Boston’s Mayoral Race & Working The Super Bowl

It's Night Side with Dan Ray on WVS, Boston's news radio.

Good News, good news, good news, good news.

Dance back tomorrow night, Big Show Tomorrow night with the Big Dog returning in the house. Josh Kraft the smartest of the Craft brothers. Don't tell Jonathan and Danny. I said that, okay, but they might agree with it.

I don't know.

Josh Kraft will be on with Dan Ray tomorrow night on Night Side.

Who is running against Michelle Woo And I'm very happy to have Gail colleague cover city Hall for the Herald.

Boy.

That is a gig. Gail, that is a gig. I mean covering Boston City Hall. First of all, before we get into this mayor race, you have to tell me what that job is like.

I mean, it's great. See always something going on.

That's it.

You got nothing else, You got no juice, you got nothing, no crazy stories.

I mean you know.

I mean this which I have of City Hall is just all of these Bostonian characters walking around making back room deals, chomping on cigars.

No, that's not it.

I mean that goes on. I don't think you have enough time on the show to get into it.

Oh believe me, I do, trust me, trust me, I've been around long enough.

I do.

But I find this race fascinating because, like I've said before, I know the crafts.

I covered them in sports. I like them.

I like the family. I like what they've done for the area. I like Josh Kraft. I like what he's done for the area. I don't know Michelle Wou. She's obviously very smart. I mean, that's the thing in a day and age when we have a president who is well, look, I mean, either you're with them or against them. There's noe in the middle, but not necessarily known for his education or his decorum. You have two people running for

I mean, from what I've seen so far, this is getting off to a fiery start. Both candidates come out and came out firing yesterday. They're unconscious at each other verbally. So it'll be a good race.

I think so too.

But again, the intellect I mean with these two, I just generally when I look at Parlato, maybe it's just my view of politicians where I go, Okay, this person's not very smart. They just like to talk a lot. These are very smart people, And I also don't think there's a big difference between the two.

So from what I gathered yesterday with Josh Craft's campaign speech, a lot of what he's proposing are things that he said the mayor who has failed at so I things that he's proposing, like brant control. Those are policies that she's tried to pass get passed in the past and has run into a roadblock with the legislature. So similar seemed to be left leaning Democrats.

Well yeah, I mean, here's a guy in Josh who donated money to Michelle Woo's campaign, I mean in the past. So I mean, is there a difference between the two or is it simply that Josh is saying the mayor hasn't been able to They have the same agenda, but the mayor hasn't been able to accomplish it.

And he can.

So I think that's what he focused on in his speech when he was rolling out his agenda. Just a lot of the areas that the mayor has failed to get her policies passed. Yeah, so, I mean, I guess time will tell whether there's major differences, but right now it seems to be going where she hasn't get things done.

Now, one of the things that just said, as opposed to being appointed, he wanted certain board members or select people to be elected as opposed to being appoorted appointed?

Can you explain that?

Right? So? Right now, the Boston School Committee is an appointed school committee by the mayor, and he is a Josh Kraft is calling for a partially elected school committee. So the mix of appointed and elected members, how.

Do you do partially?

Can you? And I don't get that, can't you? Isn't it just one of the other? What do you say? Well, there are five seats, and two are going to be elected by the public, three are going to be appointed by the mayor, right so.

You would have certain members who are appointed, and then you would have certain members who are up for election. Right now, that's what he's proposing.

I don't get the point of that. To me, you would do one or the other. And here's the other thing. I don't know.

Maybe in Boston it would be different. But electing for school committee? Do people leave it?

No?

Do people even follow it? Would people even know who they're voting for?

I mean that's the argument is that there you would foster more engagement if you have school commnies up for election. I mean, I would think that there's more engagement from parents and on that level. But as far as the larger community, I guess that would that would be seen with a voter turnout with an election of it if it turns out to be he's proposing a de selectioned mayor.

Do you think the fact that Josh is a billionaire, I mean, it's his dad, it's the team. I mean, we know Josh had worked at the Boys and Girls Club. He is his mother's son, Missus Craft, who was very philanthropic. Does that hurt him?

