HBO Sports
Mar
22
Some Long Overdue Linkage
Due to crazy personal schedules on Tuesday and Wednesday, I wasn’t able to update the site as much as I would like. I apologize to you as I’ve been trying to keep you apprised of the latest sports media news. A few housekeeping notes, first I did some Sports Media Thoughts earlier this morning and you read them here.
Matt Yoder at Awful Announcing was kind to ask me on his podcast and we recorded it on Wednesday while I was on the road so the phone quality isn’t great (damn you, AT&T 3G). You can listen to what Matt and I discussed at the Awful Announcing site.
And lastly, Keith Thibault and I recorded our latest Sports Media Weekly podcast this week and our guest is Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette and the subject is college hockey coverage.
Now to our links.
Michael Smith & John Ourand from Sports Business Journal look at the possibility of ESPN and Fox Sports teaming up once again, this time to control the media rights to the Big 12 Conference. The two companies combined for the Pac-12 last year in an attempt to keep NBC Sports out of college sports and it appears the two are back at work again on the Big 12 rights.
Sports Illustrated’s Jon Wertheim makes a very good point on the perceived conflict of interests of ESPN’s tennis announcers and the players to which they’re connected, case in point, Mary Jo Fernandez seen sitting with Roger Federer’s wife during the BNP Paribas Open last week on ABC.
Andrew McCalvy at MLB.com writes that Milwaukee Brewers Hall of Fame voice Bob Uecker will be honored with a statue outside Miller Park. Congrats to Uke on a well deserved honor. We all remember his character, Harry Doyle from the “Major League” movies and his great quote, “Juuuuust a bit outside.” Classic.
Interesting study from the Media Behavior Institute which shows a great majority still watch the NCAA Tournament on TV, but online numbers comprise a large chunk.
Ben Grossman at Broadcasting & Cable reports that Major League Baseball is looking at placing postseason games on MLB Network to boost its subscriber numbers.
Mike Reynolds at Multichannel News writes that MLB Network will produce a pregame show for Fox Saturday Baseball.
Tom Comi of Channel Guide Magazine would like a halt to the Tim Tebow media circus.
Mike Miller at NBC’s College Basketball Talk notes that the NCAA Tournament ratings on CBS/Turner are just about even with last year.
Eric Goldschein of SportsGrid has video of ESPN’s Mike Tirico losing it during last night’s Lakers-Mavericks game.
CNBC’s Darren Rovell says Wheaties may be dying a very slow and painful death.
Ronnie Ramos in the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center says coaches and players are learning the proper use of Twitter.
Greg Wyshynski of Puck Daddy notes that Rogers Sportsnet picked up on a popular internet meme and used it in an on-screen graphic.
To Fishbowl NY where Jerry Barmash talks with Kenny Albert.
Newsday’s Neil Best writes that NBC Sports Network set a ratings record for hockey in NYC.
Neil notes that ESPN has a new head man-in-charge.
Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union writes that CBS/Turner will bring in two coaches as guest analysts for the NCAA Tournament.
Pete says ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball crew will be busy in the first week of the MLB season.
Keith Groller at the Allentown (PA) Morning Call says Lehigh left an impression on CBS during the NCAA Tournament.
Matt Brooks of the Washington Post’s Early Lead has your viewing guide for tonight’s Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has links to some of the best columns from the late Furman Bisher.
Some of Bisher’s friends pay tribute to the man.
The AJC has a gallery of pictures showing Bisher throughout his career.
Mel Bracht of the Oklahoman looks at HBO Real Sports’ update on the 2001 plane crash that hit the Oklahoma State basketball program extremely hard.
Mel says local viewers chose Fox Sports Oklahoma over ESPN for two Oklahoma City Thunder games last week.
David Jablonski of the Dayton (OH) Daily News says a local man leads the millions of entries in ESPN’s Bracketology contest.
John Kiesewetter at the Cincinnati Enquirer is not a fan of NCAA Tournament scheduling.
Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that the radio analyst for Bucks games has been off the air since last month.
Bob says former Brewers voice Matt Vasgersian will host the MLB Network-produced MLB on Fox pregame show.
Tom Ginnetti of the Chicago Sun-Times remembers pioneering sportswriter Lacy J. Banks who died Wednesday.
Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has video of Bob Costas pontificating on the Saints suspensions.
The Toronto Globe and Mail’s Bruce Dowbiggin writes about the media fighting over staged NHL fights.
The Toronto Sports Media blog explores the local newspapers imploring the Maple Leafs to apologize to their fans for missing the playoffs.
Sports Media Watching notes that ratings on NBA TV are up.
Media Rantz says ESPN got fooled by a fake Adam Schefter Twitter account during Tim Tebow coverage last night.
We have a picture of that fake Adam Schefter tweet. “Adarn Schefter”?
Ben Koo of Awful Announcing explores the Gus Johnson departure from CBS and how it may leave him without his signature event for a long time to come.
The Convoluted Mind of a Single Man site looks at the innovations John Madden brought to NFL broadcasting.
Dave Kohl at the Broadcast Booth says league-owned networks are making big strides in production and programming.
And that will finish our links for today.
Mar
20
MLB Productions Receives Five Sports Emmy Nominations; MLB Media Gets 15 Overall
MLB Productions had a busy year producing a reality series for Showtime and a documentary for HBO. Thanks to these efforts, the company received a record five Sports Emmy Award nominations. Combined with the nods for MLB Network, MLB Advanced Media and MLB.com, MLB entities received a total of 15 Sports Emmy Award nominations. That’s quite impressive.
Here is the press release from MLB Productions and Major League Baseball.
MLB PRODUCTIONS EARNS ALL-TIME BEST FIVE SPORTS EMMY NOMINATIONS FOR WORK ON “THE FRANCHISE” AND “DEREK JETER 3K”
MLB Media Entities Earn Combined 15 Nominations
Major League Baseball Productions collected an all-time high of five nominations for the 33rd Annual Sports Emmy Awards, including nominations for its critically acclaimed work on The Franchise: A Season with the San Francisco Giants on Showtime and DerekJeter3K on HBO. The Franchise earned three nominations, including Outstanding Edited Sports Series/Anthology, while DerekJeter3K was nominated for Outstanding Edited Sports Special.
Overall, Major League Baseball media entities (MLB Productions, MLB Network and MLB Advanced Media) earned a combined 15 nominations, which were announced earlier today by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
MLB Network earned eight nominations, including two for MLB Tonight, the 2011 winner for the Outstanding Studio Show. MLB Tonight is once again nominated in the category along with a nomination for Outstanding Technical Team Studio. Bob Costas, a 22-time Sports Emmy Award winner, earned a nomination for Outstanding Sports Personality-Studio Host for his work on both MLB Network and NBC. In addition, Al Leiter and Harold Reynolds each earned a Sports Emmy Award nomination in the Outstanding Sports Personality – Studio Analyst, and Jim Kaat also received a nomination for Outstanding Sports Personality – Sports Event Analyst.
MLB.com At Bat 11, the mobile phone and tablet application developed by MLB Advanced Media, again earned a nomination in one of the two categories representing digital media, Outstanding New Approaches to Sports Event Coverage. Since its 2008 debut, MLB.com At Bat has been the top grossing sports application and one of only two iOS apps inducted into the Halls of Fame for iPhone, iPad and Macworld.
In addition, MLB Productions, MLB Network and MLBAM were collectively nominated for the prestigious George Wensel Technical Achievement Award for The DIAMOND Platform, a media management tool. DIAMOND is utilized daily to research and produce broadcast quality programming for both MLB Network and MLB Productions, and to archive, search and retrieve video content for use by Major League Baseball. The Baseball Archives, managed by the DIAMOND Platform, contains over 300,000 hours of content, which is easily retrievable within minutes from the data tape robotic library.
Below is a complete list of Major League Baseball’s Sports Emmy Award Nominations:
Outstanding Edited Sports Special – Derek Jeter 3K (MLB Productions/HBO)
Outstanding Edited Sports Series /Anthology – The Franchise: A Season with the San Francisco Giants (MLB Productions/Showtime)
Outstanding Music Composition/ Direction / Lyrics – The Franchise: A Season with the San Francisco Giants (MLB Productions/Showtime)
Outstanding Post Produced Audio/Sound – The Franchise: A Season with the San Francisco Giants (MLB Productions/Showtime)
Outstanding Studio Show – Daily: MLB Tonight (MLB Network)
Outstanding Technical Team Studio: MLB Tonight (MLB Network)
Outstanding Sports Personality – Studio Host: Bob Costas (MLB Network/NBC)
Outstanding Sports Personality – Sports Event Analyst: Jim Kaat (MLB Network)
Outstanding Sports Personality – Studio Analyst: Al Leiter (MLB Network)
Outstanding Sports Personality – Studio Analyst: Harold Reynolds (MLB Network)
Outstanding Sports Promotional Announcement – Institutional: All in One Place (MLB Network)
Outstanding New Approaches Sports Event Coverage – MLB Advanced Media
The George Wensel Technical Achievement Award: The DIAMOND Platform (MLB Productions/MLB Network/MLB.com)
And that will conclude the Sports Emmy Award posts. Coming later will be some sports media thoughts.
Mar
20
33rd Annual Sports Emmy Nominations Announced
We have the nominations, all 170 in 33 different categories, for the 33rd Annual Sports Emmy Awards. They just came out today. There are some surprises like massive hockey charlatan Pierre McGuire nominated in the Sports Reporter category and for some really strange reason, Skippy Bayless of ESPN2′s First Take was nominated for Best Studio Analyst. What analysis does he do besides yelling and having massive manlove for Tim Tebow?
There are some of the usual suspects are nominated, Bob Costas for Best Studio Host, Al Michaels in Play-by-Play, Cris Collinsworth for both Studio and Game Analyst.
Some of the nominations I agree with include Mike Mayock for Best Game Analyst, College GameDay and Football Night in America as Best Studio Shows and all of the movies in the Sports Documentary category. Sports documentaries were strong this year and I have trouble picking one although Catching Hell, the ESPN Films effort on Steve Bartman and the Chicago Cubs might be the weakest of the bunch, but the doc was still very good.
Ok, get ready to scroll, the entire list is below. We do need a page break so the list of nominees will after the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences press releases.
THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF TELEVISION ARTS & SCIENCES ANNOUNCES THE NOMINEES FOR THE 33RD ANNUAL SPORTS EMMY® AWARDS
Winners to be Honored During the April 30th Ceremony At Frederick P. Rose Hall, Home of Jazz at Lincoln Center
Jack Whitaker to Receive Lifetime Achievement AwardNew York, NY – March 20, 2012 – The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) today announced the nominees for the 33rd Annual Sports Emmy® Awards.
More than 170 nominees were announced in 33 categories including outstanding live sports special, live series, sports documentary, studio show, promotional announcements, play-by-play personality and studio analyst. The Awards will be given out at the prestigious Frederick P. Rose Hall, Home of Jazz at Lincoln Center located in the Time Warner Center on April 30th, 2012 in New York City.
This year’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Sports will go to the Sports Commentator and Essayist, Jack Whitaker.
“This is an outstanding year for the sports community and for The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences,” said Malachy Wienges, Chairman, NATAS. “The entries received in this year’s Sports Emmys resulted in a record 175 nominees, illustrating the quality of these entries. We are also honoring Jack Whitaker with our Lifetime Achievement Award. I had the pleasure of working with Jack for eighteen years at CBS, and Jack is a sports icon and a class act.”
In addition to Jack Whitaker, many of the today’s leading sports broadcasters, personalities and television professionals will be in attendance as presenters at the event.
The networks of ESPN (ESPN, ESPN 2, ABC, ESPN 3D & espn.com) lead the nomination totals with 55, the NBC Sports Group (NBC, Versus, Golf Channel & nbcsports.com) garnered 32, CBS (CBS, Showtime, CBSSports.com) entries received 26 nominations, while Turner Sports (TNT, TBS, NBA TV, NBA.com & truTV) have 22.
A complete list of all nominees is attached below.
33rd Annual Sports Emmy Award Nominations by Network Group
ESPN (ESPN, ESPN 2, ABC, ESPN 3D, espn.com) – 55
NBC Sports Group (NBC, Versus, Golf Channel, nbcsports.com) – 32
CBS (CBS, Showtime, CBSSports.com) – 26
Turner Sports (TNT, TBS, NBA TV, NBA.com, truTV) – 22
HBO Sports – 19
FOX Sports Media Group (FOX, SPEED) – 16
NFL Network – 12
MLB Network – 8
DIRECTV – 2
MLB Advanced Media (MLB.com, MLBAM) – 2
NFL.com – 2
NCAA.com – 1
PGA.com – 133rd Annual Sports Emmy Award Nominations by Network
ESPN – 36
NBC – 22
HBO Sports – 19
CBS – 15
FOX – 15
TNT – 15
ESPN2 – 14
NFL NETWORK – 12
SHOWTIME – 10
MLB NETWORK – 8
VERSUS – 7
TBS – 3
ABC – 2
DIRECTV – 2
ESPN 3D – 2
GOLF CHANNEL – 2
NBA TV – 2
NFL.COM – 2
CBSSPORTS.COM – 1
ESPN.COM – 1
MLB.COM – 1
MLBAM – 1
NBA.COM – 1
NBCSPORTS.COM – 1
NCAA.COM – 1
PGA.COM – 1
SPEED – 1
truTV – 1BREAKDOWN OF MULTIPLE PROGRAM/SERIES NOMINATIONS
Program/Nominations/Network
24/7: 8 - HBO
E: 60: 7 – ESPN2
A Game of Honor: 5 – Showtime/CBSSports.com
MLB on FOX: 5 – FOX
NASCAR on FOX: 5 – FOX
NBA on TNT: 4 – TNT
NBC Sunday Night Football: 4 – NBC
FIFA Women’s World Cup: 3 – ESPN/ESPN2
Outside the Lines: 3 – ESPN
Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel: 3 – HBO
SportsCenter: 3 – ESPN
The Army/Navy Game: 3 – CBS
The Franchise: 3 – Showtime
Winter X Games 15: 3 – ESPN/ESPN3D
2011 Open Championship: 2 – ESPN
2011 Stanley Cup Final: 2 – NBC/Versus
ESPN Monday Night Football: 2 – ESPN
Football Night in America: 2 – NBC
Grand Slam Tennis on ESPN: 2 – ESPN2
Inside the NBA on TNT: 2 – TNT
Joplin: City of Hope: 2 – ESPN2
McEnroe/Borg: Fire & Ice: 2 – HBO
MLB Tonight: 2 – MLB Network
NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament: 2 – CBS/TBS/TNT/truTV
NFL Films Presents: 2 – NFL Network
NFL GameDay Morning: 2 – NFL Network
NFL on FOX: 2 – FOX
Sports Science: 2 – ESPN/ESPN.com
Sunday NFL Countdown: 2 – ESPN
Unguarded: 2 – ESPN
And after the page break, all of the nominees for the 33rd Annual Sports Emmy Awards which will be handed out April 30 in New York City.
Mar
20
On Tonight’s Real Sports on HBO
Tonight on the Emmy Award-winning Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, there will be three new stories and an update. The main story will be a profile on New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist. The other new stories include a look at the Flying Wallendas who are still going strong despite numerous deaths and an inspirational story on a pitcher who finally made his Major League debut at the age of 28.
The updated story is on two Oklahoma State tragedies ten years apart and how they could have been prevented.
We have the preview from the HBO press release which is posted below. Check it out.
REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL PROFILES NEW YORK RANGERS GOALIE HENRIK LUNDQVIST; GOES BEHIND THE SCENES WITH THE HIGH-WIRE WALLENDA FAMILY; TELLS THE STORY OF THE SEATTLE MARINERS’ STEVE DELABAR; AND PROBES THE 2001 AND 2011 TRAGEDIES AT OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY WHEN THE EMMY®-WINNING SHOW RETURNS MARCH 20, EXCLUSIVELY ON HBO
Now in its 18th season, REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL presents more enterprising features and reporting when its 180th edition, available in HDTV, debuts TUESDAY, MARCH 20 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT), exclusively on HBO.
Other HBO playdates: March 20 (2:30 a.m.), 24 (10:30 a.m. ET, 11:30 a.m. PT, 2:15 a.m. PT), 27 (5:15 p.m., 12:10 a.m.) and 29 (12:30 p.m., 8:30 p.m.), and April 1 (9:00 a.m.) and 4 (10:00 a.m., 7:00 p.m.)
HBO2 playdates: March 22 (6:00 p.m.) and 26 (8:30 a.m.), and April 3 (10:00 a.m., 9:00 p.m.), 7 (11:45 a.m.), 9 (2:00 p.m., midnight), 12 (7:00 p.m.) and 15 (3:30 p.m.)
HBO On Demand availability: March 26-April 16
Segments include:
*King Henrik. The New York Rangers are currently battling for the best record in the National Hockey League, led by All-Star goaltender Henrik Lundqvist. The 30-year-old Swede leads the league in shutouts and has already topped 30 wins this season, becoming the first NHL goalie to exceed that total in each of his first seven seasons. But there is more than meets the eye with Lundqvist. He frequently appears on “best dressed” lists, plays guitar in a band that also includes tennis legend John McEnroe and participates in a variety of philanthropic efforts in the New York City area. REAL SPORTS host Bryant Gumbel sits down with the charismatic goalie, who captured gold with the Swedish national team at the 2006 Winter Olympic Games, as he tries to lead the New York Rangers to their first Stanley Cup championship since 1994.
Producer: Lisa Bennett.
*The Flying Wallendas. While there are many famous families in the circus business, probably none are more notable than the Flying Wallendas. Since the early 1900s, this large extended family has been well-known for performing high-wire acts without a safety net, resulting in numerous deaths and debilitating injuries over the course of seven generations. In this REAL SPORTS/Sports Illustrated collaboration, REAL SPORTS correspondent Frank Deford sits down with members of the Wallenda family to find out what drives them to risk their lives and what keeps the family tradition going strong.
Producer: Tim Walker.
*Wonder Arm. While only eight to ten percent of Minor League Baseball players ultimately make a Major League roster, Steve Delabar, currently in camp with the Seattle Mariners in Arizona, defied the odds after a lengthy stint as a career minor leaguer. For six seasons, the six-foot, five-inch right-handed relief pitcher never went beyond Single-A advanced ball. Then, after suffering a seemingly career-ending elbow injury in 2009, Delabar left the game and headed back to the classroom to work as a substitute teacher and finish his undergraduate degree. But his passion for the game never left him, and after participating in the Velocity Program, designed by former Major League pitcher Tom House, he began throwing harder than ever before. In 2011, Delabar signed a minor league deal with the Seattle Mariners, and by September had achieved his dream of playing in the Major Leagues. REAL SPORTS correspondent Mary Carillo sits down with the 28-year-old to hear his inspiring story.
Producer: Nick Dolin.
*Oklahoma State Tragedies. In Jan. 2001, the Oklahoma State men’s basketball team and staff boarded two small jets and a turbo-prop plane that were to take them home following a loss to Colorado. But over Colorado, the turbo-prop plummeted 23,000 feet, crashing into a field and killing all on board, including two players, six staff members and both pilots. Ten years later, in Nov. 2011, tragedy struck Oklahoma State again when women’s basketball head coach Kurt Budke and assistant coach Miranda Serna, along with an 82-year-old pilot and his wife, were killed when their single-engine plane crashed during an Arkansas recruiting trip. REAL SPORTS’ Armen Keteyian returns to the Oklahoma State campus to see how the community is moving on from the latest tragedy and pose the same question he asked in his investigation of the first crash ten years ago: Could this disaster have been prevented?
Producers: Jake Rosenwasser, Zehra Mamdani and Brian Hyland.
REAL SPORTS has won the Sports Emmy® for Outstanding Sports Journalism 14 times and has received 22 Sports Emmy® Awards overall. It is the only sports program ever honored with the duPont Award for excellence in broadcast journalism, having first been recognized in 2005. On Jan. 19, REAL SPORTS received its second duPont Award, for a series of investigative reports on concussions, highlighted by the Aug. 2010 story revealing the scientific link between sports concussions and the onset of ALS.
The executive producer of REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL is Rick Bernstein; Kirby Bradley is senior producer.
That is all.
Feb
21
Bryant Gumbel’s Closing Comment on Real Sports Focuses on Jeremy Lin
We have the transcript from tonight’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel on HBO. As expected, Bryant speaks about the New York Knicks’ Jeremy Lin, but he also thinks the coverage is more of a media creation and come Spring Training, no one will care about him. Agree?
REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL
EPISODE #179
AIRS TONIGHT (2/21) @ 10:00 PM ET/PT
“Finally tonight, I’m hoping you didn’t think we’d make it through the whole program this evening without mentioning Jeremy Lin. If so, I’m sorry to disappoint you, because like everyone else we’ve been enthralled by Lin’s meteoric rise and unforeseen efforts. His is the kind of story everyone can cheer.
But now that he’s met the challenges posed by such powerhouses as the Lakers and the Mavericks, I’m curious to see how Lin fares against the Yankees. That’s right, the Yankees. See amid the Jeremy Lin hoopla, it’s been easy to overlook the fact that Spring Training got underway this past weekend, as pitchers and catchers reported for duty, and here in New York over the next few weeks, that is going to pose a new and very different kind of challenge to the Lin Mystique.
As Mavericks’ owner Mark Cuban suggested last week, Lin is getting a ton of attention not just because his is a great story, but also because he plays in the media capital of the world, and in this capital, Lin has had the town to himself since his run began. Which is why it’s going to be interesting to see if his exploits continue to be headlined after New Yorkers start hearing news about Joba Chamberlain’s surgically repaired right arm, A-Rod’s troubled knees and Derek Jeter’s battle with age.
Baseball may be ho-hum in some places, but this is still very much a pinstriped city. Yes, fans here love an underdog and a winner, but history suggests that nothing in sports surpasses Manhattan’s obsession with the Yankees. The Knicks, thanks to Lin, are the hot team. The New York Rangers are among the Stanley Cup favorites and the New York Giants just won the Super Bowl. But make no mistake, the Yankees are the big bully here in Manhattan and opening day is just six weeks away. The way Lin has captured the headlines; it may yet be a fair fight.”
That will do it.
Feb
17
HBO’s Real Sports Returns February 21
HBO’s Emmy Award-winning sports magazine, Real Sports, returns Tuesday with three new stories. It includes an investigation into the tragic plane crash that took the lives of everyone on board from Lokomotiv, one of the best teams in Russia’s KHL.
Real Sports also profiles a professional BASE jumper. And the rounds out its new features with a story on the man on whom the character Jerry McGuire is based, former super agent Leigh Steinberg.
The program premieres this Tuesday night at 10 ET/PT.
We have the full press release from HBO below.
Now in its 18th season, REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL presents more enterprising features and reporting when its 179th edition, available in HDTV, debuts TUESDAY, FEB. 21 (10:00 p.m. ET/PT & 9:00 p.m. CT), exclusively on HBO.
HBO On Demand availability: Feb. 27-March 19
Segments include:
*Russian Plane Crash. On Sept. 7, 2011, Yaroslavl Lokomotiv, one of Russia’s premier hockey teams, boarded a Soviet-era Yak-42 jet at a Yaroslavl airport to travel to a game in Minsk, the capital of Belarus. A few moments after lift-off, the chartered aircraft crashed about 500 yards from the runway, instantly killing 43 of the 45 passengers, including several NHL veterans. The model of the aircraft carrying the team had a long history of problems, while the airline currently has one of the worst air safety records in the world. However, Russian air safety officials confirmed that the crash was caused by basic human error during takeoff. REAL SPORTS correspondent Bernard Goldberg travels to Yaroslavl to delve further into what happened that tragic September afternoon.
Producer: Joe Perskie.*Jeb Corliss. The top competitor in an activity fraught with danger, 35-year-old Jeb Corliss is a professional BASE jumper, skydiver and wingsuiter. At age 18, he found comfort in what most would deem uncomfortable – jumping out of airplanes – and has since jumped off some of the world’s highest structures, including Paris’ Eiffel Tower, Seattle’s Space Needle and the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. In 2006, he was arrested for attempting to BASE jump from New York’s Empire State Building. REAL SPORTS correspondent Jon Frankel goes behind the scenes with Corliss as he attempts a jump in Cape Town, South Africa and captures his nearly fatal crash on film.
Producer: Tim Walker.*Leigh Steinberg. Once the most powerful sports agent in the world, Leigh Steinberg built an empire by making NFL players and himself extremely wealthy. The 62-year-old lawyer was the agent for a host of stars, including Troy Aikman, Steve Young and Drew Bledsoe, and even branched out into boxing, representing Oscar de la Hoya and Lennox Lewis. Now Steinberg is living with a roommate in an apartment in Southern California, fighting an addiction that he says cost him everything. REAL SPORTS correspondent Armen Keteyian presents a no-holds-barred look at the former NFL super agent and his fall from glory.
Producer: Chapman Downes.REAL SPORTS has won the Sports Emmy® for Outstanding Sports Journalism 14 times and has received 22 Sports Emmy® Awards overall. It is the only sports program ever honored with the duPont Award for excellence in broadcast journalism, having first been recognized in 2005. On Jan. 19, REAL SPORTS received its second duPont Award, for its series of investigative reports on concussions, highlighted by the Aug. 2010 story revealing the scientific link between sports concussions and the onset of ALS.
The executive producer of REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL is Rick Bernstein; Kirby Bradley is senior producer.
That’s going to do it.
Feb
03
HBO’s World Championship Boxing Returns Saturday
After taking January off, HBO’s World Championship Boxing returns with two title fights on Saturday. And Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. will be fighting.
Luckily, Larry Merchant is back to commentate and he’ll join Jim Lampley and Emmanuel Steward at the Alamodome in San Antonio. We have the particulars below.
HBO Sports’ flagship boxing series returns with an action-packed card headlined by two of the sport’s fastest-rising stars when WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING: JULIO CESAR CHAVEZ JR. VS. MARCO ANTONIO RUBIO AND NONITO DONAIRE VS. WILFREDO VAZQUEZ JR. is seen live SATURDAY, FEB. 4 at 10:00 p.m. (ET)/7:00 p.m. (PT) from the Alamodome in San Antonio, exclusively on HBO. The HBO Sports team of Jim Lampley, Larry Merchant and Emanuel Steward will call all the action, which will be available in HDTV, closed-captioned for the hearing impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino.
Other HBO playdates: Feb. 5 (8:30 a.m.) and 6 (12:25 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: Feb. 5 (3:30 p.m.) and 7 (12:40 a.m.)
After standout matches on HBO in 2011, Mexico’s Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Nonito Donaire of the Philippines begin 2012 against formidable opponents at a venue known for bringing out the best in fighters.
The 12-round, 160-pound main event features Chavez Jr. (44-0-1, 31 KOs) defending his hard-earned middleweight title against an experienced challenger in fellow Mexican Marco Antonio Rubio (53-5-1, 46 KOs). Only 25, Chavez Jr. will have his work cut out for him in battling a prizefighter with 59 pro bouts under his belt.
The co-feature is an intriguing 12-round junior featherweight title fight pitting fan favorite Nonito Donaire (27-1, 18 KOs) against the formidable Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. (21-1-1, 18 KOs) of Bayamon, Puerto Rico. Budding superstar Donaire, now residing in San Leandro, Cal., scored one of 2011’s most memorable victories when he knocked out Fernando Montiel last February. Now, the engaging 29-year-old, who last lost a pro fight in 2001, moves up in weight to the 122-pound division in hopes of adding a new title belt to his collection. Vazquez Jr., who hails from a boxing family, has other plans.
The night of boxing programming kicks off at 9:45 p.m. ET/6:45 PT when an all-new edition of “2 Days: Portrait of a Fighter” debuts. The Feb. 4 installment of this revealing and intimate look at a 48-hour span in the life of a boxer in the lead-up to one of his fights will focus on lightweight Brandon Rios of Oxnard, CA. The feature is approximately 15 minutes.
Follow HBO boxing news at hbo.com/boxing, on Facebook at facebook.com/hboboxing and on Twitter at twitter.com/hboboxing.
All HBO boxing events are presented in HDTV. HBO viewers must have access to the HBO HDTV channel to watch HBO programming in high definition.
The executive producer of WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING is Rick Bernstein; producer, Jon Crystal; director, Marc Payton.
®WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING is a registered service mark of Home Box Office, Inc.
More stuff is on the way.
Feb
01
Your February 1st Links
It seems like last week we rang in the New Year. Now, we’re one month into 2012. Didn’t take long.
Let’s do some linkage.
Starting with Michael Hiestand of USA Today, we learn that NBC has quite a bit in store for its six hour Super Bowl pregame show.
Also in USA Today, Michael Coppinger finds that new HBO Sports President Ken Hershman plans on cleaning up the network’s shaky boxing reputation.
And Reid Cherner at USA Today has a preview of the upcoming season of “Eastbound & Down” featuring Kenny Powers. I’ll admit, I don’t get the chi of “Eastbound & Down” and find it unwatchable, but the show has its fans.
John Ourand at Sports Business Daily says the NFL is issuing a tablet-only commemorative Super Bowl appl
At Bleacher Report, Dan Levy tells us that NFL Network’s Deion Sanders came out the winner at yesterday’s Super Bowl Media Day.
At Deadspin, Barry Petchesky has video of reporters leering at Televisa Deportes reporter Marisol Gonzalez during Media Day.
Barry also has a series of photos taken by perverts reporters as original Mexican bombshell Inês Sainz was traversing her way through Media Day.
The Olympic newsletter Around the Rings notes that the International Olympic Committee is in no hurry to negotiate a Canadian TV rights deal after the lone bid failed to come up to its standards.
Around the Rings also notes that broadcasters for the 2014 Winter Games including NBC are gathering in Sochi to discuss plans for that Olympiad.
To All Things D where Liz Gannes has new ESPN President John Skipper saying he wants people to see his content, just not for free.
And All Things D has the video highlights of Skipper’s comments.
Lisa Richwine of Reuters notes that Skipper is bullish on ESPN 3D. Oh great.
Lucas Shaw at The Wrap says John Skipper and ESPN are in love with Silicon Valley.
David Griner of Adweek has the Volkwagen Super Bowl ad that has been hyped for a couple of weeks. I like the teaser with the dogs barking better.
Katy Bachman at Adweek says the FCC is seeking public comment on the NFL’s antiquated TV blackout rules.
Best Buy won’t be using rock stars, but tech stars in its Super Bowl ad. Last year, Best Buy used Ozzy Osbourne and Justin Bieber in a very lame ad.
Natalie Zmuda of Advertising Age says Pepsi will emphasize music in its Super Bowl ads.
Louisa Ada Seltzer of Media Life Magazine previews tonight’s “Super Bowl’s Greatest Commercials” special on CBS.
CNBC’s Darren Rovell wishes advertisers wouldn’t release their Super Bowl spots before they air in the Big Game.
Kristi Dosh of ESPN.com says Super Bowl advertising has gone beyond just buying time during the game.
