I think today is book day....again

Pretty sure they mentioned the author of the Tunney book will be on today.

Who, I'm sure is just filled with emotion and laughs...

Good - now I know when I can switch to 1050 today.

Wait so let me get this straight.

Brett Favre is not 'relevant' anymore but a book about Gene Tunney is?
I shut off the radio, could not take it anymore.

do mike and chris and brett farve have problems? the way mike was talking seems like there was a riff there

he was complaining about farve holding the packers hostage, doesnt clemens do the same thing?

clemes gives them interviews though and told them he watches the show so clemens could murder someone and theyd get behind him

i remember chris called clemens a few months ago "an american hero"

hillarious

I really enjoyed Favre when he was in his prime but this Favre coverage is a little overdone. Favre is nowhere near what he used to be and his team is bad, and yet he still gets tons of coverage and his team gets plenty of tv time.

Clemens is different because he is just as good or better than he was in his prime so the coverage of him is quite more deserved. That being said they both hold their respective teams hostage.

I dont think there is a bias against favre by m&md

It hurt me mentally & physically to try & listen to that today. I would estimate that 1 out of every 50 listeners would enjoy another Jack Dempsey, Gene Tunney discussion.

What's wrong with football? Football is heating up. God forbid Manny gets traded this week. They'll have the GM of the team that gets him, Theo, Buster Only, Gammons. They'll line em up like bowling pins

It just goes to show they have established such a dominant market share that they can talk about whatever they want and their ratings don't suffer.

It's remarkable that they have spent almost no time on the Knicks, Nets, Rangers, Devils and Islanders and their is no backlash.

I don't mind these spots from time to time because how often can they talk about the same thing but it seems to me they have been having these authors in a lot lately and when the subject is Gene Tunney, it's really stretching it.

if this was baseball season thyed never have a boxing book take up afew hours of the show

god forbid they talked about the nfl other then just on mondays and fridays

This is something I often think about when they do spots like this:

Each day that goes by more and more of M&MD fan base dies. I know it sounds nuts but they seem so intent on appealing to only their own age (or older) demographic that many of us younger (I'm 30) sports fans are just like WTF are they talking about? I can appreciate history but this was totally unlistenable today. Like many others said earlier in this thread, there is so much other intersesting sports stuff going on right now and they come at us with this ****.

Inexcusable.

#1. They talk way too little football when it is clearly the most popular sport in this country. Mike is supposed to be this football guru and the best he can come up with daily is "Uuuuggghhh they do a lot of different things".

#2. They hate the NBA - and with the emergence of all these young stars (James, Wade, Anthony) the league is destined to become a prime time must watch sport again. Again, they refuse to acknowledge it's presence.

#3. They hate any type of hip-hop culture interjected into sports, especially Chris (underlying racism).

#4. They go off on these tangents about stats and era's and player comparisons I honestly don't give a **** about. When they do this, it's almost not discussion but showing off how much they know or did know at one point.

#5. There are 3 hockey teams in the NY area and they never mention one of them. I know hockey is much lower on the totem pole, but the NHL also has some dynamic emerging superstars in Crosby, Ovechkin and Evgeny Malkin. If you haven't heard of Malkin yet, you will. He's 19 and he might be the best player in the league already. Best hands in the NHL since Lemieux.

Bottom line, these guys are becoming so dated, they are turning into the sports talk radio version of "Grumpy Old Men". They alienate callers daily with their silly schoolgirl agenda's against certain people and their prehistoric perspective on sports. I know the ratings probably don't reflect this, but these guys are just dying to be taken out by a couple of young, fresh, knowledgable voices. I don't have the slightest idea who, but M&MD have gotten so far away from what made them great that I think the monopoly they've enjoyed for so long will soon come to an end. I'm not saying they will go away completely but they are primed for some serious competition. This will probably take years, but the way they now approach their show it will happen.

Neil Best said it best - "Someday the Sandman will arrive to put the Francesa/Russo franchise to bed"

Days like to today, they get closer and closer!

