Christmas Time in the City

Boston, Mass. — It's warm, it's sunny, and you've probably worn shorts sometime in the last week. But despite the mind-bloggling weather, 'tis the season in Boston.

On Thursday, December 1, the 70th Annual Boston Common Tree Lighting kicked-off the official beginning of the holiday season. Thousands of city-dwellers and visitors flocked downtown to watch as Mayor Menino lit the beautiful tree amidst an explosion of fireworks and sparklers.

At 7:58pm, the tree was lit.
Photo Credit: DGuides.Com

"It's such an awesome event," said Boston University student Katrina Bossotti, 19. "I've only been in Boston for two years but I've come down to watch both times. The music, the lights... It just get's me excited for the winter. I'll definitely be coming as long as I stay in the city."

The event started at 5:30pm with the opening of Frog Pond, the city's central ice skating rink. The real show began on stage at 6:00pm with vocal performances by New Kids on the Block Joey McIntyre, American Idol finalist Siobhan Magnus, the Radio City Rockettes, Rockapella, the Boston Ballet, the Boston Children’s Choir, MAGIC 106.7’s Nancy Quill and Mike Addams, and saxophonist Grace Kelly.

For many spectators, the performances were more of an allure than the lighting itself.

"I came just to see Joey McIntyre," said Boston resident Angela Simmons, 23. "The other singers were great but I just needed to see [McIntyre] up close. I used to listen to New Kids on the Block every day."

Hot cider was a popular purchase for many spectators.

While jolly Christmas tunes played from the ornament-adorned stage, a sea of children and adults flooded the Commons from every entrance. Local vendors rushed to the scene to offer hot chocolate, winter hats, light up toys and more.

"We make a decent amount of money each year, " said Craig Jonas, 34, who ran an apparel stand including animal hats and furry toys. "It's a good time and people are generally pretty excited about everything."

When the final tune reverberated into the night, Mayor Menino took the stage to thank guests for attending the night's activities. Then, without further ado, the tree lit up as small-scale fireworks erupted from near-by.

The crowd cheered in excitement and finally, the tree stood tall and vibrant.

Take a peek at the variety of decorations Boston 
has to offer in our special holiday slideshow

A Bit of History

The 2011 Boston Christmas tree is a 50-foot Balsmic fur donated by Ken and Donna Spinney of Nova Scotia. Boston has received each of its annual trees from the Canadian region as part of a special agreement relating to the devastating Halifax Explosion.

On December 6, 1917, an accident off the coast of Nova Scotia killed more than 1,000 people and injured thousands more. "The explosion was the cause of the S.S. Mont Blanc, a French cargo ship loaded with explosives, which collided with a Norwegian ship in the Halifax Harbor. Boston was among the immediate respondents, sending trains filled with emergency personnel north in order to offer aid. The annual donation is a traditional 'thank you' for that help." (Boston.About.Com)

And be sure to go behind the scenes with Kedzie Teller to take a peek at Macy's decorations as they refused to be part of our coverage.

Looking Forward

After this weekend's ATP Championships, all regular season tennis has come to an end. The year-end victors have been crowned and it's time for the tennis world's stars to hang up their rackets for some much deserved rest.

But as the athletes settle down, Tennis.com must rev up. For the next two months news will be minimal and the website's writers must find a way to keep readers interested until the start of next year's season. What's a better way to do that than to look to the future?

Is it already time for French Open tickets?

Tennis.com has begun what will become a steady flow of  predictions and player analyses for 2012. Will Djokovic rekindle the fire that earned him a record breaking 2011? Will Wozniacki finally win her maiden slam? (lol). And what will come of the Williams sisters?

While I enjoy speculation, I'm hoping the seasoned editors of Tennis.com have something new up their sleeves. It's fun to read what Bodo and Tignor think will happen to the tennis world giants, but all the writing really becomes is hearsay and editorial banter.

Instead of looking forward, I'd like some more looking back. Not necessarily on 2011, because we've been hammered with highlights for 11 months now, but what about comparisons of this season to the past? What about some classic highlights from the days of Sampras or Graf? Mix it up, keep me on my toes, and make me want to check the website more than once a week.