Alex Sherman and Andy Fixmer of Bloomberg Businessweek write that NBC is using the Super Bowl to heavily promote “Smash” in what it hopes will save its primetime lineup.
The NBC’s Sunday Night Football Facebook page has a gallery of photos from yesterday’s media event in Indianapolis.
The Nielsen Wire blog looks at whether the New England Patriots or the New York Giants do better than the other in social media.
To SportsGrid and Tom Lorenzo who has video of TSN’s Ray Ferraro throwing out an “F” bomb not once, but twice during a broadcast last night.
Jason Dachman of Sports Video Group writes that ESPN was technically prepared to air the Australian Open epic men’s final.
James Careless of TV Technology looks at NBC’s online streaming of the Super Bowl.
Steve Donohue of Fierce Cable says Time Warner Cable seems to be doing just fine without MSG Network.
Lou Modestino of the Quincy (MA) Patriot-Ledger says Fox Sports was mostly responsible for moving the Daytona 500 forward one week.
Bill Pennington in the New York Times looks at fans getting to attend Super Bowl Media Day for the first time.
Richard Sandomir of the Times says a new media company wants to become the ESPN for kids. Already, the NFL, several sports stars and NBC Sports Network have signed up to partner with the company.
Good story by Jim Yardley of the Times Magazine exploring how some American NBA players are faring in Communist China and how the NBA made a huge miscalculation in trying to launch a league there.
Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union writes that Time Warner Cable will extend its free Sports Pass option to residential customers affected by the company’s dispute with MSG Network.
Pete says NFL Network will air the Pro Football Hall of Fame announcement for the Class of 2012 on Saturday.
Dan Gross of the Philadelphia Daily News writes that a local TV reporter is back at work after being on suspension for prematurely tweeting that Joe Paterno had died.
Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner speaks with CBS Sports Network’s Tom Lemming about National Signing Day.
Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman notes a ratings record for the Oklahoma City Thunder on Fox Sports Oklahoma.
Matthew Tully of the Indianapolis Star says foreign journalists covering the Super Bowl are enjoying Indy as the host city.
The Star has a roundup of what journos are saying about Indianapolis.
Bob Kravitz of the Star filed a diary with his observations of Super Bowl Media Day.
Anthony Schoette of the Indianapolis Business Journal writes that the Super Bowl has helped to focus a spotlight on IndyCar and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway which has been hosting media events this week.
Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers will be a guest analyst on NBC’s Super Bowl XLVI pregame.
Ed Sherman at Crain’s Chicago Business looks at Super Bowl Week in Indianapolis and wonders “what if” had the Bears built a domed facility.
Steve Eighinger of the Quincy (IL) Herald Whig is thankful for ESPN as it helped him to endure the Great Midwest Blizzard of 2011.
Roman Augustoviz of the Minneapolis Star Tribune notes that CBS Sports Network has signed a TV deal with the new National Collegiate Hockey Conference known in local circles as “The National.”
Eli Segall of the San Jose Business Journal says the Sharks are scoring big for Comcast SportsNet California.
Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says the man who broke the Sidney Crosby neck injury story stands by his scoop.
Sports Media Watch says the NFL Pro Bowl’s ratings were down from last year, but still outpace the other All-Star games.
SMW has some various ratings news and notes.
Dave Kohl at the Broadcast Booth says last week was pretty slow for any kind of sports news.
Joe Lucia of Awful Announcing notes that Harrisburg (PA) Patriot-News crime writer Sarah Ganim has been given much deserved Pulitzer Prize consideration for her reporting on the Penn State story.
Barry Janoff at The Big Lead writes that Mean Joe Greene is redoing his iconic Coke Super Bowl ad from the 1970′s for Proctor & Gamble.
And we have more links that I ever thought I would find today. That’s good for you.
Feb
01
Some Mid-Week Sports Media Thoughts
Time to do some original content here. The thoughts come to you in bullet form as always.
- As the Super Bowl fast approaches, we hear from those who know more than your humble blogger that Sunday’s Big Game could set a viewing record. Super Bowl XLV on Fox between Green Bay and Pittsburgh set the standard with an average of 111 million viewers. I do expect we’ll see an average of 115 million for Pats-Giants with a total viewership reaching 170 million. I’ll also predict a rating of 47.5 with a 70 share. Based on last year’s numbers, my prediction would be on track. Patriots owner Robert Kraft feels Super Bowl XLVI will be the most watched program of all-time and I agree with him.
- I wish ESPN would cover every event like it does tennis. The announcing from Chris Fowler, Cliff Drysdale, Patrick McEnroe, Darren Cahill, Chris Evert, Mary Jo Fernandez, Pam Shriver, Brad Gilbert to host Chris McKendry was stellar throughout the Australian Open. I have not been enamored with Fowler’s play-by-play in the past, but I thought he was very good especially in calling the men’s semifinals of Rafael Nadal-Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic-Andy Murray and extremely good for the epic Rafa-Djoker final.The men’s final had so many ups and downs and so many shifts of momentum. Fowler and McEnroe were on top of potential shifts and correctly first guessed many points. ESPN2 was on top of the play on Sunday And Tennis Channel was very good as well. It’s too bad that neither ESPN2 or Tennis Channel could pick up John McEnroe for the Aussie Open. He will be on the French Open for Tennis Channel and NBC.
However, ESPN2′s efforts appear not to be rewarded as the ratings were off from last year. I’ll have more on that later today.
- And one more item from the weekend, I thought the HBO/NFL Films documentary on Joe Namath was fantastic. As with past HBO efforts, it did not sugarcoat Namath’s life and career. It delved into his partying lifestyle during his heyday with the New York Jets in the 1960′s during the height of the Sexual Revolution. In addition, it did not whitewash his alcoholism nor his most infamous moment in 2003 when he was drunk during a live interview with Suzy Kolber on ESPN. The film made great lengths to show that while Namath loved the bright lights of Broadway, he still had his home of Beaver Falls, PA deep in his soul. From the rarely seen footage of his high school days, to his college career at Alabama and through to the AFL and NFL, “Namath” captured the essence of the man. Another solid documentary from HBO, definitely Emmy Award-worthy.
- Just 19 days until pitchers and catchers report. Can’t wait.
That does it for now. This should be another busy day for sports media.
And one quick self-serving note. This week’s edition of the Sports Media Podcast will have a record amount of guests. I’m not going jinx it by pre-promoting them, but suffice to say if everything holds true, you will love the Super Bowl edition of the podcast.
I’ll be back later in the day.
Jan
28
HBO Airs “Namath” Documentary on Saturday
The first great sports documentary of 2012 will air Saturday night on HBO. The 90 minute film was co-produced by HBO Sports and NFL and gives us a look at Joe Namath’s life and career starting in high school in Beaver Falls, PA, to college in Alabama, then to the New York Jets of the old American Football League, and finally to retirement. It doesn’t sugarcoat Namath’s demons, but it also shows that while Namath loved the big lights of New York, the small town of Beaver Falls, PA never left him.
There are appearances by his brothers, sister, daughter, friends, former teammates, and even Suzy Kolber and if you’ve followed sports over the last ten years, you’ll know why she’s in the documentary.
It’s well done and I give the documentary an A.
Here’s the HBO press release and a video preview.
The Emmy®-winning combination of HBO Sports and NFL Films explores the fascinating life and career of one of pro football’s biggest stars when NAMATH, a documentary on New York Jets icon Joe Namath, debuts SATURDAY, JAN. 28 (9:00-10:30 p.m. ET/PT), exclusively on HBO.
Other HBO playdates: Jan 28 (1:00 a.m.) and 31 (noon, midnight), and Feb. 3 (5:30 p.m.), 5 (11:15 a.m.), 7 (noon, 3:30 a.m.), 9 (8:00 p.m., 1:30 a.m.), 11 (3:00 p.m.), 15 (11:30 a.m., 5:45 p.m.) and 17 (7:30 p.m.)
HBO2 playdates: Jan. 30 (4:30 p.m., 12:50 a.m.) and Feb. 6 (6:30 p.m., 4:30 a.m.), 18 (7:45 a.m.), 21 (12:25 p.m., 8:00 p.m.), 26 (8:30 a.m.) and 29 (midnight)
HBO On Demand availability: Jan. 30-Feb. 28
Born in Beaver Falls, Pa. in 1943, Namath was raised in western Pennsylvania and was a stellar high school athlete in basketball, baseball and football. He accepted a football scholarship to the University of Alabama and played quarterback for the legendary Paul “Bear” Bryant. Namath led the Crimson Tide to the top of the national polls in 1964 and his stock as a pro football prospect soared.
With entertainment mogul Sonny Werblin at the helm of ownership of the New York Jets, Namath elected to sign with the upstart American Football League for a then-staggering $427,000, and by game five of his first season had become the Jets’ starting quarterback. He was subsequently named AFL Rookie of the Year, and was one of the first sports celebrity superstars, captivating both the entertainment press and fans with his movie-star looks and bigger-than-life “Broadway Joe” personality.
In a moment that would alter the NFL landscape, Namath led the underdog New York Jets to a world championship title in Super Bowl III versus the heavily favored Baltimore Colts. His “guarantee” of a Jets upset brought him legendary status.
While his MVP performance in Super Bowl III was the high point, Namath fashioned a high-flying all-star career during his 13 years in pro football, and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985.
Now 68, Namath remains engaged in the game with which he has had a lifelong love affair. He provides radio commentary, is connected to new media initiatives through Facebook and Twitter (@realjoenamath), and hosts his own website destination (broadwayjoe.tv).
Interviews for the documentary include: family members Frank Namath, Rita Sims and Jessica Namath; family friends Linwood Alford, Wibby Glover, Al Hassan, Jimmy Walsh and Tad Dowd; former New York Jets teammates Matt Snell, John Schmitt, Don Maynard, Richard Castor, Emerson Boozer and John Riggins; former Jets assistant coach Ken Meyer; former Alabama teammate Gaylon McCollough; former Alabama assistant coach Howard Schnellenberger; former Baltimore Colts head coach Don Shula; former NFL players Mike Curtis, Ben Davidson and Fred Dryer; sports journalists Sal Marchiano, Suzy Kolber, Dave Anderson and Rick Telander; producers Larry Spangler and Roger Smith; attorney Mike Bite; and actress Ann-Margret.
HBO Sports and NFL Films have a long history of acclaimed football productions, including the 2010 documentary “Lombardi,” which earned rave reviews and received the Sports Emmy® for Outstanding Documentary.
The executive producers of NAMATH are Rick Bernstein for HBO Sports and Steve Sabol for NFL Films; produced by Joe Lavine for HBO Sports and Keith Cossrow for NFL Films; Liev Schreiber narrates; music composed by Dave Robidoux of NFL Films; writer, Ouisie Shapiro; senior coordinating producers for NFL FILMS, Pat Kelleher and Ross Ketover; executive producer for Namanco Productions Inc, James Walsh.
Highlights of NAMATH:
Former Alabama teammate Gaylon McCollough: “He had good command of the Alabama offense. He was shifty, he was all over the field and he almost left you standing in your boots when you were trying to tackle him. He had tremendous speed and quickness and agility. He was like trying to tackle the wind. He could stop on a dime and throw a jump pass 40 or 50 yards. It was different from what our opponents had seen in the past.”
Gaylon McCollough: “One of the tragedies in American sports is that most people never had the chance to see a healthy Joe Namath play, to see how good he really was. If you had ever seen him at his best, you’d never forget it.”
Former New York Jets offensive coach Ken Meyer: “[He’s] the only quarterback I’ve ever been around that you didn’t have to look to see when the ball was released…You could hear the ‘whoosh’ when the ball left his hand. And that is not kidding!”
Sports journalist Rick Telander: “There had not been anybody like Joe Namath, not in sports. Long hair, sideburns…a Fu Manchu. Suddenly it’s like, ‘We got some kind of revolutionary here.’ No, you got a guy who’s growing a Fu Manchu ‘cause the chicks dig it.”
New York sportscaster Sal Marchiano: “So here was this rascal – not a maverick – a rascal who wore white shoes, wore his hair long, and he went his own way. He was Mick Jagger in a football uniform. He wasn’t Pat Boone. And that’s what America wanted.”
Former Colts head coach Don Shula on Namath delivering in Super Bowl III: “You gotta give credit where credit is due, and Namath, he made the predictions, then he made ‘em come true.”
Former NFL player Fred Dryer: “That guy was very important to the game of football as a cultural icon, and how he brought professional football into the television era and with it a whole degree of excitement…The likes of him will never ever, ever pass this way again.”
Joe Namath: “Something’s been guiding me around throughout my life. I keep saying, ‘I’m just a lucky guy.’ ”
Here’s the video preview of the documentary.
That’s it.
Jan
27
Doing Some Friday Megalinks
With a rainy day in Southern New England, it’s time to provide you with some media links. Lots of them on a Friday.
You can check out the Weekend Viewing Picks for the sports and entertainment programming suggestions.
Now to the links.
National
USA Today’s Michael Hiestand talks with NBC’s Al Michaels about calling his 8th Super Bowl and 2nd for NBC.
Mike Ozanian from Forbes says NFL TV rightsholders will be able to reap financial benefits while non-rightsholders end up holding the bag.
Sam Mamudi of Marketwatch.com says you can follow along the USA Today Super Bowl Ad Meter results in real time thanks to a new Facebook app.
Michael O’Connell from the Hollywood Reporter has a sneak peek at some of the Super Bowls ads.
Kelly McBride of the ESPN Poynter Review Project looks at why ESPN made so much of Tim Tebow.
Alex Klein at Romanesko looks into why the Yale Daily News sat on a story for several months and how it took the New York Times to report on former quarterback Patrick Witt’s alleged sexual assault on campus. You may remember that Witt was a candidate to become a Rhodes Scholar but then skipped his interview. Now we know why.
Todd Spangler at Multichannel News says ESPN will let viewers see additional highlights and material from the Winter X Games via the Shazam mobile app.
Mike Reynolds of Multichannel writes that NBC Sports Network goes into the NHL All-Star Weekend with increased ratings for the games.
Austin Karp of Sports Business Daily also has a story on the increased NHL ratings for NBC Sports Network.
Gabriel Beltrone from Adweek says Coke will have a Super Bowl microsite where its famous polar bears will react to the game and ads in real time.
David Gianatasio of Adweek writes one local Super Bowl spot will urge you to pee during its commercial.
E.J. Schultz at Advertising Age has Anheuser-Busch’s Super Bowl plans.
Matt Hardigree at Jalopnik says he’s solved the mystery behind the advertiser behind the Ferris Bueller-themed Super Bowl spot.
Adam Jacobi, the college football writer at CBSSports.com, who put the link to Onward State’s erroneous tweet about Joe Paterno’s death last Saturday has been fired. Jacobi says he understands the decision and has apologized to the Paterno family for his mistake.
Brandon Costa of Sports Video Group says NBC will take a lighter approach for Sunday’s NFL Pro Bowl in Hawaii.
Harry A. Jessell at TV NewsCheck notes that while the national TV ratings for the NFL are good, go inside the local numbers and they’re even better.
ESPN PR man Bill Hofheimer gives you an inside look at the network’s Super Bowl studios in Indianapolis.
Sports Media Watch says college basketball ratings are up on both ESPN and ESPN2.
SMW has some news and notes on some various people in the sports media.
Matt Yoder at Awful Announcing goes into some of the on-screen typos on TV this week.
Jeff Pearlman gets vindication from Chris “Mad Dog” Russo.
Steven Crist from the Daily Racing Form feels returning the Breeders Cup to NBC can only help horse racing.
All Access says a Hartford, CT FM station has flipped to all-sports.
East and Mid-Atlantic
Chad Finn of the Boston Globe says NESN has selected the replacement for Heidi Watney on its Red Sox broadcasts.
