Fang's Bites

On To The Tuesday Links

Let’s get your Tuesday linkage up and posted today. Good stuff to get to.

Variety’s Stuart Levine talks with NBC Sports Chairman Mark Lazarus about the Versus rebrand to NBC Sports Network and other subjects.

The Associated Press has Lazarus hopeful that he can make former NBC Sports Emperor Dick Ebersol proud.

Brian Steinberg at Advertising Age writes that NBC’s rebrand of Versus plus having the Super Bowl this season puts the network in position to be a real challenger to ESPN.

Marisa Guthrie in the Hollywood Reporter’s Live Feed blog says NBC’s top brass was never worried about losing NFL games this season.

Etan Vlessing of the Hollywood Reporter writes that Canada’s Rogers Communications will stream live video of Toronto Blue Jays games online and on smartphones starting this month.

Georg Szalai of the Reporter notes that Fox Sports is protesting a plan to sell the Los Angeles Dodgers’ media rights. Fox says it agreed to a long-term extension of its current deal with the team, but MLB has rejected it.

To Adweek and Emma Bazilian who says Fox is going to war over the Dodgers’ media rights.

Todd Spangler at Multichannel News writes about AT&T U-verse suddenly dropping ESPN3D citing the high carriage fees and lack of subscribers.

George Winslow of Broadcasting & Cable notes that ESPN has promoted one of its executives.

Marcus Vanderberg of SportsNewser notes that Chicago sportscaster Mike Adamle was cleared of DUI charges.

Cam Martin of SportsNewser looks at Awful Announcing’s Joe Morgan Memorial Tournament that left Craig James as its “winner”.

Ken Kerschbaumer at Sports Video Group wonders if 3-D will have a role in the 2012 London Olympics.

At Outkick The Coverage, Clay Travis says it’s Yahoo! that’s poised to be ESPN’s true sports media rival in the 2nd decade of the 21st Century.

The Sports Biz Miss, Kristi Dosh in the Business of College Sports explains why BCS Automatic Qualifying conferences are not knocking down Boise State’s doors to have the school join their leagues.

Kristi also looks at how the Pac-12 Network will be distributed to several Top 100 media markets within the Conference footprint.

To Yahoo’s Puck Daddy where Sean Leahy talks with ESPN’s John Buccigross about his NHL guilty pleasures.

Jose Martinez of Complex speaks with ESPN’s Erin Andrews about her country music and Saturday Night Live obsessions.

USA Today’s Mike McCarthy also talks with Erin, this time about Twitter and her assessment of her first year on the anchor desk at College GameDay.

All Access reports that Fox Sports Radio is hooking up with Mastercard for a Stand Up to Cancer promotion.

Greg Bordonaro of Hartford Business writes that ESPN plans to take advantage of a Connecticut tax break incentive offer to add more jobs in the state.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union looks at NBC/Versus NHL voice Mike “Doc” Emrick receiving another honor.

Keith Groller of the Allentown (PA) Morning Call catches up with iconic Philadelphia Eagles radio voice Merrill Reese.

Paul Farhi of the Washington Post speaks with outgoing local sports anchor Brett Haber about his decision to leave his local station.

Adam Kilgore of the Post writes that MASN has not exercised the option on Washington Nationals TV voice Bob Carpenter’s contract, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that he won’t be back next season.

ESPN3.com will be streaming a Georgia rivalry high school football game later this month.

Jimmy Burch of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says Big 12 schools decided to compromise on the Longhorn Network for one season.

Randy Riggs of the Austin (TX) American-Statesman writes that means no high school football games on the Longhorn Network for now.

Mike Finger in the Houston Chronicle says the Big 12 did leave open the possibility of having a conference game aired on the Longhorn Network this season.

Anthony Schoettle of the Indianapolis Business Journal says an NBC Sports Group deal to put NFL games on Versus would be a big help to the channel’s IndyCar package.

Bob Wolfley at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel notes that NFL Network and companion RedZone were picked up by Charter Communications.

Bob says Chicago Cubs radio voice Pat Hughes regales in telling stories about the late Marquette coach Al McGuire and their time calling the school’s games together.

In OnMilwaukee, Andy Tarnoff goes behind the scenes during a Brewers game production with the Fox Sports Wisconsin crew.

Aaron Barnhart of the Kansas City Star writes that NBC’s Sunday Night Football crew is ready for the NFL season to start.

Shad Powers of the Desert (CA) Sun says MLB Network came through on Sunday.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News discusses the rebranding of Versus to NBC Sports Network.

In the Daly Planet, John Daly notes that ESPN NASCAR analyst Rusty Wallace has a conflict of interest when calling Nationwide Series races.

Toronto Sports Media says Sirius and XM in Canada might be pulling the plug on The Score radio channel.

The Canadian Sports Media blog has some thoughts on the last week in Canadian sports media.

Sports Media Watch notes that ESPN has brought in former Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Hugh Douglas as a studio NFL analyst.

Dave Kohl at Major League Programs looks at the moves to rebrand of Sporting News Radio and Versus.

And we’re done with the linkage for today.

XM Satellite Radio Offers Every Single MLB Game, But Not Sirius

XM Satellite Radio ramps up for the one sport the satellite service made a huge commitment and that’s baseball. I do wish as a Sirius subscriber that I could listen to the games, but I have other alternatives so I’m crying over spilled milk. But when the merger between Sirius and XM occurred, this is the one sport I was hoping to have, but it’s not going to happen, at least for this year. So, you have XM with the games and here’s the Sirius XM press release.

XM RADIO OFFERS LISTENERS EVERY GAME OF THE 2010 MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL SEASON STARTING APRIL 4

2010 season premieres with the World Series Champion New York Yankees visiting the Boston Red Sox on Opening Night

NEW YORK – SIRIUS XM Radio announced today that every game of the 2010 MLB Championship Season will be available to listeners nationwide on XM Radio starting with Opening Night, April 4, when the World Series Champion New York Yankees visit the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park (8:00 pm ET on XM channel 175).

Through the regular season and post-season, XM will air every game from all 30 Major League teams on XM channels 175 to 189. A schedule of upcoming MLB games on XM can be found at www.xmradio.com/mlb. Listeners can also get Spanish-language broadcasts of games on MLB En Espanol, XM channel 174.

In addition to live play-by-play of every game, SIRIUS XM offers baseball fans 24 hour coverage of the game on MLB Network Radio on XM channel 175 and SIRIUS channel 210 (“Best of XM”). MLB Network Radio, the only radio channel dedicated to covering Major League Baseball seven days a week, 365 days a year, features a daily lineup of call-in talk shows hosted by expert analysts like Cal Ripken Jr., Bill Ripken, Jim Bowden, Rob Dibble, Jim Duquette, Kevin Kennedy, Jeff Nelson, Rico Petrocelli, Mitch Williams and others. 

Ripken Baseball, the weekly show hosted by Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. and Bill Ripken, makes its 2010 season premiere today, April 2, and will air every Friday throughout the season from 12:00-2:00 pm ET. Today’s show will feature live interviews with MLB Commissioner Bud Selig and Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon.

On Sunday, April 4, MLB Network Radio will present an Opening Night special (5:00-8:00 pm ET) featuring an in-depth 2010 season preview and roundtable discussion hosted by Casey Stern and featuring analysis from former All-Star pitcher Rob Dibble, former GMs Jim Bowden and Jim Duquette, former pitcher and four-time World Champion Jeff Nelson, and former manager Kevin Kennedy.

MLB Network Radio will also air MLB Network television programming starting April 4. On Monday, April 5, baseball’s traditional Opening Day, listeners will hear MLB Network’s live coverage from 12:00 pm ET to 1:00 am ET. Throughout the season, MLB Network Radio will also carry MLB Tonight, the network’s live nightly studio show featuring live game look-ins and analysis by Harold Reynolds, Al Leiter, Barry Larkin, Mitch Williams, Bill Ripken, Dan Plesac and others.

For game schedules and more information on MLB programming on SIRIUS XM, please visit www.xmradio.com/mlb.

That’s it.

Lots o’ Press Releases

I have a bunch of press releases to post. Since this is a holiday weekend, the networks’ sports PR departments want to get things out early and be on Cape Cod by Friday at 3 p.m. so the fine people at ESPN, CBS, CNBC and Fox churned stuff out today. It leaves you the Fang’s Bites visitor with plenty to read and a lot to scroll. Let’s get cracking.

ESPN leans on Dick Enberg to remember his first ” Breakfast at Wimbledon” 30 years ago and his first “Supper at Wimbledon” on Monday.

“Don’t Give Up V Foundation Auction” to Include 2010 Range Rover and Mike & Mike in the Morning from a Listener’s Home

Online Items and Experiences July 5-15; Day Long ESPN Radio On-Air Auction July 15

A new 2010 Range Rover luxury vehicle – the Autobiography specification valued at over $100,000* — and ESPN Radio’s Mike & Mike in the Morning broadcasting from a listener’s home highlight the more than 275 items and experiences available for bid in the fifth annual “Don’t Give Up V Foundation Auction” July 5-15. Net proceeds from the auction benefit The V Foundation for Cancer Research.

The majority of the experiences and items will be available through an online component via espnradio.com or ebay.com (July 5-15) – including the Range Rover, donated by Land Rover North America, and Mike & Mike in the Morning — while 26 fan “experiences” will be auctioned in an 18-hour radiothon across ESPN Radio’s six national shows on Wednesday, July 15 beginning at 6 a.m. ET.

Bidding for the Range Rover, the first vehicle ever available in the auction, will begin at $50,000. The 2010 Range Rover Autobiography – the Land Rover flagship vehicle — will feature a series of enhanced elements, including updated exterior revisions providing a more contemporary detailing to the classic Range Rover design; a new 510 bhp supercharged engine; advanced interior technologies, including a virtual instrument panel; and active safety aids highlighted by Adaptive Cruise Control, Emergency Brake Assist, Blind Spot Monitoring and a surround camera system.

For the second consecutive year, the Mike & Mike in the Morning experience will open at $0.99. Last year’s experience, marking the first time it was offered, garnered a winning bid of $57,100, the largest for any item. The morning program is hosted by Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic weekdays from 6 to 10 a.m. ET on ESPN Radio, ESPN2 HD and espnradio.com.

ESPN Radio’s “experiences” will range from special access ticket packages to sporting events and trips to handing Lee Corso the mascot head from behind the College GameDay set to various events at ESPN’s headquarters. Listeners call 1-800-4JimmyV to make bids with the highest bidder at 59 minutes past each hour winning the experience. Items available online will include autographed jerseys, footballs, basketballs, baseballs, guitar, golf club and balls, helmets, books, collector’s player cards and photos. Details of the other auction and online items and experiences are available on espnradio.com.

The fourth annual ESPN Radio “Don’t Give Up V Foundation Auction” set a record by raising $1,130,314 for The V Foundation for Cancer Research, a 323% increase from the inaugural event’s total of $201,000 in 2005. The event has raised more money each year ($435,770 in 2006 and $851,036 in 2007).

The event is one of Team ESPN’s corporate outreach initiatives which will coincide with the ESPY Celebrity Golf Classic on July 14 and the ESPYs July 15 (televised Sunday, July 19 at 9 p.m. on ESPN and ESPN HD).

* Vehicle details: The winner shall receive a 2010 Range Rover Autobiography, inclusive of all standard Autobiography content, standard color and trim options, as well as the Surround Camera System. Additional charge color and trim options may be specified at the auction winners expense.

SportsCenter ‘My Wish’ Series Returns July 5-9

ESPN to Chronicle Five Children’s Unique Sports-Themed Experiences Granted through the Make-A-Wish Foundation^®

For the fourth straight year, ESPN will present its critically acclaimed SportsCenter’s “My Wish” series, which chronicles sports-themed wishes granted to children with life-threatening medical conditions. Stephanie Druley, senior coordinating producer, ESPN, and David Williams, Make-A-Wish Foundation of America president and chief executive officer, announced today that the series will air Sunday, July 5, through Thursday, July 9,.

As part of the series, ESPN will help grant sports-related wishes with leading sports figures to five children referred through the world’s largest wish-granting charity, Make-A-Wish Foundation. Each wish will be the subject of one SportsCenter feature segment.

Similar to previous years, the SportsCenter segment will feature the story behind the wish, interviews with the youngsters and their families and a behind-the-scenes look at the wish fulfilled, including the interaction between each child and his or her favorite athlete. Emmy Award-winning reporter Chris Connelly will again host, and each SportsCenter “My Wish” segment will be taped.

“Sports have a unique way of connecting people to one another, from athlete to fan, and the ‘My Wish’ series continues to share that bond through one-of-a-kind experiences and stories,” Druley said. “The feedback from participants and viewers has been extremely positive year after year and we find that there are always more compelling stories to be told.”

“The ‘My Wish’ series has generated incredible interest in the Make-A-Wish Foundation’s mission during the past three years,” Williams said. “The stories genuinely reflect what Wish children experience every day – from the daunting challenges of a life-threatening medical condition to the unforgettable joy of having their heartfelt wishes granted. We truly appreciate the support of ESPN, The Walt Disney Company and the athletes who give their time to make the children’s wishes such amazing moments.”

ESPN.com will offer additional and complementary content related to the five wish-granting experiences.

