I really didn't even know who Mac was before his arrival at MVP- not much of a Score listener. I have enjoyed most of MJH, but hands down Mac's greatest contribute to date has been the skyrocketing popularity of the CSFMB- excepting a few 5-figure-posters, most of us probably owe our cretinism to him and the on-air mentions.

I swear this guy must have a death wish or something. He can talk all he wants about his newfound maturity, his realization that he has to provide for his autistic son, etc., and he just keeps the jabs at management coming, no matter what. I don't know about most of you, but I can't go out in public and tell customers and clients (which in this case, after all, are the listeners) that my company's products and their decisions about their products are questionable and that I'm surprised another brand isn't doing better. It just doesn't work that way. Sorry, but if you want the company's paycheck on the 15th, you just gotta suck it up and be a company man when the situation calls for it from the 1st to the 14th. Otherwise, start your own business.

Just heard about this. I was very interested in hearing your take, Doug. I agree. Disney has enough money to stay competitive in this time spot. Why give it up?

Here's my question: If $600K was not affordable, why not try to renegotiate? You have to think that Mac would have been open to renegotiate his deal.

I'm beyond disappointed.

It's interesting. Mac wrote a column suggesting that we shouldn't use that "Pax is a good guy" as part of our review of his performance. The irony is that Mac delivered for ESPN radio AND is a good guy.

Bummer.

How fucking ironic that 2 days after we call Mac the 'NEW MAC' on the MEDIA GRAVEYARD forum here, he turns back into the old mac. I take all that shit back about him being the NEW MAC and that he got smart and learned from his past mistakes. Unless it's something we don't all know.

I think what Mac was trying to do when he criticized ESPN for putting on national programming was to be supportive of Carmen and JD. He knows (and has said) that they are good hosts, and he's just trying to push them.

He'd be better off to praise them when they are going to be on-air, and not say anything when the corporation takes them off. If the corporation is going to fuck-up, just let it go. Let them make their bed and sleep in it. That's how many people handle this kind of thing.

I'm shocked and yet not really surprised that this has happened...I used to work in radio and newspapers (albiet on a smaller scale than what Danny Mac has done) and have been in the situation (like most of us have) of being called into the office and told our services are no longer required.

Corperations are ruining the radio landscape...With people have more options to listen to entertainmen (IPod's and what not)....Radio is starting to become more and more irrelavant.

Hi NSJ!

Good to "see" you. Happy New Year!

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I follow where my mind goes...

I can't even describe how disappointed I was with news I received about this Friday night via text. I thought Mac was joking or someone was messing with his phone like Grid. But sure enough, there was the news on the website. This absolutely blows. This is just another mark against the ESPN brand in my opinion.

As much as I would love to completely ignore ESPN programming from now on I'll stick by the Waddle and Silvy show. Other than that, ESPN Radio 1000 has no use for me. Nothing against the guys that will be on from 2 - 6 but I am not going to support this idiotic move by ESPN. No more P1er for me. Mac will have my ears on the next station he is on. I'm not for sure who really made this decision (probably idiots in Bristol who think Mike and Mike are very funny individuals) but whoever you are, the hell with you.

Jim Pastor - I hope to GOD you were told that your only quote could be "We want to try some different things." That may be the dumbest quote I have ever read on a decision like this. Hell, I wouldn't even comment if that's all you can say. Do you have any idea how idiotic you sound with that quote? Any clue? Uhh, yea, we at ESPN, uhh, want to uhh try some different things because winning the ratings battle almost everytime in this timeslot against The Score over the past five years has just been too much of the same. We need something different. We would like to get rid of our most recognizeable, most popular voice on our station. This will be good because its DIFFERENT!

ESPN, in general, has sucked for years. Sportscenter is so boring, so awful, so loaded with absolute shit, and way too long. Hour and a half on Sunday? Really? ESPN needs real competition. It's too bad FOX Sports couldn't quite pan out. Chris Myers can't be your headliner.

I'm so sick of Mike and Mike. I'm so sick of Dick Vitale. And I just feel like this is the shit we will continue to be force fed if you listen or watch ESPN.

Sorry this ended up just being a total rant against ESPN. I'd kill for the days of Craig Kilborn and Steve Levy doing half-hour Sportscenter weekday mornings.

As for Mac, I hope you go to the Score and take care of the problem of Mike and Mike winning that timeslot. It IS embarrassing.

Quite naturally, managers often like to show what they can do without talent. Certainly, myself, even, has been familiarized with this locomotion train of thought. Jerry Krause knows what he's doing if he thinks they can win without Mac. It's worked out for him before to some degree. It is unquestionable that the draft picks that they'll get from parting the ways and means with Mac will allow them to rebuild quicker.

