Fang's Bites

Sissy The Chicken Picks Sunday Night Football

Last week, Friend of Fang’s Bites Daryn Kagan of DarynKagan.com started a new feature on her site, having Sissy the Chicken pick Sunday Night Football. It’s like having Paul the Octopus pick the winners for the World Cup and you may remember that Paul was a perfect 8-0.

I was going to post last week’s pick here, but due to an oversight it didn’t happen. O.K., actually I forgot to post it and I think that was why Sissy picked the wrong team to win last Sunday night’s game between the Dallas Cowboys and the DC NFL Team. As we know by now, DC won over Dallas, 13-7.

Well, I am making sure I post the video this week to make sure that Sissy wins. This week, it’s the Manning Bowl II, Eli Manning of the New York Giants heading to Indy to face his brother, Peyton of the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. So, let’s see how Sissy does. I am sure she is going to pick the winner this week.

What? Ok, we’re going with it. And to find out what’s possible, make sure you visit DarynKagan.com and click all over the site to view some of the most amazing stories you’ll ever see.

Daryn Kagan Reacts to Tony Kornheiser Suspension

Since the Tony Kornheiser suspension was handed down by ESPN earlier today, I’ve seen all types of reactions. There are those which agree with ESPN and those which don’t. There are men who are outraged, there are women who are outraged. I’m in the camp that ESPN should not suspended Kornheiser. One person who shares this opinion is former CNN anchor Daryn Kagan who worked for the network in both news and sports. And she’s someone with whom I have discussed various issues on Twitter. She wrote about the Kornheiser suspension at her website, DarynKagan.com and Daryn has granted me permission to reprint what she has written on her blog.

February 24, 2010: ESPN Blew It

I’m going to step out the usual confines of this blog to share my two cents on a breaking news story in the world of sports broadcasting.

ESPN has suspended Pardon The Interruption host Tony Kornheiser for comments he made on his radio show about fellow ESPN personality Hannah Storm’s clothing.

According to FoxSports.com Kornheiser reportedly said, “Hannah Storm in a horrifying, horrifying outfit today,” Kornheiser said. “She’s got on red go-go boots and a catholic school plaid skirt … way too short for somebody in her 40s or maybe early 50s by now.

“She’s got on her typically very, very tight shirt. She looks like she has sausage casing wrapping around her upper body … I know she’s very good, and I’m not supposed to be critical of ESPN people, so I won’t … but Hannah Storm … come on now! Stop! What are you doing?”

And for that ESPN has suspended Tony Kornheiser for two weeks.

So folks are asking me on Twitter and Facebook what I think about that.

Why me? Well, in another life I covered sports at CNN for 3 1/2 years.  So I know only too well what it means to work in that arena.  I learned very quickly that there are few jobs more fun.  I also learned very quickly that sports is still a man’s world unlike few professions.  I knew that if a male colleague messed up an athlete’s name, the response would be, “Oh, Fred messed up a name.”  If I messed up a name, the response would be, “Oh, she doesn’t know sports.”  Was that fair?  Absolutely not.  Were those the rules of the game?  Absolutely.  I knew that going in.  I knew that I had to know my names, stats, and stories cold.  If I didn’t like the rules of the game, then I figured I shouldn’t be playing in that arena.

Let me also say that I think the world of Hannah Storm.  Boy, does she know her stuff.  Even in the middle of his ridiculous rant, Kornheiser acknowledged she is “very good.”

All that being said, I think ESPN blew it.  They decided to pull the PC card and protect the woman’s honor.  Bad move.  If you follow the sports world, you know ESPN has developed into a cesspool male sports personalities with way too many sexual harassment situations.  The latest one came just a few months ago when married baseball analyst Steve Phillips got involved with an entry-level young woman half his age.  They’ve both been let go.  It’s just the latest in a long line of embarrassing stories for the network.  I think that’s why they went PC making statement with Kornheiser’s suspension.

The difference is Hannah isn’t some little girl, she’s a well-respected peer and colleague.  I promise you ESPN would not have suspended Kornheiser if he made a comment about John Kruk’s weight or if he thought Mike Golic wore an ugly shirt.  Besides, Tony is hired to do opinion.  That’s his job!  You’re suspending him for the very thing you’re supposed to pay him for.

