My scribbled notes on what was said:
Bud: "When you own the shop you can do what you want. He (Ed Levine) exercised his power. He wacked us pretty quick. (Bud and the Manchild was on ESPN 1200 for a time in the last decade before Levine kicked them off and they returned to The Score 1260) It was because I did not announce retirement (from the show) on the radio but in Syracuse.com. He's an imperial guy. The reality is that he wanted a "Happy Happy, Joy" style sports radio talk show. That's a little shallow. When you own the shop, you can do what you want. "
"I don't really know why Ed got so angry. To me, it was a mutual parting of the ways. Yelling and screaming is distasteful to me as an adult. I was very happy to leave and come back to The Score. I was heartbroken to leave 1260, (for 1200). It was the hardest decision I ever had to make. Today's article is all about content. I'm happy to give informed, fact-based opinions and Brent gave fact-based opinions."
Bud: "I didn't listen to Brent's show but you want to stimulate conversation, not just talk about the glory of SU Athletics. I don't understand the motivation."
Boy Green (Paul Edson): "Jim Boeheim complained about a 'local talk show host'. Would he have flexed his power in that way, (to have Brent fired)?"
Bud: "He would have some power and authority, but I would guess not. No, I don't think so. I don't think he would have exercised his clout."
Manchild: "He has 21% ownership. (Bud later correct this to 21% investment in the group that owns the station). Isn't that a conflict of interest? It seems like a really bad place to be."
Bud: "It's a little dicey. That's probably all the interest I have into probing into this. The owner made the rules."
Manchild: "I'll remind the few listeners over there they have the option of migrating over here to listen to opinions (that aren't tied to the University). Tell them what you think or come on over here." [Or do both?]
Bud: "There's no editing copy (at 1260), so long as you stay within the bounds of decency."
Manchild: "I like decency. we're pretty decent people".
A few observations of my own:
Matt Park is the one at 1200 whose job is most directly on the line with what he says. He's good at sliding his own opinions and on what transpires into his play-by-play. On the coach's chows, he seeks relevant answers but very gently. And he's not a 'homer', even though he bleeds orange. He knows that, if he were overly critical or pissed off either of the two coaches, he'd be seeking employment elsewhere. He tried a show called "In the booth", which was only an hour and had little room for call-ins and it didn't work out because he still had to do some blade-running. He's a good guy and I enjoy listening to him, although he needs to tell us the result of a play first and a description of it afterwards.
Orange Nation is a good show and they are unafraid to take on any issues. I've never doubted that Steve Infante and Paulie Scibilia are saying what they really think. Paulie is a JB loyalist and that's fine. Steve is more of a journalist. Nether caused Levine any problems with their takes. Brent seemed like he had enough of JB's results and comments in recent weeks and his increasing impatience was evident. The three of them actually made a good line-up because of their different points of view but Levine elected to keep the middle and the right and get rid of the left, if you view it like a political spectrum.
I like Brian Higgins a lot and would listen if he got Brent's spot. He has a sly sense of humor and a subtle way of making his points. He's always calm and cool.
One other comment on the Syracuse.com article:
"The day before Levine told Axe that he’d been fired, the Galaxy president posted on Facebook that Boeheim will be appearing on multiple Galaxy Media radio stations over the next year...Levine said that Boeheim has one year left on a two-year agreement with Galaxy that he had already signed. Levine said the Facebook post announcing Boeheim’s involvement was just promoting his presence on Galaxy stations and not announcing a new deal."
I don't think Jim's going to get his own show, although I'd tune in for that. But it could be that this contract coincides with his contract as SU's basketball coach, which means he did have another year to go, for those who were wondering. It will be interesting to see what kind of commentary he provides, since he won't want to be critical, either and suggested on his show that commentary wasn't part of his retirement plan.
Some background the Manchild provided: He had Brent have been friends for years. In fact, Jim hired Brent for his first job in the Syracuse area and they created the "On the Block" Show" to follow the original "Bud and the Manchild Show" on 820, (I believe this was the early 2000's - I was still slaving for SSAA at the Federal Building at the time and didn't listen to either.) Bud used to do a "Brent and Bud" show on You-Tube for a time.