If not, I'll get my tennis fix from twitter. The players have proven to be pretty funny lately.

Middlebury College Leaves Quidditch World Spellbound

Randall Island, NYC — For a moment it looked as though the mighty had fallen, and then, like magic, order was restored at the 5th annual Quidditch World Cup.

On a cold and windy November weekend, 94 teams competed in pursuit of the International Quidditch League's ultimate title: World Cup champions. With representation from the United States, Canada, Finland, Iceland and New Zealand, the tournament boasted some of the highest-quality matches seen since the sport's creation seven years ago. Surely, then, it seemed certain that someone would topple the dominant reign of 4-time World Cup champions, Middlebury College.

But in quidditch, certainty does not exist.

For two full days, the Randall Island sports complex in New York City became home to nine fields of quaffle-throwing, bludger-beating, snitch-catching chaos. Thousands of spectators flooded into the facilities to witness what soon became the largest quidditch tournament ever held. Saturday's action included round robin matches between pre-selected pools of five teams. Once each team had faced each of the others in its group, seeds were generated for Sunday's knock-out style bracket and those who did not make the top 32 were sent packing.

[For a full list of Quidditch rules and regulation, check the IQA Official Rulebook]

When Middlebury College was upset by no-name newcomer, University of Michigan, in their second round-robin match, buzz about the team's apparent vulnerability ripped across the tournament grounds like wildfire. It was clear that Middlebury could no longer earn a top seed going into Sunday's matches, and powerhouse squads began vying for the number one spot, seeking high point differentials to set them apart.

Click for a slideshow of
off-the-pitch events!

Entering the second day of competition, the desire for a newly crowned World Cup champion generated some of the most physical, fast-paced and high-emotion matches the tournament could have ever expected. Regional tournament winners such as Kansas University (Mid-West champions) and University of Miami (Southern champions) looked like strong candidates, clean sweeping their opponents by large margins.

Northeast regional champions, Boston University, appeared threatening as well, finishing their first five matches with a +500 point differential, including a 110-0 shutout against world no.16, Chestnut Hill. The Terrier's success was bitter-sweet, however, as their no.4 seed set up a round-of-sixteeen clash against Middlebury—a match dubbed "an early-round championship" by tournament officials.

BU players look on as they trounce Lafayette 120-10.

As BU and Middlebury took to the pitch, a sea of spectators rushed to witness what looked to be an upset in the making. BU's superb beating and hard tackling kept the Middlebury chasers at bay, while their speed and long range shooting earned them an early 40-10 lead. The Panthers were not to be out-shined, however, beginning to connect on set plays and fighting back to a 40-30 deficit. It was the snitch, however, that decided the game. The moment the snitch returned to the field, Middlebury quickly launched for the game-ending catch, stunning the Terriers who had re-established field dominance and looked to be in control of the match. The final score was a 60-40 victory for Middlebury—a victory which would foreshadow the rest of the tournament's outcome.

Despite valiant efforts from UCLA and Texas A&M in the quarter and semifinals (both of whom had leads against Middlebury at some point in their matches), the Panthers proved that a close game in quidditch will always come down to the snitch catch, moving on to the championship game for the fifth straight year.

(Photo via InternationalQuidditch.Org)

The final match was held in Icahn Stadium—a 5,000 seat venue where Usain Bolt broke the 200m sprinting world record in 2009. Beneath a starless night sky and the brilliance of Icahn's lights, Middlebury had only one more obstacle to overcome: the University of Florida. Just as in their three previous matches, Middlebury faced fierce competition on the field. UF's chasers and beaters matched Middlebury on every level, scoring and beating with finely-tuned skill, but, like before, it was Middlebury who excelled in seeking. Just as UF took a 20 point lead, the Panthers' seeker caught the snitch and ended the game 80-70.

Once again, Middlebury College has hoisted the World Cup trophy. Once again, they will remain the top ranked team. But for once, the path was not so easy.

With a year to train, teams around the globe will dream of their next chance at glory—their next chance to make history. Middlebury finally lost a game, after-all, so who's to say they can't lose the title?

