An existing content partnership with NESN "has been taken to new heights, with stations in Providence and Burlington providing two-minute local news and weather updates that run in the middle of the sixth inning" during most Red Sox games, according to Michael Malone of BROADCASTING & CABLE. Stations in Hartford, Springfield and "perhaps others, are likely to come on board for the news share as well." Providence-based WJAR-NBC GM Vic Vetters said that the news updates are the "'next step' in a three-year partnership that sees the NBC affiliate provide weather inserts for the local feed of NESN’s pre-and postgame show." NESN VP/Marketing Paul Bermel "spent 13 years at CNN and has modeled it after CNN’s Newsource, which has affiliates share their local footage with the cable news giant when news breaks in the local markets." The taped news inserts, "typically running in night games Monday through Thursday, fit perfectly into a commercial break in the middle of the sixth inning, which usually falls in the prime viewing slot" of 9:00pm ET. They are "framed with an L-bar bearing NESN, Red Sox and opponents’ logos, so a casual channel surfer would realize he or she is not watching a typical newscast." The stations’ sports anchors "get a monthly trip to Fenway Park to appear in the pre-and postgame shows" (BROADCASTING & CABLE, 7/27 issue).