Chad says of all of the local TV outlets, Comcast SportsNet New England will have the largest contingent covering the Super Bowl in Indianapolis.
Johnny Diaz from the Globe says Boston DirecTV subscribers will see the Super Bowl after all.
Bill Doyle from the Worcester Telegram & Gazette talks with NBC’s Rodney Harrison about Super Bowl XLII and how some present New England Patriots still remaining from the game want revenge.
Stuart Elliot at the New York Times says some Super Bowl advertisers are returning buyers.
Richard Sandomir of the Times has Joe Namath’s reaction to the HBO/NFL Films documentary on his career that premieres tomorrow.
Richard adds that Namath is right now estranged from his former team, the New York Jets.
Phil Mushnick of the New York Post says the Namath documentary for the most part is good.
Justin Terranova of the Post speaks with NBC NHL charlatan Pierre McGuire.
Mike Silva at Sports Media Watchdog wonders why Kim Jones left YES.
Pete Dougherty from the Albany Times Union says a local sports talk show will broadcast live from the Super Bowl next week.
Pete talks with the host of that talk show who also wears other hats in the Albany market.
Ken McMillan from the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says NYC residents will be able to hear the local and national radio calls of the Super Bowl next Sunday.
The Harrisburg (PA) Patriot-News notes the firing of a CBSSports.com writer for falsely reporting Joe Paterno’s death.
DCRTV’s Dave Hughes at Press Row has media notes from the Baltimore-DC area.
South
The Tallahassee (FL) Democrat writes that a local sports talk show host who left his former station this week will be back on the air at another station later this year.
Billy Cox of the Sarasota (FL) Herald Tribune says ESPN’s Dick Vitale will be the subject of a profile produced by ….. ESPN!
Josh Bowe of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says Fox Sports Southwest will stream Lone Star Conference football games and a highlight show over the internet.
David Barron of the Houston Chronicle talks with a retiring local sports anchor who looks back at the 2011 Texans rather fondly.
Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman reviews the HBO/NFL Films documentary on Joe Namath.
Mel says ESPNU will be all over National Signing Day.
Midwest
John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer talks with former Bengal Artrell Hawkins who is now co-hosting Fox Sports Radio’s national morning show.
Jeff Moss of the Detroit Sports Rag looks into the new program director and on-air host of a local sports radio station.
Bob Wolfley at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Wisconsin sports teams did well in the national TV ratings last year.
Dan McGrath of the Chicago News Cooperative notes the 20 year anniversary of sports talk radio in the Windy City.
Paul Christian of the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin says new Minnesota Twins radio voice Cory Provus has big shoes to fill.
Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch talks with Bob Costas about returning to host his familiar town hall format next week.
West
Thomas Harding of MLB.com says Root Sports Rocky Mountain’s Alana Rizzo is leaving the network’s Colorado Rockies broadcast team and heading for MLB Network.
John Maffei at the North County Times says HBO’s documentary on Joe Namath is on par with previous efforts.
Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star also reviews the documentary.
Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News talks with Kings radio analyst Daryl Evans and also lists his best/worst LA broadcast analysts.
Tom has more on Evans in his blog.
Canada
Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says it’s time to play the NHL All-Star Game outdoors.
And that will do it.
Jan
24
Real Sports’ New Season Premieres Tonight
The first new edition of Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel premieres tonight on HBO. The critically acclaimed sports newsmagazine will have three new stories and an update from 2009. As usual, Real Sports has a very interesting lineup and we have it for you below.
EXAMINES THE USE OF TORADOL IN THE NFL; PROFILES BASKETBALL’S VAN GUNDY BROTHERS; VISITS A REMARKABLE HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL TEAM THAT NEVER PUNTS; AND RECONNECTS WITH SUPER BOWL NO-SHOW BARRET ROBBINS WHEN THE EMMY®-WINNING SHOW RETURNS JAN. 24, EXCLUSIVELY ON HBOEntering its 18th season, REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL presents more enterprising features and reporting when its 178th edition, available in HDTV, debuts TUESDAY, JAN. 24 (10:00 p.m. ET/PT & 9:00 p.m. CT), exclusively on HBO.
HBO On Demand availability: Jan. 30-Feb. 20
Segments include:
*Toradol in the NFL. Real Sports investigative team looks at the largely unknown practice of NFL players being administered the controversial pain drug Toradol. For years, NFL players in every locker room across the league have lined up to get a shot of Toradol before kickoff because it is the most effective remedy to mask pain throughout the entire body unlike local numbing agents such as Novocaine. Toradol is not a narcotic, is perfectly legal and provided by team doctors. Also, it is not physically addictive and does not affect your mental state, but the long-term effects are something that have recently become a hot topic of debate. When abused, Toradol has shown to cause permanent damage to internal organs, including stomach bleeding, liver disease and kidney failure. REAL SPORTS correspondent Andrea Kremer speaks with current and former players, doctors and the NFL about the issue of the use of Toradol.
Producer: Chapman Downes.
*Brothers. Over the last 15 years, the Van Gundy brothers, Stan and Jeff, have made quite a name for themselves in the NBA. Having found limited success as players, they followed their father, who coached college basketball teams, into the family business of patrolling the sidelines. Stan, 52, is currently head coach of the Orlando Magic and previously served as head coach of the Miami Heat. Jeff, who turned 50 on Jan. 19, led the New York Knicks and then the Houston Rockets for years before becoming one of the game’s top broadcasters. In this REAL SPORTS/Sports Illustrated collaboration, correspondent Bernie Goldberg sits down with the brothers to discuss their remarkable ascent to the top of the game.
Producer: Lisa Bennett.
*Between the Numbers. Kevin Kelley, head football coach at Pulaski Academy in Little Rock, Ark., uses his own research to back up the mantra that his team should never punt, should always kick onside kicks after a score and should never return punts. If this sounds too unorthodox to be effective, Kelley’s theories have resulted in a 104-19 record since he became head coach at the high school, and statisticians have supported his theory on the relative value of punting. REAL SPORTS correspondent Jon Frankel visits the 42-year-old Kelley in Little Rock as his team prepares to seek its third state title under his leadership.
Producer: Nick Dolin.
*Barret Robbins. On Jan. 26, 2003, one of the strangest Super Bowl controversies ever unfolded when Barret Robbins, Pro Bowl center for the Oakland Raiders, went AWOL, leaving no trace of his whereabouts two days before the biggest game of his career. For the Raiders, Robbins’ disappearance was a major distraction, but for Robbins, the episode was the beginning of a dark and tragic story that would include a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, substance abuse, numerous stints in rehab and multiple run-ins with the law. In 2009, six years after the Raiders lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl XXXVII, the Houston native sat down with HBO’s Andrea Kremer to reflect on his troubles. Now, Kremer leads REAL SPORTS cameras into the Florida State Prison where the 38-year-old former NFL star has been incarcerated on drug charges after another encounter with the law.
Producers: Zehra Mamdani, Chapman Downes.
REAL SPORTS has won the Sports Emmy® for Outstanding Sports Journalism 14 times and has received a total of 22 Sports Emmy Awards. It is the only sports program ever honored with the duPont Award for excellence in broadcast journalism, having first been recognized in 2005. On Jan. 19, Real Sports will receive its second duPont Award when Columbia University recognizes the show for its series of investigative reports on concussions, highlighted by the Aug. 2010 story revealing the scientific link between sports concussions and the onset of ALS.
The executive producer of REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL is Rick Bernstein; Kirby Bradley is senior producer.
The new season of Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel premieres at 10 p.m. ET/PT on HBO. That is it for this post.
Jan
23
Some Late Monday Night Linkage
I’ll do some links that I’ve gathered over the day. You deserve some.
Michael Hiestand of USA Today discusses the monster ratings for Championship Sunday in the NFL.
Michael says with NBC reacquiring the rights to the Breeders Cup, ESPN has gotten out of the horse racing business.
And Michael discusses Jim Rome’s CBS debut before the AFC Championship.
Stuart Miller of Multichannel News says league-owned networks are looking to fill time through imaginative programming.
John Ourand at Sports Business Journal notes that the dispute between MSG Network and Time Warner Cable could threaten the Buffalo Sabres’ number one spot in the local NHL ratings.
John says carriage talks for Time Warner’s new regional sports network featuring the Los Angeles Lakers and for the Pac-12 Network are about to begin in California.
Michael Smith of SBJ says Turner Sports will be running the Fan Fest and other events at the NCAA Final Four this year.
Some stories on how the media handled or did not handle the premature reports of Joe Paterno’s death.
Ronnie Ramos at the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center says there are lessons to be learned from the way the Paterno story was reported on Saturday.
Craig Silverman of the Poynter Institute tells us how the Associated Press did not fall into the trap of reporting Paterno’s death.
Davis Shaver on Onward State, the online publication that made the erroneous report, explains the events on Saturday.
Michael Malone of Broadcasting & Cable notes that local TV stations in the Penn State vicinity showed restraint on the Paterno story.
Brian Stelter of the New York Times looks into how the Paterno story burned online news sources.
Now to other links.
John Daly of the Daly Planet delves into how Danica Patrick will influence NASCAR this season.
Barry Janoff of The Big Lead writes about Danica’s GoDaddy.com Super Bowl ad.
Sam Laird of Mashable notes that Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis will be the first to have a social media command center.
Sam informs advertisers what the typical NFL fan looks like.
Now some remembrances of the late Andy Musser who along with the late Harry Kalas, the late Richie Ashburn and Chris Wheeler, formed one of the best local broadcast teams whey they called the Philadelphia Phillies from the 1970′s into the 1990′s. Musser died Sunday at the age of 74. Musser was a consummate professional who called the Phillies, the Eagles, the 76ers and Villanova basketball. He did all of them well. A man who was content to be the number two broadcaster on the Phillies behind Kalas, he would call games on both radio and TV for the team.
Todd Zolecki of MLB.com has an obituary of Musser.
The Philadelphia Inquirer says a memorial service will be held at the end of the month for Musser.
Tyler Kepner of the New York Times says Musser was a true gentleman.
And I hope to have more stories about Musser in Tuesday’s links.
Dan Fogarty of SportsGrid has video of a Baltimore news anchor trying to prop up a depressed Ravens fan base.
Dan has another video of a Ravens fan kicking out an entire viewing party after the failed field goal by Billy Cundiff on Sunday.
Glen Davis of SportsGrid has the clip of the Ravens’ Terrell Suggs giving Skip Bayless a verbal beatdown.
Bob’s Blitz notes that Boomer Esiason and Jillian Michaels will co-host this year’s “Super Bowl’s Greatest Commercials.”
Patrick Burns of Deadspin did some excellent work to break down SportsCenter’s coverage on ESPN over an 11 day span earlier this month.
Richard Sandomir of the New York Times notes how Gary Carter’s daughter is chronicling her father’s struggles with a brain tumor.
Matt Flegenheimer of the Times writes about how New York Knicks fans are actually going to games in the wake of the Time Warner Cable-MSG Network dispute.
Back to Brian Stelter of the Times who profiles NFL Films.
Phil Mushnick of the New York Post wonders why CBS won’t bring up Ray Lewis’ stabby past.
Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette notes the big ratings for NFL Conference Championship Sunday.
Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union has the ESPN Family of Networks college lacrosse schedule.
Ken says YES will air Jorge Posada’s retirement from the Yankees on Tuesday.
Ken McMillan at the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says ESPN will air a half-dozen Spring Training MLB games in March.
At the Baltimore Sun, David Zurawik says CBS got the job done during the AFC Championship.
David says the local ratings for the AFC Championship may have set a record.
David writes that the AFC Championship definitely set a social media record.
Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner writes about Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic’s new show.
Tom Jones from the Tampa Bay Times looks back at a tumultuous weekend in sports television.
David Barron at the Houston Chronicle writes about the NFL Conference Championship Games’ ratings.
John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer has Thom Brennaman threatening promising to call Reds games on the radio with his dad, Marty.
Dusty Saunders from the Denver Post reviews the HBO Sports documentary on Joe Namath.
Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News discusses the Breeders Cup going primetime on NBC later this year.
Bill Shakin of the Los Angeles Times goes over the process of the Dodgers sale that began in earnest on Monday.
Sports Media Watch says the NBA’s move to becoming a mostly cable television league has paid off.
SMW has some various news and notes.
Steve Lepore at Puck The Media says the Boston Bruins had a mixed bag over the weekend on NESN.
Dave Kohl at the Broadcast Booth says live sports continues to rack in the ratings.
Joe Favorito looks at the growth of squash, Twitter trouble and how to use the social media service properly.
Joe Lucia at Awful Announcing wonders how CBS’ Jim Nantz could confuse two Baltimore Ravens’ wide receivers.
And that will do it for your late night linkage.
Jan
05
The Series Final of 24/7 Flyers/Rangers is Tonight
The last episode of 24/7 Flyers/Rangers on HBO premieres tonight on HBO at 10 p.m. ET. This episode deals with the game played on Monday and the coaches and several players were wired for sound. Details from HBO.
JAN. 5 EPISODEEpisode #4 (series finale)
Debut: THURSDAY, JAN. 5 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT)
Other HBO playdates: Jan. 5 (11:00 p.m.), 6 (9:30 a.m., 6:30 p.m., 11:45 p.m.), 7 (10:00 a.m., 12:10 a.m.), 8 (10:00 a.m.) and 9 (7:00 p.m., 3:00 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: Jan. 8 (midnight) and 10 (10:00 p.m.)
HBO On Demand availability begins: Jan. 9
Preparations go into high gear as workers apply the finishing touches needed to turn a baseball stadium into an outdoor hockey rink. The Rangers take on the Flyers in a compelling contest that goes down to the final tick of the clock. Rating: (TV-MA) [AL]
The first three episodes of the series are currently available on HBO On Demand® and HBO GO®.
The executive producer of 24/7 FLYERS/RANGERS: ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC is Rick Bernstein; senior producer, Dave Harmon; coordinating producers, Scott Boggins and Bentley Weiner; co-producer, Abtin Motia; writer, Aaron Cohen; narrator, Liev Schreiber.
More coming up.
Jan
03
Some Back To Work Tuesday Links
On this day when many of you head back to work after the lazy holiday season, let’s provide some links as we get into the New Year.
I’m still saddened today by the passing of Turner Sports and PGA.com essayist Jim Huber. Reading the tributes on Twitter from those who knew him and those who did not, the man was widely well-liked. Jim gave us the facts, was willing to let the events come to him and never was one to call attention to himself. And when you finished reading or watching one of Jim’s essays, you felt the richer for having seen it.
Some links for you.
Scott Michaux from the Augusta (GA) Chronicle says Jim Huber’s passing was so sudden.
Michael Schulder, an Senior Executive Producer at CNN writes at SI.com, that Jim was not only a great writer, he was also a poet.
Ryan Ballengee at Golf Channel mourns Jim’s passing.
John Kim at PGA.com has an obit.
Carla Caldwell at the Atlanta Business Chronicle also has an obituary.
And the Turner Sports-run NBA.com has a story plus a video tribute to Jim Huber.
Other sports media links.
Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch says ESPN has responded to a column written by The Oregonian’s John Canzano saying the network has bought access to the Rose Bowl while sacrificing journalism.
John Ourand & Michael Smith from Sports Business Journal report that Oklahoma University will have plenty of its sports programming seen in the Sooner State as well as Texas thanks to a new deal signed with Fox Sports.
Brian Steinberg at Advertising Age says NBC has sold out its Super Bowl XLVI ad inventory in sharp contrast to the last time it aired the Big Game when it was selling ads in the week leading up to the event.
And Brian writes that some Super Bowl advertisers are looking to make a big splash like Apple did with its famous “1984″ ad.
