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May 21, 2012

NESN Has It All Over YES Network

by Michael Sciannamea, posted Aug 19th 2005 8:30AM

Just got back from a few days of R&R in Cape Cod. I didn't watch too much television, but I did catch a couple of Red Sox games on NESN (New England Sports Network) along with their nightly sports updates. I've spent a good deal of time up in New England over the last few years, and I have to say that NESN is light-years better than the YES Network, which is the primary broadcast channel of the New York Yankees. I refer to the YES Network as the "New York Yankees Propaganda Network" because you rarely hear a discouraging word about them if you watch this channel with any regularity. Plus, their "Yankeeographies" of Yankee greats over the years are so fawning that they make you sick to your stomach.

NESN, on the other hand, is not afraid to bash the Red Sox if they're not playing up to snuff. Now granted, the Red Sox have a long history of not playing up to snuff, but at least the NESN network and their broadcasters are not afraid to say it. Plus, what really impressed me recently is they did a retrospective on the 1986 season, which as all Met fans like me know, ended in the Sox blowing Games 6 and 7 of the World Series, the highlight of which was Bill Buckner's blunder in Game 6. In their '86 retrospective, NESN did not sugarcoast the fact that the Sox blew the Series. They didn't lambaste Buckner (it's already been done to death) but their announcers laid waste to then-manager John McNamara along with other players. I guarantee that you would NEVER see a Yankee failure mentioned on the YES Network. Can you imagine YES doing a retrospective on the 2001 season and devoting airtime to their blowing Game 7? I don't think so.

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Randy

Sam has hit it dead on. Sox fans would rather be reminded of their dark days than winning. They've had dynasties with the Celtics, Bruins, and Patriots but they whined about the Sox. I swear, they enjoy the suffering and almost consider it a martyrdom. And yep, Yankees fans - starting with Steinbrenner on down - want to win... with the 100 year history of both teams, each network has a lot to talk about for their fans: the same 86 year period suits both audiences. As a side note, YES Network did have Suzyn Waldman for a while. She was exceptional at beating up Yankees players during games - or at least simply getting plays, players, and positions wrong. She's now on the Yankees Radio Network, I think for color rather than the play-by-play role. She still lisps a bit and still gets players names wrong, but she's a bit more up-beat during the game (which is a good plan for job security in the Bronx).

August 19 2005 at 11:26 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Sam

I can see how one would have this impression.. however you need to keep in mind that each network embraces (and amplifies) it's respective team's image. It really doesn't matter if the Red Sox win or lose..either way the fans look to the negative. It is a part of the fabric that is "Red Sox Nation". Disappointment is the culture and NESN caters to it's viewership's culture. Switching over to the Yes Network...Yankee fans expect to win..period. Anything less than a World Series is considered a failure. So the Yes Network caters to their viewers' mentality and highlight winning. The true difference is..Yankees fans do not want to watch them lose..and Red Sox fans (who actually embrace their losing history) don't really mind it. And they love to gang together and bash their team when they have any possible reason too.

August 19 2005 at 10:17 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply

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