for Gisele Bundchen and Tom Brady
Patriots QB/QT Tom Brady [stats]’s supermodel wife Gisele Bundchen took to Facebook this morning to announce the birth of Vivian Lake, a daughter born “healthy and full of life,” at home on Wednesday.
“We feel so lucky to have been able to experience the miracle of birth once again and are forever grateful for the opportunity to be the parents of another little angel,” Gi posted along with a touching photo of her hand holding Vivie’s tiny hand.
Yeah yeah – whatever.
We all know it’s the dead-tree bakeoff that really matters. Score another one for the Boring Broadsheet, eh you feisty local tabloiders?
1 Comment | Uncategorized | Tagged: Boring Broadsheet, Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Bundchen, Gisele, Names, Namesniks, Tom Brady, Track Gals (without Megan!), Vivian | Permalink
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Former Massachusetts Gov. William Weld (R-Amber-Colored Liquid) made a house call at the Boston Herald yesterday, and the feisty local tabloid made him its coverboy today (via the Newseum’s Today’s Front Pages).
Inside was a two-page Weldian trifecta, starting with Big Red’s pooh-poohing the charges in the Tim Cahill rumpus over his use of Lottery ads during his boneheaded 2010 gubernatorial trot.
Ex-gov: Cahill ads just politics
Former governor and ex-U.S. Attorney William F. Weld, in a surprising slap to law enforcement, criticized prosecutors for targeting state lawmakers and ex-Treasurer Tim Cahill in corruption cases that he called just the “business” of politics.
“It seems to me that the theory of the case in both instances is a difficult one for the government,” Weld said in an exclusive interview with the Herald.
Weld, who just moved back to Boston, defended Cahill, who is now awaiting a jury verdict on charges of scheming to use Lottery ads to help his gubernatorial campaign. Asked whether as U.S. attorney he would have brought charges against Cahill, Weld responded: “I don’t think so.”
Weld also doesn’t think he’ll be running for the US Senate or governor, deferring to Scott Brown (R-Empty Barn Coat) and Gone-Time Charlie Baker – for now, anyway.
Margery Eagan rounds out the coverage with some reflections on the Charmin’ Brahmin.
Regular-guy routine refreshing with Bill
Bill Weld has never done what so many politicians now feel they must: pretend to be a regular guy.
At the Boston Herald yesterday, the Brahmin out of Harvard, where buildings are named for his family, talked about the rules of squash and a “dish of tea.”
Oh, how very “Downton Abbey.”
Yeah, but who gets to play the Dowager Countess?
2 Comments | Uncategorized | Tagged: Bill Weld, Boston Herald, Dowager Countess, Downton Abbey, Margery Eagan, Tim Cahill | Permalink
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Monday’s Boston Globe featured major coverage of a major brain injury study from Boston University.
Via the Newseum’s Today’s Front Pages:
(Full disclosure: The hardreading staff moonlights as a mass communication professor at BU.)
Monday’s Boston Herald, on the other hand, featured . . . nothing.
But the feisty local tabloid did post this AP story to its website Monday morning:
BU study links head injuries to brain damage
BOSTON — An extensive study of the brains of dead athletes and others shows that most had signs of brain damage after suffering repeated head injuries.
The study published Monday by the Boston University School of Medicine reports on the autopsies of 85 brain donors.
The autopsies revealed extensive evidence of protein tangles clogging brain tissue and causing the destruction of brain cells in football players, wrestlers, hockey players, boxers, and military combat veterans.
The AP report even credited the Globe piece, which had to hurt over at Wingo Square.
Just like a brain freeze, eh?
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Junk-food journalism in Sunday’s local dailies.
From the Boston Herald:
Chew on Twinkie poll
Now that the election is over, pollsters have a lot more time on their hands to measure America’s barometer for other important topics. Such as the Twinkie.
Rasmussen Reports released a poll last week showing that 57 percent of Americans have a favorable opinion of Hostess Twinkies.
The endangered cream-filled cake actually polled higher than the brain trust in Washington, D.C.
A Rasmussen Reports poll taken just two days earlier showed 34 percent have a favorable opinion of the federal government.
From the Boston Globe:
The Twinkie defense
Wait, are you really telling me it’s over?
Seriously, it wasn’t supposed to be like this.
I’m a golden white cake in the snack-addicted United States.
I lifted America through the Great Depression.
I built bakeries and factories. I created jobs.
I joined Facebook, darn it.
Polls had me pulling ahead.
They said there was no way a perfectly groomed treat like me could lose.
It’s not my fault that 47 percent of America wants some wheaty lefty cholesterol-freebie.
I earned my success. I did the 100-calorie thing, shed my transfats.
Of course, there were places I could not compromise: high fructose corn syrup.
Did this anger Ohio?
I know how to run a business, to run a country.
And it’s not handing out gifts.
Not even to the workers who make me.
You know who says, “Better days are ahead.”
We’ll see about that.
Yes we will.
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It's Good to Live in a Two-Daily Town 