Alex Sherman of Bloomberg Business Week writes that NBC is getting as much as $4 million per 30 second ad for the Super Bowl. That’s a lot of money.
At the Hollywood Reporter, Georg Szalai writes about the neverending dispute between MSG Network and Time Warner Cable.
If you watched the NHL Winter Classic yesterday, you may have noticed a new ad from Bridgestone Tires with a fake press conference involving various ESPN personalities, one TNT analyst and if you’re really sharp-eyed, a reporter from Sports Business Journal. Shirley Brady of Brand Channel looks at the ad campaign that will climax at the Super Bowl.
To Greg Wyshynski at Yahoo’s Puck Daddy where he laments the death of Versus.
Jeff Sonderman at the Poynter Institute looks at how Philly.com handled comments in the reporting of Philadelphia Daily News columnist Bill Conlin’s alleged molestation of seven children.
Ken Kerschbaumer of Sports Video Group mourns the passing of an ABC Sports production legend.
Dan Daley of SVG looks at how Turner Sports wired its NBA broadcasts when the league returned to play on Christmas Day.
Richard Sandomir of the New York Times writes that Time Warner Cable has put NBA TV in MSG Network’s channel slot.
Richard says HBO’s 24/7 on the NHL Winter Classic is another part of the network’s winning formula in sports documentaries.
Richard looks at the Super Bowl ads selling out and setting a revenue record for NBC.
Newsday’s Neil Best says NBC did its best to sell hockey during yesterday’s Winter Classic.
At Fishbowl NY, Jerry Barmash catches up with former WABC-TV sports anchor Scott Clark.
Will Leitch at New York Magazine wants to know what’s going on with the MSG/Time Warner Cable spat.
Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette tells Time Warner Cable subscribers what they’re missing tonight on MSG and MSG Plus.
Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union notes that two ESPN’ers and also Capital Region natives get an on-air reunion during this week’s Orange Bowl broadcast.
Pete says Fox Sports Radio has debuted yet another morning show.
WCAU-TV in Philadelphia has announced a deal to pick up ACC Network basketball games this season.
Dan Steinberg at the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog has highlights of the DC NFL Team Radio Network’s season finale from Sunday.
Tom Jones of the Tampa Bay Times has some thoughts on the holiday weekend in sports television.
At the Houston Chronicle, David Barron writes that Jim Rome is promising a return to H-Town in the near future after his local affiliate dropped his radio show.
To the Daily Oklahoman where Mel Bracht says ESPN got the job done for last night’s Fiesta Bowl.
Dusty Saunders from the Denver Post is a fan of NFL RedZone.
Jason Quick of The Oregonian says Comcast SportsNet Northwest has struck a deal allowing fans without access to the channel to view Portland Trail Blazers games online. For a fee, of course.
Danny O’Neil of the Seattle Times feels Fox Sports NFL rules analyst Mike Pereira should call things both ways.
Steve Lepore at Puck The Media says the NHL Winter Classic drew its lowest overnight rating ever.
Sports Media Watch notes that TNT is putting Charles Barkley courtside this week.
SMW notes the Rose Bowl saw its lowest overnight rating in years.
Jason McIntyre of The Big Lead says Ohio State football coach Urban Meyer is banning his players from Twitter and CNBC’s Darren Rovell is pissed.
Barry Janoff from The Big Lead looks at the aforementioned Bridgestone ad campaign.
Matt Yoder at Awful Announcing has tweets from people angry over Matt Millen’s analysis during last night’s Fiesta Bowl. Millen was really awful last night.
Lots of good links for you today. That will do it.
Dec
30
The Big Dozen Sports Media Stories of 2011
Time for the Fang’s Bites Sports Media Year in Review. The year isn’t big enough for a Top Ten, but it is big enough for a Big Dozen. Let’s get to the list and we’ll count down from 12 and also have some Honorable Mentions.
12. ESPN The Book
One of the most anticipated books of the year for the sports media was “Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN” co-authored by Tom Shales and James Andrew Miller. Some of the more salacious and sensational stories were leaked and released before its publication. But when all was said and done, the tome was more of a detailed history lesson of how ESPN was created and rose to become the biggest content provider in sports media. The book became a New York Times best seller and is being made into a major motion picture by 20th Century Fox.
11. ESPN vs. NBC
The battle lines have already been drawn between the two networks, but with owner, Comcast, merging its cable sports properties of Versus, Golf Channel and the Comcast SportsNet regional affiliates under the NBC Sports Group, the Peacock is positioning itself to become a major competitor to ESPN. NBC Sports has already obtained Major League Soccer and horse racing, increased NHL content, announced an Olympic presence and will create a Sunday NFL pregame show for Versus which will be rebranded this weekend.
ESPN is not sitting back aggressively expanding its college sports portfolio and keeping Monday Night Football.
With MLB, NASCAR and the BCS up for bid in 2012, NBC Sports could be strengthened with more content for its cable properties or ESPN could continue its monolithic path to World Domination.
10. UFC Signs With Fox
Mixed Martial Arts went mainstream with the Ultimate Fighting Championships signing an 8 year, multi-million dollar contract with Fox. The first UFC bout on Fox in November didn’t last very long, but it did do well in the key male demographics. Starting in January, UFC programming will be seen on various Fox platforms including FX and Fuel. Both sides expect to reap huge benefits and I would not doubt to see UFC get big bids for its second network contract in eight years.
9. Long-time Executives Leave Their Respective Networks
Just before NBC Sports was about to present its bid for the Olympics, Emperor Dick Ebersol resigned over a contract dispute. While observers thought it would leave NBC Sports vulnerable, it still won the rights for four Olympiads and kept Sunday Night Football. While he may have clashed with the new Comcast administration, Ebersol’s legacy on the network over two decades cannot be diminished. He is still working for NBC as a consultant on Sunday Night Football and will assist on the 2012 London Olympics.
HBO Sports President Ross Greenburg resigned in July after being with the network for 33 years. Under his tenure, Greenburg increased HBO’s commitment to documentaries and created the successful 24/7 reality series, not just focusing on the network’s signature sport of boxing, but reaching out to NASCAR and the NHL. Greenburg is now producing content for both NBC Sports and the NHL.
And George Bodenheimer announced late this year that he would leave as President and become Chairman of the Alleged Worldwide Leader. He’ll be succeeded by Vice President of Content John Skipper. Bodenheimer steered ESPN into high definition and helped to create ESPN 3D. Plus, he was able to make Monday Night Football into a cable series after 35 years as a network TV mainstay. Bodenheimer, who I’ve jokingly labeled the ESPN Dictator will no longer be in a day-to-day role with ESPN.
8. NBA/NFL Lockout Coverage
Two sports leagues stressed out their fans by making them wait out negotiations over collective bargaining agreements with their players. Instead of anticipating the draft or schedule releases, coverage over labor talks dominated sports media. As negotiations dragged on, reporters were camped out waiting for the latest news which came out as quickly as toothpaste being pushed out of a tube.
NFL Network and ESPN went wall-to-wall with non-stop coverage as a deal neared. The same for NBA TV.
Both leagues finally hashed out agreements and brought labor peace. Eventually, the NFL only lost a preseason game after a ten year CBA with its union. The NBA wasn’t as lucky as almost two months of its schedule was lost and it had to proceed with a reduced 66 game schedule.
7. ESPN/Univision Lose the World Cup to Fox/Telemundo
Honestly, who saw this coming? ESPN’s signature global sports event has been the World Cup. It’s been carrying the event since 1994. Univision’s history with the World Cup dates back to 1978. Both networks have been known for carrying the World’s biggest soccer games. However, that will change in 2015 when Fox and Telemundo take over the English and Spanish language US rights respectively for two Men’s and Women’s World Cups through 2022.
ESPN and Univision were simply outbid by Fox and NBC, the owner of Telemundo. One could argue that the World Cup whose ratings have been steadily going up became a desired property thanks to ESPN’s and Univision’s coverage.
ESPN and Univision get one more World Cup to bid farewell to FIFA and that will be in Rio in 2014.
6. NBC Sports Group Keeps The NHL
Fending off a spirited bid by ESPN, NBC signed a 10 year deal to keep the NHL in the fold in a combined network and cable bid. After pledging to increase games on cable and also give fans national access to all postseason games on its platforms, NBC Sports Group was able to keep the NHL rights. Now the NHL has a permanent place to call its home and NBC has firmly committed to hockey which pleases the sport’s fans to no end.
And please, let’s not mention that ESPN would be better for the NHL.
5. ESPN’s Influence on College Sports including The Longhorn Network
It’s amazing to see how much inventory ESPN has collected in college sports. Not only has it signed the ACC, Big Ten, Pac-12, SEC, several non-BCS conferences and a few individual schools to long-term contracts, it also has created the Longhorn Network for the University of Texas. The whole concept of the Longhorn Network has led to massive upheaval among the BCS conferences with Texas A&M leaving the Big 12 and heading to the SEC, the Big East’s Pittsburgh and Syracuse leaving for the ACC and other schools wanting to leave their leagues for bigger exposure and more ESPN cash.
And not only does ESPN have a hand in these chess games (despite massive denials), it has to cover all of this leading to conflicts of interest. And while ESPN pays megabucks for the NFL, its roots are firmly entrenched in college sports as we have seen with its new contract with the NCAA to air several championships.
ESPN also owns a whole host of bowl games and college basketball tournaments all of which are needed inventory for programming. By owning the games, ESPN doesn’t have to pay a rights fee. Crowds aren’t needed because ESPN makes money once the ads are sold and fees are paid by the cable and satellite providers.
ESPN’s influence in college sports will be a story that will followed for several years to come.
4. #freebruce
This story became a story thanks to SportsbyBrooks and social networking. Without these two combinations, an ESPN internal suspension might not have been noticed, reported and scrutinized. This all began with then-ESPN.com college football writer Bruce Feldman co-authored a book with former Texas Tech football coach Mike Leach. In the book, Leach alleged that then-ESPN college football analyst Craig James had a hand in his firing from the school over treatment of James’ son.
Feldman says he informed his bosses that he was writing a book with Leach and got their blessing. When the book was released, ESPN suspended Feldman. It was there that blogs and social networking got involved. SportsbyBrooks reported that Feldman was suspended. ESPN denied it. Other college football writers who follow Feldman on Twitter noticed he wasn’t tweeting. The story boomeranged on ESPN. It didn’t end until Feldman left ESPN for CBS Sports.
But this whole story made observers wonder why ESPN chose to hang its hat with James.
3. CBS, ESPN, Fox and NBC Renew the NFL at a Hefty Price
Starting in 2014, the NFL will receive an estimated $5 billion in rights fees from its TV partners. That’s a huge increase from the current amount from the four networks. In addition, all of the current packages will remain with the current networks so there will be no upheaval as in the past three NFL TV contracts.
All of the networks except for ESPN have signed on for 9 years. ESPN reupped for 8. ESPN looks like it will enter the postseason with a Wild Card Playoff game. NBC gains a Thanksgiving Night game, a Divisional Playoff game and more flex scheduling. CBS and Fox also get some flex scheduling to boost their ratings.
And with CBS, Fox and NBC paying on the average of $1 billion each, the NFL has fattened its war chest. Expect another partner for a Thursday Night Football package to be announced sometime in 2012.
The NFL is the ratings king and the money is proof.
2. NBC Keeps the Olympics at a Hefty Price
There were indications before the bidding for the 2014/16 Olympics that NBC was vulnerable (see #9 above). Long-time NBC Sports Emperor Dick Ebersol had left. ESPN and Fox showed indications that they wanted to take the Games away from NBC which had been broadcasting the Olympics since 1988. It looked like the International Olympic Committee was poised go with another TV partner. But when all was said and done, NBC had ponied up $4.38 billion for four Olympiads from 2014 through 2020 and the Olympics were firmly under the NBCUniversal umbrella.
What happened? ESPN bid for only one set of Olympics, 2014/16 and Fox made two separate bids and came close at $3.4 billion. However, when it came time to step up, NBC did and kept the Games in a very spirited bid to the IOC.
After losing money on the 2010 Winter Olympics, NBC’s parent company, Comcast claims it will be profitable on the four set of Games. That remains to be seen.
1. Penn State/Syracuse Media Coverage
Scandal once again dominated the sports media. However, in the case of Penn State, it wasn’t sports writers who uncovered the alleged molestation of young boys by former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky. Taking the lead in the coverage was the Harrisburg Patriot-News and in particular, crime reporter Sarah Ganim. Also, Penn State’s student newspaper, the Daily Collegian didn’t sit tight either reporting the story. The national media finally caught up and Bob Costas’ interview of Sandusky on NBC’s Rock Center raised eyebrows. And while ESPN tried its best to report the story, it was way behind. The Sandusky scandal will continue as it goes to trial and it won’t be going away any time soon.
As for the Syracuse story on the alleged molestations by former Syracuse assistant coach Bernie Fine, ESPN had a tape of Fine’s wife, Laurie, talking to one of the accusers. The problem was, it was 8 years old and ESPN gave the appearance that it sat on the story. While network bosses tried to explain their decision, some accused ESPN of not giving what they had to the police. No matter of the explanations, ESPN’s role in this story will be debated and whatever it says won’t be enough for some critics.
There were lessons learned in the reporting of both scandals. We learned that local reporters on the ground will always have an advantage over national correspondents. And we learned that while ESPN has a good stable of reporters, it can’t be everywhere.
Honorable mentions:
- ESPN Fires Ron Franklin
- CBS/Turner 1st Partnership on the NCAA Tournament is Successful
- NFL Films Founder Ed Sabol Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
- ESPN Nabs Wimbledon from NBC
- Los Angeles Lakers Sign Long-Term Deal to Create a Regional Sports Network With Time Warner Cable
- Los Angeles Dodgers Fight with Fox Over Media Rights
- Gus Johnson Leaves CBS for Fox
- Women’s World Cup Scores For ESPN
- Hank Williams, Jr. Pulled From Monday Night Football
- Matthew Barnaby Loses ESPN Gig
Coming up before the year is over, Best and Worsts in Sports Broadcasting in 2011 and Predictions for 2012.
Dec
28
Episode 3 of 24/7 Flyers/Rangers on HBO Tonight
Our third straight NHL-centric post will deal with tonight’s episode of the critically-acclaimed HBO Sports 24/7 series on the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers meeting at the Winter Classic. Tonight’s installment will entail with another week of preparation between the two teams leading up to the January 2 game.
In addition, we’ll get our first glimpse of the ice being laid down at Citizens Bank Ballpark in Philadelphia, the site of this year’s game.
We get details from this HBO Sports press release.
DEC. 28 EPISODEEpisode #3
Debut: WEDNESDAY, DEC. 28 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT)
Other HBO playdates: Dec. 28 (11:00 p.m.), 29 (5:00 p.m., 11:50 p.m.), 30 (11:00 a.m., 8:00 p.m.) and 31 (noon), and Jan. 1 (9:00 a.m.), 2 (7:00 p.m., 1:55 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: Dec. 30 (midnight) and Jan. 1 (11:45 p.m.), 2 (9:00 a.m.) and 3 (10:00 p.m.)
HBO On Demand availability begins: Jan. 2
The Flyers and Rangers square off at Madison Square Garden in a highly anticipated contest as their showdown in the Winter Classic looms. Preparations to transform Citizens Bank Park are under way. Rating: (TV-MA) [AL]
The series finale debuts Thursday, Jan. 5 at 10:00 p.m. (followed by an encore at 11:00 p.m.) three days after the Classic, with cameras tracking all the drama and excitement surrounding the Flyers and Rangers on game day. The series is also available on HBO On Demand® and HBO GO®.