With more than 20 original episodes in three years, “My Wish” has offered an unprecedented, behind-the-scenes look at the wish-granting experience and featured the Wish children participating in sports-related activities with their favorite athletes or teams, including: Derek Jeter, Kobe Bryant, Ben Roethlisberger, Todd Helton, Michelle Kwan, Dwyane Wade, Shaquille O’Neal, Tedy Bruschi and NASCAR drivers Jeff Gordon Jimmie Johnson.

DW! Boogity! Boogity! Boogity! Fox Sports NASCAR analyst Darrell Waltrip has been nominated for the Inaugural Class at the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

BOOGITY! BOOGITY! BOOGITY!

Racing Legend Darrell Waltrip a Nominee for Inaugural NASCAR Hall Of Fame

New York, NY – Darrell Waltrip, a three-time NASCAR Champion and the lead analyst for NASCAR on FOX, is among the first nominees vying for a spot in the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s inaugural class, it was announced today on NASCAR.com. It was also revealed today that Waltrip’s long-time rival Bobby Allison is also a nominee for the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s first class. Additional nominees, a pair each day, will be identified tomorrow and Thursday, July 2, before the rest are announced Thursday night during an hour-long special on SPEED at 8:00 PM ET.

Long before flourishing in his current role as the cornerstone of NASCAR on FOX’s broadcast team, Waltrip became one of the sport’s most legendary drivers. Upon retirement in 2000, Waltrip recorded 84 career wins (3^rd all-time) and was Winston Cup Champion in 1981, 1982 and 1985. Clearly, Waltrip’s most memorable victory was the 1989 Daytona 500, his sole career win at the Great American Race.

“My whole career, I‘ve always thought it was cool that other big league sports would refer to their guys as ‘Hall of Famers,’” said Waltrip from his home in Franklin, TN. “I hoped that one day someone would refer to me that way. It‘s the greatest honor a driver can receive, to be in the NASCAR Hall of Fame. It means you must have been pretty good at what you do. I am humbled and excited that my name, Darrell Waltrip, would be under consideration for a spot in the Hall.”

Thursday’s SPEED special will be hosted by long-time NASCAR broadcaster Ken Squier, and immediately following the program, NASCAR.com will provide a gallery of all 25 finalists and will open registration for a fan vote. Nominees were determined by a 21-person Nominating Committee consisting of officials from NASCAR and the NASCAR Hall of Fame, plus owners and operators of major speedways and historic short tracks. The list will represents many who helped build the sport, including drivers, owners and promoters.

Waltrip twice copped the Most Popular Driver Award (1989-90) and was the proud recipient of the prestigious Bill France Award of Excellence in 2000, honoring his lifetime of achievements on the race track. In 2003, Waltrip was elected into the National Motorsports Hall of Fame, an honor followed by an induction into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2005. Through his 29 year racing career, DW captured 59 Cup poles (4^th all-time) and remains the only five-time winner of the Coca-Cola 600 (1978-79, 1985, 1988-89).

The great Darren Rovell of CNBC hosts a new special on the network about the struggles of NASCAR and what it has to do to rebound.

CNBC PRESENTS “INSIDE TRACK: REFUELING THE BUSINESS OF NASCAR”

ORIGINAL CNBC SPECIAL TAKES AN UNPRECEDENTED LOOK AT NASCAR, THE ONCE SEEMINGLY UNSTOPPABLE AND FASTEST GROWING SPORT IN AMERICA

One-Hour Documentary Reported by CNBC’s Sports Business Reporter, Darren Rovell, to Premiere on CNBC on Thursday, July 9th at 9PM, 10PM & 1AM ET

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., June 30, 2009-Every weekend from February to November fans show up to see their favorite driver go bumper to bumper at 180MPH toward the checkered flag. The sport fills some of the largest venues in the world...its a Super Bowl every week.  

On Thursday, July 9th at 9PM, 10PM & 1AM ET, CNBC presents "Inside Track: Refueling the Business of NASCAR," reported by CNBC's Emmy-Nominated Sports Business Reporter, Darren Rovell. CNBC takes viewers inside the world of NASCAR, once the fastest growing sport in America, NASCAR is now threatened by an imploding car business and loss of the corporate dollars that are its very lifeblood.

Unlike any other sport, everything in NASCAR is controlled by one family...the France family. They have maintained an iron grip on a sport where television ratings, corporate sponsorship and the number of fans have seemingly defied gravity. But, after a race to the top, attendance and television ratings are starting to decline and the car manufacturing business, for decades the foundation of the sport, is crumbling. Rovell goes one-on-one with NASCAR chairman & CEO Brian France to discuss how he plans to weather the storm.

Win on Sunday, buy on Monday...once rang true of NASCAR fans, but the Wall Street crisis has changed everything and the companies that pay top dollar to have their logo emblazoned on the hood of cars are carefully watching their investment. Is NASCAR sponsorship  paying off? Is the sport still a good fit for corporate America? Rovell speaks with the key people behind the iconic American brands that have stuck with this sport that was born more than five decades ago.

The program also takes viewers inside the garage of driver-turned-owner, Tony Stewart. When Stewart, the fiery, two-time Sprint Cup champion, isn't racing, he's Tony Stewart-the businessman-and he is just as competitive off the track.  For years, Stewart has owned racetracks, open wheel teams and a remote control car outfit-owning 13 businesses in total. Rovell interviews Stewart about his successful rookie season as a driver-owner and the Stewart-Haas team, which according to Forbes magazine, is worth $80 million dollars.

This hour also features a look at the future of NASCAR and the ways in which the sport is trying to broaden its fan base, add foreign automakers and going green.

Rovell also speaks with NASCAR super stars Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards ,  movie star Kevin Costner; Marcus Smith who runs Speedway Motorsports Inc. and Julie Geary, the ultimate NASCAR fan.

Jeff Pohlman is the Executive Producer of "Inside Track: Refueling the Business of NASCAR." Tom Rotunno is the Producer, Nick Stantzos is the Editor and Tyler Mathisen is CNBC's Managing Editor. Ray Borelli is the Vice President of Strategic Research, Scheduling and Long Form Programming.

For more information including web extras, slideshows and extended video clips, log on to nascar.cnbc.com.

"Inside Track: Refueling the Business of NASCAR" will re-air on Sunday, July 12th at 10PM ET and Monday, July 13th at 10PM ET on CNBC.

Sirius XM, mostly XM Satellite Radio will have the MLB Futures Game on Sunday.

SIRIUS XM RADIO TO AIR EXCLUSIVE BROADCAST OF ALL-STAR FUTURES GAME JULY 12

Longtime major league pitcher Jim Kaat will be the game analyst; SIRIUS XM’s Scott Graham will call play-by-play

Futures Game features top minor league prospects from U.S. and abroad

NEW YORK – June 30, 2009 – SIRIUS XM Radio announced today that it will offer baseball fans an exclusive radio broadcast of the All-Star Futures Game on Sunday, July 12, two days before the 2009 MLB All-Star Game. The All-Star Futures Game will be played at Busch Stadium in St. Louis and features top minor league prospects from the U.S. and abroad.

Veteran major league pitcher Jim Kaat will be the game analyst for the broadcast, which will air live starting with the pre-game at 2:00 pm ET on XM channel 175. Scott Graham, host of SIRIUS XM’s Baseball This Morning talk show, will be the play-by-play voice.

Former Major League Baseball pitcher and longtime broadcaster Jim Kaat, also known as “Kitty,” won 283 games during his 25-year career in Major League Baseball. Best known for his time with the Minnesota Twins, the southpaw won 16 consecutive Gold Gloves from 1962-1977. Following his retirement after the 1983 season, Kaat moved to the broadcast booth, covering three World Series for CBS from 1990-1992, and becoming an analyst for New York Yankees baseball from 1995-2006, where he won seven Emmy Awards. Kaat is now a color commentator for MLB Network’s Thursday Night Baseball series.

Scott Graham has spent over 20 years as a radio and television sportscaster. His work has covered Major League Baseball, the NFL, college football and basketball, and a variety of other sports from golf to volleyball. He has been a play-by-play broadcaster for the Philadelphia Phillies, ESPN, FOX, CBS and a number of national and regional television and radio networks.

The All-Star Futures Game showcases the brightest talent currently in the minor leagues. Rosters include up to two players from each MLB farm system who are assigned to U.S. and World teams based on place of birth. The World team defeated the U.S. team 3-0 in last year’s All-Star Futures Game at Yankee Stadium. This year, Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith will manage the U.S. team and his former Cardinals teammate, Jose Oquendo, now the third base coach for St. Louis, will manage the World team.

On July 4th, CBS airs its NCAA Spring Championships special.

CBS SPORTS TO AIR NCAA SPRING SEASONAL SHOW ON SATURDAY, JULY 4

INDIANAPOLIS — For the seventh consecutive year, all 88 NCAA championships will receive television exposure, including 17 spring sports being featured in a one-hour special. CBS Sports Presents Championships of the NCAA will air at 2 p.m. Eastern, Saturday, July 4, on CBS Sports. Highlights and stories from NCAA baseball, golf, rowing, softball, tennis and outdoor track & field will be featured in the program. For the 2008-09 academic year, CBS Sports will feature half (44) of the NCAA’s 88 championships in its three seasonal shows.

The show focuses on the aspirations of several NCAA student-athletes pursuing their individual and team paths to various national championships, including:

· Division III Rowing – Williams senior Meg Conan overcomes stress fractures in her spine to help defend her teams’ title.

· Division III Men’s Track & Field – The intense rivalry between Abilene Christian and St. Augustine.

· Division I Rowing – Yale senior Christina Person, a member of last years National Championship Varsity Eight Grand Final boat, will pursue a career in the Marines after graduation.

Through the NCAA-CBS 11-year bundled rights agreement, CBS Sports has aired 20 seasonal shows from the three NCAA championship seasons (fall, winter, spring) over the last seven years. Each seasonal show features highlights and unique NCAA student-athlete stories from a variety of NCAA Division II and III championships.

CBS Sports’ Seth Davis will host this edition of CBS Sports Presents Championships of the NCAA. For the fifth consecutive year, the spring program was produced by Deb Boulac. Jonathan Segal, Kimani Morales, Julie Landa and John Paquet served as feature producers. This year’s spring show will again be broadcast entirely in High Definition.

And let’s look at the next episode of National Geographic Channel’s Hooked. Video clips are included.

HOOKED: MONSTER FISH OF THAILAND

Monday, July 6, 2009, at 10 PM ET/PT

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/hooked/4320/Overview

The giant freshwater stingray is a megapredator, a true-life Loch Ness monster that can kill with a swipe of its tail! Amazingly, the elusive leviathan was discovered only 20 years ago and already it’s on the vulnerable list. Fish biologist, conservationist and National Geographic Explorer Zeb Hogan is on a mission to find these remarkable creatures as part of the Megafishes Project, a five-year study supported by the National Geographic Society. He’ll head to Thailand, one of the last places on Earth where the freshwater stingray thrives, to see some with his own eyes, and reel them in for a closer look. Hogan will dive into the murky water to learn more about their mysterious behavior—where they roam, how many there are and which areas need protection.

Be there for the milestone moment when Hogan hooks the biggest stingray he’s ever seen. Measuring more than 11 feet long, it takes 12 men to lift the monster ashore. Based on the dimensions, Hogan believes it could possibly be a world record–breaking fish.

CHACHOENGSAO, THAILAND: Zeb Hogan holds giant freshwater shrimps, the giant stingray’s favorite food. (photo credit © Zeb Hogan)

SAMUTSONGKHRAM, THAILAND: Zeb Hogan with the recaptured giant freshwater stingray. (photo credit © Zeb Hogan)

Video “Giant Food for Giant Fish” – Zeb is in Thailand to find a giant stingray — and by the looks of the local shrimp, he’s in the right place.

Video “Swimming with Stingrays” – Zeb’s getting in the pool with a giant hungry stingray. Now that’s dedication.

Video “Giant Stingray” – Zeb has finally caught a giant stingray, but time is running out to get her weighed for the record books.

There you have it. That’s it for tonight.

NFL Viewing Picks for Week 10, 11/09/08

NFL Gameday Morning – NFL Network, 10 a.m.
The NFL Today – CBS, noon

1 p.m.
CBS Coverage Map
Baltimore at Houston – Ian Eagle/Solomon Wilcots
Buffalo at New England – Dick Enberg/Randy Cross
Jacksonville at Detroit – Kevin Harlan/Rich Gannon
Tennessee at Chicago – Greg Gumbel/Dan Dierdorf

Fox Coverage Map
Green Bay at Minnesota – Joe Buck/Troy Aikman/Pam Oliver
New Orleans at Atlanta – Ron Pitts/Tony Boselli/Charissa Thompson!!!
St. Louis at New York Jets – Kenny Albert/Daryl Johnston/Tony Siragusa
Seattle at Miami – Sam Rosen/Tim Ryan/Chris Myers

4:05 p.m.
Fox Coverage Map
Carolina at Oakland – Dick Stockton/Brian Baldinger/Brian Billick/Laura Okmin

4:15 p.m.
CBS Coverage Map
Indianapolis at Pittsburgh – Jim Nantz/Phil Simms
Kansas City at San Diego – Gus Johson/Steve Tasker

7 p.m.
Football Night in America – NBC

8:15 p.m.
New York Giants at Philadelphia – NBC, Al Michaels/John Madden/Andrea Kremer

11:30 p.m.
NFL Gameday Final – NFL Network

DirecTV Channel Assignments
Sirius Satellite Radio Channel Assignments
XM Satellite Radio Channel Assignments

The Friday Megalinks, Part I

I’m going to do this in two parts as I have several things to do at work. At least you can go through some links at first while I do some paperwork.

