If you missed it, see yesterday’s post for what this is all about.

Over the last couple of years, Joe Haggerty has blossomed into one of the most ubiquitous members of the Boston sports media. Web, Radio, Television, Twitter, Haggerty is everywhere.

Not bad for a guy not too long ago was doing his best to get noticed while working for the Woburn Daily Times Chronicle, Boston Metro, and even his own blog. Haggerty got a major break when he was hired by Rob Bradford for WEEI.com. He then moved onto CSNNE.com, where he has really thrived, becoming one of the real go-to-guys locally for Bruins and hockey talk.

The tagline on his Twitter profile reads I want people to see me walk down the street and say ‘there goes Joe Haggerty, the best sportswriter there ever was. That sentence is an accurate snapshot of the ambition with which Haggerty has taken his career.

{democracy:94}

 

Published by Bruce Allen

Automattician.

24 thoughts on “2011 Approval Ratings – Joe Haggerty”

  1. I used to think that Haggerty was just Anthony Pepe with 20/20 vision, but through the miracle of twitter I've come to appreciate his writing. As long as he continues to keep his distance from Felger he'll be OK.

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  2. Bruce,

    We need a third category…ambivalent. Its not that I do not like Hags. Its not that I dislike Hags. Its that I think his work and for that matter persona seem generic. He's not doing work like Mike Reiss of Fluto Shinzawa or Sean McAdam which are must reads for the sports/teams they are covering. In some way he is like a weekend fill in host, adequate, somewhat informative but not dynamic, cutting edge or for that matter an expert.

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    1. No third categories will be forthcoming. You're not comparing them to anyone else, it's a simple Yes/No, Like/Dislike, Approve/Disapprove. No fence-sitting here.

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    2. Do you actually care about anything on this planet? You seem to not care about Bruins hockey, jack edwards, and now joe haggerty but seem to voice quite a few opinions on the topics. I'm not sure I understand the logic.

      I don't care or follow fly fishing. And I definetly do not comment about fly fisherman and the "sport" in general. I just don't speak about it.

      I feel like you are the Felger of this messageboard.

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      1. I am very passionate about certain things. My hatred of the Ron Borges. My zeal for the Patriots. My love of baseball. The thing is as I have gotten older I have realized several things…
        1) If mediots are going to be given better access and a platform to pontificate then I expect them to tell me things I don't know, to do so in an informative and entertaining way all while understanding the topic they are discussing better than me. I can give you a long list of media people who I think do this…its actually not that hard…think Mike Reiss, Bob Ryan, Peter Gammons, Sean McAdam, Chuck WIlson or Fluto Shinzawa. What goes up my tuchas (to quote Felger) sideways are the one's who don't, can't or won't. (Think Borges, Gasper, Cafardo, Mustard, Johnson, Gresh, Mike Adams and either Burton).

        2) As I have gotten older, I have become harder to impress. Being a Boston Sports fan I expect/demand excellence. Others (see WEEI management) accept mediocre. I have no idea why. I used to love WEEI…now I can barely listen. (another thread for another day). The bar has been set high. Maybe it is the sports passion in the region, maybe it is that we have smarter, more informed fans than anywhere else or maybe it is because of people like Bruce Allen who have shown us that we can and should expect excellence.

        3) As I understand it Bruce Allen, all around renaissance man and huge Burn Notice fan, started BSMW so he could comment on the state of media's coverage of Boston Sports. He added message boards to let us fans give our opinions good or bad about the state of the media that covers Boston sports. Because the topic interest me I comment. Its just that we are stuck in hockey/basketball season and I am generally apathetic bordering on actively apathetic towards both sports.

        Lastly, I hate fly fishing also. Not as much as I hate basketball but pretty darn close. I do not think I am like Felger as I am remarkably consistent in my opinions. Felger is just a contrarian.

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        1. I agree. I'm totally indifferent towards him, but if forced to answer, I'd say approve on the grounds that he's not insufferable.

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  3. I think Hags is the man. Thoroughly enjoy his work, he really brings it. Plus his tweets during Bs game are quite informative and also, entertaining.

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  5. Hags is a perfect exmaple of someone who is everywhere but for me, I don't feel like his material is forced down my throat.

    I feel that alot fo people miss the point. People complain that Haggerty overexposes himself with the likes of twitter and such. However, the choice is with the reader who choses to follow or not follow him. We cannot Hack on Hags for partaking in things his bosses probably require him to do. It's on the readers that choose to read everything he writes. If thats the case, just read him online and don't follow his twitter.

    He does tend to get too excited when the Bruins win
    and
    too done when they lose.

    Other than that, another solid writer.

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  6. I like him-he gets it and as long as he remembers that he is never supposed to be the story but is there to report and offer opinions on it I will continue to pay attention to him.

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  7. Bruce I think it is great that you do this every year. Can't wait for Shank to come up so we can collectively club the snot out of him. That said I think Hags does a respectable job with Bruins coverage. He is passionate about it and isn't afraid to bash the B's or its management if it is warranted (Sometimes even unwarranted).

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  8. i dont think he’s robbreport material. perhaps he could catch on with the dupont registry.

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  11. He's an easy "Approve" here. Love his in-game tweets even though, as noted earlier, he doesn't respond when "challenged."

    Definitely my go-to guy when I need/want a quick update on all things Bruins.

    Would I knock back a few beers with him at the Penalty Box? Hell, yeah.

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  12. Remember when Haggerty completely blew off a fill-in assignment for WEEI some months ago? He was supposed to fill in for D&C one morning with Neumie but didn't bother to show up or call in. Neumie eventually got him on the phone at the very end of the show and Haggerty's excuse was that his alarm didn't go off and his phone had died.

    He eventually got caught in a lie however because he was tweeting from his fantasy football draft while he was supposed to be on air, then tried to cover his tracks by deleting those tweets later on. It was pretty funny to listen to (here's an audio clip if you're interested – http://audio.weei.com/a/33993015/sleey-pork-chop…. ) because Neumie and the producers were genuinely PO'ed. At the time I think Neumie even said that Haggerty should be dropped from all future appearances on the station.

    Anyway, this is the first thing I thought of when asked to evaluate Haggerty. He therefore earns a "disapprove" from me. I know I wouldn't be able to blow off work for my fantasy football draft and still keep my job.

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    1. Wow, that's amazing that he'd be that irresponsible to simply blow off a fairly high-profile professional commitment like that. That takes balls, or arrogance, or stupidity. And I don't think he's stupid.

      That said, I enjoy his tweets and columns–he seems to know his stuff and presents the facts in a straightforward, uncluttered way.

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      1. Yet EEI continues to put him on the air. This despite the fact that he appears regularly on 98.5 and also blew off EEI.com for CSSNE. Don't know what the brass over there is smoking. I know if I was DJ Bean I'd be pissed.

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  14. Basically, I don't think he's All That.

    But I like his tweets, he has enthusiasm, and he's not in the tank for a cause. So I like him more than I dislike him.

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  15. I like his tweets OK. I don't much like the grandiosity in other ways, but he's informative enough, and is able to keep his own agenda off the table enough, that he's managed not to annoy me yet. So, a win, tentatively.

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