Fang's Bites

Springing Out The Thursday Linkage

Let’s provide the links on this very Spring-like Thursday. The sun is out in Southern New England after the April showers of this week. Nice to see the skies bright instead of being gray and drab as like the last few days.

We begin with Kelly McBride of the Poynter Institute writing in her role as ESPN Ombudsman. She says the new ESPN guidelines on endorsements are a good start, but still don’t go far enough.

Sofia M. Fernandez from the Hollywood Reporter says despite a $30 million loan from Fox and hopes of a 20 year contract with Fox Sports Net to solve money troubles, Major League Baseball still stepped in and took over control of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

TMZ reports that Fox is not interested in repurchasing the Dodgers.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says despite MLB taking over the Dodgers, we haven’t heard the last from owner Frank McCourt.

Darren wonders if Major League Baseball is having an attendance problem.

Darren finds in what sports Americans like to participate.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News says World Fishing Network has struck a deal with the National Cable TV Cooperative.

David Kiefaber of Adweek looks at a new outdoor ad campaign featuring Mike Tyson. Yes, Mike Tyson.

Carolyn Braff of Sports Video Group says Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia was kept on its toes last Saturday as it had to scramble through weather issues to cover four teams.

Marcus Vanderberg at SportsNewser has the latest addition to the ESPN.com/Captain Blowhard project.

At ESPN Front Row, Kevin Ota explains how ESPN wants to make the digital media experience more personal for users.

Michael S. Schmidt and Richard Sandomir of the New York Times take a look at MLB taking control of the Dodgers.

Bob Fernandez of the Philadelphia Inquirer explores Comcast SportsNet Bay Area’s move to produce live sportscasts for NBC’s KNTV and if it could happen in Philly.

Frank Seravalli of the Inquirer says the NHL and NBC could very well choose the Flyers for the Winter Classic on January 2, 2012.

From the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog, Dan Steinberg has the radio call of last night’s game winning goal in the 2nd overtime of Game 4 of Caps-Rangers.

The Naples (FL) Daily News says a minor league baseball team will have selected games on the local ESPN Radio affiliate.

Mel Bracht from the Daily Oklahoman has quotes from ESPN’s Jon Gruden about the NFL Draft and yes, there are several “this guy” references.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer notes that today’s Arizona-Reds game will be aired on MLB Network, but there’s one interesting caveat.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel also has some thoughts from Gruden about a Wisconsin draft prospect.

Ed Sherman from Crain’s Chicago Business says tonight is going to be a big night for the local Comcast SportsNet affiliate.

The Reno (NV) Gazette Journal notes that ESPN2′s Friday Night Boxing series is coming to town.

In the Tucson (AZ) Citizen, Victor Rodriguez talks with NBC’s Andrea Kremer about covering the NFL in the locker room.

Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times couldn’t be happier to see MLB step in and take control of the Dodgers away from Frank McCourt.

Bill Shakin of the Times writes that the Dodgers could be in legal limbo for the foreseeable future.

The Los Angeles Daily News has a timeline of the tumultuous McCourt ownership of the Dodgers.

Alan Brettman of The Oregonian says unlike ESPN, other TV networks are not publishing a list of endorsement deals by their announcers.

Ferd Lewis at the Honolulu Advertiser says ESPN’s networks will air three Hawaii football games this fall.

Ferd says Hawaiians don’t understand why they’re being blacked out of San Francisco Giants games.

Julie DiCaro from Aerys Sports says MLB continues to drop the ball when it comes to catering to female fans.

Terrence Henderson from the T Dog Media Blog looks at the NBC Sports Group deal with the NHL.

Sports Media Watch says MLB on Fox’s ratings are up for the first two weeks of the season.

SMW says NASCAR on Fox’s ratings for the last two races are a mixed bag.

Steve Lepore of Puck The Media says last night in the NHL was made for the new NBC/Versus deal, but we won’t see it until next year.