So?

He says that it won't. He says that he is someone who's very involved with community with the Boys and Girls Club. He's also board chair of the organization That's Space in Rocks Barry that does community based work. And he also played up his position with the New Midland Patriots Foundation, which is his family's philanthropic arm. He also had a line in his campaign launch that he likes to say that he wasn't born on third base, that he was born at home with his privileges. Well he

Look, I've had coffee with the guy. I've talked to people who know him to me, and I don't have a horse in the face. I don't live in Boston. I'm not going to vote. Michelle Woo was obviously a very smart woman and a very accomplished woman. I mean she is you can't look look, and but I don't. I also think it's tough to get things done when.

The mayor of Boston.

I think it's tough to deliver on all your promises once you get into the political office.

But this I can tell you.

You know, to me, if I'm running Josh's campaign, the fact that he worked at the Boys and Girls Club and just brought it to a whole new level, and from what I've heard, when he's in meetings, brings so much to so much to the table with his ideology, in his in his strategies. I mean, this guy could have been playing polo in West Palm, you know, I

Well, I mean that's the way his campaign is is is framing his his background is that he could have joined if you watched his campaign video that came out day before he made his campaign speech, that Josh Kraft could have joined his family's business and instead of taking the community based route. So they are they are making that pitch for him.

Yeah, I mean, but again, does that mean he'd be a better mayor than than Maywoul?

I don't know, you know, I I I who knows? So let's talk.

So if so, what are the pros of Josh Kraft in your opinion? And then we'll get to Maylwu.

I mean, I would just repeat. What has came in is saying so far is that he's saying that he's someone who can get things done where the mayor hasn't. He's saying that she is zero for three on her three of her major campaign promises, and that he would succeed where she failed with rent control, and that he's someone who's more connected to the community, and that he's more willing to listen to people. And he's framed the

Correct, that's what he's saying. I understand you want to remain objective.

I mean rent control and bosh, that's a tough I mean, people want to move into the city and pay two million dollars for like a thousand square feet in the right area. I mean, rank control is a hard thing to pass in the city with real estate being so high.

Correct, right, I mean it's it's something that has encountered resistance from landlords who say that, you know, they're hit with inflation and that this would further hurt them financially. So it's something that the mayor has proposed and that he's run into roadblocks in the legislature. Is what her argument is, and she've repeated that today on one of her podcast appearances, is that it's easier for her opponents to make promises, but you know, there's a process that you have to go through.

Okay, Gail Collier is our guest Boston here, Garrett, can you stick around for one more segment now, I want to talk about Mayri Wu in her campaign. Sure, Okay, Gail joins us.

Next.

We just talked about I think it's going to be fascinating because they're already very.

Smart people people.

I think that when it comes to their ideology is pretty much the same. Just one is saying that he can do it better than her, and they're not afraid to go after each other, which should be interesting. We will continue the conversation next on WBC's Nightside.

Now back to Dan Ray live from the Window World night Side Studios on WBZ News Radio.

Ed Welcome, back Gary Tangway for Dan roy tonight, and Gael Collier is joined us cover City Hall for the Boston Herald and maybe somedays she'll write a tell all book. Oh if the walls of Boston City Hall could talk. Josh Kraft running for mayor against Michelle Wou will join Dan Ray on Nightside coming up Tomorrow night, Thursday, February February sixth.

Yes, we know that Gary tomorrow night right here on WBZ.

That's at nine o'clock, so you can't miss it, and you can also check it out on the iHeartRadio app. Download it and if you can't listen to it live at nine, just go to the iHeart app and you'll be able to click it on.

And listen to it at your convenience. So that should be very good.

All right, let's talk about Meriwoo. So what has she done well? What will they focus on as opposed to obviously what the Craft campaign is.

Going to focus on is what she hasn't done well? What will her her spiel be?

Well?

I think she would folks on, which is interesting because this is where Josh Craft is seeing her as being vulnerable. But I think she would focus on the strides that she's made or that she says she's made with affordable housing, building more housing, which is what he's saying, that she has developed roadblocks to development. Yeah, so you have that back and forth. I I mean, I would think that she would focus on just what she's done with helping

I have no problem with bike lanes. I have problems with bikers.

