NBC Prepares for the Major Titles in US Figure Skating Championships

With the U.S. Figure Skating Championships drawn out over two weeks, we have to wait for this weekend for the ladies and ice dancing titles to be decided. The ladies free skate is this weekend and NBC will be all over that, but before that, Universal Sports airs the short program tonight.

LADIES TAKE THE ICE IN HOPES OF MAKING THE OLYMPIC TEAM AS NBC SPORTS AND UNIVERSAL SPORTS LIVE COVERAGE OF THE AT&T U.S. FIGURE SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS CONTINUES

Expanded Live Coverage of the Ladies Free Skate Begins Tonight on Universal Sports

“She looks great, like no time has passed.” – NBC’s Hamilton on Sasha Cohen

NEW YORK - January 21, 2010 - The remainder of U.S. Olympic figure skating team (ladies and dance) will be determined this weekend as NBC Sports and Universal Sports present live coverage of the AT&T U.S. Figure Skating Championships, including live primetime coverage of the Ladies Free Skate on Saturday on NBC and expanded live coverage of the Ladies Short Program tonight on Universal Sports.

Coverage on NBC Sports includes the Ladies Free Skate live on Saturday in primetime (9-11 p.m. ET/PT). Earlier in the day, NBC Sports will have live coverage of the Free Dance and taped coverage of the Ladies Short Program (3-6 p.m. ET). Universal Sports’ coverage begins tonight at 10:30 p.m. ET with live coverage of the Ladies short program. *Coverage on Universal Sports is expanded to four hours tonight from the two hours that was announced previously.

The U.S. Figure Skating Championships, held annually since 1914, is the nation's most prestigious figure skating event, and this year’s event will go a long way in determining the U.S. team for Vancouver Olympic Winter Games, which begin Feb. 12 on NBC.

Coverage this weekend will also include the official announcement of the U.S. Olympic team on Sunday in primetime (9-11 p.m. ET/PT) along with the Exhibition of Champions and a full recap of the competition on Sunday (4-6 p.m. ET).  

Event host Bob Costas and legendary figure skater and announcer Dick Button host NBC Sports’ coverage from Spokane Arena in Spokane, Wash. NBC’s Olympic figure skating broadcast team of Tom Hammond (play-by-play), Scott Hamilton (analyst), Sandra Bezic (analyst), and Andrea Joyce (reporter) will call the action for both NBC and Universal Sports. COVERAGE ON NBC SPORTS:- Saturday, 3-6 p.m. ET - Free Dance (Live), Ladies Short- Saturday, 9-11 p.m. ET/PT - Ladies Free Skate (Live)- Sunday, 4-6 p.m. ET - Recap of the U.S. Figure Skating Championships- Sunday, 9-11 p.m. ET/PT - Exhibition of Champions and announcement of U.S. Olympic Team UNIVERSAL SPORTS COVERAGE: - Tonight, 10:30 p.m. - 2:30 a.m. ET - Ladies Short (Live)- Tomorrow, 11 p.m. - 12 midnight ET - Original Dance (Live)- Saturday, 11 p.m. - 2 a.m. ET - Ladies Short and Free Dance (Re-Air of NBC Show)- Sunday, 2-4 a.m. ET (late Saturday night) - Ladies Free Skate (Re-Air NBC Show) COMPETITION PREVIEW:LADIES: Two Olympic berths are at stake. 2006 Olympic silver medalist Sasha Cohen makes her much anticipated return to competitive skating in Spokane. She made her last competitive appearance at the 2006 World Championships in Calgary.  Competing against Cohen for a berth on the U.S. Olympic team is two-time defending U.S. silver medalist Rachel Flatt. Flatt, the 2008 World Junior Champion, and Japan’s Miki Ando are the only ladies who have beaten world champion Kim Yu-Na in a competition segment this season (no one has beaten her overall). Flatt defeated Kim in the free skate at Skate America in November. Other competition for the Olympic spots will come from defending U.S. champion Alissa Czisny, defending U.S. bronze medalist Caroline Zhang and 2008 U.S. champion Mirai Nagasu. 2007 U.S. silver medalist Emily Hughes makes her first appearance at nationals since 2007; she missed the past two years due to injuries. She is on a one-year break from Harvard, hoping to qualify for her second Olympics. Hughes is the younger sister of 2002 Olympic champion Sarah Hughes. 