This is something I often think about when they do spots like this:

Each day that goes by more and more of M&MD fan base dies. I know it sounds nuts but they seem so intent on appealing to only their own age (or older) demographic that many of us younger (I'm 30) sports fans are just like WTF are they talking about? I can appreciate history but this was totally unlistenable today. Like many others said earlier in this thread, there is so much other intersesting sports stuff going on right now and they come at us with this ****.

Inexcusable.

#1. They talk way too little football when it is clearly the most popular sport in this country. Mike is supposed to be this football guru and the best he can come up with daily is "Uuuuggghhh they do a lot of different things".

#2. They hate the NBA - and with the emergence of all these young stars (James, Wade, Anthony) the league is destined to become a prime time must watch sport again. Again, they refuse to acknowledge it's presence.

#3. They hate any type of hip-hop culture interjected into sports, especially Chris (underlying racism).

#4. They go off on these tangents about stats and era's and player comparisons I honestly don't give a **** about. When they do this, it's almost not discussion but showing off how much they know or did know at one point.

#5. There are 3 hockey teams in the NY area and they never mention one of them. I know hockey is much lower on the totem pole, but the NHL also has some dynamic emerging superstars in Crosby, Ovechkin and Evgeny Malkin. If you haven't heard of Malkin yet, you will. He's 19 and he might be the best player in the league already. Best hands in the NHL since Lemieux.

Bottom line, these guys are becoming so dated, they are turning into the sports talk radio version of "Grumpy Old Men". They alienate callers daily with their silly schoolgirl agenda's against certain people and their prehistoric perspective on sports. I know the ratings probably don't reflect this, but these guys are just dying to be taken out by a couple of young, fresh, knowledgable voices. I don't have the slightest idea who, but M&MD have gotten so far away from what made them great that I think the monopoly they've enjoyed for so long will soon come to an end. I'm not saying they will go away completely but they are primed for some serious competition. This will probably take years, but the way they now approach their show it will happen.

Neil Best said it best - "Someday the Sandman will arrive to put the Francesa/Russo franchise to bed"

Days like to today, they get closer and closer!

Excellent, as always. This is why I stay on this board. Well written, intelligent posts like this that normally come from you, Gun, and many others.

I'm 36, have listened since the beginning, and have also listened to many other sports shows from different areas around the country.

While still the best at what they do, M&MD have definitely slipped. It's one thing to ignore one sport, it's another to competely ignore sports that are very popular and central to the region. It's winter, and yet I had to put up with hot stove talk smack dab in the middle of winter, during football, hockey and basketball season. I wouldn't mind it so much if they spoke about the other sports I cared about.

Come on, please. I can only put up with so much Yankee/Mets talk. Can I hear about the Giants and Jets? Islanders? Knicks, maybe?

This is a mistake. The people that I know, that are huge sports fanatics, no longer listen to the show, simply because there is no longer talk of the sports that they love. Don't get me wrong, they also happen to be huge Yankees/Mets fans, but they simply don't get enough talk of the other sports.

Mike and Chris are leaving out a major part of their audience, the same audience that helped build their popularity, especially with the great sports we were spoiled with locally from 90-00. They are leaving out a big part of their audience and it will come back to haunt them.

Neil Best writes for Newsday. He wrote a really good article about the **** storm M&MD started over the Billy Wagner, Mariano, Enter Sandman Song deal back in April. I tried to find the link but I couln't - Maybe Gun can find it. He's really good at finding old stuff. Anyway the last line of the article was classic and that was in my post.

Maybe hockey was a little bit of a stretch. I know it's basically a niche sport now but I'm a big Ranger fan, so I would like a little coverage. But your right no one really gives a **** about hocket anymore. But there are some really young exciting guys in the league now. And with the rule changes and the emphasis on a more offense & wide open style, the game is much better then it was - and in HD it's rediculous. HD makes the biggest difference with hockey than any other sport.