Steve also has five suggestions to make the Black Friday NHL game on NBC into a special event.

Friend of Fang’s Bites Jason Clinkscales of A Sports Scribe talks about starting up a new podcast and another Friend of Fang’s Bites will be his guest.

Matt Yoder of Awful Announcing lists the Top 13 Craziest calls by NESN’s Jack Edwards.

And we’re done for today with the links.

Let’s Do Some Sunday Linkage

Time for the Sunday links. Quite a few to get to.

Dennis Dodd from CBSSports.com looks at the increasing rights fees for college football.

Erick Smith of USA Today says the University of Miami is in talks with ESPN about a “Hard Knocks”-type reality show for its football team.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News says Sportsman Channel and World Fishing Network have been picked up by Comcast systems in Philadelphia.

The Inside Track girls at the Boston Herald tells us that another non-sports show premiered on NESN last night.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post actually praises YES for using replays properly and advises Yankees radio analyst Suzyn Waldman to not cover for John Sterling’s shortcomings on play-by-play.

The Albany Times Union notes that Red Sox fans in the Capital Region can start asking for NESN National.

Kevin Cowherd from the Baltimore Sun talks with former CNN Sports Tonight co-anchor Nick Charles who is trying to hang on despite a vicious bout with cancer.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner notes that four networks are covering the NBA playoffs.

Scott Ferrall of the Shreveport (LA) Times talks about how ESPN changed the date for this year’s Independence Bowl making it hard for fans to attend.

Kevin Kelly of the Cincinnati Enquirer talks with ESPN/ABC’s Brent Musburger about his upcoming Sportscasting Hall of Fame honor.

Michael C. Lewis in the Salt Lake Tribune says Utah’s move to the Pac 12 could end up being financially beneficial to the school thanks to its new TV contract.

Diane Pucin of the Los Angeles Times says TNT and ESPN have different approaches to producing NBA games.

Sports Media Watch has some various ratings news and notes.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media has Versus’ ratings for Night 2 of the NHL Playoffs.

And that’s going to be it. Not too many links today, but it’s all about quality, not quantity.

Season 3 of World Fishing Network’s Hookin’ Up with Mariko Izumi Premieres Monday

Some of you may have World Fishing Network. Some of you don’t. Others may have never heard of it. I’m in the second category. I don’t have it. But thanks to press releases sent to me by WFN’s PR department, I have definitely heard of it. I posted the press release touting the 2nd season of Hookin’ Up with Mariko Izumi earlier this year, and when I received one promoting the 3rd season premiering on Monday, I figured I should be consistent.

So without further ado, I give you a picture of the lovely Mariko.

And here’s the press release.

WFN: WORLD FISHING NETWORK’S HOOKIN’ UP WITH MARIKO IZUMI KICKS OFF SEASON THREE ON MONDAY, NOV. 1, 2010 @ 7:30 PM, ET

Stops This Season Include Florida, Maryland, Toronto, St. Thomas & Cabo San Lucas Mexico, Among Other Places

DENVER, CO. – OCT. 28, 2010 – With her rod, reel and bikini packed, Mariko Izumi is once again traveling the globe in pursuit of fishy adventures on Hookin’ Up with Mariko Izumi, on WFN: World Fishing Network, North America’s only 24-hour fishing lifestyle network. Beginning November 1, at 7:30 pm ET, and airing every Monday night, Mariko will show viewers how to have fun on and off the water on their next fishing vacation. For a complete schedule and additional information, visit www.wfn.tv/hookinup.

Hookin’ Up with Mariko Izumi follows the world’s sexiest angler on her journey to meet the coolest people in the hottest fishing spots. At each stop, Mariko is charged with completing fishing-related tasks while exploring the local fishing scene. Whether she’s whetting a line with some of the best anglers or partying at the wildest hotspot, Mariko’s inviting style offers viewers a fun and fresh look at each destination.

