Good morning. Let’s give you a few links on this Saturday morning.
Let’s start with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch where Dan Caesar says ESPN is helping its ratings by continuing to show the Barry Bonds home run chase. Over to the San Antonio Express-News where Jerry Garcia gives the outline for Bonds coverage tonight. The LA Times reports that the Bonds chase is forcing the ESPN family of networks to shuffle its schedule for the Acura Classic.
Yesterday, Neil Best was blogging like crazy posting 18 times. I’ll give you a few of his entries from Friday. First is on Joe Theismann who was unceremoniously dropped from ESPN’s Monday Night Football after last season and will just be on ESPN Radio for a few call-ins. Another mentions the fact that ESPN will continue to invite actors into the booth for silly interviews on MNF. Neil also blogged about a new partnership between the New York Giants and Fox New York for programming and other initiatives. And I’ll choose one more entry, this one on the New York Knicks making only one national TV appearance this season. Thank you, Neil for making Friday enjoyable.
Jacques Steinberg in the New York Times writes that sports radio station WFAN in New York is about to hire Boomer Esiason to replace Don Imus, and that a proposed sidekick, Chris Carton has the potential to go down the same slippery slope that Imus did.
I keep forgetting to link to Richard Deitsch of SI.com every week. He has an interview with Dan Patrick who will do his final shows on ESPN Radio the week of August 13-17.
Michael Zuidema of the Grand Rapids Press says the Big Ten Network still doesn’t have a deal with the major cable companies as the August 30 launch is fast approaching. However, Jeff Richgels of the Capital (WI) Times says BTN is extending an olive branch to Charter Communications in hopes of gaining carriage. Ryan Suchomel of the Iowa City Press-Citizen says Iowa fans may have to get used to see their school’s games at different days and times so to accomodate BTN.
Just one race into NASCAR Nextel Cup coverage and already ESPN is making enemies.
Jason Schneider of the Florida Times-Union in Jacksonville is none too happy that ESPN is making up another list. In the Dayton Daily News, Mark Govaki says ESPN seems to be content in making up news. In Deadspin, Will Leitch tries to pinpoint the moment when ESPN literally Jumped the Shark. And continuing the ESPN bashing here, Jon Caramanica in tomorrow’s LA Times writes that “The Bronx is Burning” doesn’t do justice to New York.
Luke DeCock of the Raleigh (NC) News & Observer says Capitol Broadcasting is switching its country station into sports.
Those are your links this morning. Lots of them for a Saturday. I’ll have Weekend Viewing Picks next.
