Felger and Mazz - Creating False Naratives one day at a time

swyman18

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Jul 15, 2005
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His points on work ethic are valid but not appropriately applied. There's a difference between an employee that make sure they get every vacation hour every year and milks it vs someone taking a couple weeks twice in their life when they have a kid.

I work constantly and took about 6 hours off when we had our kid. My work allows me to work from anywhere and I had shit to do in the hospital room the next morning and did it. I don't begrudge anyone who doesn't do that and it didn't help advance my career. Most My coworkers replied to emails saying get off of email.
Hey, I'm right there with you. I can work from anywhere also. In fact, my wife had a medical emergency 2 weeks ago and I had my laptop with me in the hospital room. Does that make me a total dick? Probably. I guess I've turned into a grumpy old man like Felger.

And yeah, I've had the same type of conversations about how it bugs me when co-workers make sure they take every hour of vacation and bitch if they have to work one minute past their "normal schedule". I guess I'm torn because I certainly understand taking everything that you are due and not getting walked all over. But I have one co-worker who is like that and it just bugs the crap out of me. There was one year when he realized the last week in December that he wouldn't be able to carry over his final vacation week, so he just took off the last week of the year which is our busiest time. Sure, I understand most people would just say "not his problem, he is entitled to take that week off" or "poor planning on the companies part to ensure proper coverage" and all that.

Anyway, I just disagree that Felger is "100% wrong". I don't think Hurley is "100% wrong" either. I just agree more with Felger's way of thinking, which yeah, I guess makes me a dickhead.
 

BoSoxFink

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Felger is an asshole here. You don't have any right to call out what anyone does regarding this. He's just an ignorant prick when it comes to this.
 

steveluck7

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Yeah, Felger was wrong for saying anything on air but Hurley handled himself poorly and once he started with the 1%ish crap, Felger rightfully defended himself.
Felger's argument had plenty of holes in it, telling him he can't relate to Hurley's struggle was not one of them
 

shaggydog2000

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Felger takes off two weeks a year and hangs out in Nantucket doing nothing. Hurley took off two weeks to be with his newborn kid. Neither action tanked either of their careers, right? People go on vacation, and yet life goes on at work, no matter how self-important people are. Ego driven people have to get used to this idea. Nobody is really that important.

Also a lot of gender-related pay inequality has to do with women choosing jobs with more time flexibility in order to look after kids, or giving up years of work to take care of kids, or seeming like a risk to take off time from work because of kids. Men taking time to help with kids is not something to denigrate. Sure you can make the argument that athletes have a different work calendar with a whole lot of time off in a chunk and a whole lot of work days in a large chunk. But athletes taking paternity leave helps normalize that behavior, and helping to take care of kids in general. It's a net good for society, and dinosaurs like Felger have to get used to that.
 

lexrageorge

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You would really think the idea of taking a couple weeks off from work to be with your newborn would be well accepted by now. As noted, too many self-important idiots in this world.
 

NortheasternPJ

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Felgers making over a million a year based upon reports out there. He ripped on Hurley for no reason and Hurley responded with the 1% stuff.

Felger thinks he's successful and he earned it all because he works hard therefore everyone else deserves mocking if they didn't get to where he is because they just didn't work more. The truth is he's talented and worked his ass off. Hurley could work 100 hours a week for the next 29 years and not get to Felgers job level.

Felger had the ability to hire help if he wanted to. Hurley has a crooked TV mounted badly. I don't feel bad for him but he's only taking a Couple weeks off and getting slammed on the air for it for no reason.
 

Mueller's Twin Grannies

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I'm honestly surprised Felger has had time to talk about anything other than the Bruins and Celtics both getting smacked around for multiple games in a row in Boston and the cardiac closer of the Red Sox.
 

burstnbloom

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Felger and his trust fund, nannies and seven figure salary should probably realize how much of a dick he is on this subject. Maybe, just maybe, a guy writing a blog for CBSboston.com has a little bit of a different experience when it comes to support after his wife's recovery from giving birth.
 

dcmissle

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It might be called forgetting where you are from. Not that long ago -- and this century certainly -- Felger had two duties at WEEI: writing a blog; filling in occasionally on air whenever it suited Ordway to do so. This was after Felger had relinquished his beat writing duties with the Herald. Mazz served as a fill in as well.
 

the1andonly3003

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If Felger's radio personality is anything like his behavior at home, I'm guessing Ms Underwood was pushing him out the door after a couple of days.
I can picture their kids bringing home an A+ on their report card, but if the teacher was an easy A then this grade isn't worth as much as an A+ with a hard grader.
 

joe dokes

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Yeah, Felger was wrong for saying anything on air but Hurley handled himself poorly and once he started with the 1%ish crap, Felger rightfully defended himself.
Felger's argument had plenty of holes in it, telling him he can't relate to Hurley's struggle was not one of them
Nonsense. Felger ripped the guy for not just no reason, but for a really really bad "I am an asshole" reason. And not just some "spoiled athlete," that, theoretically it's his "job" to rip, but a guy he works with. Unprovoked. On the air. Hurley was 100 million percent right to go after Felger for any reason he wanted. Felger didn't "rightfully defend himself." He doubled down on being an asshole. Felger could have taken the "summer" comment like a joke and defused the whole thing. He didn't. why? Because he's an asshole.