One rule of the TV game is that it is a visual medium.  People are looking at you. Any woman who has worked in sports has had someone comment on her appearance and what she wears.  Any woman who has worked news has covered a huge story has had her own mother comment, “I don’t think I like that blue blazer.”  When I told my own mother back in 2003 that I was heading off to cover the start of the war her response was, “What are you going to wear?” (True story.)

Can it be frustrating that viewers focus on what women wear first before listening to what they say? Absolutely. But like I said, it’s one of the rules of the game.  If you don’t like it, don’t play.

What I see here is a missed opportunity.  There was such a ripe chance here to deal with this thing with humor.  I mean have you seen Tony Kornheiser?  I’m a huge fan of his PTI show, but really, someone who looks like Tony commenting on anyone’s appearance? That’s the softest toss for a punch line ever. 

So, to Hannah I would say, brush it off, come out swinging with those red boots.  You’re great at your job.  You know your sports as well as Kornheiser or any of the other dudes.  You’re fitter and have a better physique than Kornheiser could ever dream of having.  Add that all up, my friend, and walk on with the last laugh.

ESPN– instead of focusing defending a woman’s honor why don’t you give us women sports fans more of what really counts–even higher profile roles for women like Hannah, Suzie Kolber, Linda Cohn and Reschiea Candidate? How about for once, let’s see saucy, opinionated woman kick up their boots by filling in on PTI?  Now that would be a worthwhile move.

Feel free to agree or disagree with me on Twitter or Facebook.

This has been one of the best opinions that I have read since the suspension came down. Thanks to Daryn for allowing me to reprint her article.

And to see what’s possible, don’t forget to visit DarynKagan.com and check out her blog as well.

Pregnant Olympian and Ethiopian Cross Country Ski Team?

This comes courtesy of the always lovely Daryn Kagan. There are always interesting stories to come out of an Olympics, people who overcome all odds to take part or those who make sacrifices to fulfill their dreams. Daryn gives us some background on two unique Olympic athletes. She notes a member of the Canadian women’s curling team who is pregnant and a member of the Ethiopian cross country ski team. Well, the only member of the ski team.

Don’t forget to visit darynkagan.com to find out what’s possible.

A Monday Link Thing

The links are here for you. Let’s go over them. Lots of good stuff.

Starting with Bob Kimball of USA Today who discusses Fox NFL Sunday heading to Afghanistan and the World Series.

To Sports Business Journal where we have a few stories for you today.

John Ourand has a column where he talks about what Comcast should do sports-wise when it brings NBC into the fold.

John tweets that Bill Walton won’t be returning to ESPN’s NBA coverage this season due to health problems. My best to Big Red who has long been one of my favorite announcers and players.

ESPN spokesman Mike Soltys adds that Walton will dedicate his life to public service. Bill is active in the San Diego community and he will be missed on TV.

Back to the SBJ, Terry Lefton says despite plenty of copyright infringements, MLB chooses not to go after companies that use “World Series” in their title.

John Lombardo writes that the remnants of the Arena Football League are being sold off in order to pay creditors.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says giving credit to Meb Keflezighi’s win in the NYC Marathon as an American win is wrong.

Jason Fry, writing for the Indiana National Sports Journalism Center, warns bloggers and writers that what they put on the internet will stay there forever.

Marc Berman from Mediaweek says World Series Game 4 was a huge ratings winner for Fox on Sunday.

To the New York Daily News and Bob Raissman who says Yankees radio voice John Sterling is the ultimate homer.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post decides to hit below the belt and accuses WFAN’s Mike Francesa of being an anti-Semite. Come on, Phil. This is low, even for you.

Bob’s Blitz looks into the whole Mushnick/Francesa thing.

Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette writes about Fox NFL Sunday airing live from Afghanistan this Sunday.

Laura Nachman shares some thoughts as she watched World Series Game 4 last night.

Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes that Fox decided to move the right field camera that literally came into play during Game 3 of the World Series.

Tom Jones of the St. Petersburg Times reviews last week’s incident during which a local sports radio host erroneously said the owners of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were in financial trouble.