Her 2010-2011 travel dossier includes stops in Boca Grande, FL; Ocean City, MD; Toronto, ON; Lake Powell, AZ; St. Thomas, USVI; Cabo San Lucas, Mexico; Langara Island, BC; Atlanta, GA; and Denver, CO.

Here’s a sneak peak at the first four shows on tap for this season:

Nov. 1, 2010 – Boca Grande, Florida: Watch as Mariko goes hunting for tarpon and gets spooked by a hammerhead shark during her adventures with Joe Mercurio and the Professional Tarpon Tournament Series crew.

Nov. 8, 2010 – Ocean City, Maryland: Mariko hooks up with her fishing buddies in Ocean City to compete with one another in whatever they can get their hands on, including some hungry sharks.

Nov. 15, 2010 – Toronto, Ontario - In her hometown celebrating Canada Day and fishing for Salmon with her dad and best friend, Mariko discovers there’s a lot she didn’t know about her city.

Nov. 22, 2010 – Lake Powell, Arizona - Mariko and Jarrett Edwards go on a full-day adventure, complete with secret canyons and bass fishing.

If you have a chance to watch this show, let me know how it is. Maybe I’ll even let you do a guest column to review it.

Some Press Releases Promoting This Week’s Programming

Let’s do some press release action tonight before I sleep. Worked all weekend and need to sleep, but in my commitment to you, I post some press releases.

To show that Hot Stove baseball coverage isn’t just solely for MLB Network, ESPN premieres Baseball Tonight on Monday afternoon.

Baseball Tonight to Debut Weekday Shows January 11

SportsCenter Team Previews Also Set to Begin

Baseball Tonight, ESPN’s signature Major League Baseball highlights, news and information show, will debut weekday episodes beginning Monday, Jan. 11, at 3:30 p.m. ET.  The daily 30-minute editions will mark the first time the show has consistently been scheduled in an afternoon time slot during the offseason. The daily afternoon shows will continue until mid-March, when the show shifts back to its regular season schedule (generally 10 p.m. and midnight ET).

“Baseball Tonight is a destination place for fans seeking ‘hot stove’ news and information,” said Mark Gross, senior vice president and managing editor, studio production. “Baseball provides year-round content and a regular afternoon time slot better serves fans, formalizing coverage we are known for providing in the months leading up to Spring Training.”

Baseball Tonight, hosted by Karl Ravech, will provide the latest news and information on free agency and in-depth information on all teams heading into Spring Training, including perspective from a deep roster of contributors including analysts John Kruk, Tim Kurkjian, Buster Olney, Buck Showalter, Chris Singleton, Bobby Valentine and Dave Winfield.  Additional contributors covering local beats include: 1050 ESPN Radio’s Andrew Marchand (New York) and ESPNBoston.com’s Gordon Edes, ESPNChicago.com’s Nick Friedell and Bruce Levine, ESPNDallas.com’s Richard Durrett, and ESPNLosAngeles.com’s Tony Jackson and Mark Saxon.

SportsCenter Team Previews

ESPN’s SportsCenter will begin offering team previews beginning Monday, Jan. 11.  Ravech will host the segments, which will include Kurkjian and Olney combining to share their “best move” so far and suggested “next move” of the offseason for each team.  Additionally, Ravech and Kruk will team in discussing each team’s top moment from the 2009 season.

SportsCenter team previews during the first week will include the New York Yankees (Jan. 11), Philadelphia Phillies (Jan. 12), Boston Red Sox (Jan. 13), Los Angeles Dodgers (Jan. 14), Anaheim Angels (Jan. 15) and St. Louis Cardinals (Jan. 16).

I don’t have World Fishing Network and I don’t know how many of you do, but I’m only posting this because the host is very attractive and it gives me an excuse to post this:

She’s Mariko Izumi and she hosts a show called Hookin’ Up with Mariko Izumi. It’s already been on for one season on WFN. The second season premieres Monday.

