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Back to the Friday Megalinks

November 19, 2010 By

It’s been a while since I could give you the Friday megalinks. You’re owed them. Let’s give them to you now.

There’s the Weekend Viewing Picks which has your sports and entertainment viewing choices.

National

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand reports that Fox rookie NFL rules analyst Mike Pereira will be in the broadcast booth for Super Bowl XLV in case there’s a controversial call or booth review.

Mike McCarthy of USA Today notes that in his 2nd stint in the NFL, Michael Vick has become a ratings magnet.

Nat Worden of the Wall Street Journal notes that Time Warner Cable is offering a cheaper package to subscribers without ESPN. 

Milton Kent of Fanhouse is amused by the NFL ratings claims by CBS, Fox and NBC.

Milton talks about Michael Wilbon leaving the Washington Post after three decades for a full-time position with ESPN.

Carolyn Giardina of the Hollywood Reporter writes that ESPN is launching a new research and development lab with a Florida university.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News reports that the new NBC Sports/Comcast will have a new man heading up the cable side of the division.

Mike looks at ESPN research showing that 3-D TV had a “presence” during its coverage of the World Cup this past summer.

Mike says NFL Network’s Thursday Night Football won the cable primetime ratings once again.

Anthony Crupi of Mediaweek discusses Fox Sports becoming the home of the Big Ten Football Championship Game starting next year.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says Reebok sees its future in selling its products through vending machines.

Darren looks at the future of notifying sports fans when something special is in progress.

Marcus Vanderberg of SportsNewser notes that ESPN was not allowed to air an Activision ad before an Outside the Lines segment today.

Glenn Davis from SportsGrid has the time lapse video of transforming Yankee Stadium from a baseball diamond to a football field.

I’ll have more on this story in the megalinks. Here’s Greg Wyshynski’s story in Yahoo’s Puck Daddy about the New York Islanders pulling a media credential from noted NHL blogger Chris Botta.

Joe Favorito talks about Botta and Scott Raab who had their credentials pulled.

Spots Media Watch notes that ESPN’s college football ratings got a rise from South Carolina-Florida last week.

SMW talks with WNBA star Candice Wiggins.

Steve Lepore of Puck The Media says Versus’ ratings for NHL Overtime rose over its predecessor, The Daily Line.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Chad Finn of the Boston Globe looks at the first NESN simulcasts of WEEI’s Dennis & Callahan radio show.

In the Springfield Republican, the lovely Amanda Bruno profiles the blogger who blew the lid off the NHL’s Colin Campbell’s bias towards the Bruins’ Marc Savard.

In her blog, Batter-up with Bruno, Amanda tells younger sports media consumers that they should care if newspapers fall by the wayside.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times looks at the Islanders revoking Chris Botta’s media credential over a very silly issue.

Richard profiles CBS’ James Brown who is the face of a government contractor. 

Newsday’s Neil Best talks with NBC’s Al Michaels.

Neil wonders why SNY keeps replacing its female hosts for “Beer Money”.

Neil talks with Giants QB Eli Manning about hosting “Saturday Night Live”.

The New York Daily News’ Bob Raissman says ESPN Radio’s Mike and Mike refrained from asking tough questions to Tiger Woods.

Phil Mushnick at the New York Post can’t stand live ad reads during live game action.

The Post’s Justin Terranova talks with ESPN’s NBA analyst Jeff Van Gundy.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union lists whom he thinks are among the best in hosting and calling NFL games.

Pete also conducts a poll on the same subject in his blog.

Dave Hughes of DCRTV.com gives a sports media roundup of the Baltimore-DC area in Press Box.

Dan Steinberg in the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog has Michael Wilbon’s thoughts on leaving the WaPo.

Jim Williams in the Washington Examiner has Alexander Ovechkin’s thoughts on his new NHL DVD.

South

Dustin Long of the Virginian-Pilot has NASCAR Chairman Brian France backing ESPN despite lower ratings this year. 

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald notes that the Heat’s ratings are up.

Ray Buck at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram looks at three new NFL Films documentaries.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle also looks at the NFL Films coaching docs.

The Daily Oklahoman wonders if ESPN’s College Gameday is headed to the Sooner State next Saturday.

Midwest

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer notes what happened since the last time the Bengals were blacked out locally.

Mike Zuidema of the Grand Rapids (MI) Press says Fox Sports Detroit is beefing up its high school football coverage. 

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Bob Wolfley doesn’t want to watch NBA TV’s airing of Allen Iverson playing in Turkey.

Crain’s Chicago Business’ Ed Sherman has his winners and losers in sports business and media.

Ed has the Chicago Cubs’ statement on the Big Ten’s decision to use only one endzone at Wrigley Field for tomorrow’s Illinois-Northwestern game.

Dan Caesar at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch takes a gander at the local sports radio ratings.

Dan has a closer look at the ratings.

West

Jay Posner at the San Diego Union-Tribune notes that the Chargers narrowly avoided a blackout on Monday night.

Jay talks with ESPN’s Ron Jaworski about Monday night’s Broncos-Chargers game.

John Maffei from the North County Times also talks with Jaws about Broncos-Chargers.