Assholes gonna asshole.
 

joe dokes

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I can picture their kids bringing home an A+ on their report card, but if the teacher was an easy A then this grade isn't worth as much as an A+ with a hard grader.
Little Mike: Got an A.
Asshole Mike: That teacher was a tomato can.
Little Mike: I got a B.
Asshole Mike: Even the kids on the short bus got B's. What's your problem.
 

the1andonly3003

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Nonsense. Felger ripped the guy for not just no reason, but for a really really bad "I am an asshole" reason. And not just some "spoiled athlete," that, theoretically it's his "job" to rip, but a guy he works with. Unprovoked. On the air. Hurley was 100 million percent right to go after Felger for any reason he wanted. Felger didn't "rightfully defend himself." He doubled down on being an asshole. Felger could have taken the "summer" comment like a joke and defused the whole thing. He didn't. why? Because he's an asshole.

Assholes gonna asshole.
like how Felger claimed his spiel was kinda a joke!
 

LoneWarrior1

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Felger and his trust fund, nannies and seven figure salary should probably realize how much of a dick he is on this subject. Maybe, just maybe, a guy writing a blog for CBSboston.com has a little bit of a different experience when it comes to support after his wife's recovery from giving birth.
The Nantucket comment, to me, is sent Felger into orbit. I think Nantucket has been Sports Hub code for the aforementioned "trust fund" and why Felger felt the need to yell about working his ass off. Not sure what the logistics were with Felger's family and his wife having help, but it would surprise me a bit if his wife was doing it by herself. The family wealth might have provided nannies or family members to come in and support Mrs. Felger. This support might have made Felger's choice to return back to work easier. Every family has to do what works for them, but Felger's patronizing attitude toward Hurley and his work/work ethic was uncalled for.
 

bankshot1

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I heard this Friiday and thought Felger was way out of line, and a total asshole.

If he has a problem with a corporate benefit that allows an employee to spend time with a wife and newborn, then attack the policy, not the employee, and don't call into question someone else's work ethic on air.
It was a dick move.

And fwiw, Hurley mentioned some personal stuff about his in-laws and their inability to lend a hand.

And if Felger is the tough guy, big man he postures as, he should have been big enough and apologized.
 

bankshot1

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heh-

I know, I've seen the Nantucket napkin pic before.

Felger talks like a tough guy. Imo using his platform to belittle a less entitled/fortunate co-worker with a blindsight personal hot take was petty and unprofessional.

I hope the Mrs told him what level of d-bag he was over this.
 

jasail

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My personal opinion on leave is closer to Felger's, meaning that I tend to lean towards work in the work/life balance. However, it's none of Felger's business. If the company gives you two weeks and an employee takes two weeks, then so be it; same if they don't. There may be a few instances where it is appropriate to comment on it, but it should always be done in private. There is no defending the calling out of a co-worker for this in a public forum. It's even worse given their relative positions in the food chain. Felger is just an a**. And sure, Hurley could have handled his response better, but his poor response does not in anyway justify Felger's comments.
 

swyman18

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Jul 15, 2005
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I think Felger had assumed that Hurley would take it as just harmless ball busting and was actually surprised that Hurley took is so seriously and was so whiney about it. Sure Hurley has a right to defend himself, but I would have more respect for him if he had basically said "Hey Felger, the company is giving me 2 weeks so I'm fucking taking it. You don't like it, too fucking bad."
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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I think Felger had assumed that Hurley would take it as just harmless ball busting and was actually surprised that Hurley took is so seriously and was so whiney about it. Sure Hurley has a right to defend himself, but I would have more respect for him if he had basically said "Hey Felger, the company is giving me 2 weeks so I'm fucking taking it. You don't like it, too fucking bad."
And most people, when they're "harmlessly ball busting" and then are surprised when their target takes them seriously and gets upset, will back off and apologize and demonstrate that they were joking. Not double down and continue to argue their position.
 