It has worked bef..bee....before. I ALMOST GOT THROUGH IT!! I ALMOST SAID IT!! YEAH!! THIS'LL WORK!!!!

Mike and Mike is the ONLY national sports talk show I do like now. I used to like Dan Patrick, because he was good and got the absolute best guests possible. But the 12-2 show with Tirico absolutely sucks . Waddle and Silvy will retain my listenership. But after noon, I'll be listening to a lot more music and to the Score more often I am guessing. ESPN is making a big mistake, I believe. There are very few radio iconic personalities anymore. In the genre of sports talk, Dan McNeil is one of the few. I will be very interested in seeing how far their ratings drop, in the next few ratings books. The Score, on the other hand, will very likely benefit from the move, as many ESPN listeners may well jump ship and go to the Score. I like Jurko and Harry, but without Mac, I will not listen to that show. I have heard it enough without Mac, while he was suspended or on vacation, to know it's not gonna cut it for me.

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Go Cubs!!!!

Unbelievable.. ESPN lost a listener with this move. I couldn't care less about Carm, Harry and Jurko as a show. It just doesn't interest me. Carm was a good caretaker when I knew Mac would return after vacation or the penalty box. As it stands now, I'm willing to put up with B&B in the afternoon just to avoid WMVP.

Holy crap I was out of town when all this broke. I can not believe ESPN is making a mistake of this magnitude. "Economic times" is a bullshit excuse. I'll believe that when I see Mike & Mike shit canned.

Mac is the afternoon. I can't believe ESPN is literally forcing me to listen to B&B now. I can't stand those goofs but I'm not going to listen to Harry & Jurko w/out Mac. Personally I'd rather just listen to Carmen (& I wish him all the luck). But my afternoon dial will be sub the am1000 range most the day now.

If I were Mac... I'd get on the horn w/ North & Mariotti and propose a new business to open up a new radio station. And although I'm not big fans of North & Mariotti. I'm sure North in the morning, Mariotti @ lunch, and Mac in the afternoon would kill the Score & ESPN.

Personally I hope Mac is back on the air in the Chicago market in some fashion. My future sports listening habits are looking grim.

All the best to you Mac & your family.

McNeil left the Score when it was the Foreman High School radio station on Belmont...
DIFFERENT BOSS.....IN FACT HIS OLD BOSS AT WMVP IS THE BOSS NOW.

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There goes one over the fence..Tru Link Fence..Beauty, Privacy Security....Call Tru Link.
Murph's Union 76 Truck Stop....A great Thanksgiving Tradition!!!!

WOO LIFE!!!!

THIS RANT ABOUT ESPN IS DEAD ON GREAT.
Sportscenter is unwatchable...I guess the drillrods at ESPN haven't figured out that NO ONE In this country gives a rat's ass about the N.B.A. anymore except the mopes sitting at the arenas.
All of these ESPN BOWL GAMES are a joke...You can see empty upper decks at what would be great matchups in September...not December...Sad truth is TV is destroying sports...World Series at night close to November...Stanley Cup and N.B.A. Finals in June......TV is the engine that drives up the salaries....Anybody with half a brain would cut the baseball season back to 152 games....but the greedy bastards need the revenue...
I HOPE AND PRAY IN THE ECONOMIC MESS WE ARE IN THAT PROFESSIONAL SPORTS TAKES IT RIGHT UP THE POOP SHOOT.
Of course the Cubs are recession proof with neighborhood drunks and busloads of mental patients arriving on a daily basis from Iowa.

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There goes one over the fence..Tru Link Fence..Beauty, Privacy Security....Call Tru Link.
Murph's Union 76 Truck Stop....A great Thanksgiving Tradition!!!!

WOO LIFE!!!!

Jerry Angelo isn't THAT important.
Do the fans here like to be spoonfed bullshit by the General Managers?

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There goes one over the fence..Tru Link Fence..Beauty, Privacy Security....Call Tru Link.
Murph's Union 76 Truck Stop....A great Thanksgiving Tradition!!!!

WOO LIFE!!!!

THIS IS LIKE BREAKING UP THE SCOOTER LINE!!!!!!!!!!!

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There goes one over the fence..Tru Link Fence..Beauty, Privacy Security....Call Tru Link.
Murph's Union 76 Truck Stop....A great Thanksgiving Tradition!!!!

WOO LIFE!!!!

Oh my God! This can't be happening! Nobody talks sports like Dan McNeil! He CAN'T not be on the radio! How can we all expect to be entertained with sports talk unless Dan McNeil is behind the mic? These are dark times for the sports radio listener! I would not be surprised if January 16 becomes known as "Dan McNeil Day" in the city of Chicago, and is commemorated every year with a moment of silence to reflect on the events of that fateful day, the day that MJH fell silent!