Go behind the scenes and see why these young athletes love to play quidditch:

JO540 Video Diary

Another BUQ Video (not by me)

World Cup V Intimidator from VicKelman on Vimeo.

Tennis.com On the Go

With the increase of smartphone use, it's important for news and entertainment sites to have functional mobile pages. I am happy to say that Tennis.com has kept up with the times and did this one right.

While blackberry users like myself might want to smash their heads against walls waiting for pages to load, people accessing the mobile site will be extremely happy. The overall smooth look and user-friendly feel of Tennis.com's mobile page is above what you might have expected for a website whose homepage is overwhelmingly packed. With a quick click of your phone you can read the week's biggest feature articles or the day's minute-by-minute AP headlines.

My favorite feature? Mobile live scores. About 90% of people who use Tennis.com use it to check scores as they're happening (okay I'm making that number up, but you get it) so a mobile version of the live scoreboard is really what makes the page stand out. Kudos.

One thing I would like to see on the mobile version is access to photos and videos. So far, I haven't quite figured out if those are accessible. Maybe it's me, or maybe it's my blackberry... but still, I want to see something other than text!

JO540 Video Project (BUQ vs Tufts)

I apologize in advance for any clutter on the audio, specifically during the first interview. BUT I think you'll really enjoy this.

Keep an eye out to http://www.youtube.com/BUQuidditch also as we upload a few projects we've been working on.

Class Meets the Real World: Grunting Under Fire, Again

This week on Tennis.com, a number of stories were released pertaining to a subject I discussed in my audio project: grunting.

Once again, an army of anti-wailing tennis fans are speaking out against grunting during tennis matches, but per usual, there's nothing anyone can really do about it. Still, the debate attracts a large crowd and Tennis.com was quick to take advantage of its resurgence in the media.

The site's main drop-down features a photo of Maria Sharapova striking a forehand, and attached are links to the latest news and articles that have surfaced about whether or not grunting should be/can be/will be banned. Lucky for pro-grunters like me, the WTA's CEO Stacey Allaster says nothing can be done.

Tennis.com's writer, Pete Bodo, disagrees, demanding that actions be made to hush the constant shrieking in an article called "A Sound Weapon." Me? I'm less than impressed by his argument. Sorry Bodo, but I'd rather you quiet down than the player. This is the way they train and compete. Let them do as they please.

Besides, women aren't the only ones making noise—Allaster was quick to point out that men grunt as well. It's just the higher-pitch, higher-decible screams of players like Victoria Azarenka that get the most critcism. Why don't we talk about the "waah-HEE"s of women like Francesca Schiavone? Because they're deeper sounding, like men's grunts? (Nadal, seriously... why don't you quiet down if the ladies have to?)

Tennis.com does a decent job of providing both sides of the story, even if they do weigh a little heavily on the negative side. I forgive them though, as one article form the Daily Spin tells world no.1 Caroline Wozniacki to stop complaining and focus on winning something (you're supposedly the best, Caro... focus on your game before you trash someone else's).

I would have liked to see some video clips; maybe something comparing the silent game of Samantha Stosur to the roaring style of Maria Kirilenko, but instead I'm forced to be content with text and images. Honestly, though, the site gives me enough, and if I'm really interested it's not too difficult to youtube something myself.

Like this: (Stosur vs. Kirilenko, US Open 2011 4th Round)

JO540 Live Blog

JO540 Slideshow 2: Dean Elmore

JO540 Slideshow 1: BUQ

A Glitch in the Action

I'm not talking about an injury timeout, people.

Somehow, despite its high traffic and surplus of information, Tennis.com still struggles to keep glitches and freezing away from its website during big tournaments.

Today marks the first day of the WTA Year-end Championship where the eight top ranked women are duking it out for tennis supremacy, and sure enough... Tennis.com is having some trouble.

TELL ME WHAT'S HAPPENING! (Getty Images)

No matter what computer I access the site from, the home page loads slowly, the Championship "drop-down bar" is blurry and don't even get me started on the Live Scores page...

