Yes, the name of this space has changed from The Daily Buzz to The Big Valley.

It's not because I had a crush on Linda "Audra" Evans when I was a hormone-raging teenager -- although I surely did.

The truth is, we already have enough of the "buzz" word on fresnobee.com and in other local media.

What can you expect here?

A quick, irreverent and interesting sampler of what's happening in the Valley, the state, the country and the world. Plus I'll post a sports story on every blog -- sorry, old habits die hard -- and the Laugh of the Day and Quote of the Day.

The Big Valley also is your place to talk about topics that are important to you -- and have the discussion read by a big audience instead of fading into Internet ether. Remember to include photos that will illustrate your point by e-mailing them to bmcewen@fresnobee.com.

Jim Boren and I will question Fresno mayoral finalists Henry T. Perea and Ashley Swearengin in a one-hour debate on fresnobee.com Wednesday beginning at noon. You can hear it live or on-demand later. E-mail me at bmcewen@fresnobee.com with suggested questions.

Also: The latest Boren/McEwen podcast is available here. We talk about the county budget mess, the Veterans Boulevard "Road to Nowhere" and reveal our winners and losers.

Fresno Mayor Alan Autry says that he is considering an offer to host a two-hour talk show on weekday mornings on KYNO.

"It's looking good," Autry told me. "I don't want to run for another office, at least that's not my calling now. As I thought through [about a radio show], it seemed to be a time-efficient way to keep your voice out there and not just step away. I've been thinking on it, praying it. I might be good at it, I might be great at it or I might not be very good at all."

If Autry and KYNO agree on a deal, he likely would start the show before he leaves office.

With or without Autry, Boren and I are doing two-minute commentaries for KYNO Monday through Friday. The station, at 1300 on the AM dial, switched from Spanish language to talk/news this week.

From our friends at Politico: a quick search of documents and newspaper articles in Alaska reveals that GOP vice presidential pick Sarah Palin once registered a marketing and consulting business as "Rouge Cou." That's French, more or less, for "redneck."
Read more here.

Your taxpayer dollars at work: Capitol Alert reports that Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata announced over the weekend that the Senate will convene every day - including weekends -- until lawmakers pass a state budget.

My, how big of them.

Even though Sean Hannity and other conservative yakkers are claiming that Barack Obama failed to get a bounce from the Democratic Convention, the folks at Gallup say otherwise. They have 50% of voters nationally supporting Obama, compared to 42% for John McCain. Read it here.

National respect for Bulldogs: Fresno State's impressive season-opening football victory at Rutgers moved Coach Pat Hill's team into the Associated Press Top 25 and elevated it in the USA Today coaches poll. Click here to read both polls.

Laugh of the Day: ""The McCain people believe that Americans will disregard [Gov. Palin's] inexperience because they will fall in love with her story. She was a runner-up in the 1984 Miss Alaska Pageant., which may sound trite, but you try walking in high-heeled snow shoes." - Bill Maher

Quote of the Day: "To live anywhere in the world today and be against equality because of race or color is like living in Alaska and being against snow." -- William Faulkner