Barry Horn from the Dallas Morning News looks at the Fox production of the Seahawks-Cowboys game.

David Barron in the Houston Chronicle is shocked to learn that the Texans’ ratings fell yesterday.

To Crain’s Chicago Business and Ed Sherman who wonders what’s next for Mike North now that his morning show was canceled by Comcast SportsNet Chicago.

Ed also asks how long will the honeymoon last with new Cubs owner Thomas Ricketts?

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel likes how Fox let the pictures tell the story during yesterday’s Minnesota-Green Bay game.

Dusty Saunders in the Denver Post enjoys listening to Dan Dierdorf on CBS games.

The great Tom Hoffarth in the Los Angeles Daily News has the sports calendar for this week.

Tom has a great story on a temporarily inconvenienced friend who has a great passion for soccer.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star gives praise to the Fox people for its World Series production.

Bruce Dowbiggin in the Toronto Globe and Mail writes that a Canadian sports network is getting a boost for its Blackberry and iPhone apps thanks to a TV commercial.

William Houston in Truth & Rumours says returning Toronto Blue Jays president Paul Beeston will find the local media won’t be as accommodating as in his first go-around.

Deadspin properly gets on Fox Sports for trying to force feed the new movie “Avatar” down our throats.

The Sports Media Watch has some news and notes on various personalities.

SMW says a strong lead-in from the NFL gave the World Series solid ratings for Fox last night.

And SMW says Minnesota-Green Bay did well for Fox, but won’t be setting any ratings records.

To the Biz of Baseball, Maury Brown conducts an interview with Fang’s Bites award-winning MLB Network host Victor Rojas.

Chris Byrne of the Eye on Sports Media has some good suggestions for network press releases.

The always lovely Daryn Kagan has a great story on St. Louis Cardinals’ manager Tony LaRussa’s no-kill animal shelter.

And WEEI.com’s Kristine Leahy rounds out the links with today’s edition of The Five and it has a sponsor!

Those the links for today. I’ll be back later with various press release posts.

Our Monday Links

Doing the Monday links as we return to work after the weekend. Weekends are never long enough for me.

To start, we have a few links from the Sports Business Journal.

John Ourand writes that the season ending MLS Cup will be moving to primetime and scheduled opposite Sunday Night Football. Don’t see the ratings going up this year.

John says ESPN’s new local sites are forcing local regional sports networks to upgrade their websites to compete.

Liz Mullen says NFL clubs are asking some of their employees to take pay cuts or even face termination if there’s a work stoppage in 2011.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand says CBS is going to ride the Jets train next Sunday.

Newsday’s Neil Best says the new Cowboys Stadium had a carnival atmosphere last night.

The New York Post’s Phil Mushnick finds more silly things to complain about today.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union says CBS had a good rating for the Tennessee-Florida game.

Pete says in a rare convergence, both the Giants and Jets are playing in the 1 p.m. slot in Week 3.

And Pete has the college football TV schedule for this week.

Mike Stribi of the Kingston (NY) Daily Freeman profiles local native Charles Davis who was tabbed to do the NFL for Fox this season.

The Philadelphia Daily News notes that ESPN’s College Gameday visits Penn State this Saturday.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner talks with Frank Gifford about 40 years of Monday Night Football.

David Neal in the Miami Herald says Monday Night Football still has that special feel for the Dolphins.

Tom Jones from the St. Petersburg Times feels Kevin Kennedy should be a full-time analyst for Rays games.

The Baltimore Sun previews what’s coming this week in sports on TV.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News reviews last night’s Sunday Night Football broadcast on NBC.

Barry says the Giants-Cowboys scored well in the ratings.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle likes the NFL Network’s RedZone, not to be confused with DirecTV’s NFL Sunday Ticket Red Zone Channel. Perhaps the NFL should have renamed it so as not to confuse it with DirecTV’s version.

Ed Sherman of Crain’s Chicago Business reviews the good and bad of the Tribune Company’s ownership of the Cubs.

Bob Verdi of the Chicago Tribune feels stale interview rooms lead to impersonal and stale interviews with athletes.

Bob Wolfley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says CBS’ Rich Gannon had trouble finding praise for the Packers in their loss to Cincinnati yesterday.

