Fang's Bites

A Friday Night Update Just for You

Time for some links tonight.

Richard Deitsch of Sports Illustrated gives his Media Power Rankings for January. Paul Zimmerman gives his annual NFL TV Commentator ratings and he jabs Ron Jaworski and Tony Kornheiser for their work on Monday Night Football. And SI picks up an Associated Press profile of Duquense basketball announcer Ray Goss who’s been on the job for 40 years.

Doug Nye of The State tells us that there are a bunch of significant 50th anniversaries in sports that will be touched upon either by ESPN or other sports networks.

Paul Christian of the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin has a story about FSN North’s extensive production for Hockey Day in Minnesota tomorrow.

Neil Best of Newsday says covering Super Bowl XLII was an unexpected pleasure. Also from Newsday, Mark Herrmann has a story about Dick Enberg’s play about the late Al McGuire.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer talks with Cris Collinsworth who says he was shocked to find out HBO was dumping Inside the NFL.

Rob Pegoraro of the Washington Post blogs that it appears that MASN will carry at least 60 Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals games in HD this season. And Phil Swann of the TV Predictions website goes further into detail about the story.

The Chicago Daily Herald says Comcast SportsNet will remember the late Cubs announcer Harry Carey with a full day of programming on February 18.

Laith Agha of the San Jose Mercury News writes that producing golf can sometimes become a circus for the CBS Sports PGA unit at Pebble Beach this weekend. Dennis Taylor of the Monterey County (CA) Herald caught up with NBC’s Al Michaels who’s playing at Pebble Beach in the AT&T Pro-Am.

Michael David Smith of the AOL Fanhouse Blog wonders if in the wake of the rumors of Microsoft buying Yahoo, would the company would sell its sports unit to let’s say, ESPN?

Luke Decock of the Raleigh (NC) News & Observer writes about a new five year deal between FSN South and the Carolina Hurricanes. And Decock went behind the scenes with FSN South during one particular Hurricane game.

The Tennis-X blog tells us that ESPN2 is dropping the Indian Wells and Miami tennis tournaments while FSN will pick them up.

More fuel to the Dana Jacobsen fire. Notre Dame football coach Charlie Weis says he was offended at Jacobsen’s remarks during the Mike & Mike roast in Atlantic City last month.

Broadcasting & Cable reports that WWE Smackdown is leaving the CW after this season.

A couple of things from Multichannel News. Mike Reynolds reports that TNT is doing a promotion with 162 pizzerias in New York, Los Angeles, Dallas and Boston to hype the NBA All Star Game. And Reynolds writes that Versus and Tennis Channel have teamed up to televise the Davis Cup this weekend.

Sergio Ibarra of TV Week lists the national sports ratings for the week ending February 3. Also from TV Week, Daisy Whitney says MySpace’s Super Bowl ads section is very popular.

Fox Sports is getting ready for another NASCAR season. Ray Frager of the Baltimore Sun looks into NASCAR on Fox and other things in his Medium Well blog.

CBS Sports will cover two college basketball games this weekend.

Former Fox NFL analyst Bill Maas and his girlfriend will serve two years probation stemming from gun and drug charges during a routine traffic stop in Peoria, IL last year.

Former CBS Sports host and current host of The Insider, Pat O’Brien is back in rehab.

You have a lot of links to look through. Enjoy. I’ll be back Saturday with a few more links.

A Tuesday Update

Time for an update this afternoon.

Starting with Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News, we find that last Thursday’s Packers-Cowboys set a viewing record for the NFL Network. Mike Cassidy of Undertone Networks writes for Online Video Insider about his experiences watching the NFL.com Live webcast for last Thursday’s game. The Cumberland (MD) Times-News reports that the NFL Network along with FSN Pittsburgh will be seen in HD on Atlantic Broadband cable systems starting this week.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has some of the opinions shared on the Packers-Cowboys game this past weekend on ESPN (scroll down).

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch runs a press release stating that ESPN Radio has signed a carriage deal with Big League Broadcasting to turn an existing talk station into a full service affiliate.

The Jossip website gives praise to ESPN for spending huge amounts of money on hardcore sports journalists. Stop laughing. This is true.

Todd Spangler of Multichannel News writes that ESPN is expanding the ESPN360 brand to Brazil.

