NESN plans to rebroadcast the Boston College men’s basketball team’s major upset over North Carolina after a technical glitch prevented viewers from watching the crucial final moments of last night’s game.

NESN dropped the ball in its coverage of tonight’s Boston College basketball team’s monumental upset over No. 1 ranked North Carolina. UPDATE: Here’s my Monday Herald story and NESN’s response.

With one minute left, and BC holding onto a slim 5 point lead, NESN’s feed disappeared and went to a string of commercials, leaving Eagles fans across the region wondering if their team was going to hang on.

The game finally came back on with seconds left - and BC won.

It must have been agonizing for fans to endure medical device, horror movie and Bruins commercials during such a pivotal moment.

I know my household wasn’t too happy.

It’s official. WRKO-AM (680) host Tom Finneran is getting a permanent co-host and it’s Todd Feinberg.

Feinberg used to host the midday-slot on WRKO but was replaced late last year with Reese Hopklins, who is now behind bars charged with child rape.

Here’s the release:

Todd Feinburg to join Tom Finneran on WRKO morning line-up

‘RKO also announces new show hours and additional weekend programs

December 31, 2008 (Boston) – Entercom New England announced today that veteran talk show host Todd Feinburg will officially join Tom Finneran on WRKO each weekday morning. Feinburg, who has been guest hosting with Finneran for the last several months, will take his permanent seat behind the microphone on January 5, 2009.

At the same time, the station announced new time slots for its morning programs. Finneran’s Forum will now air from 5:30 AM to 9:00 AM each weekday, and The Laura Ingraham Show will air from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM.

Feinburg is no stranger to WRKO. The conservative host held the 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM time slot for two years through December of 2007, and prior to that hosted the station’s 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM shift between December 2004 and the fall of 2005. His nationally syndicated “Todd Feinburg Show” airs Sundays on over one hundred stations, including WRKO. Terms of the new contract will not be disclosed. WRKO also recently announced that it has picked up the third year option on Finneran’s contract.

“WRKO has a highly targeted audience and in those demographic groups, we’ve shown tremendous growth for Finneran’s Forum,” said Jason Wolfe, Vice President of AM Programming and Operations at Entercom New England. “We’re encouraged by these numbers and are thrilled to welcome Todd aboard permanently. It’s a winning partnership, and together, ‘Tom and Todd’ will continue to bring outstanding synergy to morning drive. In addition, the new hours will allow us to be the first live and local morning talk show to hit the air each weekday, giving us a head start on the competition.”

“I’ve enjoyed co-hosting with Tom for the last several months and am very excited to become his full-time partner,” said Feinburg. “Tom’s intelligence, knowledge of government, and overall positive demeanor are huge positives for the program and I will balance that with wit, humor and an edge that will help us continue to move the needle.”

Finneran added, “What a fabulous way to start the New Year. Todd is a great addition to the show. He is very smart, funny, irreverent, and fun to work with. I will bring my rosary beads to pray for him during the first four years of the eight year Obama administration. I’m already trying to imagine Todd’s reaction to Barack’s Inaugural extravaganza! Stay tuned.”

“The new hours are a dream come true, especially for my wife,” Finneran continued. “I’ve actually been angling for these hours because Todd and I see a great opportunity to wake Boston up every morning with smart, funny, live, and local programming. Our audience is smart, successful, opinionated, loyal, and growing. We’ll tell them to hold on tight and enjoy the ride.”

Wolfe also announced the addition of two new weekend programs. “The Wall Street Journal This Weekend”, which debuted this past Saturday, will air every Saturday at 7 AM going forward. Hosted by Gordon Deal, the one-hour show looks at the week’s top business stories, as well as lifestyle issues like travel, high-tech gadgetry and luxury living. Beginning January 4, 2009, WRKO will air Fox News Sunday, the radio companion of the TV program, each Sunday from 7-8 PM.

Wolfe continued, “We’re privileged to work with great syndicates that in these, the most difficult economic times in our history, can provide our listeners with top notch programming that will keep them informed on critical news that continues to affect their lives. WRKO is committed to bringing this information to our audience, and as move into 2009, we’ll look for every opportunity to put programming on the air that will serve this purpose.”

Entercom is one of the nation’s largest radio broadcasters with operations in San Francisco, Boston, Seattle, Denver, Sacramento, Cincinnati, Portland, Kansas City, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Austin, Norfolk, Buffalo, New Orleans, Providence, Memphis, Greensboro, Rochester, Greenville/Spartanburg, Madison, Wichita, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Springfield and Gainesville/Ocala.

Highlights of the ratings growth of Finneran’s Forum

* In both Men and Adults 35-64, the ratings for Summer 08 more than doubled the numbers for the Winter of 08.

* Men 35-64 grew from a 1.7 share and a cume (total amount of people listening to the show) of 31,500, in the winter, to a 4.0 share, and a cume of 50,800 in the summer. The program went from a rank of 14th to 6th in its time slot among this demographic group over that period.

* Men 45-64 went from a 2.0 share and a cume of 22,100 in the winter, to a 4.3 share and a cume of 36,700 in the summer. The program jumped from 13th to 7th in its time slot among this group.

* Persons 35-64 went from 1.9 share and a cume of 56,400, in the winter to a 3.0 share, with a cume of 73,600 in the summer.

* Persons 45-64 grew from a 2.7 share and a cume of 46,400 in the winter, to a 3.6 share, and a cume of 55,400 in the summer.

Jim Boyd has been at WCVB-TV (Ch.5) since it first went on the air in 1972 and he just announced his retirement.

Read it here.

Boyd, a respected newsman, has been a familiar face for nearly four decades. You can bet viewers will miss him.

WGBH-TV (Ch. 2) is the latest local media outlet to announce cuts. Here’s the story.