The executive producer of 24/7 FLYERS/RANGERS: ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC is Rick Bernstein; senior producer, Dave Harmon; coordinating producers, Scott Boggins and Bentley Weiner; co-producer, Abtin Motia; writer, Aaron Cohen; narrator, Liev Schreiber.
I hope to have a full set of links for you today. Keep your feeds updated.
Dec
21
HBO’s Real Sports Receives Prestigious duPont-Columbia Journalism Award
One of my life’s aspirations when I was reporting news for various radio stations was to receive a duPont-Columbia University Journalism Award. It’s one of the most prestigious awards for journalists and I was always riveted when the ceremony was shown on PBS back in the 1980′s. ABC’s Nightline or 60 Minutes always seemed to win an award. PBS’ old MacNeil-Lehrer Report also seemed to win its share.
Well, the 2012 winners of the Albert I. duPont-Columbia University Awards have been announced. It’s rare for sports to win, but this time, HBO’s Real Sports has been honored for Bernard Goldberg’s piece on concussions in sports. It marks the second time Real Sports has been given a duPont-Columbia Award.
Also winning awards are CBS’ 60 Minutes, NBC News, the New York Times and PBS’ NOVA series.
We have the press release from Columbia University.
2012 Alfred I. duPont-Columbia Award Winners Announced
Seven International Reports Honored CBS & NBC Win Awards; HBO Wins Two Awards;
The New York Times Wins for Multimedia Report on the War in AfghanistanNew York, NY, December 21, 2011—Fourteen winners of the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards were announced today by Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. Seven of this year’s recipients featured international reporting including stories from Al Jazeera English, CBS News, and NBC News. Four local television stations will be honored, including Detroit Public TV. HBO will be honored with two awards.
For the first time, two awards will be given for digital reporting: one to The New York Times and one to MediaStorm. In another first, a theatrically released documentary that has not been broadcast was selected for a duPont Award, “Hell and Back Again.” A finalist award will also be given to WNYC’s Radio Rookies.
“This truly dynamic group of news organizations and journalists represent the best in broadcast and digital news reporting,” said Bill Wheatley, duPont Jury chair, former executive vice president of NBC News and adjunct faculty member at Columbia’s Graduate School of Journalism. “Journalists are using technology in new ways to effectively tell these important stories covering the news, issues and events that are critical to our society.”
Al Jazeera English will receive its first duPont silver baton for an uncompromising documentary about shortcomings in the recovery efforts in Haiti. CBS News “60 Minutes” will be honored for Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent Lara Logan’s harrowing report from the frontlines of the war in Afghanistan, and NBC News will be honored with Chief Foreign Correspondent Richard Engel for their outstanding breaking news coverage of the Arab Spring uprisings. NOVA’s gripping documentary about the science and the human stories behind Japan’s devastating earthquake will receive an award. A documentary about the human cost of the war in Afghanistan by Danfung Dennis will also receive a duPont Award.
The New York Times will be honored with an award shared by two digital stories, an engaging multimedia report that chronicled a deployment of soldiers to Afghanistan, and a story that followed two badly wounded Haitian children through treatment and recovery. The second award for digital reporting will go to MediaStorm and photojournalist Walter Astrada for a haunting multimedia story about India’s lethal social customs that devalue the lives of women and girls.
Excellent local reporting will be honored from an ambitious series about energy from Detroit Public TV, to a WFAA-TV, Dallas series of investigative reports about corrupt practices at local trade schools, WSB-TV, Atlanta’s dogged investigative series about sovereign citizens and housing fraud, and WTVF-TV, Nashville’s relentless look at state agencies’ abuse of the law for profit.
HBO will receive two duPont Awards; HBO Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel for breaking new ground on the issue of concussions and sports, and HBO Documentary for a riveting historical documentary about the 1911 Triangle Fire. Other awards include WNYC Radio for an investigative series about the NYPD’s “stop and frisk” policy, and WNYC’s Radio Rookies will be a finalist for an unflinching series of self-portraits by young people.
Scott Pelley, CBS News anchor and managing editor, and Michele Norris from NPR will host the duPont Awards ceremony on Thursday, January 19, 2012, at Columbia University’s Low Memorial Library. Pelley made a video announcement about the winners that can be seen here.
The 14 winning programs and finalist program appeared on air, online or in theaters between June 30, 2010 and July 1, 2011. The duPont Awards annual screening process is rigorous. Two groups of screeners made up of past winners, media professionals and educators, a total of over 100 people, screened the entries before the winners were selected by the duPont Jury in late October.
The duPont Jury looks for accurate and fair reporting about important issues that are powerfully told. Breaking news coverage, reporting with innovative storytelling and content, and stories that have made an impact in the public interest are also paramount. Learn more about the Jury and the selection process here.
The Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards will celebrate their 70th Anniversary in 2012. The awards honor excellence in broadcast and digital journalism and were established in 1942 by Jessie Ball duPont in memory of her husband, Alfred I. duPont. The awards are generously supported by the Jessie Ball duPont Fund.
Learn more about the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards for excellence in broadcast and digital journalism at www.journalism.columbia.edu/dupont.
Congratulations to all of the winners. HBO’s first duPont-Columbia Award came in 2004 for a report on young boys being forced to work as camel jockeys in the United Arab Emirates.
Dec
21
Second Installment of 24/7 Flyers/Rangers Premieres Tonight
Tonight on HBO, we have the second part of 24/7 Flyers/Rangers. We have the preview from HBO Sports below.
DEC. 21 EPISODEEpisode #2
Debut: WEDNESDAY, DEC. 21 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT)
Other HBO playdates: Dec. 21 (11:00 p.m.), 22 (5:30 p.m., 11:50 p.m.), 23 (3:00 p.m.), 24 (11:30 a.m., 11:55 p.m.), 25 (8:45 a.m.), 26 (4:00 p.m., 2:00 a.m.) and 31 (11:00 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: Dec. 25 (midnight) and 27 (9:00 p.m.), and Jan. 2 (8:00 a.m.)
HBO On Demand availability begins: Dec. 26
Shorthanded due to injuries, the Flyers face defending Stanley Cup champions the Boston Bruins, while the Rangers hit the road for a series of away games. Rating: (TV-MA) [AL]
Episode three of 24/7 FLYERS/RANGERS: ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC debuts Wednesday Dec. 28 at 10:00 p.m., with an immediate encore at 11:00 p.m. The series finale debuts Thursday, Jan. 5 at 10:00 p.m. (with an encore at 11:00 p.m.) three days after the Classic, with cameras tracking all the drama and excitement surrounding the Flyers and Rangers on game day. All four episodes have multiple replay dates on HBO, and the series will also be available on HBO On Demand® and HBO GO®.
The executive producer of 24/7 FLYERS/RANGERS: ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC is Rick Bernstein; senior producer, Dave Harmon; coordinating producers, Scott Boggins and Bentley Weiner; co-producer, Abtin Motia; writer, Aaron Cohen; narrator, Liev Schreiber.
And that will do it.
Dec
16
Providing The Friday Megalinks
Let’s get to the megalinks today. Lots to get to including some interesting news that is breaking today.
First, the Weekend Viewing Picks are back after a week’s absence. Check out what sports and entertainment viewing recommendations I’ve made.
Now to the links.
National
Developing today is a story out of Boston that CBC and NBC NHL analyst Mike Milbury allegedly assaulted a 12 year old boy during a youth hockey game last week. WCVB in Boston has broken the story and we’ll what develops. Milbury has been charged by police, but still worked on Versus this week.
Michael Hiestand of USA Today says expect more reality TV like HBO’s 24/7 in sports.
Jen Floyd Engel from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes for Fox Sports that Craig James’ US Senate run should be music to college football fans who have had to endure his analysis on ESPN.
In a related note, Dan Fogarty of SportsGrid notes that James is taking leave from ESPN due to his run.
Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch says the NFL, the TV networks and the fans are all winners in the latest 9 year rights deal.
Richard says as he becomes more popular, it’s only natural to see more media coverage of Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow.
Tim Baysinger of Broadcasting & Cable writes that Pac-12 Networks about to take operation next year, has secured headquarters in San Francisco.
John Eggerton of B&C says the American Cable Association is sounding the alarm bell on the new NFL TV deals.
Todd Spangler from Multichannel News writes that AT&T U-Verse customers in Connecticut will see MSG Network and its companion networks in HD starting in January just after Verizon Fios picked them up as well.
Eric Deggans of the St. Petersburg Times writing in the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center looks at some of the negatives of the new NFL TV deals.
CNBC’s Darren Rovell tells us to prepare for DirecTV and NFL Sunday Ticket in cars. Yes, cars.
Leave it to Deadspin. Tommy Craggs has video of a young Seth Davis of Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports appearing in an edition of HBO’s Real Sex from the 1990′s. Hilarious.
Matt Yoder from Awful Announcing breaks down the new NFL TV deals.
In the wee hours of this morning, I wrote some thoughts on the NFL TV deals and HBO’s 24/7 season premiere among other things.
Sports Media Watch says new NBA on TNT analyst Shaquille O’Neal will not join Turner Sports’ coverage of the NCAA Tournament in March.
At Puck The Media, Steve Lepore wonders what’s up with a new program listing for NHL Network.
East and Mid-Atlantic
Chad Finn of the Boston Globe feels five NBA games on Christmas Day are too many.
Richard Sandomir of the New York Times mulls over the numbers in the new NFL TV deals.
Richard reviews the upcoming Army-Navy documentary produced by CBS Sports/Showtime.
George Vescey has written his last “Sports of the Times” column for the New York Times.
Newsday’s Neil Best says New Yorkers will not see New England-Denver on CBS this Sunday.
Neil notes that TNT’s Charles Barkley now endorses Weight Watchers.
Neil looks at Jeff Van Gundy’s frequent flyer mileage as he works two NBA games on Christmas Day.
New York Post curmudgeon Phil Mushnick says NFL TV analysts give Tim Tebow way too much credit.
Justin Terranova of the Post has ESPN/ABC announcer Sean McDonough complaining about too many bowl games.
Terranova has five questions for NFL Today analyst Shannon Sharpe.
Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union looks at one local radio station’s move to dump the New York Mets in favor of the Boston Red Sox.
Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette likes the new edition of HBO’s 24/7 Flyers/Rangers.
Keith Groller of the Allentown (PA) Morning Call says there’s nothing like the NFL as a ratings draw.
In Press Box, Dave Hughes of DCRTV.com has the latest sports media news from the Baltimore-Washington, DC area.
At the DC Sports Bog, the Washington Post’s Dan Steinberg notes that John Riggins has ended his daily sports talk show in favor of a new outdoors career.
Jim Williams from the Washington Examiner says the Nationals could see a hefty increase in their rights fee from MASN.
South
Tom Jones of the St. Petersburg Times talks with NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock who will call Saturday’s Dallas-Tampa Bay game with Brad Nessler.
David Barron from the Houston Chronicle has some quotes from Fox NFL Sunday analyst Jimmy Johnson.
Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman has quotes from TNT’s Charles Barkley on the two Los Angeles NBA teams.
Mel has TNT’s NBA analysts discussing the Oklahoma City Thunder’s chances this season.
Mel notes that ESPN/ABC’s Mike Breen and Jeff Van Gundy will be quite busy on Christmas Day.
Midwest
John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer looks into the sudden quitting of one local sports talk show host this week.
Michael Zuidema from the Grand Rapids (MI) Press talks with Fox Sports Detroit NBA analyst Greg Kelser about the Pistons.
Ed Sherman of Crain’s Chicago Business has his winners and losers in sports business and media.
Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch notes that CBS’ Dan Dierdorf gets to call a rare “home” game on Sunday.
West
Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes that the Chargers have avoided a blackout for Sunday night’s game against the Ravens.
John Maffei of the North County Times says Louisiana Tech is happy to finally to have some exposure on the ESPN mothership after being relegated to ESPNU 9 times this season.
Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star writes that the Los Angeles Clippers are no longer a media laughingstock.
Jim looks into the new NFL TV deals.
Jim has his weekend viewing picks.
Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News talks with former DC NFL team QB Mark Rypien and his daughter Angela, who’s now one in the Lingerie Football League.
Tom talks with TNT’s Charles Barkley.
Tom has a few more hits that didn’t make his Barkley column.
Canada
Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail reviews the season premiere of HBO’s 24/7.
And that’s going to do it.
Dec
16
Some Quick Sports Media Thoughts
I’ll do a few thoughts on what’s transpired in sports media this week. As always, they come in bullet form.
- The NFL came out smelling like roses after the league’s owners approved the new 9 year agreements with CBS, Fox, and NBC. Not only does the league have stability with its players with a long-term Collective Bargaining Agreement, but also with its TV partners. Some fascinating tidbits have come out in the new contracts including increased flex scheduling allowing CBS to air a handful of NFC games and Fox airing some AFC games to give more attractive matchups a wider audience.Also, NBC gets to air a Divisional Playoff game in addition to a Wild Card. It looks like ESPN will get a Wild Card Playoff game and NBC Sports Network will air a Sunday morning pregame show making a crowded landscape even more so.
I like the Thanksgiving Night game going to NBC from the NFL Network. In fact one thing that’s been overlooked is the fact that NBC will have a Thanksgiving Night NFL game and a Black Friday NHL game during the November holiday weekend. The NHL game will get plenty of promotion the night before which is a very good thing.
We also know that there will be more Thursday Night Football next season. And even if the NFL decides to have 10-12 games on the in-house NFL Network permanently, I’m okay with that. It won’t happen because the NFL wants a third cable partner (NBC Sports Network or TNT) and the cash it will receive for an 8 game package for the first half of the season.
Overall, we learned that with CBS, Fox and NBC each shelling out an average of $1 billion/year and ESPN almost $2 billion/year for Monday Night Football, the four networks have in essence said that they cannot do without the NFL.
- HBO’s season premiere of 24/7 Flyers/Rangers on Wednesday was another success. Already, Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov has made an impression with his takes on the universe and life in general. In addition, HBO’s cameras catching Sean Avery’s all-too-knowing “I know you’re in trouble” look at the Rangers’ Artem Anisimov after last week’s mock sniper rifle incident against the Tampa Bay Lightning was priceless. With HBO’s stellar production values, Liev Schreiber’s tremendous narration and some interesting personalities like Flyers coach Peter Laviolette, it looks like the second edition of HBO’s NHL 24/7 is another hit.
- I had the opportunity to watch a bevy of sports media reporters on the New York regional sports network, SNY on Wednesday as they all opined on the year in sports. SNY split the reporters into a NYC and National sports media panel. Newsday’s Neil Best, the New York Daily News’ Bob Raissman and Phil Mushnick of the New York Post comprised the NYC panel. Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch, USA Today’s Mike McCarthy, Sports Business Journal’s John Ourand and the New York Times’ Richard Sandomir formed the national panel. Chris Carlin was the host and did a very good job as moderator, weaving between the two different panels throughout the show. He adroitly asked questions and allowed the reporters to talk without interjecting.Some of the topics discussed included the Penn State and Syracuse media coverage, announcers and the stories they predict will be big in 2012. I thought Ourand, Best and Deitsch came well during the discussions. I thought Mushnick came off as pious and nitpicky. Overall, it was a good show and fast-paced. I hope it has an opportunity to air in other parts of the country.
- And I’ll end with news on the search to replace NESN’s Heidi Watney as Red Sox field reporter. Fang’s Bites has learned that Jen Royle is no longer in consideration for the job. Apparently the position is Erin Hawksworth’s to lose. Here’s hoping that Jen gets the opportunity to return to Boston as she wishes.
I think I went longer than expected as these thoughts were quite extensive. Check out the regular Friday features, Primetime & Late Night Viewing Picks, College Basketball Viewing Picks, NFL Viewing Picks and Weekend Viewing Picks all throughout the morning.
