Back when he was a prominent Democratic political consultant, Michael Goldman had one trait that endeared him to those of us who were young, unknown reporters working for small papers: He was every bit as willing to talk with you as he was a reporter for the Globe or the Herald. (Republican consultant Charley Manning, who does more corporate than political work these days, shares that admirable quality.)
Now Goldman, after working for the past few years as a talk-show host for Bloomberg Radio, is returning to the consulting wars. Check out the item at the end of Joan Vennochi’s column today.
I talked with Goldman this morning, and he was as frenetic as ever. And he had some excellent advice for those who are ready to write off Gov. Deval Patrick, recalling that Michael Dukakis, for whom he once worked, got off to an exceedingly rocky start in his first term (1975-’78), and that even Bill Weld — known for his smooth relations with the media — had to negotiate a pretty steep learning curve.
Welcome back, Michael.
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Bald Guy
I miss Charley Manning’s wrestling column.
Anonymous
Comings and goings…While we are noting the comeback of another connected rich fat cat party consultant, how about a little mention of the loss of a great sports journalist or the harrowing battle with cancer of a noted local anchor.My condolences go to Alan Greenberg’s family.This is one of the saddest local media stories to come in a while: A relatively young and healthy professional out of the blue collapses. One of the nicest people in that biz -across the nation- and one of the most qualified, with great useful, intelligent, respectful and level-headed insights one would hear on local outlets. A very likeable, affable and hardworking sports journalists.Alan, may you rest in peace. You will be missed and will be hard to replace.(FYI: Greenberg Childrens Trust, at Citizens Bank; 450 Boston Post Road; Sudbury, Mass., 01776….3 kids ages 13, 10 and 7)And to Mrs Kelley Tuthill while we are at it, I am sure many of us have you in our thoughts and wish you the best with a quick and healthy recoveryPS: Dan, sorry to go off topic here, but if you pride yourself on covering local media subjects, then I bet mentioning those two belongs with your annoucement about a politico’s comeback, heralding the early opening of the electoral hunting season.N.
Rick in Duxbury
Well-said, N. I notice that Goldman is “media consultant” to Sen. Marian Walsh and her husband, the rapacious former Judge Buckley, now padding his/their pension to Bulgeresque proportions. Perhaps now the Globe can follow through on covering predatory politicians as well as they cover predatory lenders. (Or do “progressive” credentials render a person above scrutiny?) Is anyone really surprised that this is happening so soon in the administration? (People are trying to get theirs before the heat comes down, IMHO).
Dan Kennedy
Rick: Let’s see if I’ve got this straight. Today the Globe reports, on page one, that the Patrick administration is trying to help Sen. Marian Walsh’s husband fatten his pension. That’s how we all learned about it. And then you snidely ask whether “‘progressive’ credentials render a person above scrutiny.” I don’t get it.
Amusedbutinformed observer
I too miss right wing nut Charley Manning’s wrestling columns, almost as much as his anti-Joe Yukica columns in The HeightsAs for Michael Goldman, the Dems really need him and need him now. The spin of Patrick’s “missteps” is becoming self-fulfilling, especially the nonsense comparing his on-the-job helicopter use to Swift’s use for convenience (nobody has the backbone to say, “yeah he used the chopper to get from one official appointment to another — do you want your governor spending his day riding on Route 3,” and “yeah, the govenor’s gonna ride in a car with room, muscle and that’s reasonably comfortable, what’s wrong with making it as easy as possible for him to do the job we elected him to do?”Dems are stupidly allowing the Herald Page One designers to set the agenda when the Doomed Tabloid ought to be sliding into irrelevance. Goldman’s mere presence and availability for a quick quote will help change that trend