Neil Best writes for Newsday. He wrote a really good article about the **** storm M&MD started over the Billy Wagner, Mariano, Enter Sandman Song deal back in April. I tried to find the link but I couln't - Maybe Gun can find it. He's really good at finding old stuff. Anyway the last line of the article was classic and that was in my post.

Maybe hockey was a little bit of a stretch. I know it's basically a niche sport now but I'm a big Ranger fan, so I would like a little coverage. But your right no one really gives a **** about hocket anymore. But there are some really young exciting guys in the league now. And with the rule changes and the emphasis on a more offense & wide open style, the game is much better then it was - and in HD it's rediculous. HD makes the biggest difference with hockey than any other sport.

I grew up a big hockey fan, and yes, while the sport has failed to capitalize on the success it gained in the 90's, it still has a huge following in the northeast. I'm not asking for an hour, but take calls on the local teams regardless. Sprinkle it in with basketball talk, and I'm happy. Just don't ignore or relegate hockey, basketball and football to five o'clock and force feed me baseball talk for hours.

I don't mind the boxing talk, in fact I like it, but if you're going to discuss some book far more than the Jets or Giants, I'm changing the station.

That was a great post NOMB. I totally agree with Lunchbox, posts like yours are why I come back to the board.

PFP, Neil Best is a media columnist for Newsday (like Mushnick and Raissman).

Here is a link to that article as transcribed in the blog (thanks mikefran)

http://mikefrancesa.com/v-web/b2/index.php?m=200604#313

they basically talk about what THEY want to talk about now which is baseball

if u want to talk something else when they talk baseball malusis will say they dont want to talk say football or basketball now and on air theyll claim if a caller brigns it up that nobodys calling about it which is a lie

i dont doubt baseballs the biggest sport here but u can always get football calls and even knick if u want to talk basketball,they act as if they just go by the callers and the callers dotn want to talk those things which is a lie

stephen a smith show is horrible but he at least talks all sports evne though he has limited knowledge and hes annoying

plus he talks knicks everyday and gets af ew hours a day on knick calls,mike and chris act like nobody cares about the knicks when they are not good

Thanks guys, I appreciate the kind words. Your posts are always nails as well.

Lunchbox - I totally agree with you about hockey. I'm not asking for an hour a day either, but with 3 teams in the NY area I figure they can at least acknowlegde the sport. And definately throw some NBA in there too. For the first time in years I find myself watching regular season BB. Just think about the irony for a second - M&MD's consumer base has to suffer because our heroes are bored & disinterested in presenting certain sports which they deem unimportant. However, these sports clearly have consumer interest. This is the height of arrogance and will be their undoing one day.

Play for pay - I know what your saying, the Best article doesn't prove it per say, but if you were listening that day, they basically built their entire show around this single topic. Then the next day the print guys ran with it. Then it got air time on TV. And it just kinda took on a life of it's own. And in his usuall self-aggrandizing manner, Francesa was giddy that HE was the root of the controversy. Mike seemed almost proud about the fact he lit the fire

BTW - I told you Gun would find the link

Thanks Gun

This is something I often think about when they do spots like this:

Each day that goes by more and more of M&MD fan base dies. I know it sounds nuts but they seem so intent on appealing to only their own age (or older) demographic that many of us younger (I'm 30) sports fans are just like WTF are they talking about? I can appreciate history but this was totally unlistenable today. Like many others said earlier in this thread, there is so much other intersesting sports stuff going on right now and they come at us with this ****.

Inexcusable.

#1. They talk way too little football when it is clearly the most popular sport in this country. Mike is supposed to be this football guru and the best he can come up with daily is "Uuuuggghhh they do a lot of different things".

#2. They hate the NBA - and with the emergence of all these young stars (James, Wade, Anthony) the league is destined to become a prime time must watch sport again. Again, they refuse to acknowledge it's presence.

#3. They hate any type of hip-hop culture interjected into sports, especially Chris (underlying racism).