It happened to me the other day.

I'm getting a living off topic, and if I have a chance to talk to Joshua meyerwill I will tell her this. It's okay to use a bike lane, but when a cyclist are you a cyclist?

By the way, I'm a virtual cyclist. They have an exercise, Okay.

So I understand, you sit there and you look at the pretty screen, and you go through the mountains and you know you're gonna be in you know, yeah, yeah, you're hand in Hawaii one minute. British Columbia the next I got you. So, but I'm driving down the road the other day and I'm stopped. So I have a cyclist that weaves in and out of the traffic and then goes through a red light.

That's illegal. You can't do it. Which is it? You have your own lane? Are you gonna be a car or not be a car?

One or the other. It pisses me off. You have the bike lane? Have the bike lanes worked, because to me, I don't know if they have. I see a lot of congestion. I see a lot of available auto real estate that goes to a bike lane that I can look at for a half hour and I never see it used.

So I mean, there's certainly something that has caused a lot of debate among cyclists and non cyclists. So if you're a cyclist, you love them. But if you're someone who drives or is trying to get around in a different way, you probably don't love them best.

But the problem is Gale is we can't keep everybody happy. I mean, you know, okay, next thing, you know, we're gonna have a lane for skateboarders. Okay, let's have a lane for skateboarders. Let's do that do we want to do that, then we'll have a We already have sidewalks, have a lane for skateboards.

The reality is is that.

A bike is a vehicle, and uh, you should just follow the ruts in the road, rules of the road like you do an automobile. That's what they do. They follow the rules of the road of the automobile and as if they're a pedestrian and galic pisses me off. I'm sorry I got off topic. So now getting back to the topic at hand, the mayor's race. With what Josh is saying, and with the intellect, with the financial backing that Josh Kraft has, he's still considered an underdog

What do you think?

I mean? I think that's what makes it interesting is that he's someone who's considered to be a potentially formadal opponent to the mayor. But it is Boston. No incumbent mayor has lost since nineteen forty nine in Boston, and uh, the mayor right now has considerable campaigns on She's over one point seven million. She is someone who's considered to

Well, here's what I think.

This is the way I look at it as again, as a suburbanite from the outside looking in, I think Joshua about the same age.

I think.

I also feel as if if he's going to run, he's going to do it now, at this point in time of his life, right, So I think that's the driving force. Maybe Dan, I'm sure we'll ask him about that. Why are you running now tomorrow night at nine right here on WBC. I'm sure they'll do that then, So you have I think that's what's driving the timing. I don't think people are necessarily pissed off at Michelle wou that's the issue. I mean they are. I mean, she's very likable. When I see her on the news, I

She seems to.

And let's face you, when it comes down to electability, it comes down a likable you know. I mean people say they vote on the issues. They don't vote on the issues.

They vote on.

I like that person better. That's really good. That's how people get elected. Right now, the country, the country likes Trump better everything he says, he lies all the time. It doesn't matter. People just like him better for whatever reason. For some reason, he brings comfort to the country, and that's why they elected him.

It's not going to be an issue thing.

So I think the challenge that Josh has is it's not like people are like trying to ouse Michelle wou.

Right.

I mean, I yeah, it's definitely how you see it. If you're a supporter, don't. I don't think you see it that way. I would think I think that Josh Kraft is running a campaign based on vulnerabilities that he sees there. But I think certainly, you know, I was at an event that the mayor was out the other day, and she was very well received in a senior center in Dorchester that was located near where Craft made his

I'm going to put you on the spot. I don't know if you know this, but when it comes to municipal races in Boston, what does the voter turnout like?

It's it was low in the last race.

Yeah, that's the thing. People are so damn apathetic. Yeah, I mean, maybe maybe this will fire them up because obviously they're tossing I don't want to say tossing bombs at each other, but I mean Michelle Mayor wu came out, man, she did not hold back on Josh. She came out, and there it's I would say it's a highly intellectual boxing match. It's a highly intellectual verbal boxing matches. What we have between those two.

