I Had To Turn It Off When

Further proof that Boomer Esiason is being dragged - willingly or unknowingly - into the gutter by his WFAN partner and Howard Stern-wannabe, Craig Carton, was evident this past week when Carton referenced an article about Pittsburgh QB Ben Roethlisberger in Sports Illustrated.

Carton said the article certainly made Roethlisberger seem like a "douche." Esiason then stated that he knew the Pittsburgh QB a little bit through interviews and other things football related and Roethlisberger was never a "douche" to him. Swell. I guess when you are running a morning radio show based on the "Morning Zoo" model, this is the type of banter you get.

Couldn't Esiason just as easily have said that Roethlisberger was never a "bad guy" or even an "idiot" with him? Nope, it seems Carton's influence is working its magic on Esiason. By the way, have you ever noticed that when a good kid hangs out with a bad kid, the good kid usually acts more like the bad one than the other way around. It appears that's what has taken place during this partnership. Besides, if Esiason really thought it was okay to speak like this, then why doesn't he use these words on TV during his NFL on CBS gig? After all, the NFL is full of "d-bags" like Roethlisberger, isn't it?

What is it about being on the radio that these hosts think it's okay to use these words but they wouldn't dare use them on TV? Is there a different group of people listening to the radio as opposed to watching TV? Are the radio listeners more tolerant than TV watchers? After all, doesn't this morning show take place during the time when parents are driving their kids/toddlers to school? And should you really be forced to turn off the radio in the morning when you are supposedly tuned in to a "sports"station?"

All right, I guess this is the part where I'm supposed to insert the fact that I'm not a prude. Far from it. As a matter of fact, I'll compare my "locker room" mouth to anybody out there but I do believe there is a time and place for it. And the public airwaves is NEVER the time or the place.

This is also the same mentality that brings down the whole show as a whole. On the day after legendary Tigers announcer Ernie Harwell died, ESPN's Mike and Mike were all over the story with plenty of memories, interviews, etc. How did the morning crew from the nation's No. 1 sports station remember Harwell?

Well, they interviewed the Times Square street vendor who reported the suspicious car filled with explosives to the police. They also interviewed MLB Network's Kevin Millar to talk about present-day baseball. And they had former Yankees shortstop Bucky Dent on as a guest too. Carton walked down memory lane with Dent. About Harwell? Nope. He asked Dent, after reminding Dent of Daryl Strawberry's admissions of sex during a game, if he had ever witnessed any Yankee "gettin' it on" during a game. As if Dent would have said yes and named names.

I know, I know, if I don't like the show, then just turn it off. Believe me, there are plenty of times that I do but does it have to be that way? Well, I guess nothing will change as long as they continue to get callers telling them "you guys are great" and "you have a great show." Until then, I will continue to monitor this "sports" station as I listen with finger planted firmly on the button ready to change the station at a moment's notice so my 5-year-old's virgin ears remain that way. Thanks for the extra work, fellas.

Read more of Steve Scafa at the original "I Had To Turn It Off When" blog.