Dusty Saunders in the Denver Post says broadcasting from the Cowboys Stadium made for good television on NBC’s Sunday Night Football.

Bruce Kauffmann in the Arizona Daily Star says Monday Night Football has become an iconic institution.

Diane Pucin from the Los Angeles Times says CBS made a messy transition from to the late game in SoCal.

Diane adds that Warren Sapp stands out in NFL Network’s Gameday Morning pregame show.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says CTV’s Winter Olympics special should have included some near-misses, not just triumphs.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News says Roger Mayweather’s win on Saturday could lead to a big payday with Manny Pacquaio.

Mike says the Jets are firmly entrenched with SNY.

In the Biz of Football, Maury Brown wonders if the NFL’s broadcast partners make or lose money on their media rights deals.

Christopher Byrne of the Eye on Sports Media says Georgia Tech’s radio network got some crap for long delays as compared to the live action on the field.

Chris shows us where Monday Night Football is aired through ESPN Deportes.

Christy Hammond from the Sports PR Blog talks with noted sports public relations man Joe Favorito.

This next link comes courtesy of Daryn Kagan. A 15 year old high school student with Down’s Syndrome got to score a touchdown during a live game in St. Joseph, MO.

Kristine Leahy has the latest edition of The Five at WEEI.com.

That’s going to do it for now.

ESPN Radio’s John Kincade Beats Cancer Not Once, But Twice

Great story today from Daryn Kagan on Atlanta sports radio host John Kincade who learned a very important life lesson after beating cancer not just once, but twice. It’s a tremendous story and one we can all draw from. Take a look.

John is an afternoon drive host at 680 The Fan and can be heard nationally Sunday mornings on ESPN Radio.

Follow Friday

If you’re on Twitter, there’s a feature that has caught on among members called “Follow Friday”. Each person suggests others to follow and if you like the person’s Tweets, you can hit “follow” and get that person’s updates.

Through this, I have found quite a few people to follow and have made some good connections. I’m going to extend that here to Fang’s Bites.

For Football even though I’m a massive Browns fan and hate everything Steeler-oriented, I give you, Steelergurl. She knows her football and always goes back and forth with NFLprguy Brian McCarthy on Twitter. I have a great respect for Steelergurl and her posts. Visit her blog as well.

For Baseball blogs, Red Sox-centric in particular, there’s Sox & Dawgs run by my good friend, Ian Bethune. Well, I haven’t met Ian personally, but we always e-mail and Tweet each other so I feel like I’ve known him for a while. Go visit Ian and enjoy not just his Red Sox posts, but on New England sports.

The hockey blog I visit constantly is Puck The Media run by Steve Lepore. He’s on top of all things regarding the hockey media. Very well run and I’m also an occasional contributor. Visit his site often.

If you’re a regular visitor to this blog, you know that I regularly link to Neil Best of Newsday practically every day. Not only is he quite prolific in posting, he also does quite a bit of reporting for his column.

There’s also Richard Deitsch of Sports Illustrated who returned to the magazine after 9 months at the University of Michigan doing a fellowship. I hope to have more from Richard in the future.

My former partner-in-crime at WPRI-TV, John Crowe has his sports media blog, the Crowe’s Nest. The stories I could tell you about how John and I developed scavanger hunts for associate producers and interns just to torture them. However, the Statute of Limitations still has not run out so I must keep quiet. Maybe one day, John and I will reveal them.

There’s also the Sports Media Journal headed up by Southern New England multimedia magnate Keith Thibeault. It’s also the home of former Baltimore Sun media writer Ray Frager. SMJ has very thoughtful posts and is one of the best sports media blogs out there.

I would be remiss if I did not include Maury Brown’s Biz of Baseball. Maury has become quite the expert on MLB’s blackout rules and also keeps up to date on baseball stadia, attendance and other things related to the Business of Baseball. He also has the Biz of Football, Biz of Basketball and Biz of Hockey. Visit them often.

And two of my favorite non-sports websites: Darynkagan.com just to see what’s possible and B.J. Fletcher: Private Eye with the best web series on the planet.

Every Friday, I’ll bring you different sites for my Follow Friday.