WFN: WORLD FISHING NETWORK’S HOOKIN’ UP WITH MARIKO IZUMI SEASON 2 CASTS OFF IN MIAMI ON JANUARY 11 AT 7:30 PM ET

Season 2 Adds Reality Element and Stops in Portland, SF, Belize and Montreal

DENVER, CO. – JAN. 6, 2010 – WFN: World Fishing Network, North America’s only 24-hour fishing lifestyle network, today announced the second season of Hookin’ Up with Mariko Izumi will cast off from Miami, FL, on Monday, January 11, at 7:30 pm ET.  New episodes will air every Monday leading into WFN’s Big Bass Monday theme night.  For a complete schedule visit www.wfn.tv. 

In Miami, Mariko catches a sandbar shark one mile off of the South Beach Strip; she learns to trapeze at The Flying Trapeze School in downtown Miami; and then took DJ lessons with Scratch DJ Academy in Miami.

Hookin’ Up with Mariko Izumi follows the world’s sexiest angler as she travels the globe to meet the coolest people in the hottest fishing spots. This season the show adds an element of “reality” as Mariko takes on a series of fishing-related challenges in each location. Whether it is cooking with a world famous chef, partying at the wildest hotspot in town or fishing with some of the best anglers, Mariko’s inviting style offers viewers a fun and fresh look at each destination. Her 2010 travel dossier includes stops in Miami, Portland, San Francisco, Washington/Maryland, Belize and Montreal. 

This Thursday, Fox Soccer Channel’s popular call-in show, Fox Football Fone-In takes its show on the road from Los Angeles to Philadelphia.

Special Three-Hour Live Edition of Fox Soccer Channel’s Weekly Call-In Show to Originate from NSCAA Convention in Philadelphia

Los Angeles, CA (January 7, 2010) – For six years, Fox Football Fone-In has given passionate soccer supporters an opportunity to have their say on national television.

Now, some of the most knowledgeable fans in the country – members of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America – will be able to sound off in person during a special edition of Fox Soccer Channel’s popular weekly call-in show, live from the 2010 NSCAA Convention in Philadelphia on Thursday, Jan. 14 from 7-10 p.m. ET. 

Fox Football Fone-In hits the road and expands to three hours as hosts Nick Webster and Eric Wynalda – a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame – and show contributor Temryss Lane visit the City of Brotherly Love.  They will be joined during the program by Fox Soccer Channel personalities Christopher Sullivan, Bobby McMahon and Mark Rogondino.

In addition to live questions and comments from Convention attendees, as well as the show’s always-opinionated callers and e-mailers, the Fone-In team will interview leading figures from throughout the U.S. soccer community. Among the guests scheduled to appear are Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber, NSCAA President Randy Waldrum, Women’s Professional Soccer Commissioner Tonya Antonucci, United Soccer Leagues President Tim Holt, Houston Dynamo Head Coach Dominic Kinnear, North Carolina Head Women’s Soccer Coach Anson Dorrance and George Gelnovatch, head men’s soccer coach at Virginia (guests subject to change).

For a second straight year, the National Soccer Hall of Fame Induction Class will be announced live on Fox Soccer Channel, while WPS will unveil its new Official Match Ball for the 2010 season during the telecast.

Fox Football Fone-In – which also airs every Monday from 7-9 p.m. ET – gives passionate soccer fans the ultimate say, and provides a live and dynamic forum for soccer enthusiasts to share their views on a variety of soccer topics and news items. Viewers are encouraged to call 1-888-FOX-FANS or TEXT 32369 for an opportunity to voice their opinions. Topics of conversation include the UEFA Champions League, England’s Barclays Premier League, MLS, U.S. National Team, European leagues and tournaments as well as the rumors, scandals and trades surrounding soccer worldwide. Everything is up for discussion, and no soccer subject is taboo! 