NBC’S SCOTT HAMILTON BREAKS DOWN LADIES COMPETITION AFTER WATCHING PRACTICE YESTERDAY:On Sasha Cohen: “She looks great, like no time has passed.  Some things actually look better than they did four years ago. A lot of the people that she’s competing against have had four years to kind of up their game and get used to competing under this system, and one thing that might hold her back is the fact that she hasn’t been on competitive ice, but she looked really comfortable. She was very happy and practiced well. She’ll be in the mix throughout.”

On the Ladies Competition: “It’s going to be an exciting competition and there is no sure thing. There are a lot of women this year that can rise to the challenge and with two good performances could accumulate enough points to win this thing.  You look at Alissa (Czisny), the defending champion, who’s skating very well here. You can look at Rachael Flatt who’s turned in performance after performance and seems to be consistent enough to skate well under that kind of pressure. Then you have to look at Ashley Wagner who has been coming on strong and then the champion of two years ago, Mirai Nagasu, who looks really good, really calm. The U.S. has only two spots on the women’s team and we have more ladies than that poised and in shape and ready to try to claim one of those two spots.”

DANCE: Three Olympic berths are at stake. Five-time U.S. champions Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto compete for their sixth U.S. title; a win would give them the record for most U.S. dance titles. Belbin and Agosto are already the most successful U.S. dance team in history, with four world medals, three Four Continents titles, and an Olympic silver medal from Turin. Their main competition will come from 2009 U.S. champions Meryl Davis and Charlie White, who are fresh off a win at the Grand Prix Final, the first-ever by an American team. Davis & White have never defeated Belbin & Agosto in competition. They won at Nationals last year when Belbin and Agosto did not compete. Also competing for one of the three Olympic spots are are two-time U.S. bronze medalists Kimberly Navarro & Brent Bommentre, defending U.S. silver medalists Emily Samuelson & Evan Bates and 2009 world junior champions Madison Chock & Greg Zuerlein, who will make their senior debut in Spokane.HAMILTON ON DANCE COMPETITION: “The U.S. has never been this well represented in a dance event going into Olympics as we are this year. Tanith and Ben and Meryl and Charlie are two of the best dance teams in the world, so they’re going at it nose to nose competing for the National Title because that would give them momentum into the Olympics. It’s going to be interesting to see who wins there because Charlie and Meryl have been on the rise like crazy, but Tanith and Ben won a medal last Olympics and they’ve been dominant on the international stage.”

So if you’re looking for some sports other than football or college basketball this weekend, you can certainly watch the hot chicks like Tanith Belbin in the ice dance.

A Thursday Linkfest

Got some linkage for you today. Also expecting the final NFL TV partner press releases for Championship Sunday and you’ll see that here. Let’s do the links as I have a lot of work to do today.

Starting with Dave Kindred writing for the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center explores the right and wrong way to interview subjects.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell wonders whether or not stadium naming rights deals are good.

Darren discussed this next topic on the Dan Patrick Show regarding Nike reducing Tiger Woods’ presence on its website.

Alex Weprin of Broadcasting & Cable writes that YouTube will stream live cricket events around the world, except in the United States.

R. Thomas Umstead of Multichannel News says HBO will distribute a pay per view boxing match on May 13 involving Manny Pacquiao, but it won’t involve Floyd Mayweather.

Steve McClellan of Adweek looks at the new Nielsen survey showing 51% of those polled prefer watching Super Bowl ads than the game itself.

Etan Vlessing of the Hollywood Reporter writes that British Columbia is looking to attract American tourists to Vancouver once the Winter Olympics end.

David Goeztl of MediaPost has NBC Sports Emperor and Jay Leno Hatchet Man Dick Ebersol frustrated over the reveal that the network will lose $200 million on the Vancouver Winter Olympics.

Annie Barrett of Entertainment Weekly recaps Ebersol’s uncomfortable appearance on the Colbert Report last night.

Alan Pergament of the Buffalo News says Verizon Fios subscribers might finally gain access to regional sports networks that they had been blocked from watching.

Keith Groller of the Allentown (PA) Morning Call has some radio and TV news and notes.

Laura Nachman says Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia is expanding its 76ers coverage.

MASN has released its 2010 Baltimore Orioles schedule. 

Tim Lemke looks at the New York Times’ announcement that its creating a pay wall in 2011.

Tracee Hamilton in the Washington Post feels expanding the NCAA Tournament at the whims of ESPN’s money is not a good idea.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner says NFL Network will air Super Bowl III in its entirety this Saturday. 

Sarah Talalay of the South Florida Sun Sentinel explores the evolution of the new name of the Miami Dolphins stadium.