Actually, let me get started. The one thing I care about most is staying up to date on scores and results, and Tennis.com refuses to admit defeat against partner sites whose live scoreboards run smooth and fast. Tennis.com, instead, tries to advertise its own scores page as much as possible—a white mess of text that refreshes every two minutes and scrolls away from what you were looking at. Not to mention, the ball (now a blob in recent site updates) which indicates who is serving never moves after the first person... What?

So, be wary of where you go if you're surfing the web for your tennis updates. Tennis.com is sure to have what you're looking for, but don't expect to get it as quickly as you'd like.

Convergence Woes: A Story That Could Do More

Dear Richard Pagliaro, give us more content.

With a story as interesting as "Trash to Treasure: Tennis String Bracelets", a writer has the opportunity to combine their verbal prowess with entertaining extras, but sadly, the opportunity was missed.

"Trash to Treasure" (via Tennis.com) tells readers about the creative transformation of tennis string into multicolored friendship bracelets, called Stringlets, but does little more than state the facts. The entire block of text contains one picture, one hyperlink, and no multimedia add-ons. By the third paragraph, I lost focus and wanted to see more and read less.

The answer to this dilemma is simple: incorporate convergence. Add videos of the item's creator, Malcolm Shieh, explaining how he came up with the concept. Give us interview clips and sound bites. How about a slide show of various samples of his work? You say there's a wide variety of styles, but all I see is one  snapshot.

And what about hyperlinks? We get one measly link to the item's website, but I'd prefer a direct route to the site's "purchase" page, or maybe some access to advertisements and/or photos of people wearing the trinket. Give us visuals that make us want to buy the product.

Really, the story is just a dry collection of facts, begging to be something more. So, Richard, make it something more.

Blog Boosting: How Tennis.com Editors Get to Self-Promote

Anyone familiar with Tennis.com's home page knows about the "blogs" section located just beneath the site's main feature. Here the tennis world's biggest names get to host their blogs' latest recaps, reactions and analysis.

What is so great about this feature is that readers get more than just the ticker of AP headlines–they get real voice, real attitude and real content. Blogs like Tignor's Concrete Elbow and Bodo's Tennis World give some witty commentary on what would otherwise be dry match results.

Look at Tignor's latest: "Landing Her Punches." The point of the story is to highlight Agnieszka Radwanska's latest success and to critique her normally unaggressive play. The world no.8 and winner of titles in both Tokyo and Beijing is a player fans know, but don't necessarily care to read about. Her latest feats, however, are worth noting, and Tignor does an impressive job of painting the story of her tremendous efforts.

"Instead of always playing it safe, Radwanska rifled her forehand when she got the chance; she hit jumping backhands; she won a close first set by taking over the net—subtly taking it over, of course, but taking it over nontheless; and she ripped one overhead so hard that I thought it was going to hurt Petkovic. Radwanska came out of her comfort zone, but never looked uncomfortable doing it." - Tignor


Accompanied by a comical photo and chock full of hyperlinks, the website does a good job of keeping readers interested. It would benefit, however, from a few links to highlights or even an embedded video. It's one thing to tell us the Beijing championship was one of the best matches form the WTA this year...It's another to show us. I, for one, still haven't seen any highlights of this supposedly awesome matchup.


Another feature that might boost views on the site's blogs page is the inclusion of outside contribution. How many more people would be interested if they thought their blog might get some airtime? Come on, Tennis.com, I know you want to feature my blog, Inside the Baseline.

Sharapova's Inury: Enough Already!

By now you understand that I'm a huge tennis fan, and I assure you I'm not alone. Day in and day out, people like myself log on to every website we can to get our information fix, captives of the latest headlines and features.

Luckily for us, tennis media has become as up-to-date as national news. Whether it's the ticker, the Tennis.com front page, or some obscure twitter handle, no news goes unseen for those who seek it. But when does coverage cross the line?

Let's look at Maria Sharapova's latest misfortune: a sprained ankle.

During her quarterfinal clash against Petra Kvitova in Tokyo—a rematch of the Wimbledon championship—Sharapova's serve added a whole new problem to her already inconsistent play. We've seen her flub her toss, we've seen her mistime her swing, but never before have we seen her stumble on a landing. In the WTA, however, you have to expect the unexpected. Serving at 3-4, all six feet, two inches of tall blonde came crashing to the ground when her ankle suddenly gave out. Sitting on the court, Sharapova looked dismayed and bewildered. Moments later, she was forced to retire.