Is there going to be a debate?

There hasn't been one scheduled yet, but I would I would think there was at least one debate in the least.

I mean, I'm telling you, if I'm any of the local television stations, I want that debate because I mean, what do you think that would be a pretty cool debate?

I mean, those what's that I'm sorry?

What?

Oh?

Yeah?

And I think what you're getting at is, judging from the follies, stay throughout each other yesterday, probably be very good debate.

It'd be fantastic because it would also be smart.

You know, it would be it would be funny, it would be there would be some sarcasm, but they're also two smart people. I mean, it's just not like we've seen in the presidential race tossing insults and making making I almost swore there, but almost making stuff up. You know, it would be a good debate. Well, listen, I really appreciate you coming on, Gail. Good luck at the Harrows they had my friends over there. Good luck covering city Hall.

Okay, great, Thanks for having Gail.

Take care.

Gail Collins joining us here for the Austin Harold talking about the mayor race between Josh Craft and Mayor Michelle wou And she hasn't officially announced it, but I think she's got it right by the way she's been digging at Josh. I. You know, Boston politics is always fun when you take a look at the mayor's and the politicians that we've had in this city just from pure entertainment, going back to Tip O'Neil.

Just you know, Bill Woller was a great speaker. I mean just.

And even I know some people look at some of the Boston politicians is.

Maybe not the most above board.

Individuals, but generally they're funny and they can talk, and they can they can be very entertaining, and I think we're going to have an entertaining race between these two. All Right'm gonna switch gears working the super Bowl.

How about this?

Some students from Nichols College are at the super Bowl working. Now that's a course I want to take. We will talk to their professor. Coming up next on night Side on WBZ.

It's Night Side on WBZ, Boston's news radio.

Okay, welcome back, Gary and for Dana Knightside again tomorrow night nine o'clock.

Josh Kraft running.

From mayor against Mayor Michelle Woo will be joining Dan Ray in a camp miss interview right here on WBZ and just Heart Dan talking about it. If you miss it at nine, just go to the iHeart ad go to night Side, punch it in your phone. Thank you Nightside on Demand, Rob helping me out. I just punched Knightside of pops up by Nightside on Demand and you can listen to that interview, so they'll have that tomorrow night.

Okay. Joining us right now from New Orleans is.

A Nickel College professor, Christopher Steele, and he's got a group of students that have gone down to the Super Bowl to work as part of the NFL host committee. Professor Streeter, I said Steele. I meant, Streeter, Chris, how are you welcome to Night's Side?

Doing great? Thanks so much for having right.

Yeah, how's it going down there?

It's so far, so good. Where we've made it safely. We're we're settled into our what we term is our super Bowl mansion that we've rented, and we're in the trenches here with the NFL and our first night.

All right, first night, we'll see how many kids break curfew. Talk to me tomorrow and bedcheck. Anyways, I've been to nine Super Bowls. Not bragging, even though it does sound like I'm bragging. I'm good. I don't need to go to another one. I'm good.

It's a zoo, it is Mayhem, and you know, By.

The time I got like to the eighth or night, I was like, oh my god, this is just I got to get out of here. What is it like for the kids? And tell us about this program and how this came about.

Yeah, I don't think you couldn't You couldn't have said it any better. It's mayhem, it's it's it's chaos. But you know, it's a celebration of sport and it's a elevation of sport in America. And uh, you know, we live in a country where we're able to to run these events, and uh, the Louisiana State Police and the local law enforcement have done a great job. Given the New Year's Eve, h New Year's tragedy, they've done a wonderful job of really making the place feel safe and secure.

Yeah, so what do you want these students to learn?

And what is there major like sports management or travel and leisure recreation. What do they need to get out of this and what exactly are they doing for jobs?

Uh, yeah, all great questions. They're all sport management majors at in our Sport Management and department at Nichols. You know, the big picture is to really to inspire them, to show them that this industry we call sport, there's so many options, there's there's so many possibilities for them. And really the idea for me big pictures for them to walk away just feeling inspired and excited about their potential for future in sport and to work in the industry.

Well, I agree one hundred percent with it.