Ken Rogers of the Dothan (AL) Eagle finds legendary NBC Sports and ESPN original announcer Jim Simpson to discuss his calling Super Bowl I for the old NBC Radio.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle transcribes Bryant Gumbel’s extremely strong commentary on steroids at the end of this week’s Real Sports in which he lumped some MLB players with known and suspected users.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Brett Favre achieved another amazing feat last Sunday.

Jim O’Donnell in the Chicago Sun-Times speculates on which Super Bowl matchup would draw the best ratings for CBS.

Vince Horiuchi of the Salt Lake Tribune talks about the advent of 3-D TV this summer.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News looks at the next set of documentaries in ESPN’s 30 for 30 series.

Diane Pucin of the Los Angeles Times says Universal Sports will have live coverage of the U.S. Figure Skating Championships tonight.

The Toronto Globe and Mail looks at the unveiling of the Olympics Broadcasting Consortium theme.

And James Bradshaw of the Globe and Mail says the new theme song was a long time in the making.

The Sports Media Watch says Saturday night’s Ravens-Colts game drew good ratings for CBS.

And SMW says Jets-Chargers drew over 35 million viewers.

SMW tells us TNT drew low ratings for Orlando-LA Lakers on Monday.

Christopher Byrne of the Eye on Sports Media is troubled by the firing of a Sun Sports sideline reporter in the wake of him being charged in child pornography distribution.

Jay Busbee in Yahoo’s From the Marbles blog says NASCAR and the media need to mend fences. 

John Daly of the Daly Planet looks at a NASCAR team owner blasting ESPN and Fox for the sport’s ratings tumble and lackluster fan enthusiasm last season.

Jeff Bakalar of CNET speculates on whether ESPN will be streaming sports on the Microsoft Xbox gaming system.

And that’s all for now.

Various Weekend Stuff

More releases for your perusal.

NBC Sports will air the All-American Bowl which showcases some of the best high school football talent.

U.S. ARMY ALL-AMERICAN BOWL SHOWCASES FUTURE FOOTBALL STARS LIVE THIS SATURDAY ON NBC SPORTS

NEW YORK - Jan. 7, 2010 - Tim Tebow, Adrian Peterson and Mark Sanchez are some of the famous alumni of the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, the nation’s premier high school football all-star game, which plays its 10th contest this Saturday at 1 p.m. ET live on NBC Sports.

Bob Papa will call the action with Pat Haden providing analysis. Also providing commentary are reporters Lewis Johnson and Marty Snider, and high school football recruiting experts Mike Farrell and Tom Lemming.

Ninety of the nation’s top high school football players take the field in a classic East vs. West match up at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, to give fans a sneak peek at some of the nation’s top college prospects, including Rivals No. 1 overall rated player, OL Seantrel Henderson (Saint Paul, MN; Cretin-Derham Hall High). One of the game’s most exciting traditions continues this year when a number of currently undecided players - including Rivals No. 9 overall rated player DL Sharrif Floyd (Philadelphia, PA; Washington High) - will announce their college choice live on the air during the game.

NBC also airs snowboarding on Sunday.

Coverage from Mammoth Lakes, Calif., Begins Sunday at 1:30 p.m. ET

NEW YORK - Jan. 6, 2009 - Olympic gold medalists Shaun White, Kelly Clark and Hannah Teter take on snowboarding's elite as NBC Sports presents coverage of the U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix from Mammoth Lakes, Calif. this Sunday at 1:30 p.m. ET.

The competition is the second stop in the series and will feature two full field halfpipe competitions, where athletes will attempt to secure a spot on the U.S. Olympic halfpipe team. 

ANNOUNCERS: Pat Parnell, Tina Dixon and Todd Richards of the NBC Sports Olympic snowboarding broadcast team will call the action.

NBC SPORTS UPCOMING BROADCAST SCHEDULE OF THE 2010 U.S. SNOWBOARDING GRAND PRIX SERIES:

U.S. Grand Prix of Snowboarding # 3Park City, Utah, Sunday, Jan. 24, 3-4 p.m. ET

Also Sunday, NBC airs figure skating and professional bull riding. I kid you not, but they’re not taking place at the same time.

OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALISTS NASTIA LIUKIN AND SHAWN JOHNSON HEADLINE THE PROGRESSIVE SKATING AND GYMNASTICS SPECTACULAR THIS SUNDAY ON NBC

NEW YORK- Jan. 7, 2010 - NBC Sports presents taped coverage of the Progressive Skating & Gymnastics Spectacular this Sunday at 4 p.m. ET from the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center in Rapid City, S.D. The world’s top gymnastics and figure skating stars team up for a memorable show. Olympic gymnastics gold medalists Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson lead an all-star gymnastics and skating cast of champions. Commentary will be provided by Peggy Fleming, Bart Connor and Nadia Comenici.