As usual, it’s the Weekend Viewing Picks.

Well, thanks to the miracle comeback by the Red Sox last night, Game 6 of the American League Championship Series takes place at Tropicana Field Saturday at 8:07 p.m. on TBS. If the Red Sox can win with an injured Josh Beckett over the Rays on Saturday, then Game 7 would be on Sunday in St. Petersburg also at 8:07 p.m.

For college football, ABC has Texas-Missouri in primetime and sister network ESPN will have its College Gameday show live from Austin, TX in the morning. Those who have the Raycom SEC syndicated Game of the Week can see Vanderbilt-Georgia at 12:30 p.m. That game can also be seen on ESPN’s Gameplan PPV package. The College Football Viewing Picks have the national schedule.

Over to the NFL, CBS has the doubleheader with Indianapolis at Green Bay being the featured game. The Sunday Night game on NBC has Seattle at Tampa Bay, but the significance of that game is that John Madden won’t be in the booth as he gets an extremely rare week off. Cris Collinsworth travels to Tampa to call the game with Al Michaels. The NFL Viewing Picks have all of your games on Sunday.

Other events this weekend include a boxing pay per view event from Atlantic City as Kelly Pavlik fights the venerable Bernard Hopkins in a light heavyweight bout. HBO PPV has it at 9 p.m.

NASCAR is in Tennessee for the TUMS QuikPak 500 and ABC will carry that on Sunday afternoon at 1:30.

The PGA Tour is on the cusp of Silly Season as something called the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospital for Children Open in Las Vegas takes place over the weekend. Golf Channel has that at 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

The LPGA Tour is in Hawaii for the Kapalua Classic and Golf Channel has coverage of that tournament at 8:30 p.m., Saturday and Sunday.

The NHL is in full swing and you can check out the schedules for this weekend over at NHL.com.

Now let’s do your links.

National

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand and Michael McCarthy debate whether it’s time for NBC’s John Madden to retire.

The Sports Media Watch says the National League Championship Series will finish as the lowest rated LCS in broadcast television history.

A few links from CNBC’s Darren Rovell. First, he talks about why the NFL doesn’t have the locker room champagne celebrations that MLB does. Darren says as expected, the Dallas Cowboys dominate jersey sales. And Darren looks for signs that ticket buying is slowing down in the financial crunch.

Joe Favorito discusses how one rotisserie play website is actually putting its money where its mouth is.

The Eye on Sports Media blog says the ACC’s announcement of its men’s basketball TV schedule is a bit deceptive.

Maury Brown’s Biz of Baseball blog tells us that the Tribune Company may retain a larger ownership stake in the Cubs than originally thought due to the current financial crunch.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Nancy Marrapese-Burrell talks with Comcast SportsNet’s Donny Marshall about his expanded role on Celtics road games.

Bill Doyle of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette talks with a local native who works for ESPN and had to follow the Barry Bonds circus last year.

The Sox & Dawgs blog has the funny video of TBS imposing Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith into the Fenway Park crowd last night. And Sox & Dawgs also has TBS’ Harold Reynolds finally admitting he was out some 19 years later.

The New York Times’ Richard Sandomir reports that CBS College Sports is laying off 30 employees as it refocuses its programming.

To the New York Post where WFAN-hater Phil Mushnick goes after Mike Francesa for cutting off his co-host wannabes.

The Post’s Justin Terranova talks with Fox Sports’ Troy Aikman about the tumultuous week for the Dallas Cowboys and what it means for the New York Football Giants. And Justin has five questions for XM’s Rob Dibble.

Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News criticizes everything baseball today.

Newsday’s Neil Best says while Fox and TBS could have used a New York team in the MLB postseason, the #1 market in the US still likes to watch its baseball. Neil has a story from Fox Sports’ Ed Goren about Tim McCarver from the 1991 World Series. And Neil has more on New York watching baseball just to see the Red Sox lose.

A couple of things from Laura Nachman’s Philadelphia TV and radio blog. First, she mentions that the National League Championship Series cleaned up in the ratings on Wednesday. And she introduces Philly to a new sports anchor on the local Fox affiliate.

Ray Frager of the Baltimore Sun has a bunch of news and notes in his Friday column.

The DC Examiner’s Jim Williams talks with ESPN Radio’s Colin Cowherd about his show being pre-empted two days a week in DC.

Tim Lemke of the Washington Times says don’t really believe that Fox is really disappointed about the Dodgers losing the NLCS.

South

Doug Nye of The State remembers listening to LSU football on the radio as a kid.

Dave Darling of the Orlando Sentinel wonders how the NFL TV scheduling gets done.

Ray Buck of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram talks with new ESPN NBA analyst Magic Johnson about the Dallas Mavericks.

In the Houston Chronicle, David Barron writes about a new film on Texas A&M’s 12th Man tradition that premieres on Fox Sports Houston this weekend.

Now to Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News. Barry has the list of nominees for the Lone Star Emmy Awards. Barry also has the NFL TV schedule for Dallas-Fort Worth.

Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman talks about the new NBA’s Oklahoma City Thunder’s radio voice working solo this season. Mel writes that the Thunder will drop a delay in the radio broadcast so fans inside the arena can follow the action. And Mel has his media news and notes today.

Ok, that’s Part I. I’ll have Part II of the links coming up later.

A Routine Friday Megalinks

Another Friday, another edition of the Megalinks. Lots of media stories to get to, never enough time so let’s get to them and as always, there’s the Weekend Viewing Picks.

The League Division Series are well underway. Both National League series are 2-0 with possibilities of sweeps on Saturday. The American League series resume tonight and then start again on Sunday. TBS has complete coverage of the LDS throughout the weekend. Tonight, the White Sox try to even their series with Tampa Bay at 6 then the Red Sox-Angels follow with Game 2 of their series at 9:37. On Saturday, both NL series are on tap as the locales change. First pitch for Game 3 of Phillies-Brewers is scheduled for 6:37 p.m., then Cubs-Dodgers is scheduled for 10:07. The schedule of games along with announcer assignments can be seen here.

Over to the NFL where Week 5 is highlighted by Washington-Philadelphia, Chicago-Detroit, New England-San Francisco, Cincinnati-Dallas and then Pittsburgh-Jacksonville in primetime. The entire schedule for Sunday along with announcing assignments, coverage maps, DirecTV channel assignments and satellite radio channels are in my NFL Viewing Picks.

College football has some intriguing matchups in conference play on Saturday. Ohio State-Wisconsin on ABC in primetime and Auburn-Vandy on ESPN are among your featured games. ESPN’s College Gameday continues its exclusive SEC tour by being live from the Vandy campus in Tennessee. College Football Viewing Picks have the nationally and regionally televised games.

The NHL begins the season with a doubleheader in Europe on both Saturday and Sunday. The New York Rangers play a pair of games in the Czech Republic at noon, both days, then 2.5 hours later, Ottawa and Pittsburgh square off in Stockholm, Sweden. CBC will have the opening day doubleheader on Saturday. Versus carries both games on Sunday.

NASCAR heads to Talladega for the Amp Energy 500. ABC has it Sunday at 2 p.m.

HBO’s Boxing After Dark has a tripleheader Saturday night at 10:05.

CBS has what could be its last Mixed Martial Arts Elite XC broadcast, Saturday night at 9.

For golf fans, the PGA Tour heads to the Turning Stone Resort Championship in New York for its first tournament of its Fall Swing. Golf Channel has coverage throughout the weekend at 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. NBC has exclusive coverage of the LPGA World Championship, Saturday at 12:30 p.m. and Sunday at 4 p.m.

Now to the links.

National

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand discusses ESPN’s excellent Sports Reporters program turning 20.

Christopher Byrne’s Eye on Sports Media blog has a good interview with ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit.

The Orbitcast blog says the NBA signed a new contract with XM Satellite Radio, but will still be heard on Sirius receivers.

Joe Favorito looks at the way the New Jersey Nets are tapping into different ethnic communities.

Maury Brown’s Biz of Baseball site looks inside the decrease in attendance for MLB this season.

Alex Weprin of Broadcasting & Cable writes about ESPN rebranding its European channel from NASN to ESPN America.

East & Mid-Atlantic

David Scott of Boston Sports Media Watch looks at the East Coast-West Coast feud between Gerry Callahan of the Boston Herald and TJ Simers of the Los Angeles Times.

Nancy Marrapese-Burrell of the Boston Globe talks with Fox Sports’ Joe Buck about the MLB postseason.

Bill Doyle of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette says the financial crunch has claimed the radio voice of the Tornadoes.

Dan Lamonthe’s Red Sox Monster blog hates TBS’ coverage of the Red Sox-Angels series.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times writes about the preparations of the MLB Network which launches on January 1 on many major cable and satellite systems.

Phil Mushnick in the New York Post feels TBS has gone overboard with the Frank TV plugs.

Justin Terranova of the Post talks with TBS’ Cal Ripken, Jr. about the MLB postseason and somehow, Cal’s name is misspelled halfway down the story. Justin has five questions for MSG’s NHL analyst Joe Micheletti about the Rangers’ trip to Europe.

Newsday’s Neil Best talks about SNY/TBS’ Ron Darling getting into shape and also discusses a potential war breaking out at WFAN. In his blog, Neil says he feels partly responsible for the war. Neil has an item that got bumped from his column concerning displaced NFL fans. Neil writes that Islanders fans are angry that their team was not on TV during exhibition season while the Rangers were on plenty of times.

The New York Daily News’ Bob Raissman feels Yankees GM Brian Cashman still has a few things to learn about dealing with the media.

Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette says Dan Patrick is having fun doing his nationally syndicated radio show.

Laura Nachman says Jody McDonald is back on the Philadelphia airwaves after recuperating from heart bypass surgery.

To Ray Frager of the Baltimore Sun who writes that the Ravens did not resonate nationally during its Monday night game with the Steelers on ESPN. In his blog, Ray says Orioles TV voice Gary Thorne is returning to MASN for next season.

Tim Lemke of the Washington Times has his five sports picks for viewing.

South

Doug Nye of The State is enjoying TBS’ coverage of the MLB postseason.

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald says the Dolphins-Chargers game is close to being blacked out in the local area.

Dave Darling of the Orlando Sentinel writes that Bright House cable is launching its own sports channel.

Ted Fleming of the Tampa Bay Examiner is not a fan of TBS.

Jeff Calkins of the Memphis Commercial Appeal says ESPN’s College Gameday coming to Vanderbilt this weekend was a good choice.

Ray Buck of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says fans without cable or satellite are out of luck for the League Division Series.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News looks at the college football offerings in the Metroplex. Barry talks about two media conflicts at the Dallas Cowboys offices this week.

David Barron in the Houston Chronicle says the TV and radio broadcast teams are set for the Rockets.

Midwest

Marc Katz of the Dayton Daily News says baseball is nice, but watching football is better.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that TBS’ crew caught the drama in the at-bat that turned yesterday’s Brewers-Phillies game into Philadelphia’s favor.

Ted Cox of the Chicago Daily Herald has readers’ reaction to the city’s baseball announcers.

Mike Zuidema of the Grand Rapids (MI) Press talks with a local NASCAR radio announcer.

Paul Christian of the Rochester Post-Bulletin is not happy with TBS’ late MLB playoff games.

Dan Caesar from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says the exile of talk show host Kevin Slaten ends on Monday.

The St. Louis Business Journal says the Blues will have 36 of its games aired in high definition.

West

Scott D. Pierce of the Deseret (UT) News says tonight’s BYU-Utah State will be available on local TV.

The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Jay Posner speaks with TBS’ Tony Gwynn about the Cubs-Dodgers series. Jay has the ratings from last weekend in San Diego.

John Maffei of the North County Times writes that Padres TV voice Matt Vasgergian would like to return next year, but at a reduced schedule.

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star looks at The Sports Reporters’ 20th anniversary.

The Los Angeles Times’ Steve Springer says FSN Prime Ticket’s crew crossed the line in rooting for the Dodgers.

From the Los Angeles Daily News, Tom Hoffarth also analyzes the Sports Reporters turning 20. In his weekly column, Tom writes about Warren Sapp’s week as he multitasks between the NFL Network, Dancing with the Stars and Inside the NFL. Tom has the first part of his extensive media notes. And part 2 of the media notes can be seen here.

Gary Washburn of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer says Fox Sports’ Tony Siragusa plays the role of the everyman for the NFL “B” announcing team.

That’s going to do it.