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star discusses the NFL Films trilogy on coaches that began Friday.

Bill Dwyre of the Los Angeles Times says Manny Pacquaio would have fascinated the writers of yesteryear.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News looks at the difference of sports reporting now and then.

Tom has his extensive media notes in his blog.

Stacy Brownhill of Willamette (OR) Week reports that Portland Trail Blazers fans protested Comcast SportsNet’s failure to gain widespread access for the team’s games.

Canada

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail wonders if the local media is treating Maple Leafs GM Brian Burke with kid gloves in the wake of him losing his son earlier this year.

Burke’s daughter, Katie, has written a reply to some of the comments in Dowbiggin’s column.

We’ll end it there.

Filed Under: Dennis & Callahan, Ken Fang, Media News, NESN, WEEI

Doing A Late Night Friday Megalink Thing

October 29, 2010 By

Time to do the megalinkage on this Friday. Lots of things going on today into this evening and let’s get cracking. Of course, we have the Weekend Viewing Picks.

Now let’s do the links.

National

USA Today’s Michael McCarthy wants to know who’s your favorite NFL announcer.

Mike says this year’s World Series ratings are down 26% from last year’s.

David Biderman of the Wall Street Journal says there’s too much laughter on the Sunday NFL pregame shows.

Mike Farrell of Multichannel News looks at Dish and Fox coming to a new carriage agreement which restores several of its cable networks and prevents the broadcast network from being pulled.

John Eggerton of Broadcasting & Cable says the FCC Chairman is pleased over the Dish/Fox agreement.

In Multichannel News, John says Cablevision is accusing Fox of conducting intimidation tactics.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell speaks to a sports executive who feels the Tampa Bay Rays should give away their all of their tickets next season.

At the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Dave Kindred shares memories that shaped him as a sportswriter.

Marcus Vanderberg at SportsNewser says Game 2 of the World Series steered Fox to another primetime ratings win.

The Big Lead notes that not everyone at ESPN was thrilled with Hannah Storm’s ensemble on Tuesday.

Deadspin says The Daily Line’s cancellation really had nothing to do with the Brett Favre/Jenn Sterger story.

Jon Weisman of Variety says a long time CBS Sports Communications and PR person is leaving the network.

Sports Media Watch has an interview with HBO Sports President Ross Greenburg.

SMW says this year’s World Series is barely above 2008′s record low ratings pace.

Steve Lepore of Puck The Media notes that Versus will continue to carry UFC events.

Joe Favorito compares and contrasts the marketing approaches of the New York Knicks and New Jersey Nets.

East and Mid-Atlantic

The Boston Globe’s Chad Finn talks with NESN’s Heidi Watney.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times says ESPN will make a decision on the fates of Jon Miller and Joe Morgan after the World Series.

Richard wonders if the World Series can continue a head-to-head winning streak against the NFL this Sunday.

Stuart Elliot from the Times notes that Fox has sold out its inventory of Super Bowl XLV ads three months early.

Newsday’s Neil Best talks with former New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath who’s embracing new and social media.

And Neil gives us some of his week in blogging and tweeting.

The New York Daily News’ Bob Raissman says the viewers are the losers in the Cablevision/Fox battle.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post says Jets fans are the next victims in the Cablevision/Fox dispute.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union says the World Series is now dependent on market size than actual matchups. I totally disagree with this.

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog says the DC NFL Team’s flagship radio station will add a delay so fans can sync up the TV broadcasts.

Jim Williams from the Washington Examiner says a CBS College Sports sideline reporter also pulls duty for CBS News.

South

Anne Blythe of the Raleigh News & Observer says several North Carolina news organizations are suing the University of North Carolina in regards to the NCAA’s investigation into the school’s football program.

The Dallas Morning News notes that ESPN Radio Hack Colon Cowherd blasted the Metroplex as a baseball area.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle previews the Monday Night Football matchup involving the Texans with ESPN’s Ron Jaworski.

The Daily Oklahoman’s Mel Bracht talks with ex-Oregon coach Mike Bellotti who will be with ESPN2 calling the Colorado-Oklahoma game.

Midwest

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer notes that ESPN Radio’s Mike and Mike will be in town next month.

Mike Zuidema of the Grand Rapids (MI) Press likes the early start time for Game 3 of the World Series.

At the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Bob Wolfley says MLB Walking, Talking Conflict of Interest Bud Selig isn’t worried about the World Series ratings.

From Crain’s Chicago Business, Ed Sherman has his winners and losers in sports business and media.

Phil Rosenthal of the Chicago Tribune says a huge crisis was averted when Dish Network and Fox came to a deal on Friday.

Paul Christian of the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin says Halloween is perfect for a primetime NFL game.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Dan Caesar wonders if the World Series can beat the NFL head-to-head on Sunday.

Dan says Dish subscribers will be able to watch the St. Louis Blues and Missouri sports once again.

West

John Maffei of the North County Times says Saturday’s Armed Forces college football tripleheader on CBS College Sports could go a long way in deciding bowl games in December and January.

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star writes that local Time Warner Cable customers can now watch ESPN online.