CSTV, which had a really restrictive TV contract with the A-10 conference, has eased up a bit and signed a new deal to syndicate basketball games to regional sports networks (mostly on Comcast-owned RSN’s) in the conference’s geographic area. Last season, CSTV prevented many games from being aired because it had exclusivity and wouldn’t sell them to local channels. Now with this new contract, 32 men’s basketball games will be carried in the syndication package in addition to some 30 games that will be aired on CSTV. That’s much better. Here’s the press release from CSTV.

Jeff Richgels of the Capital (WI) Times reports that DirecTV has added FSN Wisconsin to its HD lineup. And Phil Swann who runs the TV Predictions website says FSN NY and MSG Network will also be added by DirecTV to the HD channel lineup.

John Consoli writes in today’s edition of Mediaweek that ratings for the NBA on the FSN regional channels are up significantly including those for the Milwaukee Bucks and San Antonio Spurs.

Former Fox Sports NFL Analyst Bill Maas goes on trial on drug and weapons charges in March.

William Houston of the Toronto Globe and Mail says there’s no clear winner between the two sports radio stations in town.

Ok, you have your links for the afternoon. Primetime Viewing Picks coming up.

Back to Work Links

Time to give you some links on this Monday morning.

USA Today’s Michael McCarthy says the Cameragate story isn’t over until the media says it is. That’s true, unfortunately.

Phil Mushnick in the New York Post says the lawsuit against Isiah Thomas and Madison Square Garden is forcing the defendants to say, “We’re really lousy people.”

The Orbitcast website that covers satellite radio says Sirius will have extensive coverage of the Chase for the Nextel Cup.

We have some reaction from various sports media critics in regards to Larry Stewart’s announcement that he’s leaving the media beat after 35 years to cover horse racing for the Los Angeles Times. Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star has reaction in his blog. Neil Best from Newsday blogs about Stewart as well.

Speaking of Stewart, he still writes the Morning Briefing for the Times on Mondays and he looks at the Belichick story being covered from various angles including Fox which had the actual spy tape from the Jets game.

In the New York Times, Richard Sandomir reviews NBC’s interview of NFL Commish Roger Goodell and the coverage of the Cameragate story on the network pregame shows. John Molori of Boston Sports Media Watch says there was a feeding frenzy on Belichick over Cameragate. Les Carpenter of the Washington Post talks to NFL Films President Steve Sabol about spying in the NFL.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell wonders how much OJ Simpson memorabilia will be worth now with him being charged with robbery.

ESPN has announced that Time Warner Cable has picked up ESPN Deportes for its digital basic service.

Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch talks with unfunny hack Dane Cook (my words) about his MLB ad campaign.

Mya Frazier and Andrew Hampp of Advertising Age say die-hard fans can’t see Big Ten games due to the Big Ten Network/cable dispute. Bob Wolfey of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Bill Belichick fumbled on his Cameragate explanation. Kyle Nagel from the Dayton Daily News says BTN’s lead play-by-play man Thom Brennaman is the kiss of death for many higher ranked teams.

Dusty Saunders in today’s Rocky Mountain News says CBS’ Rich Gannon who did the Oakland-Denver game yesterday has diarrhea of the mouth. Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star says announcers sometimes talk a lot and say nothing. He’s just coming to this conclusion?

The publication Sports Business says ad spending on college broadcasts has increased in the last year.

Nancy Ayala of Adweek writes that the NFL is reaching out to the Hispanic market.

From Saturday, Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star has a long extensive article on the rise and fall of former Chief and Fox NFL analyst Bill Maas.

John Consoli of Mediaweek says Fox and TBS are generating heat for the MLB postseason.

That’s it for now.

Tuesday Morning Stuff

Tuesday morning and I’m trying to get some links in from home before heading to a meeting at 10 a.m.

Checking the sports weekend ratings, Michael Hiestand of USA Today has his take on some of the events. Paulsen of the Sports Media Watch has an in-depth look at the ratings.

A couple of things from Neil Best’s blog. First, he talks about Bill Parcells being excited about his TV career at ESPN. And Best says MSG Network has a new hire. In his regular column and first since his vacation, Best writes about ESPN reporting different news about Giants QB Eli Manning than other media outlets. But after writing 30 blog entries and a column yesterday, Best has yet to blog today. Neil must be worn out!

Eric Lebowitz of Newsday writes about the New Jersey Nets staying on WFAN for the next two season.

Over to the New York Daily News where Bob Raissman says CBS’ Jim Nantz and Phil Simms dropped one talking point during the Patriots-Jets game (no, it’s not the Cameragate story).