NFL Viewing Picks for Week 5, 10/05/08

NFL Gameday Morning – NFL Network, 10 a.m.
Fox NFL Sunday – Fox, noon

1 p.m.
CBS Coverage Map
Indianapolis at Houston – Greg Gumbel/Dan Dierdorf
Kansas City at Carolina – Kevin Harlan/Rich Gannon
Tennessee at Baltimore – Ian Eagle/Solomon Wilcots
San Diego at Miami – Screamin’ Gus Johnson/Steve Tasker

Fox Coverage Map
Atlanta at Green Bay – Ron Pitts/Tony Boselli/Charissa Thompson!!!
Chicago at Detroit – Matt Vasgerian/Brian Baldinger/Brian Billick/Laura Okmin
Washington at Philadelphia – Joe Buck/Troy Aikman/Pam Oliver
Seattle at New York Giants – Kenny Albert/Daryl Johnston/Tony Siragusa

4:05 p.m.
Fox Coverage Map
Tampa Bay at Denver – Chris Myers/Tim Ryan/Tom Helmer

4:15 p.m.
CBS Coverage Map
Buffalo at Arizona – Bill Macatee/Steve Beuerlein
Cincinnati at Dallas – Jim Nantz/Phil Simms
New England at San Francisco – Dick Enberg/Randy Cross/Dan Fouts

7 p.m.
Football Night in America – NBC

8:15 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Jacksonville – NBC, Al Michaels/John Madden/Andrea Kremer

11:30 p.m.
NFL Gameday Final – NFL Network

DirecTV Channel Assignments
Sirius Satellite Radio Channel Assignments
XM Satellite Radio Channel Assignments

A Fall-like Saturday Morning Linkfest

I got up this morning and saw it was 47 degrees in Rhode Island. It’s cold. The temps are warming up now, but this feels like mid-October.

Let’s do your links.

Newsday’s Neil Best thought it was funny that SportsCenter anchor Stan Verrett didn’t know “Duck, Duck, Goose”. Neil also previews what YES will show in its pregame for the Yankee Stadium farewell.

Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball talks about the first reversal under the Instant Replay system. Maury also looks at ESPN’s and MLB.com’s coverage of the farewell to Yankee Stadium on Sunday.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union doesn’t like the way Fox is treating baseball as it heads to the postseason. Judging from the announcing assignments from last week and today, I have to agree.

Over to the great Sox & Dawgs blog which has this great picture of NESN’s Heidi Watney and the Boston Globe’s Amalie Benjamin together.

I’m smitten looking at the both of them.

Anyway, the point of linking to Sox & Dawgs was the fact that Ian of the blog has the video of NESN’s Dennis Eckersley correctly ripping Red Sox pitcher Bartolo Colon for refusing to pitch out of the bullpen.

The Sports Media Watch has its weekend ratings predictions. Paul Sen also notes that the ratings for MLB on Fox are in a downward spiral. And some more bad news for Fox. The SMW says Fox was the only network to experience a downturn in Week 2 of the NFL while all of the league’s other partners were up.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News does not feel a lot of people are logging on to watch Sunday Night Football Extra on NFL.com and NBCSports.com, but I disagree.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News mentions that members of the Oakland Raiderettes squad will be in town for an appearance.

Ken McMillan of the Hudson Valley Times Herald-Record has the NFL games that will be seen in the local area on Sunday. And Ken lists the college games available in the Hudson Valley on TV today.

Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette who’s not just a media writer for the paper, remembers the late Cornell, RPI and Union hockey coach Ned Harkness who passed away Friday. A side note, Ned almost came to my alma mater, the University of Rhode Island to start a hockey program in the 1970′s, but was later turned down by the school. It would have been nice to have a major hockey program at URI in a state that is known as a hotbed for high school hockey.

Ken is a fan of the NHL Live radio program that is simulcast on XM Satellite Radio (and soon to join Sirius!) and the NHL Network.

Alan Pergament of the Buffalo News says Matthew Barnaby looks forward to joining ESPN to be its NHL analyst.

Joe Favorito likes the way the Women’s Tennis Association is bringing fans closer to its players through virtual video games.

Speaking of the WTA, the Women’s Tennis Blog says the Sony Ericsson Tour will offer live streaming video of 21 tournaments on its website starting next season. This is a good thing.

The next link from the Women’s Tennis Blog has nothing to do with sports media, but because I like Jelena Jankovic, I’m linking to it. Apparently, Jelena fell in love at the Summer Olympics in Communist China.

Larry Barrett of Multichannel News says FSN will launch a year long awareness campaign on diversity.

Apparently former CBS Sports host Pat O’Brien has left the celebrity gossip show, The Insider. This time for good.

That’s going to do it. I hope to have a recap for the second episode of The Amazing Race Asia sometime this weekend.

Done Deal, Pal! XM-Sirius Merger Finally Completed

Yesterday, I called the XM-Sirius merger approval a bit early. It’s now official.

The Orbitcast satellite radio blog says the FCC gave its formal approval to the merger today, 3-2 right down party lines.

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin tells Amy Schatz of the Wall Street Journal that an agreement in principle has been reached. XM and Sirius have agreed to pay $20 million in blackmail …. errrrr …. fines.

I’m hoping a formal announcement from both parties as to when subscribers can begin to listen to the expanded sports lineup. Once I hear something, expect to see it here.

The Tuesday Links for You

I’ve been very busy at work in fact, it’s 5:30 p.m. ET as I write this and I’m still at the office and I’ll probably be here burning the midnight oil, but I’ll still provide you with some links today.

Starting with Richard Sandomir of the New York Times, he writes about Dan Patrick and Keith Olbermann reuniting at NBC after 11 years apart on TV. Dan and Keith had been together on the radio off and on over the years.

Richard Huff of the New York Daily News says Dan and Keith are looking forward to working with each other again.

George M. Thomas of the Akron Beacon Journal is excited to see the “Big Show” back on his TV.

Ray Frager of the Baltimore Sun writes that the news of the Dan and Keith reunion overshadowed the announcement of the new team on Inside the NFL on Showtime.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle also talks about the Dan-Keith reunion.

You can hear Dan Patrick talking to Keith Olbermann on today’s Dan Patrick Show about working at Football Night in America.

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald says Dan Marino has lost a gig while Dan Patrick gained one.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says CBS’/Showtime’s Phil Simms suggests that Brett Favre should remain retired this time.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer talks about Cris Collinsworth remaining with Inside the NFL.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News blogs about CBS’ Dan Dierdorf being honored by the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Newday’s Neil Best says WFAN’s Mike & the Mad Dog reunite for the first time this Friday since Neil’s story about them breaking up by Labor Day.

Ken McMillan of the Hudson Valley Times Herald-Record says last night’s 10-9 Mets win over the Phillies reminded both Gary Cohen on SNY and Howie Rose on WFAN about a similar game called by the late Mets announcer Bob Murphy in 1990.

The Sports Media Watch has the final weekend ratings. The SMW says some lesser sports also saw some ratings gains this weekend. Ratings for the Olympic Trials did pretty well during the holiday weekend.

NBC Sports says it will have 3,600 hours of coverage from the Olympics in Communist China, most of it live.

The 38 Cliches blog shares what it learned while listening to last night’s Twins-Red Sox game.

Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball looks at why ratings for MLB are down this season.

Orbitcast reports that XM Satellite Radio will have extensive coverage of the All-Star Game next week.

MLB’s Walking, Talking Conflict of Interest Bud Selig will make his first late night TV appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman next Monday.

That will do it for now. Back to work now.

Wednesday Night Update or Why Joe Buck Needs to Stop Doing Baseball

Well, I leave my office for several hours and then all hell breaks loose.

We start off with Awful Announcing which goes off on Fox Sports’ Joe Buck. Buck was on the Colin Cowherd show on ESPN Radio this morning and said he doesn’t watch sports during the week and no longer enjoys doing baseball games.

I’ve contended since last year that since Buck doesn’t want to do the entire baseball season, get someone else to be the main voice of baseball. Even last year, Buck in an interview with Richard Sandomir of the New York Times said he would rather spend time with his family than do sports. Interviews like these don’t help. Imagine Mike Breen being interviewed on Cowherd and saying he doesn’t like doing the NBA. How fast would commish David Stern seek the removal of Breen from ESPN/ABC? Bud Selig should be doing the same with Fox, demanding that Buck be removed from the network’s broadcasts.

Awful Announcing can’t believe it and neither can I, but Skip Bayless on ESPN2′s First Take was actually a Voice of Reason on this and even before I watched the video clip on the AA site, Bayless says the same thing as me in the last paragraph, that Bud Selig should demand Fox take Buck off the games.

Deadspin has its take on Buck’s comments.

The Sports Media Watch also feels that Fox should replace Buck if he doesn’t want to do the games.

Keith Thibault of the Sports Media Journal says Buck should take a little more interest in the sports he covers.

Newsday’s Neil Best agrees with many of Buck’s takes on the length of baseball games. That’s fine, but Buck would rather watch “The Bachelorette” than the Red Sox-Rays series? I don’t think Joe likes doing sports anymore.

Buck is taking a beating in the blogosphere and deservedly so. If you want to spend more time with your family than cover sports, then by all means, get out of the sports business and do what you want. Don’t complain that you’d rather be doing something else and that the sport that gave you your start no longer interests you. Get out and change your focus. It’s complaining like this that make people who love sports angry. The world has turned upside down. Skip Bayless is the Voice of Reason.

Ok, moving on to other subjects, Aaron Barnhart of the Kansas City Star writes in his TV Barn blog that FSN’s Frank White does a great job on Royals broadcasts.

Dan Lamonthe of the Red Sox Monster blog has the video of Red Sox fans flipping the bird at Tropicana Field during Tuesday’s loss to the Rays.

LC over at the 38Cliches blog says Jon Rish is doing a very good job in the Red Sox radio booth as he subs for Dave O’Brien tonight.

Chris Pursell of TV Week writes in his Pressbox blog that Tuesday’s Red Sox-Rays game was the most watched show in the Tampa market.

Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball writes that the Tampa Bay Rays are seeing higher TV ratings this season. Maury also has highlights of a TBS conference call involving Harold Reynolds, Dennis Eckersley, Cal Ripken, Jr., and Ernie Johnson, Jr.

Over to the Biz of Football blog, Maury has a story on XM Satellite Radio picking up all of the SEC’s football schedule this fall.

Alan Schmadtke of the Orlando Sentinel wonders now that the Big Ten Network and Notre Dame have their TV deals settled, will the SEC be next? Tim Stephens of the Sentinel looks at what could be next for the major BCS conferences as far as TV and the economy are concerned.

The Detroit News has the Big Ten Conference TV schedule for the first four weeks of the college football season.

Angelique Chengelis of the Detroit News writes that the popular 33 year old “Michigan Replay” will not be on the air this fall.

The Des Moines Register reports that this year’s Iowa State-Iowa game will be on the Big Ten Network which is not available in most of the Hawkeye State.

But Jenni Glenn of the Fort Wayne (IN) Journal Gazette reports that Verizon Fios will pick up the Big Ten Network in the local area.

Here’s the Big Ten Network’s schedule for the first four weeks of the college football season.

Bob Molinaro of the Virginian-Pilot says it’s amazing that the media is just figuring out that Communist China wants to control news during the Olympics.

John Eggerton of Broadcasting & Cable says he would rather watch the real action of the U.S. Olympic Trials than the canned action on American Gladiators or WWE RAW.

Larry Barrett of Multichannel News writes that ESPN Deportes scored with its Euro 2008 games.

The Gaffer over at EPL Talk has some suggestions for Fox Soccer Channel, Setanta Sports and GolTV on how to attract viewers in the Premier League’s offseason.

Dave George of the Palm Beach Post writes that longtime local sportscaster Jim Gallagher has died of cancer.

Newsday’s Steven Marcus profiles Fox Sports’ Brian Baldinger who remembers his days at Nassau Community College.

And before I wrap things up, congratulations to Bruce Allen of Boston Sports Media Watch whose wife gave birth to a healthy 7 lb., 8 oz. baby boy on Monday. Best wishes, Bruce.

That’s going to do it for tonight.

Back to the Grind Links

I was enjoying my weekend, but it’s back to the grind today as I was at a jobsite earlier today and it’s the reason why these links are coming late. But I’m here and time to give you the Monday linkage.

Also wanted to mention the passing of George Carlin who was a great influence on me in my younger days. The man was comic genius and was prolific in writing material. His HBO specials were great and he was always on top of his game. George was also a sports fan and his comparison of baseball and football was classic. Of course, who could not forget the Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television. He will definitely be missed. His website was not kept up to date, but you can certainly visit to see some of his past material

Let’s start with Phil Mushnick of the New York Post who takes some glee in seeing the networks suffer without Tiger Woods.

Newsday’s Neil Best writes that listeners to WFAN’s Mike & the Mad Dog program were certainly up in arms over the news that the duo might split up. Neil notes that Mike & the Mad Dog are older than the internet. Neil writes that WFAN host-in-exile Sid Rosenberg is hosting an online chat on his website.

This next link comes courtesy of Neil. Austin Murphy of Sports Illustrated looks at the 20th anniversary of my favorite baseball movie, Bull Durham by projecting what happened to Crash Davis and Annie Savoy.

The DC/Baltimore Examiner’s Jim Williams talks with ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt.

Tom Jones of the St. Petersburg Times has some thoughts on the sports TV weekend.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel talks about ESPN’s NBA Draft coverage plans (scroll down).

The Chicago Tribune’s Teddy Greenstein writes that WSCR’s Mike North is off the air for now and might not come back.

The Orbitcast blog says XM Satellite Radio has taken its MLB “Bobble Yourself” campaign to Facebook.

NBC will allow you to download your favorite Olympics event to your computer and you can watch at your convenience.

David Wilkerson of Marketwatch.com reports that ABC and ESPN will make selected programs available online at Veoh.com.

Westwood One Radio will have coverage of the College World Series championship series between Georgia and Fresno State starting tonight. Former Red Sox announcer Jerry Trupiano will be involved in the coverage.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says the major shoe companies have yet to sign one of the potential NBA 1st round draft picks.