Jim notes that the World Series gets some direct NFL competition this Sunday.

Meg James at the Los Angeles Times looks at the Dish/Fox resolution.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News talks with director John Singleton about his new ESPN 30 for 30 documentary on disgraced track star Marion Jones.

Tom has his extensive media news and notes in his blog.

Tom says with tickets unsold for Saturday’s Oregon-USC game and Sunday’s Chargers contest, can the NFL really consider re-entering the L.A. market.

And that’s going to do it for tonight. 

Filed Under: CBS, ESPN, FOX, Ken Fang, Media News, NESN

Dennis and Callahan To Be Simulcast on NESN

October 19, 2010 By

NESN and WEEI announced this morning that beginning on November 16th, The Dennis and Callahan program will be simulcast on NESN from 6:00 to 9:00 am weekdays. The show will also be available to NESN National subscribers across the country.

NESN will install four remotely controlled HD cameras in WEEI’s studio in Brighton, MA and fiber the feeds back to the NESN HD Television Center in Watertown, MA where NESN will direct the four feeds and add graphics. In addition to the live simulcast every weekday morning, NESN will also replay The Dennis and Callahan Showin primetime on NESN National. A one-hour “Best of Dennis & Callahan” is also planned for late night. The partnership also includes regular appearances by WEEI personalities on NESN’s Red Sox pre-game shows and other sports programs.

First reaction? Ugh.

Second reaction? How will Jason Wolfe attempt to use the TV numbers in his radio ratings numbers?

They insist it won’t, but I’ll be curious to see if the move means that D&C will be forced to tone down their hate act a bit. When it comes to politics, we already know that prominent members of Red Sox management are at the opposite end of the spectrum politically with D&C, how much will they be willing to tolerate on their own station? Or will the 9:00-10:00 hour now become the political hour for D&C?

I’m also interested in this move from the standpoint of WEEI’s relationship with Comcast SportsNet. Those two have sort of always been allies in many ways, now, with WEEI alligning itself so strongly with NESN, does that have a trickle-down effect on the other talent at the station?

*********************

It’s unfortunate that a big Patriots win on Sunday is being overshadowed by the possible suspension on Brandon Meriweather for his hit on Todd Heap. Is it only in New England that fans and media are calling for their own player to be suspended?

Meriweather deserves suspension for vicious hit on Heap - Glen Farley’s column this morning is a perfect example of the above.

Belichick on top of his game - (registration may be required) Jonathan Comey says that Sunday’s win might be one of the crowning moments of Belichick’s career.

Quirky nickel scheme key to Patriots defense’s success - Ian Rapoport looks at the 1-5-5 defense that was so successful on Sunday.

Bowl of Belichicken soup - Gerry Callahan has the Patriots once again thriving under Belichick.

A single stop told story - Dave D’Onofrio looks at a big play that spoke volumes on Sunday.

Banta-Cain loses job to Cunningham - Rich Garven has the rookie from Florida making his third straight start on Sunday over the veteran who got the contract extension in the offseason.

The new Patriots’ passing game: Shorte routes, with more congestion - Tom E Curran says that Tom Brady will need to become more a point guard in the new offense.

Ravens, you’re not as good everyone thought you were - Bill Burt gets his column from today published in the Baltimore Sun. It doesn’t go over well. I love that the first commenter says that the column is sour grapes from the playoff loss. As Tom Brady pointed out, the Ravens have beaten the Patriots once in nine years.

Praise for Mesko still hanging in air - Shalise Manza Young’s notebook covers a number of topics.

Report Cards from Sunday are out. Check the grades from Jeremy Gottlieb | Kirk Minihane | Ron Borges.

To Celtics, Frank the perfect fit - Julian Benbow has a look at the newest Celtics assistant. Steve Bulpett also has a good piece on Frank.

No sixth sense for Shaq - Peter May says Shaq doesn’t want to compare himself to Bill Walton in ’86, he just wants another championship.

Job-sharing works for Rask - Joe Haggerty has the Bruins goalie okay with sharing time with Tim Thomas.

Boston Bruins defense will be put to test by Washington Capitals - Mike Loftus notes the tough test the Bruins will face in their home opener.

McAdam at the ALCS: Lee solidifying his place in history - Sean McAdam looks at another historically great performance from Cliff Lee.

Filed Under: Dennis & Callahan, NESN, WEEI

NESN Launches Bruins Coverage With Special Tonight

October 14, 2010 By

Yes, the Bruins regular season schedule has already started when they traveled to Prague in the Czech Republic for two games against the Phoenix Coyotes on Saturday, October 9th and Sunday, October 10th.

Now that the team is back from Prague, and ready to take on the Devils in New Jersey on Saturday night, NESN will deliver live and exclusive high definition (HD) coverage of up to 72 Boston Bruins games during the 2010/11 season, the network’s 26th season covering Bruins hockey. 

Joel Feld, NESN’s executive vice president of programming and executive producer sees that there is interest in the Bruins and top draft pick Tyler Seguin citing the fact that  “over 25,000 Bruins fans showed up at TD Garden in September to get an early glimpse of Tyler Seguin and the Bruins rookies.” The network’s coverage will attempt to take advantage of that interest, starting with tonight’s season preview with Andy Brickley.