Vinho Tinto

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And most people, when they're "harmlessly ball busting" and then are surprised when their target takes them seriously and gets upset, will back off and apologize and demonstrate that they were joking. Not double down and continue to argue their position.
Eh. Hurley works for the equivalent of WWE. It's not incumbent on Felger to make sure that Hurley isn't a Mark.
 

BigJimEd

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Are they taking a page from EEI playbook? Manufactured arguments?

Heard a little of this on T&R this morning. Did not interest me at all so I didn't listen long.
Was this for real? Over two weeks?

I have a Co-worker who's out for three months. I'm not whining about them nor have I heard anyone else.
 

jose melendez

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There's a ton of implicit sexism in this too. Going after men for taking paternity leave for not caring about their work is an implicit criticism of women taking leave as well. Mike gets his two weeks in Nantucket--but if he were a woman who had a baby, he wouldn't deserve two weeks vacation because she'd slacked off with a kid?

I'd add that if Mike is working so fucking hard, maybe he should work less. His work is unimportant--completely. You know what happens to the world if he takes a few weeks off? Nothing. A few people are slightly less entertained maybe. The notion that someone in a job that is not that important shouldn't take all of the benefits due them is idiotic.
 

allstonite

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I don't think Felger is working too hard. I'm not saying he's lazy and it's been a while since I've listened regularly, but aren't his summers Ordway-esque? He takes a few weeks off and ducks out on Friday to get to Nantucket.

This seems like such a strange argument for Felger. I grew tired of the show but I think he's really, really good at his job. I always thought his trolling was tongue in cheek and mostly an act to generate phone calls. He's a great arguer. I got the impression he was a decent guy in real life, if a little grumpy. This attack on a coworker about something so personal seems beneath even his shtick.
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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I don't think Felger is working too hard. I'm not saying he's lazy and it's been a while since I've listened regularly, but aren't his summers Ordway-esque? He takes a few weeks off and ducks out on Friday to get to Nantucket.
I don't know if he still does this, but Felger is usually in the studio most days in the summer. I remember a few years ago it was July 3 (it may have been a Friday or a Monday) and Felger was still in the studio arguing about something trivial. I recall thinking, "Why isn't this guy at home? Who gives a fuck?"

I think that there's a lot of bad things that you can say about Mike Felger but he has a really good work ethic. It's not because of Tony Mazz that they've been the number one sports show in Boston for seven (?) years. He practically made the Sports Hub.
 

allstonite

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Absolutely I would never question his work ethic. Especially now with him doing the 4 hour radio show somewhere in the city then getting to a studio show in Burlington plus all the Patriots pre/post stuff for TV. I thought I remembered him getting teased about taking a long period of time off once. It's been a few years for me though so I may be misremembering.
 

JCizzle

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Mike has the grit and grind mentality needed to build a radio station one hot take at a time, the guy is a true warrior. I can't even imagine how hard he must work to come up with takes as strong as 'Green Teamers'. I mean, that take changed my life. The dedication needed to deliver those takes to the world is definitely worth losing time with your family over, where would we be without him. PFT Commenter would be proud.
 

Leather

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That he works hard isn't the issue, and JMOH was simply puncturing a flawed line of criticism.

The issue is that he thinks A) working hard makes him a better person than someone that doesn't work hard, and B) taking two weeks off to be with a baby is indicative of someone who doesn't work hard.

A is a self-serving opinion and B is an illogical conclusion. Taken together, they say way more about Felger than anythone else.
 

Smiling Joe Hesketh

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The very idea that blow-dried soft-handed douchebag Mike Felger is mocking anyone for having the temerity to take two weeks off to help out after the most important event of their lives makes my irony meter burst into flames.
 

Granite Sox

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He also indicated that his kids "have never said anything" about him "busting his a$$". Because... he basically is never around except a bit on weekends (maybe?). It's laughable for him to infer that he is "there" for his kids. He may not be different from lots and lots of other "guys", and his approach may be very similar to that of his parents, but his is the perspective of a troglodyte. To each his own, but he comes across as a real dink here.
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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You know what's not a vacation? Paternity leave.

It's insanely hard. It's nerve-wracking. You're scared of everything. And you have a remorseless eating, pooping, crying machine in the house ... and a baby too! (Wocka, wocka!) For anyone to think that paternity leave is some two-week vacation is ridiculous. Coming from a guy who's had a kid, like Felger, is just being an asshole.
 

NortheasternPJ

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Are they taking a page from EEI playbook? Manufactured arguments?

Heard a little of this on T&R this morning. Did not interest me at all so I didn't listen long.
Was this for real? Over two weeks?

I have a Co-worker who's out for three months. I'm not whining about them nor have I heard anyone else.
I don't believe this was a WEEI fake fight. I also loved Fred's comment he's made more money in radio than Felger and he can't sniff Nantucket.
 