I todd On Emerson over the past year, and whenever I had an opportunity to bring in speakers or to promote hands on learning.

That's the only way you can do it. You can only do so much out of a book.

I mean, I was able even to take some students into a production truck, you know, of an NBA game because some of them wanted to be directors. So I said, all right, well let's get to it. Let's go in and see what you need to do. Because theory is great, but you need to be able to put that theory in action. And the people that I have met that work in sports management or sports marketing and what I'm going to basically in the sports arena, which is really

I would write, I mean the numbers must back that up absolutely.

Social media has has certainly grown exponentially in the last twenty years, and there's a variety of opportunities for students. And that's their world, that's the world that they've grown up in, and so it's second nature to them. And the idea is to channel that knowledge and channel that energy into a more sport focused direction. Joke that you know, God used to own Sundays, but now the NFL does,

Well, i'll tell you the NFL right now, I think blows away the Olympics, and at one point in time it was all about the Olympics. I think internationally, it's soccer. It's the World Cup, and it's the Super Bowl. That's it. Those are the two big kahunas. I keep hearing that soccer is still number one, or European football. I don't know if you haven't any numbers on that, but that seems to be the case.

Well, it's certainly the world's most popular sport outside of America. It's the global reach of the sport of soccer is significant. NASCAR is actually the number one rated spectator sport in terms of actual fan attendance. But I think in terms of popularity and branding, the NFL has done such a magnificent job of branding their league so that it's visible year round. I mean, they have events that run literally

Nickel College professor Chris Steelers with us, Doctor Chris Steele, Chris Streeter, god Man tangle, you're having a bad night. Anyways, We're going to continue to talk to Chris from New Orleans. Get some more thoughts on how it feels he feels about the Big Game, the impact, the gambling, the economics, and should the Super Bowl just be held in New Orleans every year. That's all coming up on wbz's Night Side.

Now back to Dan ray Mine from the Window World Nightside Studios on WBZ Indio.

From Nichols College, doctor Chris Streeter is with us talking about what I think is a terrific program where he has taken his students down of the Super Bowl and they get hands on experience, boots on the ground working with the NFL, experience working with the NFL as a business, not being there in fans. And one of the things Chris is that I can tell your students is that when you work in sports, it's not a job, it's a career.

It's something you love.

You don't look at the clock, you don't punch the clock, and when you start out you don't make any money, but you do it because you absolutely love it. And that's why I think it's terrific with what you're doing. So now let's get into some of the details down there on what's happening and just your thoughts on the economics of the super Bowl. What does has it continued to increase what a super Bowl can do for a city,

Yeah, great questions. I don't I think the positive certainly far outweigh the negatives. There is a myth that the super Bowl generates hundreds of millions of dollars for host cities, and there is some truth to that, but you know, the flip side of that is a lot of that money leaves. So if you talk to an economist, they're going to say that hundreds of million dollars probably is inaccurate,

Should New Orleans host the Super Bowl every year? Because I think it should.

It's a pretty cool city. We had an opportunity here today to drive through the French Quarter and to see it during the day because we arrived pretty much in darkness last night. And it's it's another planet. It's in a good way. It's you know, and they do it. They do a really good job. There is there is something to be said about Southern hospitality.

People here. That's what they do. Very friendly.

I mean, because they they want to. They basically host a Super Bowl three hundred and sixty five days a year. They are set up to do it. They do it better than anybody else. Now I have been to God, I've lost track I was in Indianapolis, I was in Houston twice. Jacksonville what a disaster. I don't know if you remember when they had the Super Bowl bull in Jacksonville.

Or Providence. That's what you're talking about. And Providence is a great city.

I'm not gonna at all, but that's the type of size you're seeing jackson Plus, the food in Providence is phenomenal. The food in Jacksonville sucked. I was literally with my camera crew and the restaurant ran out of food. They ran out of food in Jacksonville. I couldn't believe it.

An how certainly, Yeah, the infrastructure certainly is an important component. You know, we have a sport event management class in our program and here at Nichols, and we spend a lot of time talking about the logistics of how to run an event, and the event itself. The actual sport is almost secondary because if the infrastructure for the event isn't in place, as you mentioned, it has the potential to be disastrous.