Shannon Shelton of the Detroit Free Press writes that all of Michigan State’s men’s basketball games will be on TV, most of which will be on the Big Ten Network. Dennis Brackin of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune says most of the University of Minnesota’s men’s b-ball team will also be on BTN. George M. Thomas of the Akron Beacon Journal says BTN’s look is just below ESPN. Mark Stewart of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes in his Badger Blog that BTN is picking up most of Wisconsin’s men’s basketball games as well. From the Columbus Dispatch, Bob Baptist says the same thing about Ohio State’s schedule. And you can read the same thing in the Evansville Courier & Press regarding Indiana. John Supinie of the Peoria Journal Star writes about BTN taking most of Illinois’ games. So you can say BTN will be broadcasting most of the Big Ten men’s basketball schedule.

Our second story from the Peoria Journal Star is about former Fox Sports NFL Analyst Bill Maas who was arrested earlier this year. He’s been formally charged with gun and drug possession in regards to a traffic stop back in July. A female companion was also charged. Maas is due back in court in December.

Elizabeth Aguilera of the Denver Post reports that the NFL will be heard in Spanish for the first time in that city.

William Houston of the Toronto Globe and Mail writes that the NFL pulled lower than normal ratings on CTV and Rogers Sportsnet. Both outlets are showing the NFL for the first time. Interesting.

Ok, that’s it for now. I’ll check back with you later.

It’s Monday.

Beginning of the work week. It’s hot here in the East. Yesterday, so many people flocked to Rhode Island beaches that they shut down the parking lots and turned cars away. The hot weather that hit the West last week is here in the East so it’s our turn to suffer after a nice start to July. But enough about the weather. This is not a weather blog so let’s get to the Sports stuff.

In May, I wrote about Ninja Warrior on G4. I found that Kaki Sports loves it as well. In fact, the person I linked to in that entry, Kaki Flynn of After Ellen.com, is the keeper of the Kaki Sports blog. Check her out. Kaki links to here so I thank her for that.

Michael Hiestand of USA Today has his Monday column and included is the news that Fox will drop Bill Maas after his arrest this past weekend on gun and drug charges. No official word on the Fox Sports.com site.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post says the MLB steroids investigation by George Mitchell is not strong enough.

Diane Werts of Newsday has high praise for “The Bronx is Burning”. And in the New York Daily News, David Bianculli gives the ESPN mini-series 3 out of 4 stars.

In his blog, Neil Best of Newsday says maybe it’s the right time for Bud Collins to be leaving NBC.

The battles lines have been drawn in the Big Ten Network vs. Comcast fight. Either you’re for the Big Ten Conference to see the football games or you’re for Comcast because you don’t want to pay extra on your cable bill. Frank Bodani of the Evening Sun of Harrisburg and Gettysburg, PA says Comcast is protecting the consumer. Chris Walsh in the Tuscaloosa (AL) News says the Southeastern Conference is watching the launch very closely as the SEC is mulling over whether to launch its own channel.

John Consoli of Mediaweek says ad rates for NBC’s Sunday Night Football are up 25% from last year.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle says Fox Sports Executive Producer Ed Goren is one of several subjects interviewed (including Larry King????) in HBO’s new documentary on the Brooklyn Dodgers that airs this week.

In the Toronto Star, Michael Geist writes a guest column appealing to sports leagues and commissions to give the Internet a chance. Good stuff there. He mentions the stupid NFL restriction on video on websites.

David Snyder sings the praises of Sid Rosenberg, now the morning host of 790 The Ticket in Miami.

John Ryan of the San Jose Mercury News talks about ESPN’s ejection from the All Star Game.

Jason Peterson in the Daily Utah Chronicle, a college newspaper, says ESPN just plain sucks for showing the Rock, Paper, Scissors Championships.

David Neal of the Miami Herald says MLB, NBA NFL and NHL are all dealing with the YouTube era and wondering how to handle clips that end up on the site. Some partner like the NBA and NHL partner up, but the NFL just plain removes them.

Red Sox fans are going to have to deal without Joe Castiglione for the first series after the All Star break. 38 Cliches says Joe C. takes it off leaving us having to deal with Glenn Geffner again. Dave O’Brien will be there, but it’s going to be rough listening to Goof reading off notecards.

That will be it for now. I’ll monitor ESPN Radio at 1 p.m. and I’ll post whatever Dan Patrick says.

Sunday Night Links

I’ll do a few links for you tonight as I wait for Meadowlands after watching one of the funniest episodes of Entourage.