JCizzle

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I don't believe this was a WEEI fake fight. I also loved Fred's comment he's made more money in radio than Felger and he can't sniff Nantucket.
That's outstanding. I'll need to find that in the podcast. I love that T&R are able to bring in great ratings despite not being raging assholes like Felger.
 

chonce1

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Apr 23, 2010
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Felger and Mazz: Rondo is the greatest player ever and the Celtics, should they win the series, deserve to have an asterisk next to the win.

It is undoubtedly true the Rondo injury is extremely impactful... arguably the most important variable. But one injury --to a guy Mazz has hated for years--and we have gold claps and asterisks?
 

RedOctober3829

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Felger and Mazz: Rondo is the greatest player ever and the Celtics, should they win the series, deserve to have an asterisk next to the win.

It is undoubtedly true the Rondo injury is extremely impactful... arguably the most important variable. But one injury --to a guy Mazz has hated for years--and we have gold claps and asterisks?
Did they give the Hawks an asterisk last year after they beat a Celtics team without Avery Bradley and Jae Crowder playing on one leg?
 

chonce1

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Sounds like a real fun listen!

Sorry that you're stuck in a place where you HAVE to do it. :(
This is a media forum devoted, almost entirely, to critiquing media members. It would not exist, or at least have little activity, if people didn't watch Boston media pundits -- and them complain about them.

Yes, I listen to Felger and Mazz sometimes and complain about them. I could choose not to watch them, and sometimes I do. Other times I watch them (I work from home and will have CSNNE on in the background) and complain. Sometimes I watch them and once they become annoying i change the channel. Sometimes they are not annoying and I enjoy it. Seems perfectly reasonable. You could make this comment to every critical post on this entire forum....what is the point?

I have issued disclaimers before because this critique gets made every now and them (paraphrase): "yes I am aware that I don't have to watch INSERT ANNOYING BOSTON MEDIA PUNDIT OR SHOW, that their trolling is an act, I still feel obliged to make a critique,thanks." I was hoping I wouldn't have to do it every time I complain about them. But thanks for the reminder that I can choose not to watch the show and that anyone who complains about media also doesn't have to consume it.
 
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chonce1

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Apr 23, 2010
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Guys....he's yanking your chains. Stop falling for it. Turn off the radio and don't allow him to troll you. It couldn't be more transparent.
I think most people who post here and aware that they are trolling. But this is a media forum made up largely of complaining about Boston media. I think we watch because we like talking local sports and sometimes they aren't annoying. Who knows, some may hate watch? Some may only watch every now and then, and come here and make a complaint. Whatever their reason they feel compelled to comment. I don't speak for any critic of Felger and Mazz, but I suspect, strongly, they are aware they can change the channel.

But it is a little annoying when people respond to every critique telling us we have the option not to watch/listen to them (or any other show). By this logic we should simply not allow for complaints on the forum, because anyone making a complaint can change the channel/dial.
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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"It hurts my head every time I hit it with a hammer!"
"Don't hit yourself in the head with a hammer."
"It is a little annoying when people respond to every critique telling us we have the option to not hit ourselves on the head with a hammer!"
 

braudimusprime

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Most of these critiques are about the quality of the trolling, not the fact that they are trolling. It's a useful distinction!

Felger trolling the '67 Sox is brilliant. Mazz trolling Chris Sale's first start because it was 40 degrees out was actually decent. Jim F'n Murray trolling the Celtics because Rondo is suddenly the most important player in the series is just a horrible take.
 

GeorgeCostanza

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Jim F'n Murray trolling the Celtics because Rondo is suddenly the most important player in the series is just a horrible take.
For me it's not the take that's the problem. The take is actually on point, excuse the pun. It's just that take coming from a gaggle of rabid Rondo denigrators makes it absurd. Also odd hearing Mazz heap praise on IT.
 

allstonite

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I think the trolling has gotten stale and obvious. You know they're going to take whatever the negative view is and I got tired of that because it's not why I watch sports. It's also really hard to do in the current climate in Boston. Of course there's stuff to complain about, even with the Patriots, but there's far more positive than negative with all 4 teams right now.

Their negativity might mean more if they ever took a positive view of anything. My favorite time when I listened to the show was the 2011 Stanley Cup run because Felger was fully behind that team and on our side against the whiny Canadians and Canucks teams.
 

bankshot1

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I listen to F&M off/on, mostly to get a sense of the climate and the hot takes/buttons that Felger likes to push. (I listen to Francesa more, he's still far better), but Felger's trolling the '67 Sox escapes me and annoys me. That year was flat-out great baseball theatre for the entire season on many fronts .