Daryn Kagan Shares Her Thoughts

I interrupt my search for Bridget Regan videos to give you this one particular video from the always lovely Daryn Kagan.

Today, we learned that we’ve been in a recession since last year. It comes as no surprise. We’ve all felt it. No one has been immune. And whether you’ve lost your job or know someone who has (true in both cases for me over the last few years), you know what it feels like. Daryn shares her thoughts on when she lost her job at CNN and how she got the inspiration to start her website.

Now, you may not want to start up a website, but you may have an idea to start your own venture and you may need that kick to do it. Daryn has some ideas on how you might start.

I’m always happy to embed Daryn’s videos here (I just do this on my own, she doesn’t have to ask) and I also encourage you to visit her site.

I’ll be back to my regularly scheduled blog later tonight.

Tuesday Night Links

I’ll do some links as I watch Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.

Bruce Allen of the Boston Sports Media Watch conducts an interview with Albert Breer of the Sporting News, formerly a reporter in both Boston and Dallas and Bruce asks him about which team gets covered more, the Red Sox or the Cowboys.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell looks back at one of his sports business predictions for this year.

The Sports Media Watch has the final weekend ratings.

The great Maury Brown in the Biz of Baseball blog says Time Magazine is citing MLB’s Instant Replay system as one of top inventions of the year.

And in Maury’s Biz of Football site, he looks into the NFL’s plans to air next Thursday night’s Oakland-San Diego game in 3D.

Newsday’s Neil Best tells ESPN to allow Stuart Scott to conduct the postgame Monday Night Football interviews by himself and not have Steve Young or Emmit Smith chime in.

Drew Sharp of the Detroit Free Press opines that the Thanksgiving Day game in Detroit is a tradition not just for football fans, but the NFL TV partners.

In a related note, Carlos Monarrez of the Free Press says the Lions made the deadline for a sellout and the Thanksgiving Day game against Tennessee will be shown locally.

The Canadian Press reports that NBC still has some unsold spots for Super Bowl XLIII.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News says the NFL quietly expanded the coverage area for NFL Network games.

Larry Barrett of Multichannel writes that the Big Ten Network has made some personnel changes.

The Washington Post’s Leonard Shapiro feels ESPN’s deal with the Bowl Championship Series might end up hurting college football in the long run.

Ira Teinowitz of TV Week writes that the National Association of Broadcasters is speaking out to Congress about the ESPN/BCS deal.

John Eggerton of Broadcasting & Cable reports that the NAB is vowing to keep sports on broadcast TV.

Paul J. Gough of the Hollywood Reporter says CBS will televise the finals of the Atlantic 10 Tournament starting in 2010. That is definitely a good move.

Sean Brennan of the New York Daily News says the A-10 Tournament will move to a Sunday final to accommodate CBS and may also move out of Atlantic City after this season.

John Clay of the Lexington Herald-Leader writes that with the University of Kentucky sports teams in action all over the country, the school’s broadcasting teams are going to be stretched to the limit.

The Canadian Press talks with CBS Golf analyst David Feherty about his recent trip to visit US troops in Iraq.

Meri-Jo Borzillieri of Examiner.com writes that Universal Sports will air and webcast the entire World Cup skiing and sliding seasons.

Ron Judd of the Seattle Times has the upcoming Universal Sports broadcast schedule for skiing.

David King of the San Antonio Express-News says you can find live online sports if you know where to look.

David Martin of the Kansas City Pitch says middle-aged sports commentators are losing their platforms. This includes a Fang’s Bites fav, Jeffrey Flanagan, formerly of the Kansas City Star.

Busted Coverage discovers partying pictures of FSN Pittsburgh’s Meg Bulger, sister of St. Louis Rams QB Marc Bulger.

The wife of Boston Celtics TV analyst Tommy Heinsohn passed away on Monday. Helen Heinsohn was not only beloved by Tommy, but by many Celtics fans.

From the lovely Daryn Kagan comes this story about a group of seniors who decided to get up and walk after they were inspired by a woman training for the Boston Marathon.

Some Thursday Links

Doing paperwork is not fun and I have to get out of the office before 3 p.m. as Foxboro will get crowded with tailgaters for tonight’s Jets-Patriots game.

I’ll give you some links today.