Here is an overview of what NESN has planned this season for Bruins coverage.

The Broadcast Team

Jack Edwards (play-by-play) and Andy Brickley (color analyst) return for their sixth season together in the NESN broadcast booth. They will be joined by reporter Naoko Funayama who enters her third season with the network. Kathryn Tappen will once again lead NESN’s studio team as host of WB Mason Bruins Face-Off Live, NESN’s intermission coverage and Bruins Overtime Live presented by Ace Ticket. She will once again be joined by former Bruins favorites Mike Milbury, Barry Pederson, and Gord Kluzak.

The Bricks: 2010/11 Bruins Season Preview

Andy Brickley will set the stage for the regular season on Thursday, October 14 at 7:00 PM with The Bricks: 2010/11 Bruins Season Preview; a half-hour special that will look ahead to the coming season and introduce Bruins fans to the team’s exciting off-season additions. Brickley will also make his pre-season predictions about the Bruins and the rest of the league and look back at the team’s season opening trip to Prague.

The Big Bad Bruins Show with Kathryn Tappen

NESN will launch a new weekly show called The Big Bad Bruins Showon Saturday, October 23 at 6:00 PM. Hosted by Kathryn Tappen, the Original NESN Entertainment production will feature in-depth one-on-one conversations with Bruins players, a regular segment with Bruins President Cam Neely, and weekly reports from reporter Naoko Funayama.

The Instigators with Mike Milbury

The Instigatorswith Mike Milbury will return for its third season on Thursday, October 28 at 10:30 PM. Milbury holds back nothing when sharing his opinions on the hottest issues and latest controversies in the NHL. Jack Edwards and Andy Brickley will once again mix it up with Milbury on a regular basis along with other special guest commentators including another episode this winter featuring former Bruins coach and hockey icon Don Cherry.

NESN.com

NESN’s in-depth coverage of the Bruins also extends online with NESN.com’s Bruins beat writer Doug Flynn providing daily Bruins news and analysis along with a live blog during every game. Jack Edwards, Andy Brickley, Kathryn Tappen and Naoko Funayama will also contribute regularly over the course of the season. NESN.com offers the network’s best Bruins highlights and interviews in addition to interactive fan forums, polls, photo galleries, quizzes and Top 10 Bruins prospect lists.

NESN National

NESN’s Bruins coverage also extends to fans outside New England who subscribe to a sports package that includes NESN National, the network’s national television service. NESN’s pre and post-game shows, Bruins in 2 replays, Bruins Classic games, The Bricks, The Big Bad Bruins Show and The Instigators are all available to NESN National subscribers throughout the season. NESN’s Bruins game broadcasts can also be enjoyed outside New England by purchasing the NHL Center Ice package.

Filed Under: NESN

Giving You The Friday Megalinks

October 1, 2010 By

Ok, let’s do the Friday megalinks. Getting a late start as I’ve been all over the place today, but better late than never.

Check out the Weekend Viewing Picks for information on the sports and entertainment programs for the first weekend in October.

Now to the links.

National

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand talks about ESPN creating a new brand that will target women and could eventually become a dedicated TV channel. This was already scoffed at on Twitter. We’ll see how this evolves. Asides from ESPN Mobile, the Alleged Worldwide Leader’s ill-fated cell phone brand, when the network commits to an idea, it will usually work so we’ll see.

Eleanor Barkhorn from The Atlantic shares her thoughts, pro and con, on the new ESPN women’s brand. 

A Girl’s Perspective on a Boy’s Game blog has some thoughts on ESPNW.

Dylan Stableford at The Wrap notes there are many women who aren’t in love with ESPNW.

Joe Posanaski of Sports Illustrated has a very good tribute to Los Angeles Dodgers voice Vin Scully.

Noah Davis of SportsNewser says the Boston Globe will put all of its web content content except sports and breaking news behind a pay wall. 

Dave Kindred at the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center looks into the history of one of his favorite leads and finds it doesn’t quite measure up to its legend.

Milton Kent of Fanhouse notes that weather delays at the Ryder Cup will force NBC to go live with its coverage on Saturday instead of planned taped coverage.

Fanhouse’s Brett McMurphy has a facetious look at the first televised college football game.

Martin Rogers of Yahoo! Sports says the Ryder Cup has to move to an earlier date to avoid inclement weather.

Spencer E. Ante of the Wall Street Journal notes NFL games are about to be seen on tablets.

Georg Szalai of the Hollywood Reporter notes that Fox has pulled 19 of its channels including several sports regional networks off Dish Network over, what else? A carriage dispute.

Andrea Morabito from Broadcasting & Cable says in addition, MSG Network and MSG Plus were pulled from Dish over a pricing dispute.

John Consoli of Mediaweek looks at Fox making Game 3 of this year’s World Series an extra early start.

Mike Freeman of CBS Sports says LeBron James can’t call racism over criticism over “The Decision” when he’s never taken a stand in his life.

The Huffington Post has TNT’s Charles Barkley ripping James for his comments. 