John Doyle of the Toronto Globe and Mail writes that ESPN’s decision to air the Euro 2008 soccer tournament was revolutionary.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News talks about ESPN’s multi-platform coverage of Wimbledon.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star says TSN is gambling on a TV rookie to be one of the analysts for CFL games.

Paul J. Gough of the Hollywood Reporter reports that IMG Sports Media will take over distribution of Fox Sports International programming.

That’s going to do it for now.

Here Come the Thursday Links

I’ve been in the midst of finishing some work before the holiday weekend as I won’t be in the office tomorrow. No, I’m not starting the weekend early, I’ll be at a jobsite so the Friday megalinks will be up sometime during the afternoon. Let’s get to the links while I can.

Richard Sandomir from the New York Times decided to test Willie Randolph’s theory that SNY was purposely showing him in a negative light.

Neil Best of Newsday continues to talk about the Willie Randolph anti-SNY comments and his claims that they were supposed to be off the record. Neil also talks with Ian O’Connor, the reporter who talked to Randolph. And Neil writes that the SNY studio crew came to Randolph’s defense. Neil says the YES Network apparently played the infamous Earl Weaver tape of him talking about outfielder Terry Crowley on the air.

Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette writes that a computer glitch knocked the Orioles-Yankees game off WTMM last night.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union says ESPN/ABC has a legitimate reason to focus its cameras on Danica Patrick at the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday.

Maury Brown in the Biz of Baseball blog says DirecTV has developed new technology which will search for an alternative channel in case a viewer tunes in a game that is blacked out. Over to Maury’s Biz of Hockey blog which states that XM Satellite Radio will carry three different feeds of the Stanley Cup Finals.

Heather Havenstein of Computerworld writes that the NHL is using web technology to promote the Stanley Cup Finals.

The Sports Media Watch says the NBA Draft Lottery and Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Tuesday combined to bring some respectable ratings for ESPN.

Bud Withers of the Seattle Times says ESPN and the West Coast Conference are in talks to move their basketball games to Thursday nights to compete with FSN’s Pac 10 games.

Lee Barfknecht of the Omaha World-Journal reports that only one Nebraska football games is scheduled to be on ABC or ESPN.

Carole Goldberg of the Hartford Courant says ESPN’s Kenny Mayne will promote his book at a local bookstore tonight.

Dan Daly of the Washington Times says the NFL will find a way to work things out to get the NFL Network on cable.

ESPN will re-air the Champions League final between Manchester United and Chelsea this Saturday on ESPN Classic.

Wednesday Evening Links

Our busy Wednesday is continuing. News just keeps coming out of the woodwork.

David Scott of Boston Sports Media Watch says the Boston Herald’s John Tomase will finally come out of hiding and give his explanation later this week as to what happened with his mysterious source in the Patriots videotape story.

And David Heuschkel of the Hartford Courant says former Patriots employee Matt Walsh will be working with HBO Sports on a story about Spygate. No word if this will be for Real Sports or Costas Now.

Ian over at the Sox & Dawgs blog has the video from today’s Red Sox-Orioles game in which Manny Ramirez makes a great running catch, then high fives a fan, then throws the ball into the infield for a double play. The video has to be seen to be believed.

Who knew that ESPN.com’s Bill Simmons is a disgruntled employee? Will Leitch of Deadspin has the e-mail exchange between him and Simmons as to why the former Boston Sports Guy hasn’t been writing as much for the website.

The following link comes courtesy of Neil Best of Newsday. Daniel Kaplan and John Ourand of Sports Business Journal report that YES Network is not for sale. Last August, Fortune Magazine reported that YES was for sale, a story that was quickly denied by the New York Yankees, but it appears that any sale is definitely off the table.

Another link courtesy of Neil, the Big Lead has a guest post from former Miami Herald columnist Dan Le Batard.

Speaking of Neil, he has a complete recap of ESPN’s network upfront presentation from Tuesday. Neil writes that SNY’s Mets announcing crew will do Thursday’s game from the upper echelons of Shea Stadium.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says some Olympic sponsors may be pulling back their plans for hospitality suites for the Summer Games in Communist China. And Darren talks to the owner of a website which keeps track of celebrity endorsers and the products they actually use.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News writes that Monday night’s Game 2 between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia was the highest rated NHL game on Versus. And Reynolds writes that thanks to the NBA Playoffs, TNT has won the cable primetime ratings for a second week in a row. Linda Moss of Multichannel clarifies some confusion over the Outdoor Channel’s status on DirecTV.

Rick Kissell of Variety writes that TNT’s NBA Playoffs telecasts on cable even beat NBC’s American Gladiators in the ratings.

Joseph De Avila of the Wall Street Journal talks with NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Adam Silver about the NBA’s increased TV ratings and digital rights.

Awful Announcing says ESPN will devote two hours of coverage to the NBA Draft Lottery which is one hour and fifty minutes too long.

Sports Illustrated’s Jon Wertheim gives his opinions on the new US Open contract with ESPN in his weekly tennis mailbag.

David Brauder of MinnPost.com writes that ESPN has hired Minneapolis Star Tribune Vikings beat reporter Kevin Seifert continuing a trend of hiring writers from established newspapers.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle talks with Hannah Storm about her move to ESPN.

Tim Wilkin of the Albany Times Union did not enjoy watching the Preakness Draw on ESPN.

The Orbitcast satellite radio blog says XM will carry six major college conference baseball tournaments starting May 21st.

That will do it for tonight.

A Friday Megalink Day

Let’s give you the Friday media links. It’s another busy weekend for both viewing and awards as the New England Emmy Awards will be handed out on Saturday. I’ll have a list as soon as it’s made available. In the meantime, let’s go over your viewing weekend.

Weekend Viewing Picks

One of the bigger events for golf asides from the Majors is the Players Championship. Tiger Woods is not in the field and that could mean lower ratings for both the Golf Channel and NBC which are televising the tournament. The Golf Channel finishes its coverage on Friday, then NBC takes over Saturday and Sunday with coverage starting at 2 p.m.

The NBA Playoffs continue this weekend. The Eastern Conference semifinals will be held on Saturday as Game 4 of the Detroit-Orlando series will be seen on ESPN at 5 p.m. and Game 3 of the Celtics-Cavs series will be on ABC in primetime at 8 p.m. On Sunday, both Western Confernce semifinals will be seen. ABC has Game 4 of the Lakers-Jazz series at 3:30 p.m. while TNT takes Game 4 of the Hornets-Spurs series Sunday night at 8.

Over to the NHL, the Conference Finals will be in primetime. Versus and CBC have Game 2 of Dallas-Detroit on Saturday at 7, and Game 2 of Philadelphia-Pittsburgh Sunday at 7:30.

Fox Sports has its usual slate of three regional baseball games Saturday afternoon at 3:55 and none of them have the team of Joe Buck and Tim McCarver. The Yankees return to Fox as they will head to Motown to take on the Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee takes on St. Louis and the Cubs host Arizona. WGN will have the White Sox at Seattle Saturday at 10 p.m. and the D’backs-Cubs Sunday at 2:10 p.m. TBS will show Yankees-Tigers on Sunday at 1 p.m. ESPN’s Sunday night game will be the Red Sox at Minnesota.

NASCAR has another Saturday night race. It’s at Darlington for the Dodge Challenger 500 at 7.

Qualifiying for the Indianapolis 500 takes place this weekend and ESPN and ABC will have coverage throughout the weekend.

Formula 1 travels to Istanbul, not Constantinople for the Turkish Grand Prix and Speed will have the coverage, Sunday morning at 7:30.

And boxing fans can watch the fight for the WBC Super Lightweight title on Showtime at 10:45 p.m. Saturday.

The entire slate of weekend sports coverage can be seen here.

To your links now.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand gives blog critics a lecture.

East and Mid-Atlantic

David Scott of the Boston Sports Media Watch has an update on the Gordon Edes vs. Boston Globe buyout story.

Paul Flannery of Boston Magazine’s Boston Daily Blog reports that the Boston Globe’s Marc Spears will take over the NBA beat from Peter May who took a buyout this year.

The Boston Globe’s Nancy Marrapese-Burrell says NESN’s Heidi Watney jumped at the chance to work in Boston.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times previews the new book by YES analyst Bobby Murcer.

Neil Best’s Friday column focuses on Yankees manager Joe Girardi’s growing pains in dealing with the New York media. And Neil has Yankees beat reporters talking about Girardi’s relationship with the media in his blog. Neil has a little more about this subject.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post says WFAN’s Mike Francesca is no Oprah Winfrey.

Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News feels Mets manager Willie Randolph is being met with plenty of resistance from his players who have weekly radio interviews.

Ray Frager from the Baltimore Sun says NBC Sports will try to capture every splash at the 17th hole during the Players Championship this weekend.

West

John Maffei from the North County Times says Padres fans are venting about the team’s bad start on the radio postgame show.

The Ventura County Star’s Jim Carlisle is excited about HBO/NFL Films returning to nearby Oxnard to shoot this year’s Hard Knocks program at Dallas Cowboys training camp.

Nice to see Larry Stewart of the Los Angeles Times writing a TV column again, albeit for one week. In the Sound and Vision column, Stewart says the widow of the late Voice of the Lakers Chick Hearn says he would have loved to see his former team in the NBA playoffs this season.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has put his media column and notes on his Farther Off the Wall blog. And here are some additional notes from Hoffarth.

South

Doug Nye from The State in Columbia, SC says TV viewers don’t know how good they have things these days.

The Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson reports that sports radio talker The Ticket beat rival WQAM in the winter Arbitron ratings.

Dave Darling of the Orlando Sentinel lists his favorite ten sports-themed Seinfeld episodes.

David Barron from the Houston Chronicle writes that the Rockets are now on hunt for a new radio announcing team.

Ray Buck in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says the four overtime Game 6 between the Dallas Stars and San Jose Sharks this past Sunday night into Monday morning made for a long day for the FSN Southwest crew.

Mel Bracht of The Oklahoman has a bunch of stories today. He first writes that sportscaster and former Oklahoma U. QB Jack Mildren is undergoing treatment for stomach cancer. Mel says sports radio talk show host Jim Traber is combative despite undergoing colon surgery two months ago. In his notebook, Mel writes about the ESPN documentary on former Mets manager Bobby Valentine. And finally, Mel has his viewing picks.

Canada

William Houston of the Toronto Globe and Mail says legendary Hockey Night in Canada voice Bob Cole plans to continue working even as he goes into his upper 70′s.

The Vancouver Sun has a blurb on Don Cherry’s appearance on NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman’s show on XM Satellite Radio yesterday.

Midwest

Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune writes that Robin Ventura will pinch-hit for Steve Stone on the White Sox radio broadcasts this weekend. Teddy has his five weekend viewing picks.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that ratings for the NBA Playoffs could not be any better this season.

Michael Zuidema of the Grand Rapids (MI) Press says a local radio station will air a local road race this weekend.

Judd Zulgad from the Minneapolis Star Tribune writes that a local TV sports anchor has no plans to leave despite seeing cutbacks all around his newsroom.

From the Rochester Post-Bulletin, Paul Christian writes that the island green at the TPC Sawgrass is one of the most famous golf holes in the world.

The Kansas City Star’s Jeffrey Flanagan says FSN had good ratings for the Royals even with a rainout (scroll down).

Blogs

Joe Favorito’s public relations and sports marketing blog says giving a reporter access is very important to brand imaging and bringing a story to a wider audience.

The 38Cliches blog feels Jon Rish did a good job filling in for Dave O’Brien on the Red Sox-Detroit game on Wednesday.

The Sports Media Watch says the Rangers-Penguins series ended too quickly for Versus and NBC.

Michael Senno of the Biz of Hockey reports that Don Cherry makes his ESPN debut tonight.

Awful Announcing has the full video of the Rangers-Mariners brawl last night including the section where FSN Southwest’s Tom Grieve blasts Richie Sexson for charging the mound.

If you’re a Lost fan like I am, the Big Lead has some good Easter Eggs from last night’s episode.

That’s it. Good day, sir. Back later with viewing picks and an update.

Thursday Links

Time to give you some links on this Thursday.

Newsday’s Neil Best has a bunch of blog posts today as he approaches his one year blog anniversary. First, Neil writes that WFAN maintains a healthy lead in the ratings over sports radio rival ESPN 1050. Neil shows us where he blogs from every day. Neil talks about his conversation with movie director David Mamet about his new Mixed Martial Arts movie. Neil speculates that Al Michaels could be a candidate to replace Bryant Gumbel on the NFL Network. You want more links from Neil? I’ve got more. Neil writes that CBS will air a documentary this Sunday about blimp and aerial shots in golf. And Neil says Erin Andrews will be the sideline reporter at the National Spelling Bee later this month. Neil has comments from NFL Network president Steve Bornstein. Neil has a lot more today, but I can’t link to them all. Perhaps I’ll do another update later on with Neil’s movie reviews from the Tribeca/ESPN Sports Film Festival. Or maybe not.

The Sports Media Watch has some ratings numbers for the NBA and NASCAR. And the blog notes that ratings for MLB are down in the first month of the season.

Bill Jordan of the Biz of Football blog reports that the Cotton Bowl has been moved to a new date and a new bowl in St. Petersburg, FL has been approved. Brett Schroetenboer of the San Diego Union-Tribune says it’ll be more of the same for the next bowl season with no playoff system and two more games.

