It's not that WCCO-AM staffers have anything against Michele Tafoya, but word is that some are worried about her getting the midday spot that opened up when Jack Rice was shown the door.

Insiders believe that Tafoya and Mike Anselmo, her old boss at KFAN who is the new guy at WCCO-AM, are haggling over money. Money's tight right now in the media biz, so Tafoya's prospective new colleagues are fearful that paying for a big ticket item like her might spark another round of job cuts at the station, which, like many in broadcasting, did not have a good first quarter.

It's unclear what kind of coin WCCO would have to pay for the woman nicknamed Limo by her former KFANnies. With some WCCOers thinking that salary cuts are coming, Tafoya is surely not likely to earn the kind of money Anselmo would have been willing to pay someone who left him for big things. As you may know, Tafoya left here for ESPN and most lately "Monday Night Football," where she prowled the sidelines as one of that game's finest reporters.

Tafoya would bring WCCO listeners a colorful personality and well-rounded sports reporter with contacts on the national levels, who can also talk about family matters as a wife and mother.

In response to the vague phone message I left about finding a replacement for Rice, Anselmo said: "Can't talk about it yet because it's not done."

Of course, if Tafoya doesn't get it, WCCO could hire someone cheaper who might not threaten the ranks.

A match made in ... There were a couple of big bangs during Shauna Raisch's appearance on Bravo's "Millionaire Matchmaker."

From what the millionaire owner of Wayzata's Twiggs Salon told me, she was set up big time by the casting company, which doesn't shock her a bit. They make money when their client is cast. Raisch was asked to say something that those casting crew members knew would set off Patti Stanger, the whack job who is the host of the reality show.

"I did the casting tape and said whatever they wanted me to say HAVING NO IDEA that every single episode starts out with Patti meeting the client by seeing their casting tape," Raisch said, laughing. "The casting people asked me, Would you do a makeover of Patti if she asked? I said, of course, that's my business. They were like, what would you change about her? I said something like, 'If you find my Mr. Perfect, I'll give you a makeover and the first thing we'll do is get rid of those bangs real quick.' I didn't even say it meanly."

That's not how some viewers and Stanger took it, although, as someone who gets Raisch's inscrutable, direct countenance, I believe she didn't think she was sounding mean.

When Raisch walked on camera for their first meeting, Stanger's fangs were dripping saliva. Throughout the show Stanger attacked Raisch with statements such as: "Shauna's going to get over this or she's going to die alone and choke on her Botox. I'm going to set her up with Zach and teach her that there's more to a guy than designer duds. I'm going to get Shauna her sexy guy and maybe I can break a crack in the Restylane."

I think Patti was trying to say she was determined to get Shauna to crack a smile, but I can't be sure because the Bravo PR person never got back to me.

Even at a follow-up meeting where Stanger's stated mission was to kill Raisch (who told me she's injected nothing in her face) with kindness, the tension was marked. Maybe Raisch was peeved at having to continue being in Stanger's presence, as even I was irked about spending another second with this ridiculous TV show host, who must not encounter a mirror. She needs a makeover. Stanger might start by redirecting the funds used to attain that hair color to other parts of her visage. Can you tell whose side I'm on?

"She rips everybody," said Raisch, who didn't take Stanger's comments personally but has noticed that, while Patti can dish it, she can't take it. They kind of made up in the end.

Raisch would like to address a couple things that got left on the cutting room floor. She doesn't just like younger guys; she also is fond of types like Mr. Big on "Sex & the City." They also allegedly edited out how angry Stanger got, according to Raisch, when Shauna said she didn't care if Mr. Perfect earned a big salary.

Why would Raisch put herself through such abuse knowing the editing tricks and that "reality TV isn't even close to reality. [And] when you go on a date with five cameras in your face, it's not a date."

She said she did it because her publicist asked her to and, "I'm trying to do a TV thing right now and getting some TV experience under your belt is great."

She wouldn't elaborate. I hope Raisch won't take cues from Stanger about how to behave on TV, although obnoxiousness always sells.

C.J. is at 612.332.TIPS or cj@startribune.com. E-mailers, please state a subject -- "Hello" doesn't count. Attachments are not opened, so don't even try. More of her attitude can be seen on Fox 9 Thursday mornings.