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says US Ryder Cup team outfitter Sun Mountain Sports is getting heat over its non-waterproof raincoats.

The Big Lead notes a new poll in which an overwhelming majority of respondents want women banned from NFL locker rooms. 
Sports Media Watch says Fox’s regional coverage in Week 3 drew big ratings.

SMW notes that Fanhouse writer Jay Mariotti pleaded no contest to domestic violence charges and was eventually sentenced to probation and community service.

SportsbyBrooks says while ESPN doesn’t have Mariotti in its plans, Fanhouse is apparently lobbying owner AOL to keep him.

Dave Kohl in the Major League Programs blog looks at the stellar ratings for Monday night’s Packers-Bears game.

Brady Green at Awful Announcing says Screamin’ Gus Johnson is now launching a new clothing line based on one of his catchphrases.

The Thoroughbred Times says the Breeders’ Cup will be aired live on five ESPN networks. 

East and Mid-Atlantic

The Boston Globe’s Chad Finn talks with NESN’s Bruins voice Jack Edwards who’s looking forward to hockey season.

The Worcester Telegram & Gazette’s Bill Doyle looks at a local movie theater that shows New England Patriots games on its really big screen.

Amanda Bruno at Batter-up with Bruno has some thoughts on the Boston Globe’s online paywall. 

The Watertown (MA) Tab & Press talks with a town native who directed the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary, “Once Brothers”, that airs later this month.

Over to the New York Times’ Richard Sandomir who delves into why Fox decided to start World Series Game 3 an hour earlier than the other games.

50 years later, Richard gets analysis from SNY’s Keith Hernandez on a pivotal play that occurred in the 1960 World Series.

Newsday’s Neil Best talks with CBS/WFAN/Westwood One Radio’s Boomer Esiason who hardly has time to sleep these days.

Neil also talks about MSG and MSG Plus getting pulled from Dish Network.

The New York Daily News’ Bob Raissman says SNY’s Mets crew’s mocking of the White Sox Hawk Harrelson got them close to mocking the Yankees’ Derek Jeter. That’s what Raissman is contending.

The New York Post’s Dr. Doom and Gloom is disappointed in NBC’s Cris Collinsworth. I’m sure Cris is going to change his style just for you, Dr. Doom and Gloom.

The Post’s Justin Terranova talks with NBC’s Johnny Miller about the Ryder Cup.

The Albany Times Union’s Pete Dougherty looks at the revised Ryder Cup TV schedule.

Pete talks with the new voice of the AHL’s Albany Devils.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Bob Smizik explains why the local ESPN Radio affiliate is going by the wayside.

Brian O’Neill of the Post-Gazette says the long-lost TV footage of Game 7 of the 1960 World Series will be premiered by MLB Network in the Steel City before it airs on television.

DCRTV.com’s Dave Hughes writing in Press Box says the Baltimore Orioles are shopping their radio rights between two parties.

The Washington Examiner’s Jim Williams interviews legendary DC area sportscaster Johnny Holliday.

South

Rodney Ho from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution says the Dish Network/Fox dispute could prevent Braves fans from seeing the Bobby Cox tribute tomorrow. 

David Barron from the Houston Chronicle says the fans are the losers in the Dish Network/Fox carriage dispute.

William Pack from the San Antonio Express-News writes about the Dish Network/Fox dispute. 

Mel Bracht from the Daily Oklahoman writes that both Oklahoma and Texas are working to develop their own independent TV networks.

Mel writes about Fox’s Jimmy Johnson getting voted off Survivor this week. 

Midwest

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer writes that Northern Kentucky’s long-time basketball radio voice will be honored on Saturday.

John says Fox Sports Ohio among other Fox channels were pulled from Dish Network.

And John says the Cincinnati Reds will be featured in a new MLB Postseason promo.

Michael Zuidema in the Grand Rapids (MI) Press says a local TV sports director is busy during high school football season.

Arthur Rothstein of AnnArbor.com speaks with Big Ten Network’s Charissa Thompson. 

Terry Hutchens in the Indianapolis Star notes that Indiana University will go 3-D next Saturday.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has his weekly winners and losers.

Ed talks with new Chicago Bulls President Ed Reinsdorf.

Julie DiCaro at the ChicagoNow blog doesn’t like the idea of a separate ESPN women’s brand.

Lauren Fitzpatrick of the Southtown (IL) Star writes about the sad story about the mother of a Comcast SportsNet Chicago anchor being allegedly killed by her husband.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Bob Wolfley has Fox’s Brian Billick high on the Green Bay Packers.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says legendary Gateway City broadcaster Jay Randolph will most likely call his last Cardinals game this Sunday.

Jim Thomas of the Post-Dispatch writes that the Rams managed to avoid a blackout of this Sunday’s game against Seattle.

West

Jay Posner at the San Diego Union-Tribune has 1st year Padres TV Dick Enberg looking forward to calling the games again next year.

Mark Zeigler of the Union-Tribune says fans in blacked out markets are finding creative ways to watch NFL games.

And this leads into Kevin Acee’s article in the Union-Tribune that the Chargers are blacked out once again on Sunday.