The Orbitcast blog tells us that XM Satellite Radio will air the PGA’s Players Championship next week.

Len Ziehm of the Chicago Sun-Times writes that the Blackhawks will air games on WGN Radio for the next three seasons.

Larry Barnett of Multichannel News writes that NESN will relaunch its website next week. Also from Multichannel, Mary McNamara gives her reaction to the Buzz Bissinger blast on Costas Now in her blog.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times writes that Vin Scully will decide whether to retire as Voice of the Los Angeles Dodgers after talking to his wife.

Awful Announcing has the video of a woman who almost got her comeuppance at the Kansas City-Texas Rangers game last night.

William Houston of the Toronto Globe and Mail writes the Vancouver media is taking sides in the firing of the Canucks general manager.

WLEX-TV reports that NBC Sports will broadcast the World Equestrian Games from Lexington, KY in 2010.

That’s going to do it for now.

Some Additional Monday Links

I’ll give you some more links on this Monday afternoon.

From the Sports Media Watch, Tennis Week is reporting that ESPN has picked up the rights to the final leg of tennis’ Grand Slam, the US Open starting in 2009. Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News writes that if true, ESPN would have the rights to all four legs of the Grand Slam.

Richard Deitsch of Sports Illustrated says TV viewers were the big winners of this year’s NFL Draft.

John Ourand of the Sports Business Journal writes in his media notes that despite original criticism, ESPN’s Monday Night Football schedule actually makes sense for the network. Also from Sports Business Journal, Terry Lefton and John Ourand write that the NFL is planning to offer a Friday-before-the Super Bowl Awards Show broadcast to the network televising the Big Game each year. Ourand also talks with outgoing CBS Sports Executive Producer and incoming MLB Network President and CEO Tony Petitti. And Bill King of the SBJ writes about ten years of following Sports Business. How about lowering the cost of a year’s subscription as part of a ten year anniversary celebration?

The Monroe (LA) News Star picks up a story from Glenn Guilbeau who feels the NFL and ESPN should move the Draft up to March.

Liz Mullen of the Baltimore Business Journal writes about Fox Sports hiring former Ravens coach Brian Billick as a game analyst.

The Schenectady Gazette’s Ken Schott also writes about Brian Billick moving to Fox as well as finding Billick’s appearances on Match Game PM. Ken also writes in his blog that the Albany River Rats have worked out their conflict with the Yankees for tomorrow night.

Wayne Friedman of MediaPost Publications writes in his blog that the NFL Network may need to call an audible to get carriage from the major cable providers.

The Sports Media Watch says some uncompetitive first round series are actually hurting the NBA in the ratings.

John Consoli of Mediaweek writes that TV ratings for MLB are off to a slow start this season.

Judd Zulgad of the Minneapolis Star Tribune writes that a local TV sports anchor will be leaving his station in the fall as his contract was not picked up.

Tom Jones from the St. Petersburg Times, in his Two Cents blog, reviews what he saw on TV over the weekend.

A couple of satellite radio-related items for you. The Orbitcast blog writes that Danica Patrick will appear on a show hosted by Dale Earnhardt, Jr. on XM Satellite Radio later this week. And the Sirius Backstage blog reports that Scott Ferrall has signed a multi year with Sirius Satellite Radio continuing his sports talk show on Howard 101.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star says some new faces have helped to bring CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada into the 21st Century.

Some Monday Night Stuff

Ok, let’s give you some linkage as it appears the Montreal Canadiens will advance to the second round of the NHL playoffs.

Starting with Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch, he has his weekly Media Circus column.

Bruce Allen of the Boston Sports Media Watch has news from the Comcast SportsNet New England people stating that Game 1 of the Celtics-Hawks series pulled in some great numbers on Sunday.

Joseph Santoliquito of MLB.com says John Marzano’s legacy will live on in his native South Philly. And MLB.com has a nice tribute site for Marzano will really died too soon.

The Sports Media Watch says the NHL playoffs saw increased ratings this weekend for NBC. And despite making anti-Mormon comments, ESPN has assigned Ric Bucher to the sidelines for Game 4 of the Houston-Utah series this Saturday. Whoa, check that! ESPN has re-assigned Bucher to Atlanta. Good move.

Clare Farnsworth of the Seattle Post Intelligencer goes over the NFL Network’s schedule for Draft Weekend.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union writes that WTMM has solved its problems over conflicts between the New York Yankees and the Albany River Rats.

Friend of Fang’s Bites Christopher Byrne of the Eye on Sports Media (and thanks for the link, Chris) wonders how CBS and ESPN will replace its aging sportscasting corps (and I would include Mike Patrick in the group that Chris mentions).

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News says Day 1 of the NBA Playoffs scored big for ESPN.
Soccer-oriented Gol TV has obtained the rights to the Italy national soccer team according to Mike Reynolds.

Jeremy Speer of the Gaylord (MI) Herald Times feels E:60′s ambush interview of Miguel Tejada was a disservice.

Here’s an interesting press release from NBC Sports, it will air a one hour special this Sunday featuring footage from its archives of Hank Aaron, Muhammad Ali, Howard Cosell and Joe Namath. I think I’m going to record that.

Ed Bark of the Pegasus (TX) News writes that sports dominated the Dallas-Fort Worth TV landscape this past weekend.

The Hollywood Reporter says Golf Channel has a new vice president of programming.

The Orbitcast satellite radio blog says XM Satellite Radio will have Danica Patrick on as a guest on one of its channels on Tuesday (XM is one of her sponsors).

A bit light on the links this evening, but we’ll have more on Tuesday.

Our Friday Night Links

Time to give you some links this evening.

Neil Best of Newsday reports that Stephen A. Smith will end his ESPN Radio show next Thursday. Neil says that Earl “The Pearl” Monroe will join Mike Breen and Walt “Clyde” Frazier on Knicks game broadcasts. And one blog post from earlier this week, Neil says Fox 5 in New York has named a new weekend sports anchor.

Over to Los Angeles and Tom Hoffarth of the Daily News. He writes in his Farther Off the Wall blog that former Dodger manager Tommy Lasorda will be involved in “The Bachelor”?????

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says the new K-Swiss ad made him stop and stare. It made me do the same. I’m still staring at it. The With Leather blog thinks its Alona Bondarenko. Darren says the woman in the ad also resembles Anna Kournikova, but then determined it was Bondarenko. Although if you go to the K-Swiss website, both Anna and Alona are represented.

The Sports Media Watch says NASCAR outrated two of the NCAA Elite Eight games last weekend. And the SMW says some big name writers are being bought out from their respective newspapers and the one of the big names ends with Kornheiser.

Tim Lemke of the Washington Times writes in his blog that Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic received its highest hockey ratings ever this week. Brian Eckert of the Washington (DC) Business Journal says the Capitals-Lightning game on Thursday received the highest ratings on local cable in 11 years.

NBC Sports talks about the Chicago-Detroit matchup for its final NHL Game of the Week this season.

Mel Bracht of the Oklahoman has a quick Q and A with CBS’ Billy Packer about the Final Four. CBS Sports says college basketball analyst Billy Packer will be recognized for his work by the College Sports Information Directors of America.

Beth Schepens of the Wall Street Journal talks with ESPN’s Dick Vitale about his fashion.

Deadspin says a man posed as a lower tier ESPN college basketball analyst to pick up teenaged girls. Creepy.

Greg Johnson says CBS is doing all it can to share the NCAA Tournament online.

ESPN has a Women’s Final Four fact sheet.

Jon Cooper writing for MLB.com has a story about TBS’ debut of its national package of games this Sunday.

Derek Clarkston of the Kodiak Daily Mirror in Alaska writes that Mariners fans in the Last Frontier State will not see the entire package of 150 games from FSN Northwest.

The Business Journal of Arizona reports that 86 Diamondbacks games will be shown in High Definition.

Tony Paige writing in his blog for Multichannel News says he’ll try to avoid watching NBC Universal’s coverage of the Olympics in Communist China.

A couple of things from the Orbitcast blog on satellite radio. XM will carry spring college football games starting Saturday. And XM will have complete coverage of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs starting Wednesday.

That’s it. I’ll be back on Saturday with more links.

Thursday Links

Let’s give you some links for Thursday.

Newsday’s Neil Best says new New York Knicks Donnie Walsh did his best to schmooze the media during his introductory press conference on Wednesday. And in his blog, Neil says a new era between the Knicks and the media began with free sandwiches and cookies.

Richard Sandomir and Howard Beck of the New York Times also write about the new media outreach by the Knickerbockers.

The Sports Media Watch says the merged Champ Car and Indy Racing League brought increased ratings for ESPN2 last weekend. And the blog has some idle notes including stuff on the Chicago Blackhawks, the Arena Football League and the NBA.

The Biz of Baseball has a couple of items for us today. First, Maury Brown writes that Major League Baseball’s out of market internet package, MLB.TV, has reached some record activity levels in the new season. And Maury says Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter and Red Sox DH David Ortiz will be “campaigning” for XM Satellite Radio.

Laura Nachman says Comcast SportsNet Philaldelphia will air a day night doubleheader between the Phillies and Nationals today.

Leonard Shapiro of the Washington Post talks with TBS Sports’ Chip Carey about his broadcasting the new MLB package for the once-labled Superstation.

CBS Sports will have final round coverage of Lesbian Spring Break (you would know this if you watched the L Word or are a member of the Lesbian community), or what’s officially known as the LPGA Kraft Nabisco Championship, the LPGA’s first major of the season.

Tim Lemke of the Washington Times talks about ESPN taking over coverage of The Masters. This is not like they’re taking over everything. CBS is still producing the telecast on Thursday and Friday and CBS Sports will still broadcast 3rd and Final Round coverage.

Bob Molinaro of the Hampton Roads (VA) Virginian-Pilot says while people are talking about the NCAA Tournament, the ratings are still down.

Bob Wolfley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has quotes from various college basketball analysts and coaches who say Tom Crean left Marquette’s basketball program in better shape than when he arrived.

Len Ziehm of the Chicago Sun-Times says Blackhawks fans won’t have to leave home to see their team on TV.

Tarik El-Bashir of the Washington Post says having Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals in the Stanley Cup playoffs could be big for NHL, Versus and Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic.

Jessica Heslam of the Boston Herald says it’s likely that Steve Burton will take over as the top sports anchor at WBZ-TV now that Bob Lobel has been let go. Jenn Abelson of the Boston Globe writes that Lobel’s departure means the end of an era in Boston TV.

A couple of items from NBC Sports. It will start its countdown towards the Kentucky Derby with live coverage of the Santa Anita Derby and Wood Memorial this Saturday. And NBC Sports ends seven straight weeks of PGA Tour coverage with the Shell Houston Open this weekend.

NBC Sports.com will stream the Women’s Marathon Olympic trials live on April 20.

Meanwhile, Christopher Byrne of the Eye on Sports Media blog feels NBC Sports overhypes everything, especially its golf coverage.

Norma Reveler of the Hollywood Reporter says a battle is brewing in Canada as regulators are considering allowing US cable networks into the country.

That’s going to do for now.

A Friday Update

Let’s give you some more links on this getaway Friday.

The voting for Darren Rovell’s Minor League Baseball Logo Contest has reached the Final Four. Darren wants you to vote for one finalist today.

Newsday’s Neil Best has been blogging like crazy today, this despite being on a vacation. But that’s ok. I’m always glad to give you fresh material. He has video from Wednesday in which WFAN’s Mike & the Mad Dog were discussing draining the snake at baseball games. This went on for five hours, I kid you not. Neil says CBS’ 60 Minutes will have an interview with baseball crackpot Bill James this Sunday. Neil reports that 1050 ESPN Radio has signed YES analyst David Cone to be a regular guest with Michael Kay. Neil says Mr. Steroids, Jose Canseco, will be a guest on the Late Show with David Letterman on Monday. And Neil tells us that CBS’ Sunday Morning program will look at

Scott Burgess of the Detroit News says Pontiac is a big winner thanks to its extensive sponsorship of the NCAA Tournament and one benefit is that CBS won’t mention stadia and arenas that are sponsored like Ford Field where the Midwest Regional is being played.

Screamin’ Gus Johnson of CBS Sports! March Madness! talks with SI.com’s Extra Mustard blog. Gus also speaks with Spencer Hall of the Sporting News.

The Big Lead has Charles Barkley going after Skip Bayless, Jay Mariotti and Mike Lupica during an interview with Dan LeBatard on 790 The Ticket in Miami.

If you’re a Verizon Wireless subscriber and have a V Cast phone, you’ll be able to listen to ESPN Radio.

Greg Wyshynski of the AOL Fanhouse blog says it appears that the NHL is not going to be returning to ESPN (thanks to Greg to linking to Fang’s Bites in his story).

Broadcast Engineering looks at ESPNews launching in HD this Sunday.

Anne Thompson of Variety says sports-themed documentaries and movies are doing well on the internet.

The Huntington (WV) Herald-Dispatch says CBS Sports golf analyst Gary McCord will be at the Huntington Classic in July.

Jeff Richgels of the Capital (WI) Times supports the Sirius-XM satellite radio merger saying it’s good for the sports fan and if you’re a regular reader of this blog, you’ll know that I agree.

Michael Zuidema of the Grand Rapids (MI) Press talks with FSN Detroit’s Mario Impemba who goes into his 7th year of calling Tigers cames for the network.