Back with you later.
Dec
14
24/7 Flyers/Rangers: Road to the NHL Winter Classic Premieres Tonight on HBO
When the first edition of the NHL 24/7 premiered last year, fans were hopeful that HBO would treat hockey well. After all was said and done, fans were left hoping for more access to the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals.
Now as we move to the 2nd year of 24/7, NHL fans are hoping the sequel can be just as good. With this year’s participants, the New York Rangers and the Philadelphia Flyers, we can expect to see the focus on the personalities, coaches and the rivalry between the two teams. From what I’ve seen of the 12 minute preview earlier this month, I think HBO has another hit on its hands. We shall see. I’ll post a press release plus a couple of videos from HBO Sports.
First, the press release from HBO.
HBO SPORTS® AND THE NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE JOIN FORCES FOR 24/7 FLYERS/RANGERS: ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC, A FOUR-EPISODE ALL-ACCESS SERIES LEADING UP TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC, DEBUTING DEC. 14HBO Sports’ groundbreaking “24/7” reality franchise, which has captured 14 Sports Emmy® Awards, again joins forces with the National Hockey League to take viewers inside one of the NHL’s great rivalries for 24/7 FLYERS/RANGERS: ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC, debuting WEDNESDAY, DEC. 14 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT), exclusively on HBO. Following the Atlantic Division’s Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers, the four-episode, all-access series reaches its apex when the teams meet in the fifth edition of the NHL Winter Classic Jan. 2 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.
Episode #1
Debut: WEDNESDAY, DEC. 14 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT)
Other HBO playdates: Dec. 14 (11:00 p.m.), 15 (5:45 p.m., midnight), 16 (11:30 a.m., 8:00 p.m.), 17 (10:00 a.m., 10:45 p.m.), 18 (10:00 a.m.), 19 (6:30 p.m., 2:55 a.m.), and 31 (10:00 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: Dec. 18 (11:00 p.m.) and 20 (8:00 p.m.), and Jan. 2 (7:00 a.m.)
HBO On Demand availability begins: Dec. 19
Head coaches Peter Laviolette of the Flyers and John Tortorella of the Rangers, along with a host of key players, are in the spotlight as the two clubs battle through their busy December schedules.
Episodes two and three of 24/7 FLYERS/RANGERS: ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC debut on subsequent Wednesdays – Dec. 21 and 28 – at 10:00 p.m., with an immediate encore at 11:00 p.m. The series finale debuts Thursday, Jan. 5 at 10:00 p.m. (followed by an encore at 11:00 p.m.) three days after the Classic, with cameras tracking all the drama and excitement surrounding the Flyers and Rangers on game day. All four episodes will have multiple replay dates on HBO, and the series will also be available on HBO On Demand® and HBO GO®.
The executive producer of 24/7 FLYERS/RANGERS: ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC is Rick Bernstein; senior producer, Dave Harmon; coordinating producers, Scott Boggins and Bentley Weiner; co-producer, Abtin Motia; writer, Aaron Cohen; narrator, Liev Schreiber.
And I have a couple of videos for you. First, the trailer from HBO Sports for the series.
And if you missed it, here’s the preview of 24/7 that premiered earlier this month on HBO.
24/7 Flyers/Rangers premieres tonight at 10 ET/PT. You may have noticed that the voice of HBO Sports documentaries, Liev Schreiber did not narrate the preview. According to the HBO Sports press release, he’ll be back for the series in his proper place voicing 24/7.
Dec
14
It’s The Linkage! At Long Last and It’s Back!
I think it’s about a week and a half since I’ve been able to do links. Been crazy with me, but you’ve still been visiting and I appreciate that. Time to provide you with sports media news links which is what the site depends on to begin with.
Thanks for your patience during this trying time for me. Onward and let’s do the links.
Michael Hiestand of USA Today writes that NBA analysts aren’t holding back as they get ready for a new truncated season.
Mike Foss of USA Today talks with the new ESPN main soccer analyst Taylor Twellman about tweeting while commentating and concussions.
From earlier this week, Tom Weir of USA Today’s Game On blog notes that “Tebowing” has been officially recognized as a word.
This week’s Sports Business Journal lists the 50 Most Influential People in Sports Business for 2011. I’m not in this year’s list (I’m joking).
Terry Lefton of SBJ says the Stadium Formerly Known as San Diego Jack Murphy will have a temporary name for the holiday season.
Dan Shanoff’s Quickish site lists the Best Sportswriting in 2011. Some good choices and good reading throughout.
Toni Fitzgerald from Media Life Magazine says three of the five NFL TV partners are experiencing lower ratings from last season.
From MediaPost, Wayne Friedman writes that smaller market TV revenues played a huge role in the NBA’s nixing of the Chris Paul from New Orleans-to-Los Angeles Lakers trade.
Brian Steinberg of Advertising Age says hoping to tap into a more health-conscious audience, Dannon Yogurt becomes the first of its kind to advertise on the Super Bowl.
At Adweek, Lucia Moses says Rolling Stone magazine will host its first-ever Super Bowl party in Indianapolis come February.
All Access notes that Milwaukee Brewers radio voice Bob Uecker will be inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame.
Chris Chase at Yahoo’s Shutdown Corner has a video that has gone viral in which a Washington, DC news anchor said that if Tom Brady had died, the DC NFL Team might have had a chance to beat the New England Patriots last Sunday.
Michael Bradley at the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center says don’t expect journalism from local MLB TV partners as they increasingly fund team’s payrolls.
Dan Fogarty at SportsGrid wonders if Shaquille O’Neal will upset the apple cart that is TNT’s Inside the NBA postgame studio show.
CNBC’s Darren Rovell says Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III of Baylor is setting the world afire with his Superman socks.
Matt Yoder at Awful Announcing lists the site’s Top 10 Pammies of the Year.
Gabriel Sherman of The New Yorker magazine writes about sports journalism getting into some hard reporting in the wake of various scandals.
Newsday’s Neil Best writes about tonight’s premiere of HBO’s 24/7 Flyers/Rangers.
The New York Daily News’ Dr. Gloom and Doom reports that YES may hire former MLB manager Lou Piniella as an analyst for next season.
Pete Dougherty in the Albany Times Union says while CBS won the right to keep Patriots-Broncos in Week 15, viewers in the Capital Region won’t see it.
Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette notes that DirecTV will air a local college hockey game through Fox College Sports.
Ken McMillen from the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says WGN America will pick up 10 Chicago Bulls games this season.
Laura Nachman has a couple of Philadelphia 76ers announcements.
Dan Steinberg at the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog has gotten a hold of Tony Kornheiser’s high school yearbook picture and yes, he had hair.
Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner talks with Golf Channel Morning Drive co-host Gary Williams.
Dwain Price at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram speaks with new Dallas Maverick Lamar Odom about his trade from the Lakers and whether he’ll continue to do the Kardashian television abortion.
The Houston Chronicle reports that ESPN college football analyst Craig James is expected to announce a run for the U.S. Senate, a move that would thrill many fans who can’t stand him on television.
Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman notes that the NFL topped the local ratings in the Sooner State.
Mel says the local CBS affiliate will pick up the rest of the Denver Broncos schedule and air plenty of Tim Tebow.
John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer says a local sports talk show host has resigned leaving his station in the lurch.
Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business talks with “NHL 36″ Executive Producer Ross Greenburg about tonight’s series premiere.
Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail asks if lightning can strike twice with HBO’s 24/7.
The Canadian Sports Media Blog looks at the effect of media giants Bell Canada and Rogers combining to purchase Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment which would be like ESPN and NBC teaming up to buy the New York Yankees, that’s how big the news is in Canada.
John Daly at The Daly Planet explores the continuing dispute between Sirius XM and Turner Sports over streaming NASCAR on the internet.
Sports Media Watch looks at the final ratings for the SEC on CBS.
And SMW also notes the final ratings of college football on ABC.
SMW says the Heisman Trophy Presentation on ESPN last Saturday did well.
And SMW has some ratings news and notes.
Steve Lepore at Puck The Media says today is a pretty big day for hockey fans.
And the Big Lead notes that Tim Tebow is on the cover of this week’s Sports Illustrated.
That will conclude our linkage today and I hope that the next set of linkage will come tomorrow instead of another 10 days.
Nov
23
A Few Thanksgiving Eve Links
Let’s do a few links for you on this day before Thanksgiving. And my best to you. Be safe in your travels.
We begin with John Ourand of Sports Business Daily who convenes a roundtable of fellow SBD writers to look at ESPN’s new NFL studio shows.
Mason Levinson of Bloomberg News says ESPN college football analyst Urban Meyer will not work Saturday’s Ohio State-Michigan game on ABC to avoid being a distraction over stories that he’ll be the next Buckeyes coach.
Michael Hiestand from USA Today writes that NBC Sports had no problems in switching Versus’ NHL scheduled Monday game from Bruins-Canadiens to Islanders-Penguins to air Sidney Crosby’s season debut.
Eric Deggans of the St. Petersburg Times writes in the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center that there are still questions behind ESPN’s most recent executive shuffle.
Emma Bazilian of Adweek explores Disney’s machinations moving ESPN Dictator George Bodenheimer out of day-to-day operations and handing them to Executive Vice President John Skipper.
At ESPN’s Front Row blog, PR man David Scott looks at a new Quinnipiac University course on ESPN. Yes, ESPN.
Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News reports that a mediator will be hearing the dispute between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Fox Sports over the team’s media rights.
Mike says regional sports networks are seeking rebates from lost NBA games due to the lockout.
David Goetzl from MediaPost says ESPN and whiskey maker Jameson’s both share blame in the sponsorship of the documentary “Unguarded” which depicted Chris Herren’s struggles with addiction.
Stuart Levine of Variety says the NHL is teaming up with Paramount Pictures for the league’s first movie promotional tie-in.
Glenn Davis of SportsGrid says Canadian rock group Nickelback responds to fans who are petitioning them to be removed from the halftime performance during the Green Bay-Detroit game.
Karen Hogan at Sports Video Group says TSN will be all over the CFL Grey Cup this Sunday.
Ryan Durling at Bostinnovation has a Boston viewing guide for the Thanksgiving football games.
Newsday’s Neil Best says incoming ESPN President John Skipper is a noted soccer fan.
Neil previews an upcoming Bob Costas MLB Network interview with former YES analyst Jim Kaat.
Neil notes an upcoming HBO documentary on former New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath.
Neil says MLS’ New York Red Bulls are booting the media from the best seats in Red Bull Arena and making them accessible to ticket holders.
And Neil is happy to see that Marv Albert will be calling this Sunday’s Jets game on CBS.
In the New York Daily News, Bernie Augustine says Sunday’s MLS Cup on ESPN shown live Sunday nigh was beaten in the ratings by the taped English Premier League game on Fox.
Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union has the Week 13 college football TV schedule.
Crissa Shoemaker Bree of the Philly Burbs newspapers says Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia and her company have signed a deal to exchange coverage on Philadelphia professional and high school sports coverage.
David Zurawik of the Baltimore Sun says the NFL Network is treating tomorrow’s San Francisco-Baltimore games as one of its biggest in its short history.
Dan Steinberg at the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog has Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau is still a bit perturbed almost a year later on how HBO Sports portrayed Pittsburgh Penguins coach Dan Bylsma in the 24/7 series.
Rachel George of the Orlando Sentinel has ESPN college football analyst Urban Meyer again denying reports that he’s signed a 7 year, $40 million contract to coach Ohio State. Whatever. We know he’s going to Columbus, it’s just a matter of time.
Joe Reedy of the Cincinnati Enquirer says the Bengals have already announced that Sunday’s game against the Browns has been blacked out. Oof!
Ed Sherman of Crain’s Chicago Business has his Thanksgiving winners and losers in sports business and media.
Jeff Call of the Deseret (UT) News notes that the BYU-to-the Big East courtship is now dead with the school’s media contract with ESPN being the main sticking point.
Peter Johnson of the Great Falls (MT) Tribune says fans of Montana and Montana State are pleading with ESPN to put their Football Championship Subdivision playoff games on TV instead of on ESPN3.com.
Fritz Neighbor of the Missoula (MT) Missoulian says Montana Grizzlies fans are scrambling to find an internet feed of Saturday’s playoff game.
Meg James at the Los Angeles Times says ESPN has a new Skipper in charge of the network’s day-to-day operations.
Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has your Thanksgiving weekend football schedule.
SoCal Tech reports that NFL Network has signed a deal with a tech company to provide news and game highlights to 12,000 gas pumps across the country.
Joshua Meyers of the Seattle Times blogs that Sounders announcer Arlo White might be a candidate to call MLS on NBC Sports Network next season.
Paul Gardner at Soccer America feels ESPN got rid of the wrong soccer announcer when it chose to drop John Harkes.
The Canadian Sports Media Blog has last week’s sports TV ratings.
And I’ll end it there.
Nov
22
HBO & NFL Films Team Up For Joe Namath Documentary
Just announced by HBO and NFL Films, a new documentary on Joe Namath. Both HBO and NFL Films have teamed up before, most recently for their successful “Lombardi” documentary which won the Sports Emmy for Best Documentary. I expect high quality from this documentary as HBO certainly knows how to do the sports documentary and NFL Films will most certainly provide some great footage.
The film will premiere on HBO on January 28 at 8 p.m. East and will run for 90 minutes.
We get the particulars from the joint press release issued by HBO Sports and NFL Films.
HBO Sports and NFL Films Examine The Life of “Broadway Joe” Namath in A Documentary Debuting January 28The Emmy®-winning combination of HBO Sports and NFL Films will explore the fascinating life and career of one of pro football’s biggest stars in a documentary on New York Jets icon Joe Namath, it was announced today by Rick Bernstein, executive producer, HBO Sports. NAMATH debuts SATURDAY, JAN. 28 (8:00-9:30 p.m. ET/PT), exclusively on HBO.
“Joe Namath is one of the most compelling sports figures of the last 50 years and we are delighted to tell his story,” said Bernstein. “We will retrace his life not only from Joe’s perspective, but also from the viewpoints of many others who are familiar with Joe’s extraordinary football career, following his journey from Beaver Falls to today. We hope to present the definitive film on an NFL icon and a trailblazing free spirit.”
“In the mythology of pro football, Joe Namath is Arthur,” says Steve Sabol, president of NFL Films. “He pulled the proverbial sword from the stone and the NFL became the Camelot of American sports. His story is timeless, authentic and also very human. It is a privilege for NFL Films to partner with HBO Sports once again in documenting the life of ‘Broadway Joe.’ ”
Born in Beaver Falls, Pa. in 1943, Namath was raised in western Pennsylvania and was a stellar high school athlete in basketball, baseball and football. He accepted a football scholarship to the University of Alabama and played quarterback for the legendary Paul “Bear” Bryant. Namath led the Crimson Tide to the top of the national polls in 1964 and his stock as a pro football prospect soared.
With entertainment mogul Sonny Werblin at the helm of ownership of the New York Jets, Namath elected to sign with the upstart American Football League for a then-staggering $427,000, and by game five of his first season had become the Jets’ starting quarterback. He was subsequently named AFL Rookie of the Year, and was one of the first sports celebrity superstars, captivating both the entertainment press and fans with his movie-star looks and bigger-than-life “Broadway Joe” personality.
In a moment that would alter the NFL landscape, Namath led the underdog New York Jets to a world championship title in Super Bowl III versus the heavily favored Baltimore Colts. His “guarantee” of a Jets upset brought him legendary status.
While his MVP performance in Super Bowl III was the high point, Namath fashioned a high-flying all-star career during his 13 years in pro football, and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985.