WHAT: Special three-hour edition of Fox Football Fone-In

Live from the NSCAA Convention in Philadelphia

WHEN: Thursday, January 14 from 7-10 p.m. ET on Fox Soccer Channel

HOW:   Fox Soccer Channel is available through affiliated cable systems including Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Charter and Cox, as well as through DirecTV, Dish Network, AT&T U-Verse and Verizon FiOS. For more information, visit Fox Soccer Channel online at foxsoccer.com.

And congratulations to NBC Sports which has won a prestigious Eclipse Award from the National Thoroughbred Racing Association for a documentary on Mine That Bird.

NBC SPORTS WINS NATIONAL TELEVISION MEDIA ECLIPSE AWARD FOR MINE THAT BIRD FEATURE

The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), Daily Racing Form and the National Turf Writers Association have announced that NBC Sports has won the 2009 Media Eclipse Award in the National Television Feature programming category for its documentary “The Story of Mine That Bird, 50-1”, which aired at the beginning of its Preakness Stakes telecast on May 16, 2009.  

This is the third National Television Feature Media Eclipse Award for NBC, which previously won the award in 2002 and in 2005. 

“The Story of Mine That Bird,” produced by Rob Hyland and Jack Felling, recounted the incredible tale of a lightly regarded 3-year-old who came from New Mexico - and from last place -, to win the 2009 Kentucky Derby. The documentary was narrated by Bob Costas.

According to Hyland, the documentary started to take shape shortly after Mine That Bird hit the wire in the Derby. “In conversations with Sam Flood (NBC Sports’ Coordinating Producer), we had to tell the story of a how a 50-1 longshot came to win the Derby,” said Hyland.  “There were so many layers of the story, filled with high drama, that we needed to let the viewers know.”

Supported by interviews with Mine That Bird’s owners, Dr. Leonard Blach and Mark Allen; trainer Chip Woolley and jockey Calvin Borel, NBC reached back to the colt’s 2-year-old season, his disappointing Derby preps at Sunland Park, Woolley’s 1,500-mile van ride to the Derby and his “walkover”’ to the Churchill Downs paddock while on crutches, and the jubilation of the connections following the race.  

“We edited around the clock for the next 12 days right up until the Preakness, as more parts to the story were unfolding,” Hyland added. Those unfolding events included the sale of Kentucky Oaks winner Rachel Alexandra to Jess Jackson; Rachel Alexandra’s entry in the Preakness; and Borel’s decision to get off Mine That Bird to ride the filly in racing’s second jewel of the Triple Crown. 

“Telling this story is the true essence of horse racing,” said Hyland. “It reminds us that anything can happen on any given day. For me, personally, it’s a true honor to win an Eclipse Award because my wife’s father is a horse trainer.” Hyland is married to Michelle Matz, daughter of Michael Matz, who trained 2006 Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro.
 

Honorable mention in the National Television Feature programming category went to HRTV for “Inside Information - Nowhere to Run” about recovery efforts at the Fair Grounds race track in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. The program aired on September 6, 2009. Amy Zimmerman was executive producer.
Judges in the National Television - Features category were Howard Sudberry, former sports director of WBBM- TV - Chicago; Peter Lasser of Lasser Productions and G.D. Hieronymus, Director of Broadcast Services for Keeneland Association. 

 
The Eclipse Awards are named after the great 18th-century racehorse and foundation sire Eclipse, who began racing at age five and was undefeated in 18 starts, including eight walkovers. Eclipse sired the winners of 344 races, including three Epsom Derbies. 

The Eclipse Awards are presented by the NTRA, National Turf Writers Association (NTWA) and Daily Racing Form. Eclipse Awards are bestowed upon horses and individuals whose outstanding achievements in North America have earned them the title of Champion in their respective categories. Awards also are given to recognize members of the media for outstanding coverage of Thoroughbred racing. 

And we’re done for now. We’re back tomorrow.