Oh, the game is secondary because the game just runs itself. Well, you know when the game starts. I mean, that's what people that's what people who have worked all week just collapse.

You know that.

Now, Indy wasn't bad, the Indy, but but they didn't have enough restaurants. The facility in Indy was phenomenal. I mean the fieldhouse they had there. That was an unbelievable stadium. That was a great place. That was that that was tremendous. Atlanta Atlanta was and Atlanta wasn't great, but it should be. It just should be in New Orleans. Vi yea Detroit. Thank god I didn't have to go to Detroit. That's the last place I wanted to go. I'll tell you that right now.

When we've run the program four times, We've done Miami two years ago, we were in Phoenix. Last year we brought students to Vegas, and of course this year in New Orleans. The Phoenix and Vegas trips were both really well run. The challenge with Phoenix is the fan festivals were in downtown Phoenix, and then of course the stadium events are in Glendale, fifteen miles away, and so logistically that was a little bit of a challenge last year in Vegas for our students, everything was in one place.

Yeah, Phoenix, when you're when you're in Vegas, you have a lot of competition.

Yeah, you know, it's.

Even you like if you have heavyweight fights there, you know you're competing with Adele who's in residency down the street or whoever at that particular time. But Vegas, like New Orleans, is probably set up for it. I forgot. I was in Phoenix for a couple of them, and it was a pain in the ass. I listen to me, I'm decently being a whiny media member. Having a lot of activities in Phoenix and having me to go out to the facility fifty miles away as a real pain

Sure, yeah, sure, State Farm it is amazing. And Allegiance last year was amazing. And we'll be at the Superdome tomorrow for some training and some work over there, and so we're the students and I are really looking forward to that.

How does gambling enter into your curriculum?

You know, I, personally, as a sport management college for I don't touch a whole lot on it. I I just I'm not convinced on the value of it. I am not convinced on the benefit for it in our society, and so I don't spend a lot of time talking about it in our curriculum. Inevitably, I will probably expand on it in future semesters, but right now, we we gloss over it. We talk a little bit about it

Well, I think your position is admirable, but as it's here and there's nothing we can do about it, I agree with everything you said. But my first day of class at Everson, a young man who raised his hand asked me if I thought a certain wide receiver would have more than fifty eight yards and two touchdowns this weekend because he was on DraftKings right first day of class. Okay, and that's what I realized. It's here, and I brought

What did you do for football? Well, they watched their favorite team.

They watched the Patriots for one game, then they watched the second game. Because they're putting money on it. I mean, it's here. You're absolutely right. It's a slippery slope, dude. It is a slippery slope, but it's here. And if you're in the business, you have to understand it. That's the problem. Like, that's the problem you're in is you don't want to encourage it.

But if you're going to be in the sports business, because.

How the NFL, I mean everybody's in and everybody's in on it.

Yeah, Ultimately, it is a business and DraftKings is a company and the NFL is a company ultimately at the end of the day, and it's about revenue generation and you know, but it comes back to the idea of entertainment that you mentioned earlier. You know, sport certainly is entertainment. And the million dollar question is what is the balance between enjoying sport for sport and then being a loyal fan just to be a loyal fan and versus I'm a loyal fan if there's some money involved.

I'll tell you, Chris.

That ended with fantasy because when I would sit there and watch a game and then somebody would say, Oh, my team's losing, ooh, but my fantasy guy is winning, I was like, Okay, it's over Barmageddon. Listening to Jordan Orleans, doctor Chris Streeter Christia was a camera guy. I worked with a Channel fifty six one hundred years ago, so I apologize.

That's okay. He sounds terrific.

Oh the best, great guy, Doctor Chris Streeter Nichols College. Congratulations. I hope you guys have a great time. You're on the right track. Experience, experience, experience, and have a good time. Thanks for joining us.

I appreciate it. Thank you. Okay.

The future of in person shopping. I went to the mall the other day and I liked it.

What's wrong with Me?

Todd Fernard Fernard Properties joins Us Coming up next and wbz's Nightside