Le Anne Schreiber, ESPN’s Ombudsman has a new article out this month and she focuses on Lou Holtz’s Hitler comments during a live show in October.

Newsday’s Neil Best has comments from NBC’s Tiki Barber about his friend, Titans QB Kerry Collins. And Neil has Tiki not surprised about his former team’s success. Neil speculates that November 30′s Broncos-Jets game could get flexed into primetime. And Neil tells us that Barclays is still committed to the new home for the Nets. Neil has comments from ESPN’s Bob Knight. And Neil asks for your memories of the infamous 1968 “Heidi” Game that got cut off by NBC. Monday is the 40th anniversary. Holy cow.

USA Today’s Bob Kimball says ESPN Radio’s Mike Greenberg will watch his Jets tonight at on-air partner’s Mike Golic’s house.

Peter Schrager from the pretentious men’s magazine, Esquire, says there’s one person who’s not mad that you can’t get the NFL Network.

Jon Friedman of Marketwatch.com says it’s not fair the NFL has shrunk the Patriots home market for tonight’s game.

Mark LaFlamme of the Lewiston (ME) Sun-Journal writes that Maine fans are scrambling to find ways to watch tonight’s Jets-Patriots game.

The Dallas Morning News’ Barry Horn talks about Inside the NFL’s Warren Sapp calling Keyshawn Johnson a “bitch”. And Barry feels Sunday’s NFL schedule is an embarrassment of riches for the Metroplex.

Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer talks with ESPN’s Ron Jaworski about members of the Browns quitting against Denver.

David Goetzl of Mediapost says ESPN’s ratings for Monday Night Football and college football went up when out of home numbers were factored in.

Brian Gainor, guest blogging for CNBC’s Darren Rovell, says 3D TV will be the next step for sports on TV. And Brian who’s doing a great job subbing for Darren, writes that the St. Louis Blues are giving their fans a chance to get a Blizzard.

Bill Virgin of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer says legendary news/talk station KIRO-AM is about to switch to all-sports.

Jayda Evans of the Seattle Times says an announcement is expected today about the switch.

Jim Williams of the DC/Baltimore Examiner says those hoping for the demise of Baltimore sports radio host Anita Marks had better think again.

Tim Lemke of the Washington Times writes that a BCS-to-ESPN move might make it easier for a college football playoff down the line. And Tim says the MLB Network learned from the mistakes of the NFL Network and will have the widest launch of a new cable/satellite channel in history.

Tim’s colleague at the Times, Patrick Stevens says a reality show on Maryland men’s basketball finally has a name.

Mike Lucas of the Capital (WI) Times tells us that Big Ten Network host Dave Revsine was influenced by his father’s communication skills.

Steve Warden of the Fort Wayne (IN) Gazette says the small college NAIA has signed a TV deal with CBS College Sports to broadcast and stream the men’s and women’s basketball championship games.

Paul Christian of the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin talks about ESPN’s massive 23 hour college basketball marathon on Tuesday.

Dan Angell of the Columbian Missourian reports that the University of Missouri has received $3.9 million from TV for broadcasting the school’s football games this season.

Steve Lepore at Puck the Media says Tuesday’s Pittsburgh-Detroit contest was the highest rated NHL regular season game ever for Versus.

John Schuster in the Tucson Weekly says Friday night for local sportscasters and sports writers is very busy as high school football games get major coverage.

Lisa Coffey in The Ledger (FL) writes that Olympic gold medal winning swimmer and NBC analyst Rowdy Gaines returned home to Winter Haven this week.

I want to congratulate Daryn Kagan on the 2nd anniversary of her website.

That’s going to do it. I’ve got to get ready to get out of here before traffic takes over Route 1.

An Inspiration For All of Us To Follow

I put this story in the Friday megalinks, but I felt it could really stand alone.

From the lovely Daryn Kagan, this is about D.J. Gregory, who’s been walking at every PGA Tour event this season. But it’s more than just a person who’s following some of the best golfers in the world. It’s a story of inspiration for D.J. has cerebral palsy and it takes more steps for him to walk the golf course.

As Daryn mentioned, D.J. has been chronicling his footsteps at his blog at PGATour.com. And I thank Daryn for bringing this story to light.