Some more reviews for “The Bronx is Burning”. The Boston Herald has some high praise. The Seattle Times says it’s a home run. Richard Sandomir in the New York Times has a mostly positive review. Mike Tankersley of the Mobile Advertiser also likes the ESPN program. Neil Best in Newsday likes the book on which the mini-series is based more than the TV program. Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson is not happy with ESPN over the filming of the mini-series.

New York Post columnist Phil Mushnick has some pet peeves over some words and phrases that have been used by sportscasters.

Remember we linked to Neil Best’s story in his Newsday blog about ESPN being punished for breaking the All Star Game announcement embargo? Well, the Baseball Tonight studio gang will do doing its wrap-ups of the game from the Bristol, CT campus. Paul Gough of the Hollywood Reporter also has a write-up.

Curt Rallo of the South Bend Tribune says if the conflict between the Big Ten Network and Comcast isn’t resolved by August 1, then the conference will begin to urge fans to switch to DirecTV. This was done by the YES Network when it first launched five years ago and it was in a dispute with Cablevision. By Opening Day, the conflict was resolved, but I don’t think with Comcast victorious over the NFL Network, I can see Comcast holding out for a long time.

The Sports Media Watch blog says boredom is setting in at the Alleged Worldwide Leader with its new SportsCenter series, City by City.

Last night, this blog was among the first to discuss the Bill Maas arrest in East Peoria, IL. Here’s Cathy Bayer of the Peoria Journal Star with the story.

Frank Deford in SI.com says NBC is poorer for letting Bud Collins go. And I did see NBC’s tribute to Bud today. While well-produced, it simply wasn’t long enough to show him the proper respect.

Variety says ad buys for the NFL are about 75% sold out for this season. That’s good news for the TV partners.

Jeff Elliot in the Florida Times-Union says Fox and ESPN will battle it out for attention at this week’s All Star Game.

Despite being the San Francisco Giants announcer and ESPN’s lead play-by-play guy, Jon Miller is getting the night off for the All Star Game.

Karen Bailis says the MSG Network is saving money on WNBA telecasts by having the broadcast crew do road games from the MSG studios rather than travel with the New York Liberty.

That’s it for now. Until Monday.

Some Weekend Links

Checking across the internet, I came across a few things.

First, I didn’t know that the Pan American Games were coming up on Friday. Second, they’re being held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Third, ESPN is going wall-to-wall coverage on the Pan Am Games. That’s fine since I believe the last American network to really give the Pan Am Games coverage was ABC/TBS in Cuba back in 1991. Since then, the games which are supposed to be a tuneup for the Olympic Games the following year have been mostly ignored because major U.S. athletes don’t participate. Then there’s this story on a United States Olympic Committee member making a poor joke that forced the USOC to issue an apology to Brazil. That’s not the way to get off on a good foot. Anyway, ESPN will have the games starting on Friday and it’ll be interesting to see how the network covers this since any sport it carries gets major highlights on SportsCenter while sports not on the networks of the Alleged Worldwide Leader like the NHL get ignored.

Here’s something for you, former Fox NFL analyst Bill Maas was arrested for carrying a loaded guns and drugs (including ecstacy, pot and coke) during a routine traffic stop Saturday night in East Peoria, Illinois. The passenger in his car, a 27 year old woman, was also arrested. Hmmmm. This might get some more play on Sunday. My question: why was Maas carrying a loaded handgun and that many drugs in his car? Maas was at one point a rising star on Fox, but only worked a handful of games last season. And his Wikipedia blurb already mentions the arrest, but the date is wrong.

UPDATE – The story linked above is wrong. Here’s a correct version. The date in Wiki is right.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes about a new monthly magazine devoted to covering St. Louis sports started by two former sports radio executives.

Barry Horn in Saturday’s Dallas News says Fox will be using the All Star Game on Tuesday to talk Barry Bonds ad nauseum.

In his Watch This! blog in the DC/Baltimore Examiner, Jim Williams says John McEnroe and Mary Carillo have been on top of their games on the NBC Wimbledon broadcasts.

Variety magazine says even with this being a 20 year celebration for WFAN, there’s still a pall over the station as it still searches for the replacement for Don Imus.

Former ESPN and current Showtime boxing analyst Al Bernstein takes over the Coast to Coast radio franchise that was once hosted by Bob Costas. It’ll air Saturday nights on Sirius Satellite Radio.

Dave Lubach of the Sheboygan (WI) Press has an inside the scenes look at the production of the U.S. Senior Open taking place on NBC this weekend.

I may have links later on Sunday. We’ll keep an eye on this Bill Maas story. This may get more interesting as more info becomes available.