Tim Tucker of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution says Peachtree TV, the former TBS in Atlanta, hopes to make a splash carrying 45 Braves games this season. Mark Tankersley of the Montgomery (AL) Advertiser says the 45 games from Peachtree TV will be picked up by Charter Communications locally.

Liz Farmer of the Maryland Daily Record says MASN and Comcast are headed back to court.

Christine McConville of the Boston Herald says former Red Sox outfielder and current NESN analyst Jim Rice is launching a blog. If you want to head over to Jim’s blog, the link is here.

Chris Reidy of the Boston Globe says NESN’s Jerry Remy will continue to be the on-air spokesman for Sovereign Bank ads on Red Sox games.

Bill Doyle of the Worcester Telegram talks to the voice of the New England Surge of the Continental Indoor Football League. To be honest, I didn’t know this league existed.

Keep it here for Primetime & Late Night Viewing Picks, Weekend Viewing Picks and a Friday night update before I end blogging for the day. Keep your RSS feeds updated.

Giving You A Wednesday Update

Having gotten some important work done, it’s time to give you some linkage on this Wednesday afternoon on the East Coast.

Three things from the Sports Media Watch. First, Paul Sen says the joint decision by the NFL and NBC to move the league’s season opener on September 4 from 8:30 p.m. ET to 7 p.m. so not to conflict with the Republican National Convention will most likely result in a lower rating. Next, Paul says NBC’s ratings on the NHL might have been hurt by showing just one game a week instead of providing regional coverage. Finally, Paul has the ratings from action that isn’t related to the NCAA Tournament.

Newsday’s Neil Best reports that the long time Director of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown has been replaced.

The Awful Announcing blog has video of ESPN2′s Gary Thorne totally confusing the author of Jose Canseco’s new book.

XM Satellite Radio listeners will finally be able to access its MLB Home Plate channel online as the Orbitcast blog tells us.

Ray Frager from the Baltimore Sun says in his Medium Well blog that ESPN did not plan to have Chris Berman on its Masters coverage from the beginning. Mike Tirico will be the only ESPN staffer on The Masters next month as the weekday telecast will be produced by CBS Sports.

The Eye on Sports Media blog says CBS College Sports Network plans to re-air six NCAA Tournament 1st and 2nd round games starting today.

Fox Business picks up an article from Drew Armstrong of Inc.com who shoots down the idea that March Madness on Demand is hurting worker productivity.

Chris Faulkner of the Fort Madison (IA) Daily Democrat says local viewers were angry they could not watch the Drake-Western Kentucky NCAA Tournament game last Friday. And in a follow-up, the Democrat says the size of the market doesn’t help either.

Joe Favorito’s Sports Marketing and Public Relations blog looks at how the power of an athlete’s celebrity can actually pay dividends.

The Boston Sports Media Watch has another edition of its Media Approval Ratings and today’s candidate is Comcast Sports Net’s Gary Tanguay.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell has the NBA’s Top Ten List of Jersey sales over the last ten years and I’ll give you three guesses for the top selling one and the first two guesses don’t count.

Brett McMurphy of the Tampa Bay Tribune writes that ESPN wants to create a college bowl game to be played at Tropicana Field in December.

Mike Vandermause of the Fond du Lac (WI) Reporter isn’t happy with ESPN’s Sal Paolantonio.

Matt Elliser of the San Francisco Examiner says a new era is ready to begin as Comcast takes over FSN Bay Area next week.

From the Self-Serving and Over the Top Department, ESPN announces that the host of this year’s Self-Serving and Over The Top ESPY Awards will be the Self-Serving and Over the Top Justin Timberlake.

Get ready to see Firestone Tires all over Fox Sports’ coverage of Major League Baseball.

That will do it for now.

A Wednesday Link Thing

Let’s do our links for today.

Starting with a very strange story out of ESPN.com. David Scott of Boston Sports Media Watch breaks the news that the website somehow listed the late Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle in its transactions page and inexplicably left it there for two days.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand has CBS’ spin on the lower ratings for the NCAA Tournament.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union has a story on two local TV stations showing highlights of the NCAA Tournament without the permission of CBS Sports.

Michael David Smith of the AOL Fanhouse blog says CBS’ Billy Packer is the least popular man among blog readers.

The Kerrville (TX) Daily Times talks with native Carter Blackburn who made his NCAA Tournament debut on CBS last week.

Tom FitzGerald of the San Francisco Chronicle says FSN Bay Area changes its name to Comcast on Monday. John Ryan of the San Jose Mercury News also has a story on Comcast officially taking over FSN Bay Area. And in his blog, Ryan says Comcast may show the A’s-Red Sox game on April 2. Jonathan Okanes of the Monterey County Herald says Comcast is planning plenty of local programming around its sports teams.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell is narrowing down his Minor League Baseball Logo Contest to the Elite Eight in Day 13 of the voting.

Jessica Heslam of the Boston Herald says DirecTV and Comcast are apologizing for outages that left Red Sox and A’s fans in the dark yesterday morning.

Newsday’s Neil Best talks with longtime Yankees’ public address announcer Bob Sheppard who will miss the home opener. And Neil has some more from Bob in his blog.

Kevin Modesti of the Long Beach Press-Telegram accuses ESPN of East Coast bias when it comes to its baseball coverage.

Linda Moss of Multichannel News reports that Comcast subscribers in northern New Jersey will be able to watch Mets games in HD this season.

The Orbitcast satellite radio blog says XM Satellite Radio is bringing back its “Play Ball!” channel on March 29.

Paul Gough of the Hollywood Reporter says the NFL and NBC will move the season opener up one hour to 7 p.m. ET on September 4 so as not to conflict with John McCain’s acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention.

Marty James of the Napa Valley (CA) Register says the NFL Draft will look different this year on ESPN and the NFL Network.

Tom Jones from the St. Petersburg Times writes in his Two Cents blog that former NBA player Derrick Coleman got injured during the taping of the Spike TV show, Pros vs. Joes.

TNT will have a Western Conference NBA doubleheader this week.

Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer profiles the Voice of the Cavs, Joe Tait, who calls his 3,000th game tonight.

William Houston of the Toronto Globe & Mail looks into other NHL announcers who pulled off similar doubleheaders that CBC’s Jim Hughson and Craig Simpson did on Saturday.

Laura Nachman says a midday talk show host for sports radio WIP in Philadelphia is out.

Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune talks about his first experience as a fill-in talk show host on sports radio WMVP on Tuesday.

Martin Henderson of the Los Angeles Times writes in the Varsity Times Insider blog talks about ESPN buying a girls’ and women’s basketball website.

David Gurian-Peck in the Daily Pennsylvannian, the school newspaper for the University of Pennsylvannia, talks with UPenn alumnus Andrea Kremer of NBC Sports and HBO’s Real Sports.

That’s it for now.

More on the XM-Sirius Merger

Earlier today, the Department of Justice approved the buyout of XM Satellite Radio by Sirius. The agreement between the two companies had been announced early in 2007, but inexplicably, it took more than a year for the DOJ to come to a decision. In fact, it took 399 days from the day of announcement to Justice’s approval. We have reaction from all over the place to the merger. I’ll also look for a sports angle to this.

First, some links on the story.

The Orbitcast blog which follows all things satellite radio was on top of the story when it broke late this afternoon on the East Coast. Naturally, the National Association of Broadcasters which lobbies for radio behemoths Clear Channel, CBS Radio and Citadel, among other groups, was unhappy with the news.

CNBC’s Jim Cramer who had been calling for the merger on his popular Mad Money show, is now calling for the Federal Communications Commission to quickly approve the merger.

Paul Thomasch and Kenneth Li of Reuters write that Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin is the big winner in the merger.

John Eggerton of Broadcasting & Cable writes that Senator Herb Kohl of Wisconsin, chairman of the Senate Antitrust Subcommittee wants the FCC to block the merger. And Eggerton adds that Massachusetts Representative Edward Markey, chair of the House Telecommunications & Internet Subcommittee wants conditions attached to the combined Sirius-XM.

If you want to read what the DOJ said, then you can read the full news release here.

And we get the combined reaction of Sirius and XM.

As far as sports are concerned, this will give the sports fan the ultimate place to listen to just about all of the major events on the calendar.

For disclosure purposes, I am a Sirius subscriber. I bought two receivers so I could listen to Howard Stern and have become a fan of Whatever Radio hosted by Alexis Stewart and Jennifer Hutt.

Sirius is the satellite rightsholder to the NFL, NBA, NASCAR, Wimbledon, the NCAA Men’s Tournament and the English Premier League. However, its sports programming lags behind XM which has MLB, NHL, PGA Tour, the Bowl Championship Series, the major college basketball conference, the World Cup, the Triple Crown, Indy Racing League and the U.S. Tennis Open.

ESPN Radio is on both services, Sporting News Radio is on Sirius, Fox Sports Radio is on XM. With the new Sirius-XM, the sports fan won’t have to suffer without the other service. There will be new pricing plans if you want to hear the other service on your current receiver. All this will be sorted out when the merger is approved by the FCC and that should be coming in April.

Hopefully, it will come in time for baseball season so I can finally listen to the Red Sox on my Sirius receivers.

BREAKING NEWS: DOJ Approves Sirius and XM Satellite Radio Merger

The Department of Justice has approved the merger between XM and Sirius Satellite Radio. Next, the FCC has to approve it, but that is seen to be a formality at this point. For sports fans, this means that there will be one stop shopping, no more dividing of all sports between the two services. You can listen to MLB, NFL, NHL, NBA, NASCAR, NCAA Tournament, PGA Tour and the Bowl Championship Series on one service. I’ll have more on this later.

Tuesday Night Stuff

I’ll give you some more links today. When I started this morning, I really did not want to update things, but it ended up being quite busy, so you just never know when you start.

Let’s get to the linkage.

The Sports Media Watch has the final weekend ratings.

Joe Favorito’s Sports Marketing and Public Relations blog has some basketball-related notes including the New Jersey Nets trying to buy some goodwill as it fights for the final playoff spot in the NBA’s Eastern Conference and the NBA marketing commemorative Olympics cups in Canada.

Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette writes in his Parting Schotts blog about this Thursday’s and Friday’s schedule for the NCAA Tournament and college hockey. And Ken says Siena will be the big showcase on Friday.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has the NCAA Tournament schedule for those living in SoCal. And Tom has the items that will be up for auction from the Dodgers-Red Sox exhibition game later this month.

The Baltimore Sun’s Bill Ordine notes that ESPN’s Joe Lunardi was 65 for 65 in predicting the NCAA Tournament bracket.

Diego Vasquez of Media Life Magazine talks about how many more platforms on which March Madness will be available.

Mike Shields of Mediaweek says Yahoo has created a widget so fans can keep track of the NCAA Tournament in case they can’t watch the games online.

Neil Best of Newsday says that NBC has an interesting dilemna on September 4 as the NFL has scheduled its season opener for that date and John McCain is scheduled to make his nominating speech at the Republican National Convention that same night. And Neil has a transcript of WFAN’s Craig Carton having fun at Mike Francesca’s expense.

Justin Terranova of the New York Post says yesterday’s Red Sox-Yankees exhibition game on YES is now the most watched Spring Training game ever on the network.

Anthony Crupi of Mediaweek writes that the YES Network has put an end to its Road Trip reality series after three seasons. Besides, how many times could people watch arrogant Yankees fans go across the country?

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says you can forget about the MLB.com IPO.

The St. Louis Business Journal reports that FSN Midwest will show 88 Cardinals games in HD.

Two press releases for FSN Bay Area. San Francisco Giants fans can celebrate the relaunch of the network on March 31 as Comcast SportsNet Bay Area at the former Pac Bell Park. The following day, Oakland A’s fans can do the the same at the former Oakland Alameida County Coliseum.

The Anaheim Angels have announced their TV schedule on FSN West and KCOP-TV.

The Mediabistro blog has its take on the anti-ESPN Power Point presentation making the rounds.

Phil Swann of the TV Predictions website says ESPNews is preparing to go HD on March 30. Thanks to Awful Announcing for this link, Michael David Smith of the AOL Fanhouse blog has a sneak preview of how ESPNews will look when it relaunches.

Phil Swann says the NHL Network began an HD Simulcast of NHL Live that’s aired on XM Satellite Radio and broadcast from the NHL Store in New York.

Leonard Shapiro of the Washington Post is disappointed that CBS is picking up Mixed Martial Arts.

Alex Weprin of Broadcasting & Cable reports that HBO is now producing a documentary on the 1960 U.S. Open which marked the arrival of Jack Nicklaus, the beginning of the Arnold Palmer era and the end of the Ben Hogan era.

That will do it for tonight.

A Tuesday Morning Thing

I’m dragging today and not in the mood to blog, but blog I will because I serve you. So it’s time to give you some links.

Let’s start off with ESPN Ombudsman Le Anne Schreiber who says in reviewing ten days of SportsCenter, she was actually pleased to see fewer gimmicks and more highlights.

The Sports Media Watch reports that the ratings for NCAA Selection Show on CBS were down. On the other hand, the ratings for the NASCAR race on Sunday were up. Finally, the blog says the NBA on ABC suffers from non-exclusivity.

Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News says Dick Vitale is acting like Bob Knight’s agent on ESPN.

