Monday, February 16, 2009

Mike vs Chris: Round 937

So I just caught myself up on the ongoing feud between the divorced couple of Mike Francesa and Chris Russo. And to be honest, I still haven't quite decided who I want to live with yet. Sure, moving in with Francesa full-time would be rough. I would have to deal with the arrogance and the ego. But packing up and heading over to SIRIUS to live with Dog would be no picnic either. That would require me actually paying for radio, something I have little interest in doing. And even if I did, do I really give a shit about Alabama football or Kansas City Royals baseball? Those are things I would have to deal with at Dog's house. So what to do? Well it occurs to me that the best possible scenario would be if SIRIUS/XM folded, forcing Russo out of a job. Dog then ends up at ESPN Radio. Think about how great this scenario would be. It would be like your parents going though an ugly divorce and then one of them moves back into town with their new partner. This is what I long for. If Russo wound up at ESPN Radio, then I could actually listen to him again. But more importantly, think about the war that it would set off between him and Francesa. People have been killing Mike for saying he and Russo are not in competition right now. But in many ways Mike is correct. Being on Satellite radio is not a fair fight for Dog. The simple truth is that most people don't want to pay for radio. But if you take Dog and put him on 1050, then we have a real fight. Think about the possibilities. I don't know who would ultimately win custody of me, but I would love to find out...

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

20 million people pay for Sirius XM. More than any single cable operator.

THere was a time people said they didnt want to "Pay" for TV.

With over 100 channels of content including commercial free music Sirius is a bargain at under 150 a year

First Time, Long Time said...

anon...your numbers are compelling. But the simple truth is that Chris Russo on Satellite radio will NEVER have more listeners than Francesa on WFAN. it ain't gonna happen. now if you move Dog to 1050, well that would be interesting...

Anonymous said...

not sure about that.. FTLT..

wasnt there a time when network news casts would never be out watched by a 24 hour cable channel?

Not to mention that potential national audience vs local and the option to repeat broadcasts on off hours.

It is refreshing not having to wade through 24 minutes of commercials every hour in fatso's WFAN show.

Anonymous said...

I really hope you guys heard Mike's open today. It really was the essence of why people hate Mike. And great fodder for this site.

The guy was supposed to start his show at 2:00 from Hartford for the Uconn/Pitt game tonight. He doesn't show up til about 2:25. Joe and Evan fill in the extra 25 minutes. Mike gets on the air and the first thing he does is knock Joe and Evan about having to work an extra 25 mins, and how they have no idea what it's been like for him for 20 years working 5 and a half hours a day.

Then of course he blames traffic and "Eddie" for being late. Even with traffic he would have been on time if not for Eddie forcing a wrong turn.

This guy really is something. Thought I'd give him a shot to hear about this game, but back to Doggy I go.

Anonymous said...

I agree Ryan T!!!

I was looking for Mike to come on YES and said no way is he late for another "on the road" show like he was for his summer/Belmar show, but of course he was.

I was'nt listening to the radio so I don't know what Joe and Evan had to say but Mike was obviously letting them have it with his open.

Hey Mike-- I have a useful tool for you and it is'nt a knife and fork!!! It's called a GPS device!!! They actually work!

Hopefully Eddie will buy Mike one for his Birthday so Mike can't put the blame on Eddie in the future.

Mike always has someone else to blame or a way to take the heat off of himself(Joe/Evan in this case). Hey Fatso-- admit to your own mistakes and flaws(we all have them) and maybe people will warm up to you a bit?

JD

Anonymous said...

Kay is so refreshing. He is not an asshole to his callers and let's them speak. Who in the hell wants 5 hours of college basketball commentary. There is really no reason to listen to Mike anymore.

Rock said...

Ryan T, JD, and Loki,

You guys are all right on the money! I don't listen to Mike anymore but I have a friend who called me and told me about Mike's opening and bashing of joe and evan. That is exactly why I don't listen to the fat man anymore. Can't stand his arrogance.