John Maffei at the North County Times says there will be plenty of lineup changes on local sports radio stations on Monday.

Meg James at the Los Angeles Times looks at the Dish Network/Fox carriage dispute.

Mike DiGiovanna of the Times says Torii Hunter of the Anaheim Angels will be a guest analyst on MLB Network during the postseason. 

Tom Hoffarth at the Los Angeles Daily News says the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary unit has added a film on former Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela.

As we go into the 10th month of the year, Tom has 10 sports media issues he’s thinking about.

Tom reviews the week in sports media.

Tom says thanks to the bad weather in Wales, the entire Ryder Cup will be shown live one way or another throughout the weekend.

Tom notes that the late Oakland A’s and Los Angeles Raiders voice Bill King is on the ballot for the Baseball Hall of Fame Ford C. Frick Award.

Canada

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says UK’s Sky TV which is carrying the Ryder Cup shows no objectivity when it comes to covering the event.

Mark Brownlee of the Centretown News notes that Rogers Sportsnet’s new channel will leave Ottawa Senators fans out in the cold. 

And that will conclude the megalinks

Filed Under: Boston Globe, Ken Fang, Media News, NESN

NESN To Broadcast Two UFL Hartford Colonials Games

September 14, 2010 By

NESN will produce two United Football League games this season featuring the Hartford Colonials including the league’s season opener this Saturday (9/18) at 2:30 PM when Hartford hosts the Sacramento Mountain Lions at Rentschler Field.

For Saturday’s game, Mike Logan will handle play-by-play with former Patriots QB and 98.5 midday host Scott Zolak will provide color analysis. John Chandler and Tony Terzi will be the sideline reporters.

The second game will be on Saturday, October 16th with the Omaha Nighthawks coming to Connecticut, and Brett Haber will be the play-by-play man for that game, with Zolak on color, and Chandler and Terzi on the sidelines.

The Omaha team is coached by former Boston College football coach Jeff Jagodzinski, and is loaded with players with NFL experience, including QB Jeff Garcia.

This is a smart move by NESN, adding more sports programming, and should the start of the 2011 NFL regular season be delayed by a work stoppage, the UFL could become a valuable broadcast property. Getting in with them this season could lead to a bigger role next year, and helps their NESN National channel.

Here are the network bios for the NESN Broadcast teams:

Mike Logan - Mike is an experienced play-by-play announcer as he is the television and radio voice for the Providence College men’s hockey team, a position he has held for the past 16 seasons.  He has also served as a play-by-play announcer for the Pawtucket Red Sox and broadcast football and basketball for both Harvard and Northeastern Universities.

Brett Haber - For almost 15 years, Brett has become established as a fixture of sports news broadcasting.  He has previously served as an anchor for ESPN’s SportsCenter. During his career, he has received 17 Emmy Awards, including a remarkable four-year run as the Washington D.C. area’s most outstanding sports anchor beginning in 2007 and continuing through this year.  Brett joined WUSA9 in November 2004 and is currently the station’s sports director and primary sports anchor.

Scott Zolak - Zolak will be the color analyst for UFL games on the New England Sports Network. He has worked both pregame and postgame analysis of New England Patriots games on radio and television. Zolak co-hosts the “Gresh and Zolak” show weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on 98.5 FM The Sports Hub in Boston, Massachusetts. A former quarterback in the National Football League, Zolak spent eight seasons with the New England Patriots (1991-98) and one with the Miami Dolphins (1999). In 55 career games, Zolak threw for 1,314 yards and eight touchdowns. He originally was a fourth-round pick of the Patriots in 1991. Zolak played college football at Maryland.

Tony Terzi - Tony has more than 20 years of experience in the broadcast industry. He has worked as a Sports Anchor/Reporter at WTIC, Sports Anchor/Reporter at WVIT (NBC 30), and Air Personality at KC-101. Currently, Terzi is a SportsCenter anchor for ESPN Radio.

John Chandler – John is no stranger to NESN viewers, having served as both an anchor and reporter for NESN’s sports news programming. In 2009, he worked as the play-by-play voice for the Springfield Armor of the NBA D-League. He also worked as a sports reporter/anchor at WEWS in Cleveland, Ohio and WVII in Bangor, Maine. His work has earned several Emmy nominations and has been recognized by the Associated Press and the Maine Association of Broadcasters.

Filed Under: NESN

NESN Launches “NESN National” in North and South Carolina

September 7, 2010 By

NESN announced today that Time Warner Cable customers in North and South Carolina will be the first cable customers in the country to have access to NESN National – the national television service of NESN.

Subscribers to TWC’s SportsPass will have access to NESN National, and be able to view Red Sox and Bruins pre and post-game programming, as well as NESN Daily and other programming on the network.

Live game telecasts of the Red Sox and Bruins, Red Sox replays or classic games, and certain other programs will not be available on NESN National due to league restrictions.  When these programs are airing on NESN in New England, Time Warner Cable customers in the Carolinas will see other programming.

Filed Under: NESN

Late Summer Megalinks

August 27, 2010 By

We have less than a month to go in summer and with our Labor Day weekend coming next week, we all know that September means school, end of vacations and the like. It also means football in earnest. Where I’m going with this thought I don’t know, but I’m feeling melancholy that the summer is almost done.