Now 68, Namath remains engaged in the game with which he has had a lifelong love affair. He provides radio commentary, is connected to new media initiatives through Facebook and Twitter (@realjoenamath), and hosts his own website destination (broadwayjoe.tv).
HBO Sports and NFL Films have a long history of acclaimed football productions, including the 2010 documentary “Lombardi,” which earned rave reviews and received the Sports Emmy® for Outstanding Documentary.
The executive producers of NAMATH are Rick Bernstein for HBO Sports and Steve Sabol for NFL Films; produced by Joe Lavine for HBO Sports and Keith Cossrow for NFL Films; Liev Schreiber narrates; music composed by Dave Robidoux of NFL Films; executive producer for Namanco Productions Inc, James Walsh.
That will do it.
Nov
22
On The Next HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel
The next Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel airs on Tuesday, November 22 and will be the last new edition before next month’s Year in Review program.
Here’s the press release.
REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL presents more enterprising features and reporting when its 176th edition, available in HDTV, debuts TUESDAY, NOV. 22 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT), exclusively on HBO.
Other HBO playdates: Nov. 22 (2:40 a.m.), 23 (11:00 a.m., 6:00 p.m., 2:55 a.m.), 26 (11:00 a.m.) and 29 (1:00 p.m., 12:30 a.m.), and Dec. 4 (8:00 a.m.), 7 (7:00 p.m.) and 9 (8:00 p.m.)
HBO2 playdates: Nov. 24 (4:50 a.m.), 27 (6:10 a.m.) and 30 (6:05 a.m., 7:00 p.m.), and Dec. 3 (6:30 p.m.), 7 (8:00 a.m., midnight) and 13 (2:00 p.m., 10:30 p.m.)
HBO On Demand availability: Nov.28-Dec. 19
Segments include:
*Bob Hewitt. Every day the care and instruction of children are entrusted to athletic coaches, but sometimes that trust is painfully compromised. Earlier this year, the Boston Globe conducted a six-month investigation that disclosed allegations of sexual abuse by several adult women against Tennis Hall of Famer Bob Hewitt, who won all four Grand Slam titles in both doubles and mixed doubles in the ‘60s and ‘70s. The allegations against him, which reach back to the ‘70s, contend that Hewitt harassed and sexually abused girls as young as ten years old. Although no formal charges were brought against the 71-year-old Australian, the International Tennis Hall of Fame, into which he was inducted in 1992, has formed a committee to review the allegations. REAL SPORTS correspondent Mary Carillo, who competed in the 1977 U.S. Open at Forest Hills when Hewitt captured the doubles title, travels to Hewitt’s home in South Africa and investigates the truth behind his controversial past.
Producer: Joe Perskie.
*Brad Stevens. In 2007, Brad Stevens became the head coach of men’s basketball at Butler University, located just 30 minutes north of his hometown of Zionsville, marking a changing of the guard in Indiana basketball. Now entering his fifth season, the fresh-faced Stevens has raised more than a few eyebrows by leading Butler to four consecutive NCAA tournaments and back-to-back national championship games. After losing the title game in 2010 and 2011, the 35-year-old coach is confident that his mid-major Horizon League team remains a force to be reckoned with. In this REAL SPORTS/Sports Illustrated collaboration, correspondent Jon Frankel travels to Indianapolis to meet the charismatic Stevens as he prepares for another run at the NCAA championship with his underdog Bulldogs.
Producer: Nick Dolin.
*Marcus Dixon. In fall 2003, Marcus Dixon expected to split his time at Vanderbilt University between football games and the classroom. Instead, the first time REAL SPORTS host Bryant Gumbel visited the 6’4” defensive lineman, he was in a Georgia penitentiary. Dixon was a senior in high school when he was accused by a sophomore classmate of rape. The case went to trial, and despite the fact that the jury determined that the sex had been consensual, Dixon was convicted of statutory rape and aggravated child molestation – the first time Georgia’s Child Protection Act had been applied in this way – and was sentenced to ten years in prison.
Following the initial REAL SPORTS report, the Supreme Court of Georgia overturned Dixon’s conviction on appeal, and he was released from prison the same day. He subsequently excelled at Hampton University, signed with the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2008, and in 2010, signed with the New York Jets, where he is currently in the rotation on the defensive line. Bryant Gumbel reconnects with the 27-year-old Dixon, who has thrived since his release from prison.
Producers: Jake Rosenwasser, Joe Perskie.
REAL SPORTS has won the Sports Emmy® for Outstanding Sports Journalism 14 times, in addition to being the first sports program honored with the duPont Award for excellence in broadcast journalism. In May, the program received the 2010 Sports Emmy® for Outstanding Sports Journalism for Aug. 2010’s report revealing the scientific link between sports concussions and the onset of ALS. Overall, REAL SPORTS has collected 22 Sports Emmys® in 16 years.
The executive producer of REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL is Rick Bernstein; Kirby Bradley is senior producer.
That’s it.
Nov
21
HBO Airs A Sneak Peek of 24/7 Rangers/Flyers on Black Friday
Friday night, you’ll be tired from the Thanksgiving holiday, the silly start to the Christmas shopping season and maybe even the football games. What better way to get a change of pace than to get a 12 minute sneak peek of HBO Sports’ award-winning 24/7 series on the upcoming NHL Winter Classic pitting the New York Hockey Rangers against the Philadelphia Flyers. This season’s game takes place at Citizens Bank Park in Philly. And if last year’s 24/7 on the Penguins and Caps is any indication, this year’s version will give us some new stars to follow. Last year, Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau became a star thanks to his colorful language.
We’ll see who HBO focuses on this season. Here’s the HBO press release.
“PREVIEW TO 24/7 FLYERS/RANGERS: ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC” PREMIERES FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 25 ON HBO®HBO Sports® will present “Preview to 24/7 Flyers/Rangers: Road To The NHL Winter Classic,” a 12-minute preview of the upcoming NHL reality series featuring the spirited rivalry between the Philadelphia Flyers and the New York Rangers, which is set to air exclusively on HBO. Debuting Friday, November 25 at 9:15 p.m. ET/PT, the special will serve as a primer to the acclaimed series for new viewers as well as an introduction of the players and coaches who will appear on the all-access series as they prepare for the NHL’s iconic outdoor game.
The Flyers are guided by Peter Laviolette, the Rangers by John Tortorella. The teams will meet in the 2012 NHL Winter Classic on Monday, January 2 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.
“Preview to 24/7 Flyers/Rangers: Road to the NHL Winter Classic” will air a total of 12 times on the main service plus six times on HBO2. The preview also will be available 24 hours a day at HBO ON DEMAND®, starting November 27 as well as on HBO GO®.
HBO replay schedule: HBO2 replay schedule:
All times are ET/PT. All times are ET/PT.Nov. 25 (9:15 p.m.) Nov. 25 (5:40 a.m.)
Nov. 26 (12:00 p.m.) Dec. 8 (1:15 p.m. and 8:45 p.m.)
Nov. 29 (12:30 p.m. and 4:05 a.m.) Dec. 11 (8:15 a.m.)
Dec. 2 (9:30 a.m. and 12:30 a.m.) Dec. 15 (6:15 a.m. and 9:45 p.m.)
Dec. 4 (9:00 a.m.)
Dec. 6 (8:15 p.m.)
Dec. 9 (2:30 p.m.)
Dec. 12 (5:15 p.m. and 11:30 p.m.)
Dec. 14 (7:00 p.m.)HBO’s Emmy-Award®-winning “24/7” reality franchise premiered its first-ever pro hockey series last December and “24/7 Penguins/Capitals” was honored with the Sports Emmy® for “Outstanding Edited Sports Special.” “24/7 Flyers/Rangers: Road to the NHL Winter Classic” debuts with episode one on Wednesday, December 14 at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT on HBO with an immediate encore play at 11:00 p.m. ET/PT.
That’s it.
Nov
13
Juan Manuel Marquez Wears A Sombrero To Cover His Hooha
Last night after the controversial majority decision handing boxer Manny Pacquaio a controversial win over Juan Manuel Marquez, HBO Sports went to conduct post fight interviews. Marquez left the ring furious, however, boxing charlatan Max Kellerman found him in his locker room. But by the time Marquez had reached what he thought was the sanctity of his quarters, he had stripped off his trunks. It led to a funny scene where Marquez used a sombrero to hide his manjunk during the entire interview.
Timothy Burke has the vidcap at the Mocksession site.
James Quintong of ESPN Fantasy Sports had the reaction that spoke for all of us.
Since the event was on pay per view, there would have been nothing wrong had Marquez decided to show the full Monty, but the sombrero makes this funnier.
Truly one of the best moments in sports from a week that was unlike any other.
Nov
09
Let’s Get Back To The Linkage
I owe you some links having not been able to do them either Monday or Tuesday.
USA Today’s Michael Hiestand talks about the ratings for LSU-Alabama not being as high as the previous #1 vs. #2 college football Game of the Century.
The great Richard Deitsch at Sports Illustrated has his Media Power List for this month.
Richard talks with the Executive Producer of ESPN’s Pardon The Interruption. The show is celebrating ten years on the air. Has it been THAT long?
Alex Sherman at Bloomberg News says Time Warner might be interested in bidding for the media rights for the Los Angeles Dodgers possibly going battle with Fox.
Michael Smith at Sports Business Journal says the Pac-12 Conference is buying back third tier TV rights from its member institutions to fill out Pac-12 Network programming.
Bill King of SBJ says Fox is throwing its promotional muscle at its first UFC broadcast.
Terry Lefton and Michael Smith from SBJ write that insurance company, The Hartford, will no longer sponsor the NCAA Tournament on CBS/Turner.
Greg Doyel of CBSSports.com introduces us to Penn State football coach (for now) Joe Paterno’s son, Scott, who has become the ultimate media whore since the Jerry Sandusky scandal broke.
SportsGrid notes that Fox Business News anchor Chris Cotter will be going back to his sports roots with ESPN.
Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News writes that ESPN pulled big numbers for Monday Night Football this week.
Mike writes about Bob Costas’ new show on NBC Sports Network premiering next year.
Brandon Costa at Sports Video Group writes that CBS saw a record number of video streams for LSU-Alabama last Saturday night.
CNBC’s Darren Rovell says Penn State University gets a big FAIL for its handling of the sex scandal crisis.
Darren writes an open letter to Penn State coach Paterno.
Marcus Henry at Newsday writes that HBO will pay tribute to the late Joe Frazier this week by re-airing its great documentary, “Thrilla in Manila”.
Marcus writes that former Tennessee men’s basketball coach Bruce Pearl has picked up a broadcasting gig.
At Fishbowl NY, Jerry Barmash talks with some former Big Apple sportscasters on covering the late Joe Frazier.
Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union has the Week 11 college football TV schedule.
And Pete provides us with the Week 10 NFL TV schedule for the Capital Region of New York.
Keith Groller from the Allentown (PA) Morning Call writes that Chris Herren, the subject of ESPN Films’ “Unguarded” documentary, will be speaking in the local area next month.
Zach Wilt of the Baltimore Sports Report says a Pittsburgh TV station failed to pay up on a bet made with a local TV channel in regards to Sunday’s Ravens-Steelers game.
At the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog, Dan Steinberg writes that Wizards TV voices Steve Buckhantz and Phil Chenier will be calling some college basketball games during the NBA Lockout.
David Barron from the Houston Chronicle talks about the big ratings for LSU-Alabama for CBS.
Mel Bracht at the Daily Oklahoman says Oklahoma outrated Oklahoma State in the local TV ratings last weekend.
John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports big ratings for the local CBS affiliate thanks to the Bengals.
Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business says today is a big day for the NBA Lockout.
Scott D. Pierce at the Salt Lake Tribune enjoyed Ian Darke’s call of the MLS playoffs over the weekend.
Bill Shaikin at the Los Angeles Times says a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge is promising Fox Sports a fair shake at the hearing to determine the new owners of the Dodgers.
Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says big ratings drops for the CFL on TSN have to be a concern for both parties.
Sports Media Watch looks at the NFL overnight ratings for Week 9 on Fox, NBC, CBS and ESPN.
SMW notes that Colts-Patriots in Week 13 has been flexed out of NBC’s Sunday Night Football.
Steve Lepore at Puck The Media says San Jose-New York Rangers failed to draw well for Versus with the country’s biggest market blacked out.
Joe Favorito says don’t discount the power of the gaming market.
And I’ll end the linkage there for today.
Oct
20
Putting Together A Few Thursday Links
I’ll give you some linkage. Won’t be able to give you a whole set, but I’ll give you what I can as I have to do the Friday features, Primetime & Late Night Viewing Picks, College Football Viewing Picks, NFL Viewing Picks and Weekend Viewing Picks tonight. I won’t be able to blog extensively on Friday as I’ll be away from my computer, but I will have my iPad to post any important press releases and breaking news as necessary.
But for now, this is what we have.
Sports Business Daily notes the lower ratings for Fox for World Series Game 1 on Wednesday, but more importantly, it won the night for the network.
SBD also looks at the media fallout from Bryant Gumbel’s comments on HBO’s Real Sports earlier this week in regards to NBA Commissioner David Stern.
Michael Hiestand of USA Today wonders if the 2011 World Series is on track to become the lowest rated World Series ever.
The Big Lead notes that Fox’s Tim McCarver knew how to spell S-T-R-I-K-E, but didn’t know how many letters there were.
Lindsay Rubino of Broadcasting & Cable notes that Fox won the night in the 18-49 demographic thanks to the World Series.
Phil Swann of TV Predictions says Fox’s HD picture of World Series Game 1 was much improved from the American League Championship Series.
Etan Vlessing of the Hollywood Reporter writes that the NHL has signed a rights deal to have all of its games streamed in Scandinavia. This is after ESPN America lost the rights to air NHL games across Europe.
Anthony Crupi of Adweek writes that the NFL is the king of the TV ratings heap.
Dan Shanoff writes a guest column for CNBC’s Darren Rovell about the NFL’s new Venture Capital fund.
The U.S. Open and the United States Tennis Association are looking to add another day to the tournament and ending it on a Monday. CBS is considering the change.
Brandon Costa from Sports Video Group notes that NBC is putting the infrastructure in place to ensure a smooth brand transition from Versus to NBC Sports Network.
Keith Groller at the Allentown (PA) Morning Call can’t believe Two and a Half Men actually beat the NFL in the ratings thus far.
Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner says Fox is concerned about winning the night, not low ratings projections for the World Series.
The Orlando Sentinel has a primer on how fans can watch tonight’s Central Florida-UAB game.
From the Dallas Morning News, Barry Horn writes that local ratings for the World Series were not as good as St. Louis’.
John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer notes that E:60 did a piece on a local woman whose husband had to work on her after a bicycle accident.
George Hesselberg at the Wisconsin State Journal notes that outgoing MLB Commissioner Bud Selig got a sweetheart deal from the University of Wisconsin to use an office to write his memoirs and so he can also watch MLB Network which is usually not available on campus.
Dan Caesar from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says Game 1 of the World Series ended too quickly for Fox’s liking.
Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News looks at the US TV bidding for the 2018/’22 World Cups.
Tom has your football schedule for the weekend complete with pictures of his new sweetheart, ESPN’s Jenn Brown.
Sports Media Watch has the final ratings of this year’s League Championship Series.
Steve Lepore at Puck The Media says Versus got low viewership for Colorado-Toronto on Monday.
Steve has some ideas for NHL Overtime on Versus.
Matt Yoder of Awful Announcing has video of Joe Buck apologizing to America before last night’s World Series Game 1. Joe Buck is such as a jerk.
I have to end it there. I keep getting interrupted and I can’t anything done. Back later.
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