A Sunday Link Thing

After a few glitches involving my computer, I think I’m ready to bring you some links this morning.

Starting off with Neil Best of Newsday, he writes a column about father and son broadcasters, Joe Castiglione, voice of the Red Sox, and his son, Duke Castiglione who works for Fox 5 in New York. And tell Neil that you totally enjoyed this column. In his blog, Neil has reader e-mails denouncing the Personal Seat License plan in the new Giants/Jets stadium.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post says the Giants and Jets are shaking down fans with the Personal Seat Licences for the new stadium.

The New York Daily News’ Bob Raissman has Fox Sports’ Terry Bradshaw backing down from his retirement talk from earlier this year.

Looking lovely as always, Daryn Kagan has the inspirational story of a blind mountain climber who uses adversity as a metaphor to succeed in life.

Albert Breer and Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News team up on a fascincating story on former Cowboys wide receiver and CBS NFL analsyt Frank Clarke who disappeared from the spotlight to become a nanny.

In his Olympics notebook, David Barron of the Houston Chronicle says ratings for the Diving and Gymnastics trials did well locally (scroll down).

Mulichannel News reports on two long-time ESPN employees moving up the corporate ladder.

Dick Scanlon of the Lakeland (FL) Ledger writes that the NFL is facing reality with the NFL Network.

Josh Kendall of the Macon (GA) Telegraph says the Southeastern Conference is in a position of strength as it approaches a new round of TV negotiations.

Jeff Barker of the Baltimore Sun talks about the second season of a University of Maryland football reality series that is believed to be the first of its kind.

Michael Learmonth of the Silicon Valley Insider site has several ways you can watch the Euro 2008 final today in case you’re not in front of a TV.

Dave Weekley of the Charlestown (WV) Gazette-Mail writes that Hulu.com offers plenty of sports gems.

Bob Buttitta of the Ventura County Star writes that the Johnny Miller apology over comments he made at the U.S. Open over Rocco Mediate shows that the nation has become oversensitive.

John Pye of the Associated Press writes that the Tennis Channel’s Justin Gimelstob has apologized for disparaging comments made about Anna Kournikova.

Michael David Smith of the AOL Fanhouse blog watched George Carlin on the very first Saturday Night Live program and noted the first joke he made was about sports.

Mike Tankersley of the Montgomery (AL) Advertiser writes about FSN’s new series on Baseball’s Golden Age.

Michael Zuidema of the Grand Rapids (MI) goes behind-the-scenes of a FSN Detroit telecast of the Tigers.

Jay Mariotti of the Chicago Sun-Times says Chicago is getting attention from ESPN usually reserved for Boston or New York.

Mike DiMauro of the Bleacher Report wishes TSN would get its act in gear and syndicate its CFL games to the United States.

Dave Donofrio of the Concord (NH) Monitor says the NASCAR TV package allows the sport to market itself overseas.

Ted Cox of the Chicago Daily Herald says give credit to ESPN Radio’s Mike & Mike for beating WSCR’s Mike North in the ratings fair and square.

The AfterEllen site wonders if Maria Sharapova and 10,000 B.C. star Camilla Belle are more than BFF.

That’s going to do it. I’ll have the Week Ahead posted sometime this evening.

It’s Saturday

Time to give you some links on this Saturday. Linkage doesn’t rest for the weekend.

Alan Pergament of the Buffalo News writes that golf’s ratings will suffer without Tiger Woods, but they won’t fall off the earth.

But Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette feels viewers won’t be drawn to their TV sets without Tiger playing in the British Open, PGA Championship and Ryder Cup this year.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that KMOV-TV is downsizing its sports department.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News continues the golf bashing bandwagon.

Jerry Garcia of the San Antonio Express-News tells readers what a potential ESPN-NFL Network joint venture could mean for Dallas Cowboys fans.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News writes in his blog about the ESPN-NFL Network talks. And Hoffarth goes into the Johnny Miller apology regarding statements made about Rocco Mediate during NBC’s U.S. Open coverage.

William Houston of the Toronto Globe and Mail writes that ESPN took a gamble on having its announcers for Euro 2008 in Bristol, CT instead of flying them to Austria and Switzerland.