#4. They go off on these tangents about stats and era's and player comparisons I honestly don't give a **** about. When they do this, it's almost not discussion but showing off how much they know or did know at one point.

#5. There are 3 hockey teams in the NY area and they never mention one of them. I know hockey is much lower on the totem pole, but the NHL also has some dynamic emerging superstars in Crosby, Ovechkin and Evgeny Malkin. If you haven't heard of Malkin yet, you will. He's 19 and he might be the best player in the league already. Best hands in the NHL since Lemieux.

Bottom line, these guys are becoming so dated, they are turning into the sports talk radio version of "Grumpy Old Men". They alienate callers daily with their silly schoolgirl agenda's against certain people and their prehistoric perspective on sports. I know the ratings probably don't reflect this, but these guys are just dying to be taken out by a couple of young, fresh, knowledgable voices. I don't have the slightest idea who, but M&MD have gotten so far away from what made them great that I think the monopoly they've enjoyed for so long will soon come to an end. I'm not saying they will go away completely but they are primed for some serious competition. This will probably take years, but the way they now approach their show it will happen.

Neil Best said it best - "Someday the Sandman will arrive to put the Francesa/Russo franchise to bed"

Days like to today, they get closer and closer!

I pretty much agree with everything you said except number 3. I think the hip-hop culture is garbage and hate the way other outlets (especially ESPN) try to pander to it. It's like they care more about being "hip" than the sport itself, and they only come across as being lame.

I really don't think not liking hip-hop culture is racism. After all, a large section of hip-hop culutre (gansta rap) promotes violence, denegrates women, and portrays young black men as nothing but thugs. I'd go so far as to say that these gansta rappers are giving in to corporate racism, as I say that young black men can achieve more (being scientists, teachers, doctors etc) than what this gantsta rappers say they can (basically being a pimp).

i dont necessarily agree with all of the points mainly because i dont think they are getting NEW viewers. we are all mostly 30s (im 35) and we started to listen when it was new and fresh.

we are the END of their listening demographics. on the other end you have ******s like Al from White Plains, etc.

we are their audience. are they losing a few of us here and there? yes
but i think the more pressing topic is they arent gaining people in the 20s like they did in the past.

i used to be a huge rap\hip hop fan but it is not only **** music today but i agree, the hip hop culture is so contrived and negative now.

Wait so let me get this straight.

Brett Favre is not 'relevant' anymore but a book about Gene Tunney is?
I shut off the radio, could not take it anymore.

Not to re-hash an old issue....But found it funny that Favre is on the cover of Sports Illustrated this week.

Wait so let me get this straight.

Brett Favre is not 'relevant' anymore but a book about Gene Tunney is?
I shut off the radio, could not take it anymore.

Not to re-has an old issue....But found it funny that Favre is on the cover of Sports Illustrated this week.

and they killed it, honestly rightly so.
francesa basically said "no one cares about Favre anymore"........he is right on here!

Well said NOMB. Who is Neil Best, and can you go further to explain context etc.

I am 33, and agree today was brutal. I would have listened to Tyson talk, maybe Ali, but Gene Tunney? Come on.

A chicken or the egg question... Does nobody care about hockey because M&MD don't talk about it, or do they not talk about hockey because nobody cares about it?

Personally I don't care about hockey to be honest.

I bought and read the GENE TUNNEY book after hearing M & C discussing it the week before Thanksgivings Day. It was an unbelievable book. Like Jack Cavanaugh as well as M & C said it is really a period piece. As a boxing fan I found everything boxing related fascinating, but for non fans or semi fans it is still a great book. I'm not saying you should go out and buy the book (which you should), but I'm suprised there would be little interest in that interview regardless of what your age is. And to be honest the book is great. Anyway I guess if its not Jets or Mets or Giants and Yankees talk then its boring radio. Now I'm a huge Giants and Yankees fan so I don't mind when the show focuses on them or other sports stories for that matter, but its refreshing(at least in my opinion) to have something different on. Oh yeah and I'm 28.