Okay, so there's the news, but what about the news coverage stood out? The fact that it was all you could read about or watch for 24 hours.

There were tweets, there were headlines, there were countless videos and photos. Tennis.com was clogged with information about whether the injury was minor, serious or somewhere in between. How big was the swelling? (The answer: the size of a tennis ball, ironically.) How soon would she play again? (She has withdrawn from Beijing and looks to make the year-end final). Etc. etc. 

Yes, an injury for the world no.2 is "big news" and word is bound to spread, but can't it be compiled into one place? Does it need to mask an entire website like some sort of internet virus? 

Maria, I wish you the best and I am disappointed that your injury will deny you the chance of knocking unworthy Wozniacki from the top ranking by the end of 2011, but I don't need facebook updates about who's bringing you ice, okay?

...21,430 people liked that she brought you ice. Impressive.

I'm glad you've moved on, Tennis.com, but let's try and have more widespread news the next time someone trips.

Rating the Reviews

So you want to be a tennis player.

The first thing you need to do is find the right racket for you. Like a pair of gloves or an old pair of jeans, when you find the right racket it just fits. It feels right. It swings as naturally as a part of your arm. The stick you choose will define your game and you can't take that decision lightly. But how do you choose one piece of equipment over 100s of others?

Although demoing a racket is always helpful, most players will read at least one or two reviews before making up their mind. Tennis.com does a great job of providing racket-shoppers with all the information they'll need.

The site has an entire "Gear" section easily found on the navigation bar, but what's better is the multimedia content you'll find with a few easy clicks.

In the racket section, for example, site-users will have a number of options. They can read the basic racket info, skim the specs for unique needs (ie. a bigger head size or a lighter frame), read the professional review or sneak a peak at a few photos. The copy is written in an easy-to-understand language, but you'll want a bit of basic tennis knowledge to fully grasp the reviewers' opinions.

The most surprising aspect of the site is its integration of video reviews alongside the text. Now, the videos are not award-wining pieces by any means (really, it's a bald man spewing a quick summary of the information you'll find on the racket's page) but it's a nice element to add for people who want even more insight before selecting their stick.

What's the most interesting thing you'll find for each piece of gear? A list of professional players who use it. If you want to slide like Novak Djokovic or wallop the ball like Victoria Azarenka, click around and find out who's using what. You'd be surprised how many people buy gear just to be like their tennis heros.

Getting Personal: Tennis.com's "Daily Spin"

While stats, bios and match analyses makeup the bulk of tennis news, Tennis.com has one feature that brings us a bit closer to our favorite players: The Daily Spin.

From dating life to retired life, The Daily Spin provides readers with an inside look at what past and present tennis stars are up to both on and off the court. With special features like "What I learned on Twitter this Week" and a constant flow of multimedia, The Daily Spin is easily one of Tennis.com's most alluring elements.

If a player is doing something worth noting,
you'll find it on The Daily Spin

One downside to the page, however, is the lack of scheduled posts. While the Daily Spin is updated regularly, dates and times of new postings vary week to week, month to month. Really, it all comes down to what's going on in the tennis world. If players like Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams are making the news, you're likely to get a bunch of new information, but if no one is causing a stir, you might not see any new articles for over a week.

The Daily Spin's focus on players' tweets has skyrocketed over the past year as more and more big names join the social media movement. While this allows for a more personal feel to the relationship between players and fans, it also allows for players to circulate their opinions to the masses. When Andy Roddick and David Ferrer struggled to play their match at the 2011 US Open due to bubbling issues on the court's surface, Roddick was capable of tweeting about his anger (followed by youtube videos of his rant, of course...)

By connecting with the players through social media, fans get a more realistic understanding of players' emotions and opinions. Suddenly tennis stars are no longer just athletes on our t.v. screen, but living, breathing people who we can interact with and side with (or against...) in their personal conflicts.

Is this good or bad for the tennis world? I'm unsure. It might not be appropriate for fans to get involved in an issue between the ATP/WTA and a specific athlete, but it's still a good news story. We live in a social world and you can't blame Tennis.com for taking advantage of that.