Joining Liukin and Johnson on the gymnastics side is 2008 Olympic silver medalist Jonathan Horton, 2008 Olympic bronze medalist Raj Bhavsar and two-time World All-Around Champion Ivan Ivankov. 

The star-studded skating talent includes three-time World champion Elvis Stojko, 1996 World champion Todd Eldredge, three-time National champion Michael Weiss and 2007 U.S. National silver medalist Emily Hughes.

Pop and “High School Musical” star Ashley Tisdale, who recently released her sophomore album “Guilty Pleasure,” is the featured musical guest.

PBR: SUNDAY, 2:30 P.M. ETNBC Sports presents taped coverage of the Professional Bull Riders’ New York City Invitational from Madison Square Garden this Sunday at 2:30 p.m. ET.

This event features rides by top athletes such as 2009 PBR World Champion Kody Lostroh (Longmont, Colo.), 2008 PBR World Champion Guilherme Marchi (Leme, SP, Brazil), 2007 & 2009 NYC champion J.B. Mauney (Mooresville, N.C.), two-time World champion Chris Shivers (Jonesville, La.) and 2009 PBR Daisy Rookie of the Year Cody Nance (Carthage, Texas).

NBC’s Craig Hummer, Justin McKee, Ty Murray, Donna Brothers and Justin McBride call the action.

And Versus will show professional bull riding Saturday night.

THE PROFESSIONAL BULL RIDERS CHARGE INTO THE BIG APPLE FOR THE NEW YORK CITY INVITATIONAL 

VERSUS WILL AIR TWO-HOURS OF LIVE COVERAGE ON JAN. 9 AT 8 P.M. ET

NEW YORK, N.Y. (January 7, 2010) - The rankest bulls and toughest riders invade Manhattan for the fourth straight year to compete in the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) New York City Invitational. VERSUS, the cable television home of the PBR, will air live coverage of the event on January 9, at 8 p.m. ET. All of the top PBR riders will be featured in this weekend's event including legendary Brazilian riders Guilherme Marchi and Robson Palermo who hold first and second place in this year's world standings. J.B. Mauney, winner of the 2009 New York City Invitational, will also be competing for his chance to defend his event title. Kody Lostroh, the 2009 World Champion, will make his second appearance of the 2010 season after undergoing elbow surgery just two months ago.  

VERSUS kicked off the 2010 PBR season last week with the Baltimore Invitational and will air a total of 30 PBR events throughout the year, including the PBR World Finals from Las Vegas, Nev. 

That’s it for the weekend press releases.

The Weekend Programming Press Releases

My grand plans to post press releases during the early morning hours fell by the wayside when I fell asleep with the computer on. I woke up around 4 this morning to shut everything off. Not a good way to fall asleep with the computer and glasses on.

Anyway, here are the releases I was supposed to post this morning.

First, ESPN will air the All-America High School Football Game today.

ESPN to Televise Third Annual All-America High School Football Game at Tropicana Field on Jan. 2

The third annual All-America High School Football Game, organized by ESPN and Intersport, will be played on Saturday, Jan. 2, 2010. The annual all-star competition, featuring 89 of the top high school football seniors in the nation, will air on ESPN at 11 a.m. ET. The telecast will also be available in high definition on ESPN HD and on ESPN’s broadband sports network, ESPN360.com. Justin Kutcher (play-by-play announcer), Tom Luginbill (National Recruiting Director for ESPN Scouts, Inc.) and Quint Kessenich (sideline reporter) will call the action from Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla.  

ESPN’s telecast will also include a special halftime performance by CTE/Def Jam and double-platinum recording artist Young Jeezy.

In addition, several players are expected to announce their college decisions during the game: No. 9 Darius White, WR (Dunbar HS, Ft. Worth, Texas); No. 12 Chris Dunkley, WR (Pahokee HS, Pahokee, Fla.); No. 42 John Fulton, CB (Manning HS, Manning, S.C.); No. 93 Kenny Shaw, WR (Dr. Phillips HS, Orlando, Fla.); and No. 120 Toney Hurd, Jr., CB (Thurgood Marshall HS, Missouri City, Texas).  White is considering Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Florida and LSU; Dunkley – Georgia, Florida and Alabama; Fulton – Alabama, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia and LSU; Shaw – Florida State, Michigan, Tennessee, Florida and South Carolina; Hurd – Oregon, California, Auburn, Oklahoma State and Texas A&M.