Mike is nothing but a mean and bitter old man. Mike doesn't give a rat's ass about the callers. If it were up to him, he would do an entire show without taking one call. He loves to hear the sound of his own voice.

I'm not saying Dog is perfect but he actually cares and wants to talk to the fans.

And I actually think Mike's little blow up and speech last week will hurt him and turn off a lot of people.

I have no prob with Kay's show either. Anybody but Mike.

KBilly said...

I'm not so sure about Mike having more listeners. He's got a 2 share in NYC metro area. That's what, 400,000 listeners at any given time? Not sure what YES daytime ratings are nationwide, but I doubt they are high. Dog might have more NYC area listeners than Mike right now.
Mike is just a joke at this stage.

First Time, Long Time said...

Kbilly...i know you are an ardent Dog supporter. I am more of a Dog fan myself. But Mike, while intolerable, is not really suffering in the ratings. check out neil best's blog - his numbers are actually up from last year when he was with Dog...so while i agree that his show if often a joke, unfortunately, it doesn't seem like it has translated in terms of ratings, etc..

Rock said...

It's mind boggling how Mike still gets good ratings. I guess all the grumpy old men like himself are his callers.

Or I guess people just don't want to pay for sirius and 1050 in hard to get in some parts.

Don't get it. Hopefully this will change.

KBilly said...

FTLT, if you are talking total listeners, Dog may be on par with Mike. Mike doesn't have more than one million at any time throughout the day. Dog might, he's in the top 10 for SiriusXM.
Mike isn't suffering. I have friends that love him. But Dog has at least as wide an audience as Mike.
And for the record, I'll pay just to not hear those cars for kids ads. Why would I ever give a kid a car? kids can't drive...

Rock said...

"And for the record, I'll pay just to not hear those cars for kids ads. Why would I ever give a kid a car? kids can't drive..."

lol

Good stuff KBilly.....

That is annoying as hell. Surprised they are still playing it. Must be a year old. That kid prob has a deep voice by now.

Anonymous said...

FTLT...I am sure I'd listen to more Dog than Mike, if he came to 1050. I think Francesa is better than Kay but I actually like Mad Max (his competition is weak) and I think Brandon T. is a decent listen. In the meantime, even with the arrogance and the ignorance I still believe Mike to be better than Kay, who I think is the worst on the radio provided Stephen A. Smith is not in the possible set. I didn't hear the open, sadly, but I did hear Mike not know who was doing the broadcasting tonight. He was so interested to find out that he said it was some company he never heard of...Way to investigate Mike.

Anonymous said...

Max K is definitely better than Mike or Kay or Dog. Finally someone who is actually analytical, and not just spouting the same old stuff. I am hoping he gets more airtime.

Anonymous said...

Anon...Problem with Max is that he is SUCH a NYY homer and will never be a national force if the subject is a broad sweeping "sports" label. That said, he's been great anlayzing boxing for years and is one of the few voices to embrace real analysis. Compare him to Joe and Evan and it's the biggest no brainer ever as neither Joe, nor Evan, know a lick about sports.

Brian said...

I'm a huge fan of Max and the way he approaches analyzing NY sports. But I think the reason that he will never become more than he is is because most fans choose not to care about the advanced stats and analysis, and they'd rather listen to Benigno yell and scream like an idiot.

FTLT, Sirius/XM apparently got bailed out by Liberty Media so it doesn't look like your Russo to 1050 wish is gonna come true, at least not in the near future.

Anonymous said...

I can't stand Max. He just rambles on and thinks he knows it all. His stuff on the yanks is a joke. Such a NY homer. Loser.

Beningo is great. You guys don't know what you're talking about.

Anonymous said...

Instead of giving my car to a kid who can't drive, I am going to pack up Dan Tullis and Joel Clark from that awful life insurance commercial and drive them off a cliff.

Anonymous said...

loki...ive heard Kay call callers idiots and dumbasses and stupid so hes not that fair. now Christina Stoffo can get fucked and tittyfucked and cummed on