Covering the U.S. Open: The Do's & Don'ts of Tennis.com

Few sports have seasons as long and demanding as tennis, so avid fans are accustomed to absorbing a lot of news. From blogs, to twitter, to the USTA official site, updates come rapid fire and in almost any form a consumer could desire. No site, however, provides an information flow as steady and all-encompassing as Tennis.com.

Tennis.com is the end-all be-all for by-the-minute knowledge on what's happening in the tennis world. Looking at the site's coverage of the U.S. Open, readers can fully understanding the effort that goes in to varied content, but might you consider it to be a little too much?

Let's take a look at what I consider the "Do's and Don'ts" of Tennis.com's U.S. Open coverage.

* * *

DO: Provide both pre-tournament and post-tournament analysis (in a timely matter):

The U.S. Open is the fourth and final grand slam tournament of the year, providing fans with two weeks of upsets, fairy tales, and dominant performances. The key term here is "two weeks", not four. While in the past, Tennis.com has extended its articles, videos, commentary and photo galleries for far too long (did Wimbledon really have to wrap-up in a series of articles over a week's time?) its coverage of this year's Open seems to be ending in an appropriate time frame. The post-match analyses, known as "Racquet Reactions" to site users, were both posted within moments of the final points—see Stosur Stuns Serena and Nole's Super Season— allowing avid fans to get their final fix almost immediately. Furthermore, the site has already released its post-tournament "grades and awards" in a lengthy, though entertaining, compilation of praises and insults to the men's and women's competitors. It's important to have final reflections arrive quickly.

DON'T: Take an awesome feature, and kill it: 

To the stunningly creative writers of Tennis.com, I have one question: Why do you have to overdo your special features? Names like Bodo, Cronin and Tignor are well-known in tennis media for their witty remarks and imaginative vocabulary, but sometimes articles seem to go just a little too far. In the "2011 U.S. Open Awards" mentioned above, senior writer Peter Bodo gave out 15 different awards/criticisms to varying athletes, overwhelming readers with overall length and (let's be honest) a list of names many of us will never be able to pronounce. On top of it all, the feature used content from other parts of the site, including videos of Djokovic and videos of Petkovic dancing, making the page appear even more chaotic and busy. While convergence allows readers to access more content faster, there's an appropriate time and place. In this situation, let us click on "video" if we want to (but okay... it's funny).

DO: Have on-going coverage of the event in a multitude of mediums: 

Tennis.com rises above all other websites for its sheer variety of content. If you want videos, you've got them. Podcasts? You bet. Updates from both the Associated Press and Tennis.com's staff? Sure thing. The site even boasts its own special features, like "The Daily Spin" which gives an inside look on tennis stars' daily lives via twitter and other media, as well as a Live Score tracker for every tournament taking place around the world. During the U.S. Open, the best places to go were the Photo Wire for action shots of your favorite players and to the live Podcast series. For site users who wanted to be interactive, they were encouraged (via homepage advertisements) to join discussion forums or to vote on the latest poll.

DON'T: Clutter the homepage with non-tournament related extras:

During the season there are lulls in the action that keep readers entertained, so Tennis.com has become a pro at providing its users with fun extras. Do you want to learn the best technique for a kick serve? Watch this video! But during an event as crowd-drawing as the U.S. Open, don't take up space with these things. Give me more inside-access to tournament stuff I don't get from watching on television.

DO: Use the eye-catching "Drop Down" feature for big news:

There is nothing I love more than typing in Tennis.com and seeing the most important news the moment the page loads. Tennis.com has become famous for its "drop down" feature—a solid color wall that includes a picture, a headline and a link—that pushes the rest of the page downward. Instant news equals instant gratification and will keep people coming back for more, especially for someone like me who relishes in seeing huge letters which read "Wozniacki's Woes" when she gets chopped out of the French Open in the third round. 

* * *

It's hard to cover a tournament which includes 256 athletes in the singles event alone, but Tennis.com does it better than anyone else. I'm not saying the content is perfect, but it's the widest range your'e going to find on the internet. Now let's just see how they transition into post-grand slam season.