Former NECN sports anchor starts kids broadcasting program

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By Steven Ryan
Wicked Local Needham
Posted Jun 11, 2009 @ 02:33 PM

Needham —

Former NECN sports anchor and Needham resident Jimmy Young is grooming the next generation of broadcasters with a new program that already allows young sportscasters to air their own show.

“I wanted to resurrect a sports talk show for kids I did on NECN,” Young said. “I know there are other Jimmy Youngs out there who want to get into sports but don’t know how.”

The show, “Back Talk,” is modeled after a NECN program Young ran in the mid-1990s called “Kid Company’s Sports World,” which consisted of sports figures coming into the studio and discussing issues with kids. The callers to the program were also kids.

Recently, “Back Talk,” which broadcasts Monday through Friday at 7 p.m. online at WBNW-1120 AM, aired a show featuring Needham resident Matt Noone, who works with the Boston Red Sox as a batting practice pitcher. Former New England Patriot Andre Tippett was the show’s first in-studio guest. The young hosts have also interviewed Patriots nose tackle Vince Wilfork, steroid abuser Tony Mandarich and former Bruins Ken Hodge and Rick Middleton.

“Back Talk” airs live from a Needham studio owned by the Armstrong Financial Group, which has a financial advisement show on the station called “Money Matters,” and is broadcast online on WBNW at www.wbnw1120.com, and is now available in both audio and video. It is part of a larger fledgling program Young is developing called Young Broadcasters of America.

The program was officially launched on April 20 and has a training studio in Natick, which opened in October. In time, Young hopes the program expands beyond just sports. Currently, there are about 24 active students — from ages 11 to 18 — in the program from across the region, including one from Needham.

“We hope to crank it up in September,” Young said. “Sports is the first entry point because it is what I’m used to. I want to adopt [what I know] to other interests.”

Young said two girls in the program, one from Wellesley and the other from Medway, are developing a “trendy teen” television program, which will cover fashion, within the next three months. He also hopes to train the kids on using the cameras and editing. Currently, college interns handle those tasks.

“In the fall, they’ll learn editing, hosting, writing and interviewing,” Young said.

Also, Young is working with Sharon public schools on a potential after-school program and is hoping to introduce the program into the school day at the Boston Arts Academy. Most of the current young participants came to the program through word of mouth, said Young, who noted the program is a for-profit entity.

Bobby Krivitsky, 18, a junior at Needham High School, is one of the show’s hosts. He came across the program through a family friend, and he has long held the ambition of becoming a sports broadcaster on a station like ESPN. In the past two years, he has broadcast Needham High School basketball and volleyball games and has also been on the Needham Channel’s “Real Sports Report.”

“I always wanted to become an announcer,” Krivitsky said. “For some reason, I always loved broadcasting, reaching out to people and presenting facts in a fun, interesting way.”

The moment that sticks out most for him is interviewing Wilfork for “Back Talk.” He asked Wilfork about his charity, the Patriots’ chances next season and his contract situation.

“I got to interview Vince Wilfork, who is a premier player and a Pro Bowler,” Krivitsky said. “He was definitely a bit guarded [about his contract], but he did say he wanted to get it down before camp.”

Krivitsky hosts the show on average about twice a week. He fits it into concentrating on his schoolwork and playing football. He hopes to attend a college with a strong broadcast journalism program.

“I make sure my homework is done before I go [to the show],” he said.

Peter Czymbor, a producer of “Back Talk,” who was a host on Young’s NECN youth show, has seen the improvements in the kids now participating in the program. He now works for WXBR 1460 AM in Brockton and is putting together a sports Web site, www.nesportstv.com.

“I think all the kids have a fantastic knowledge of sports and natural talent,” Czymbor said. “We’ve refined those skills. They’re going to be so many steps ahead of the competition in college.”

Steven Ryan can be reached at sryan@cnc.com.