Dustin Dow of the Cincinnati Enquirer talks with Dick Vitale about his ESPN career. The Enquirer has a timeline of the growth of the NCAA Tournament on TV.

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star is surprised to see Bob Knight filling out brackets.

Dave Del Grande from the Oakland Tribune says Knight has kept his emotions in check on ESPN.

John Ryan of the San Jose Mercury News says the Bay Area will get one extra game to watch in the NCAA Tournament as Stanford-Cornell will be scheduled for 1:50 p.m. PT (4:50 p.m. ET). Ryan says it will be easier to play hooky at work thanks to March Madness on Demand.

The Los Angeles Times’ Christine Daniels says CBS has made arrangements with another station to carry the Cal State-Fullerton/Wisconsin game as it conflicts with the UCLA/Mississippi Valley State game on KCBS.

Newsday’s Neil Best wonders why CBS Sports/Raycom analyst Billy Packer hasn’t been nominated for the Basketball Hall of Fame. Neil has more from Billy in his Watchdog blog. In addition, Neil talks about some ribbing between WFAN’s Mike and the Mad Dog and Boomer and Craig Carton. Finally, Neil feels tonight’s NCAA play-in game is unnecessary.

The Salem (OR) Statesman-Journal says ESPN’s college basketball analysts stated the obvious on Sunday.

Mike Sielski of the Philly Burbs newspapers has a comparison of CBS and ESPN from this weekend.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel talks about ESPN’s analysts predicting how Wisconsin teams will do in the NCAA Tournament.

The Baltimore Sun’s Ray Frager talks about ESPN’s Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic appearing on the Late Show with David Letterman last night.

This is Day Seven of CNBC’s Darren Rovell’s Minor League Baseball Logo Contest.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union writes that NBC has chosen yet another Pittsburgh Penguins game for the NHL Game of the Week.

Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune writes that the Blackhawks are close to having all of its regular season games on TV next season.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star says the NHL wants to make sure that Spygate doesn’t happen in its league. And Zelkovich has a column on this from Monday.

Tom Jones of the St. Petersburg Times has his review of the sports TV weekend.

David Barron from the Houston Chronicle writes in his blog that the Rockets-Lakers game did well locally.

William Houston in the Toronto Globe and Mail reports that Rogers Sportsnet will drop the NBA after this season.

Maury Brown from The Biz of Baseball blog reports that today’s Yankees-Virginia Tech game to commemorate the shooting victims from last year will be available for free on MLB.com. And Maury says XM Satellite Radio will have every MLB game starting on March 25.

John Consoli of Mediaweek says ESPN, Fox and TBS are all experiencing strong ad sales for MLB games.

Doug Zaleski of the Muncie (IN) State Press says the star quality of Ball State’s quarterback has led ESPN to schedule four of its games this season.

Keith Groller of the Allentown Morning Call says Tiger Woods is a ratings magnet.

From Broadcasting & Cable, Ben Grossman writes that NASCAR is looking to reconnect with its fans and increase its TV ratings.

The Niagara Gazette reports that the Voice of the Buffalo Bills is back on TV. Alan Pergament of the Buffalo News talks with John Murphy about his return to TV.

That will do it for now. You have a lot of links to sift through today.

Some Monday Links

On this day after Selection Sunday, I give you some linkage. Also, don’t forget to visit my 1st Annual College Basketball TV Awards. I admit they were ESPN-heavy, but it had most of the major games this season. Check them out.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand says Bob Knight is keeping things simple while doing his analysis on ESPN. Theresa Howard of USA Today says the NCAA Tournament also ushers in Marketing Madness.

Newsday’s Neil Best is giddy about his alma mater Cornell drawing Stanford in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch looks at the agreement between CBS and ESPN that allows Jay Bilas and Len Elmore to work for both networks and also reviews the Selection Shows on both networks.

Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune says Bob Knight finally showed his worth to ESPN during the Selection Show on Sunday.

Don Bostrom of the Allentown (PA) Morning Call has a story on “The Father of March Madness”, the man who is given credit for convincing ESPN to televise the early rounds of the NCAA Tournament.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle notes that Knight slouches on TV, but other than that, he’s been fine.

Dusty Saunders in the Rocky Mountain News feels the NCAA Tournament is bound to get a ratings uptick this year.

Steve Greenberg of the Sporting News feels Knight is a hypocrite for taking ESPN’s money.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union has the tip times for the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News goes one step further and gives you announcing team assignments as well (times are Pacific so add accordingly for your time zone).

John Ryan of the San Jose Mercury News writes that ESPN outdistanced CBS in the selection coverage yesterday (scroll down).

Cora Nucci of Information Week has your primer on how you can access the NCAA Tournament online.

The Oklahoman also gives you its primer on where to go to access NCAA games online.

The Sirius Backstage blog tells you that your service will have every game of the NCAA Tournament on five different channels.

The Sports Media Journal is now into the Round of 16 in its Sports Radio Madness radio host contest and voting continues until March 19.

The Orbitcast satellite radio blog says XM will have all of the Red Sox-Oakland opening series games in Japan airing both team’s broadcasts as well as one in Japanese.

Darren Rovell of CNBC is in Day 6 of his Minor League Baseball Logo Contest.

That’s all for now. I’ll be back later with an update.

Friday Megalinks – Conference Tournament Edition

It’s a busy weekend for college basketball as the Conference Tournaments lead to Selection Sunday. The major conferences are all in action this weekend and they will give fans plenty of action to watch. And by 7 p.m. Sunday, fans will debate which team deserved to get in and which team did not. It’s all makes for good TV. You have a choice whether to watch CBS for the first picks or ESPN just to see Dick Vitale scream, but an added treat is having Bob Knight on the Alleged Worldwide Leader. Also, the newly branded CBS College Sports Network, (no longer CSTV as of Sunday) will have its own Selection Show right after CBS finishes its program. And if you’re not a college basketball fan, there are other sports to watch. You just have to know where to look.

So let’s get to the media links and we start off as usual with Michael Hiestand of USA Today. He talks with ESPN’s Master of Bracketology Joe Lunardi about the art of picking a bracket. If you want to know what’s on this weekend and where, USA Today has your viewing guide.

I have your College Basketball Viewing Picks for today, right here!

Now to your links from across from the country.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Nancy Marrapese-Burrell of the Boston Globe also talks with ESPN’s Joe Lunardi as she previews ESPN’s Selection show on Sunday night.

Congratulations to David Scott of Boston Sports Media Watch. He’ll be writing a new book with Memphis head coach John Calipari.

From the New York Times, Richard Sandomir talks about the developing story in which a UConn recruit got a private tour of ESPN last year in violation of NCAA rules (really).

In a related story, John Altavilla of the Hartford Courant has UConn women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma questioning ESPN’s motives in reporting the recruiting violation story.

Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News, usually angry, actually talks some sense into baseball purists, up in arms over Billy Crystal getting an at bat in Thursday’s Yankees exhibition game.

The New York Post’s Justin Terranova talks with CBS Sports analyst Clark Kellogg and ESPN’s (and Emmy nominee) Jay Bilas about bubble teams waiting for their chance to get into the NCAA Tournament. And Terranova has five questions for YES analyst Ken Singleton.

Newsday’s Neil Best says the NCAA Tournament doesn’t need big market teams unlike other sports to be a ratings hit. And Best expands on a short blurb in his column about Bob Knight’s debut at ESPN this week.

Laura Nachman has a short list of Sports Emmy Awards nominations. The nominations came out yesterday.

The Baltimore Sun’s Ray Frager says there will be plenty of opportunities to goof off at work next week with the NCAA Tournament available online.

The DC/Baltimore Examiner’s Jim Williams talks to Jerry Palm of CBS Sports about predicting the Field of 65 for this year’s NCAA Tournament.

West

Scott D. Pierce of the Deseret (UT) Morning News says an early afternoon slot for BYU in the Mountain West Tournament on Thursday not only hurt fans and TV ratings, but the tournament itself.

Jay Posner of the San Diego Union-Tribune talks with the producer of ESPN’s Black Magic documentary which premieres Sunday night. Alan Drooz of the Union-Tribune says the documentary is worth watching. Here are the ratings from last weekend in San Diego.

From the North County Times, John Maffei says Padres TV announcers Matt Vasgerian and Mark Grant will be calling their team’s games from Communist China against the Dodgers this weekend off a monitor in San Diego.

In the Ventura County Star, Jim Carlisle writes that PAC 10 fans will see if East Coast bias comes into play on Selection Sunday.

Christine Daniels of the Los Angeles Times has her weekly Sound and Vision column and she writes about the NCAA Tournament being one of the most anticipated events on the sports viewing calendar.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News talks with Screamin’ Gus Johnson of CBS Sports who’s back working through the regional finals of the NCAA Tournament. Last year, he only worked the first two rounds. In his Farther Off the Wall blog, Hoffarth has some clips of Johnson’s calls from previous tournaments (my personal favorite is from last year when Gus yelled, “And we’re going to overtiiiiimme! This is March Madness! CBS Sports! HA! HA!”). And Tom has his usual Friday expansive media news and notes.

South

From The State in South Carolina, Doug Nye says March Madness on CBS is always magical.

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes about the influence of bloggers in the wake of Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban banning them from the locker room. Bob Costas of NBC/HBO also weighs in and I now have more reason to hate the man. Who made him President of All Sports?

Dave Darling from the Orlando Sentinel has high praise for ESPN’s Black Magic documentary.

Mel Bracht of The Oklahoman calls Black Magic “remarkable”. In his weekly notebook, Bracht says the ratings for the high school basketball championships were lower this year. And the Big 12 Tournament, both men’s and women’s are among his viewing picks.

Midwest

Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune has comments from CBS’ Billy Packer about the Kelvin Sampson situation in Indiana.

Jeffrey Flanagan of the Kansas City Star says this year’s Big 12 Tournament is the last broadcasting gig for Fred White.

In the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Bob Wolfley writes that Bob Knight was actually subdued in his ESPN debut. Did everyone expect him to throw a chair at Digger Phelps?

From the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin, Paul Christian looks forward to Selection Sunday on CBS.

Judd Zulgad of the Minneapolis Star Tribune says Twins fans will be able to watch 65 games in HD on FSN North.

Canada

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star says CBC says goodbye this weekend to a 62 year association with the Canadian Men’s Curling Championship.

David Shoalts of the Toronto Globe and Mail recaps an interview between NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment President Richard Peddle on XM Satellite Radio.

Blogs

CNBC’s Darren Rovell asks whose endorsement would you follow? The athlete or his trainer? Darren is also in Day Five of his Minor League Baseball Logo Contest.

Awful Announcing doesn’t like the idea of ESPN Radio’s Mike Greenberg getting a second chance to host an ABC game show.

Joe Favorito’s Sports Marketing and Public Relations blog talks about the Harlem Globetrotters going green for St. Patrick’s Day.

That’s it for now.

The Thursday Links Gift Wrapped for You

Let’s get to the links. Last night, I somehow got hooked into watching the Big Brother Head of Household competition which stretched to about 1:20 a.m. I got out at 12:40 a.m. because I couldn’t take it anymore. Anyway, if you’re a BB fan, you can keep up to date at the Reality Fan Forum which has people monitoring the live feeds 24/7. I want to give them a plug because the updaters do a good job.

Let’s begin with some reaction to Bob Knight’s debute on ESPN last night. Cedric Golden of the Austin (TX) Statesman-American says Bob Knight showed that he can banter with the best on ESPN last night. Mike Miller of NBC Sports.com says Knight’s debut on ESPN was pretty much routine. USA Today’s Michael Hiestand tells fellow reporter Reid Cherner that Knight seemed comfortable last night.

Michael McCarthy of the Nation’s Newspaper says businesses across the country are working on ways to block CBS Sports.com’s March Madness on Demand to prevent productivity from slipping.

The Winston-Salem Journal talks about the new ESPN documentary on African Americans contributions to college basketball.

Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch gives us the identity of the man behind The Big Lead blog. Neil Best of Newsday has his reaction.

I’ve been delaying putting this entry up because I’ve been waiting for it and now I can link you to Day 4 of Darren Rovell’s Minor League Baseball logo contest at CNBC.com.

I’m getting sick of writing this, but again, here’s another story stating that the Big Ten Network and Comcast are close to a deal. Bob Fernandez of the Philadelphia Inquirer has the latest from the city where Comcast is based.

Greg Barr of the Houston Business Journal says the Rockets’ winning streak is good for TV ratings.

Kamau High of Adweek says Versus is launching a creative ad campaign promoting the NHL’s Stanley Cup playoffs.

If you’re a fan of the American LeMans motorsports series, then pick up XM Satellite Radio as it has signed with the service. Maury Brown from the Biz of Basketball blog says XM will have coverage of the six major college conference tournaments this week. However, starting next week, Sirius Satellite Radio will have exclusive coverage of the NCAA Tournament.

The Kane County (IL) Chronicle says Comcast SportsNet Chicago will air a Blackhawks game from 1971 next Tuesday.

Cam Cole of the Vancouver Sun says while CBC’s Jim Hughson will eventually have the ineviable task of replacing the legendary Bob Cole on Hockey Night in Canada, Rogers Sportsnet will have a tougher time finding a replacement for Hughson on Canucks games.

One of the funniest videos I’ve ever seen comes from Awful Announcing through Deadspin. Rob Leth of Global Television in Canada takes the advice to be the story to an all new level.

That’s all for now.