There are no other alternatives, nothing else that even comes close to the quality of a Mac, Jurko and Harry program! It is tragically unfair that he has been taken away from us, our ears are going to be the ones to pay the highest penalty! ESPN is evil! They have NO right to place any restrictions on anything that any on-air personality should say, and if they do, especially MAC, it should be overlooked! Mac MADE that station, and should have cart blanche to say or do whatever he wants without fear of reprimand! If he doesn't care for his boss, he should be allowed to not listen to him and do and say whatever he wants without having to deal with things like "rules" and "codes of conduct", "listening to your boss"! After all, he is the voice of the people! He speaks for us! He doesn't work for his employer, ESPN, he works for us, right? They CAN'T fire a pain in the ass employee, can they?!!

This is a day that will be remembered for many generations to come! We will sit back and tell our grandkids about the day Dan McNeil was fired! Dan McNeil! It still sounds foul and absolutely hard to comprehend! Somehow we must all band together and support each other through this very difficult time! What ever are we going to do?? what EVER are we going to do??

PANIC! PANIC!! PANIC!!!


AAAAARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

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IT IS OFFICIALLY TIME TO PANIC!
DO NOT REMAIN CALM!
DO NOT MOVE IN AN ORDERLY FASHION!

Nicely done.

Wow! Miss a little, miss alot. I'm still a little shocked about Mac being gone, but logically speaking..it was inevitable.


The thing that I don't understand is if they're going to just air the nationally programming, how are they going to win any ratings? They might as well close shop in some of the markets if they're going to do this.

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-"God is great. Beer is good. And People are crazy!"

I am very disappointed in this move. Everyday I looked forward to listening to MJH on my way home. The show is nothing without MAC. This is the only show I make a point of listening to at least for a little while everyday no matter what I am doing. I like Jurko but like others have said in this thread he seems disinterested at times and Mac kept him on track. Harry is funny at times but I find him annoying most of the time. I think B&B are OK but I would much rather listen to MJH. I'll listen to tomorrow's show to see the fallout, if any, but after that my drive home listenership will now be primarily with B&B.

Good luck Mac to you and your family and were ever you end up in the future you can be sure I'll be listening.

In the words of the Lord God himself in his 1/8 Sun Times column: "ESPN's nationally aired 'Mike and Mike in the Morning' has become the highest-rated sports radio program in any time slot in Chicago."

You were saying?

"I'm outta...heeeeree"

There were some very funny skits on The State.

O.K. You're right. Reading is a skill. It was more of a blanket statement about the national shows. Overall, I don't think people would normally choose a national show over a local. Mike & Mike have been around for awhile, plus they're competing with a new show in M&H that hasn't gained very many new listeners (I think, don't have the numbers). I would be surprised if any of the other national shows ever beat a locally produced program.

THANKS FOR YOUR REPLY...said Jimmy Piersol.

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-"God is great. Beer is good. And People are crazy!"

If I own a local Italian restaurant that makes $500,000 in profit a year, and you own a chain American restaurant that makes $350,000 in profit a year across the street, you are just going to close down your restaurant?

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"All crowds boycotting football games shouldn't care who sings or takes a knee because they aren't watching." - Nas

Yeah, this was one of my dumber posts. But seriously, who wants to listen to a station that is all national guys? Not me!

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-"God is great. Beer is good. And People are crazy!"

While I don't know details of his contact, you know ESPN had a window of time during which they could opt to renew. All I'm suggesting to you is, Danny may have known this was going down. How long ago? Long enough that he might've started a newspaper column? Maybe. Starts as a cross promotional thing, and now is a Mac-promotional thing. For so long as it continues to run, which, I dunno.

Hopefully some punishment is coming ESPNs way for this move.

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Middle Aged Crazy, like Uncle Terry

This of course means no more "players, dugout, clubhouse." Devastating.

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You can't see me because of internet.

The landowner effectively owns part shares in millions of part-time slaves called, "taxpayers." -Roy L
A Personal Relationship with Jesus?

Like just about everyone else here, this news totally bowled me over.

Good luck to you Mac in the future. MJH was the only show I still listened to on terrestrial radio.

I know they put podcasts up, but I am curious about tomorrow's opening. Not that I'm expecting anything too revealing, I want to hear what Jurko and Ass Hat Harry have to say. Besides the podcasts, does anyone know of any other options to hear the show (Bit Torrent for example)?


Harry is radio death.

I think it you will get in the first segment, them telling some story and that they plan to move, but thank Mac for everything, the problem they will run into and I know this is a stupid thing to post, they will want to talk about the sports weekend, but everybody will calling asking about Mac.

I think it should be mostly a goodbye to Mac show, and in a couple of months we will be saying goodbye to their own show.

OK, I think I know who PANIC! is.

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Fire Phil Emery