The Sports Media Watch has its usual weekend ratings predictions.

Ben Grossman of Broadcasting & Cable says ESPN2 wants to build a regular late night programming lineup. John Eggerton of B&C writes that Comcast feels no matter what, the NFL Network belongs on a sports tier.

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram says Pat Summerall is recovering from emergency surgery this week. Apparently this is more serious than originally reported last night.

Candus Thomson of the Baltimore says the “X” factor could help the Olympics in popularity and ratings.

Brent Hunsberger of The Oregonian explains in his excellent Playbooks & Profits blog what the Big Ten Network-Comcast deal could mean for the Portland Trail Blazers.

And the always lovely Daryn Kagan profiles former New York Giants defensive lineman George Martin who’s finishing his walk across America to raise money for the 9/11 first responders.

That’s it for now. I’ll be back on Sunday.

The Mid-Week Linkage

On this Wednesday, Southern New England is much cooler and less humid than the last few days so I’m not sweating as much.

Going over the linkage for you, let’s start with Michael Hiestand of USA Today. He writes that Jim McKay did not regret leaving TV.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times has highlights from yesterday’s funeral service for McKay.

Mike Klingaman of the Baltimore Sun says those who attended the funeral was a who’s who from the broadcasting industry.

Dave Carey of the Baltimore Examiner says the memories of Jim McKay will live on.

Ben Nuckols from the Associated Press writes that Jim McKay was remembered as a family man and a great broadcaster.

Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel wonders if a Jim McKay would be successful in today’s broadcasting world.

Tim Cronin of the Southtown (IL) Star says McKay will be missed.

Leonard Shapiro of the Washington Post writes that Jim Nantz is proof that nice guys can finish first.

Daryn Kagan, formerly of CNN, profiles Jim Nantz on her website.

The Sox & Dawgs blog has a clip of the extremely silly Sox Appeal reality show that neither Don Orsillo or Jerry Remy seemed to understand. I just don’t understand Sox Appeal period.

A few things from last night’s NBA Finals Game 3 on ABC. First, Ray Frager of the Baltimore Sun notes that ESPN aired an expletive live from Kobe Bryant’s postgame press conference.

One of the silliest things ABC showed last night was the robot “Wall-E” as it tried to tie in the new Disney movie with the NBA Finals. Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has a separated at birth feature.

And courtesy of Newsday’s Neil Best, the Big Lead has NBA analyst Jeff Van Gundy mixing up his Hollywood celebrities during last night’s game.

Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette writes in his blog that he’s back at work after being sick over the weekend.

Nick Canepa of the San Diego Union-Tribune tells us that Bill Walton will be back behind the mic for the NBA Finals after a bad back left him motionless since February.

Steve Serby of the New York Post talks with CBS’ Phil Simms who feels Michael Strahan would be a natural for TV.

Jon Friedman of Marketwatch.com is worried that Rick Reilly may lose his charm working for ESPN.

John Scheibe from the Los Angeles Times talks about the U.S. Open TV coverage.

David Teel of the Newport News (VA) Daily Press says Curtis Strange will be back in the broadcast booth for both ESPN and NBC during the U.S. Open.

William Houston from the Toronto Globe and Mail writes that NBC will focus on Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson this week.

Steve McClellan of Adweek states that the US Golf Association is launching a new ad campaign aimed at softening the game’s image.

Molly Willow of the Columbus Dispatch reviews tonight’s HBO documentary on the 1960 U.S. Open.

Gina Keating of Reuters says ESPN President George Bodenheimer is enthusiastic on the network’s ad growth over the next few years.

Mike Donaghue of the Burlington (VT) Free Press reports that former Vermont basketball coach Tom Brennan is ending his morning drive radio show. Brennan will remain with ESPN as a studio analyst.

Jay Jenkins of the Charlottesville (VA) Daily Progress writes that the University of Virginia is still looking for a radio play-by-play voice for its football program.

Alex Woodson of the Hollywood Reporter says FSN is going to pick up the Rock Paper Scissors Championship marking the third media outlet to carry the program in as many years. James Hibberd of the Reporter reports that the NBA and NHL Finals are doing well for their respective networks.

That’s it for now.