My sympathies to Bruce on the loss of his grandmother. Having lost all of my grandparents by my mid-20′s, I do wish at least one was around so I could still talk with him/her.

Let’s do the megalinks and there are plenty of stories for you to read. Of course, the Weekend Viewing Picks give you what’s happening in sports and entertainment.

Now to the links.

National

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand points out that a possible victim of an 18 week NFL regular season might be the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

At Sports Business Daily, John Ourand writes that CBS has almost sold out of its NFL regular season ad inventory. 

Milton Kent of Fanhouse says another possible victim to the expanded NFL regular season might be The Oscars.

Milton enjoyed listening to CBS US Open analysts John McEnroe and Mary Carillo square off over the ATP and WTA Tour schedules.

Kelly Riddell and Andy Fixmer of Bloomberg write that a hangup in the Disney/Time Warner dispute is the fees over the ESPN3.com broadband service.

Mike Reynolds at Multichannel News says Gol TV in HD gets picked up by Time Warner Cable in New York.

Lucia Moses at Mediaweek writes that Golf Magazine is feeling bullish about the sport despite its problems this year.

At the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Dave Kindred says journalists who try to build a personal brand do so at their own risks.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell feels a webcast on Ralph Lauren’s website might be the future of sports marketing. 

Darren notes that there’s a prime parking spot available at The Barclays this week.

Emmett Jones at Sports Business Digest notes that Reebok is using an au naturel Kelly Brook to sell shoes.

Emmett says the NHL might create an all-women’s league to help the competitive balance in Olympic hockey.

Sports Media Watch has a few news and notes.

From Yahoo!, Greg Wyshynski of Puck Daddy looks at the five things learned from this week’s World Hockey Summit.

Brett Barrouquere of the Associated Press reports on a Cincinnati Bengals cheerleader who won a huge libel and slander award against a gossip website. 

Bob Stockton of World Tennis Magazine says this year’s US Open Tennis Series garnered good ratings for ESPN2.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Chad Finn from the Globe says Hard Knocks with the New York Jets has become Must See TV.

Brian Ballou of the Globe reports that the son of NESN Red Sox analyst Jerry Remy was arrested this week for allegedly groping a woman.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times writes that Jay Mariotti is now wearing the shoe on the other foot after being bombastic throughout his career.

Bob Raissman at the New York Daily News feels Hard Knocks is riding the Darrelle Revis train despite his training camp holdout. Is Raissman actually watching the show?

Phil Mushnick in the New York Post says YES failed to cover all bases during an incident in a Yankees-Blue Jays game on Monday.

Claire Atkinson of the Post looks at how NFL fans can now watch games on their cell phones. 

Brett Cyrgalis of the Post writes that a lack of American players will hurt U.S. Open ratings for CBS, ESPN and Tennis Channel. 

Brett has five questions for SEC on CBS analyst Gary Danielson.

In NY Sports Journalism, Barry Janoff has the results of a readers poll of the greatest sports broadcast calls of all-time.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union says the new local AHL team is planning to be proactive on local TV and radio.

Pete has more on the Albany Devils broadcast hopes.

Pete says Saturday’s Travers Stakes at Saratoga goes to regional television after being on national TV for a quarter century.

Ken McMillan of the Hudson Valley Times Herald-Record has a partial college football schedule for the MSG Networks.

Ken says get ready for preseason hockey.

Steve Sampsell of the Centre (PA) Daily Times talks with ESPN NASCAR analyst Tim Brewer.

The Delaware County Times says College Gameday will be visiting the Villanova campus in February.

Dave Hughes from DCRTV writes in Press Box that the Baltimore Ravens have signed with Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic for most of its TV programming.

Jim Williams at the Washington Examiner talks with ESPN/ABC college football analyst Jesse Palmer on Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen.

South

The Virginia Gazette picks up a story from William & Mary’s newspaper written by Virginia Nadler regarding ESPNU using school students to produce programming.

Tim Clodfelter of the Winston-Salem (NC) Journal says it’s getting down to the wire between Time Warner Cable and Disney. 

The State in Charleston, South Carolina says it’s moving its Go Gamecocks website to a pay model.

Josh Hoke of The State writes that big name high school recruits bring the big lights to town. 

Dave Scheiber of Fox Sports Florida has Rays analyst Kevin Kennedy recalling the moment when he got the networks’ attention.

John Lembo of the Bradenton (FL) Herald notes that ESPN is in town for a high school football game tonight.

John looks at the reasons why ESPN chose Bradenton as a broadcast location.

In the Orlando Sentinel, Shannon Owens has ESPN’s Lee Corso being bullish on the Florida Gators.

Stan Diel of the Birmingham (AL) News says the clock is ticking down in the talks between Bright House cable and ESPN.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News writes that the Texas Rangers continue to rack up the ratings.

Matt Heika of the Morning News says the Dallas Stars will have a new radio studio host this season. 

Ray Buck at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram looks at former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach going to TV this season.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle notes that the local Little League baseball team is pulling in the ratings.

Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman says ESPN’s Lee Corso hopes to fulfill his new contract with the Alleged Worldwide Leader.

Midwest

Michael Zuidema from the Grand Rapids (MI) Press says high school football will be covered heavily by local TV throughout the season.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel looks at NFL Films’ new documentary series that will air on NFL Network throughout the fall.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has this week’s winners and losers.

Phil Rosenthal of the Chicago Tribune looks at the Fanhouse suspension of former Sun-Times columnist Jay Mariotti.

Interestingly enough, Mariotti’s former paper, the Sun-Times, uses wire reports to report on his suspension.

Paul Russo of the Minneapolis Star Tribune writes that the Wild will have all of its games on TV for the first time since entering the NHL.

Paul Christian of the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin says a minor league baseball broadcaster still can’t over the death of a player last weekend.

West

Jay Drew of the St. Lake City Tribune looks at the factors, including ESPN, that led BYU to remain with the Mountain West Conference after briefly flirting with the WAC. Thanks to The Big Lead for the link.

Scott D. Pierce of the Deseret (UT) News says BYU has long been owed a bigger slice of the TV pie due to the audience it brings to the table.

Jay Posner at the San Diego Union-Tribune says long-time Padres broadcaster Ted Leitner will return for another season.

To the North County Times where John Maffei talks with Texas Rangers/San Diego Chargers voice Josh Lewin who will also be doing duties for Fox this weekend.

At the Ventura County Star, Jim Carlisle writes about Notre Dame requesting NBC to reduce its commercial breaks for football games this season.

In the Los Angeles Times, Diane Pucin has CBS/NBC/ESPN2/BBC/7 Network analyst John McEnroe’s controversial comments about women’s tennis schedule being too demanding for its stars.

Joe Flint of the Times says an 18 game NFL schedule could bring a new TV partner and a permanent date for the Super Bowl. 

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News looks at the Sport Science franchise which ESPN picked up from Fox Sports Net.

Tom has more with Sport Science host John Brenkus who has been the human guinea pig for the show.

Tom also reviews the week in blogging and more.

Mark Glover of the Sacramento Bee says high school football is growing in the national spotlight.

Matt Phelps and Megan Managan of the Kirkland (WA) Reporter preview an ESPN 30 for 30 documentary on a monumental Little League World Series upset from the early 1980′s.

Canada

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail wonders when a local sports radio station will name a morning show host.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star says the war of words over the new Rogers Sportsnet one is really heating up.

And we’re done. Thanks for reading.

Filed Under: Ken Fang, Media News, NESN

NESN’s “After The Game” to Show Athletes at Home

August 23, 2010 By

NESN continues to look for ways to capture the casual sports fan’s attention with the new series “After The Game,” set to debut on Friday, September 3, 2010 at 5:30 pm.

Described as a new “lifestyle” program, “After The Game” will ”showcase the personal homes, lives, and philanthropic efforts of New England’s beloved athletes.”

The show is produced by Linda Pizzuti Henry – wife of Red Sox owner John Henry - and Kelly Boullet of Nacho Mama Productions. The series will be part of  NESN’s new Made in New England programming lineup. 

Each show highlights the rise to becoming a world-class athlete, an inside look at their living space in a “Cribs”-style tour, followed by a look at the charities that he or she is passionate about. 

The first episode features Tim Wakefield walking viewers through his Florida home, explaining how he became the famous Red Sox knuckle-baller, and sharing why he takes time to support Space Coast Early Intervention Center and Pitching in for Kids– his primary philanthropic commitments. 

Future episodes will feature Patrice Bergeron, Matt Light, David Ortiz, Bode Miller, Tom Werner, Kristine Lilly, Doug Flutie and others.

To learn more about “After The Game” and the athletes, homes and charities featured on the show, you can visit www.afterthegametv.com, or follow @afterthegametv on Twitter.

Filed Under: NESN

Red Sox Ratings On NESN Down 35.8% From 2009

July 26, 2010 By

In an article from Sports Business Journal, John Ourand reports that the Red Sox TV ratings on NESN are down almost 36% from last season.

Red Sox lose RSN ratings lead

The Red Sox are still 5th overall in MLB in terms of local ratings, averaging a 6.52 per game on NESN.

Ourand has the following to say about the Red Sox decline, and notes that it crosses over to the radio side as well:

In Boston, the declining TV numbers are not the only evidence that suggests Red Sox Nation is more apathetic about this year’s team than in years past. Despite the fact that the team just had its 600th straight sellout at Fenway Park, the lack of the traditional enthusiasm around the local nine this year extends to the team’s radio broadcasts, too. For the first half of the season, Red Sox games on WEEI-AM were down 16.5 percent, to 107,500 listeners. The coveted male 25- to 54-year-old demographic was down 28 percent, posting a 10.2 average. It should be noted that the Celtics’ run in this year’s NBA playoffs required the relocation of 20 Red Sox broadcasts this spring from flagship WEEI-AM to WRKO-AM.

St. Louis has taken over the top spot, averaging a 9.70 on Fox Sports Midwest. The Red Sox have been at the top of this list every season since 2004.

Filed Under: NESN, WEEI
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