Of the 89 players selected by ESPN Scouts, Inc. to participate in the Under Armour All-America High School Football Game, 60 are ranked in the ESPNU 150 player rankings.  Team Blur (white jersey) will include St. Thomas Aquinas School (Miami, Fla.) cornerback No. 5 Lamarcus Joyner; Treasure Coast’s (Port St. Lucie, Fla.) No. 6 Jeff Luc, ILB; No. 7 Michael Dyer, RB of Little Rock Christian (Little Rocky, Ark.); Tulsa Central’s (Tulsa, Okla.) No. 18 Demarco Cobbs, ATH; Booker T. Washington’s (Atlanta, Ga.); No. 24 Antonio Goodwin, ATH; No. 49 Corey Miller, DE of James Byrnes (Duncan, S.C.); and Bishop Carroll’s (Wichita, Kan.) No. 64 Blake Bell, QB.  Team Nitro (black jersey) will feature No. 2 Jordan Hicks, OLB of Lakota West (West Chester, Ohio); No. 8 Jonathan Dowling, S of Southeast (Bradenton, Fla.); Dunbar Senior’s (Ft. Worth, Texas) No. 9 Darius White, WR; No. 11 Demar Dorsey, S of Boyd Anderson ( Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.); John H. Guyer’s (Denton, Texas) No. 14 Taylor Bible, DT; No. 17 Mack Brown, RB of Martin Luther King, Jr. (Lithonia, Ga.); and No. 21 Storm Johnson, RB of Loganville HS (Loganville, Ga.). Florida leads with the most players (19), followed by Texas (15), Georgia (13), California (7) and Virginia, South Carolina and Alabama with four. There will be 26 states represented in the game. Complete rosters for Team Blur and Team Nitro.

  

Former NFL head coaches Ted Marchibroda and Sam Wyche will serve as the head coaches. Marchibroda will coach of Team Blur, while Wyche will coach Team Nitro. Both coaching staffs, selected by ESPN Scouts, Inc., will consist of former NFL coaches acting as offensive and defensive coordinators, with support from 19 high school coaches who have players participating in the game.

And NBC has your weekend stuff including figure skating.

OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST KRISTI YAMAGUCHI HOSTS SMUCKER’S STARS ON ICE THIS SUNDAY ON NBC

World’s Greatest Figure Skaters Share History of the
Smucker’s Stars on Ice Tour and Take A Sneak Peek At the 2010 Cast

NEW YORK - December 30, 2009- Olympic Gold Medalist Kristi Yamaguchi will host the Smucker’s Stars on Ice 2010 Tour special this Sunday at 4 p.m. ET.  The Smucker’s Stars on Ice Tour, founded by skating icon and Olympic Gold Medalist Scott Hamilton, boasts an illustrious 24-year history featuring the biggest names in the sport. Viewers will receive a special behind the scenes look at this world-famous Tour, including a review of its history, a collection of performances by star skaters and, most importantly, a sneak peek at the 2010 stellar cast.

The two-hour broadcast will provide first-hand commentary from skating greats Scott Hamilton, Rosalynn Sumners, Brian Orser, Kurt Browning, Paul Wylie plus prospective 2010 Vancouver Olympians Evan Lysacek, Sasha Cohen, Tanith Belbin & Benjamin Agosto, and more. 

LUCAS OIL OFF-ROAD RACING, SATURDAY, 2:30 PM ETNBC Sports presents taped coverage of Lucas Oil Off-Road Racing this Saturday at 2:30 p.m. ET. 

The Lucas Oil Off-Road Racing Series is the evolution of the long-standing support of short course racing by Forrest Lucas and Lucas Oil. This weekend’s coverage features all-star off -road truck racing from Lake Elsinore, Calif. for the most prize money in any off-road racing competition in history. 

Coverage highlights a very unique competition comprised of two races. The format of this event will be dramatically different for many drivers, as there will be two shootout races held, the first between the Unlimited 2s and the Unlimited 4s, and the second between the Unlimited Lites and the Unlimited Buggies. It has been years since Unlimited Lites and Buggies have competed in the same race. 

Bill Weber, Wally Dallenbach, Marty Snider, Kelli Stavast, and Robert Stout will call the action.

And that’s it.

Some Mid-Week Links

Doing some linkage and my computer has been acting up on me. This is all connected with me falling asleep with the lights and my glasses on. I have a feeling I dropped my computer while asleep so I have to deal with it shutting off about seven times today. So while I deal with trying to stabilize the machine, I’ll do some linkage.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand talks about Peter Gammons leaving ESPN for the MLB Network.

Tom Singer of MLB.com looks at the Gammons move to MLB Network and MLB.com.

USA Today’s Mike McCarthy writes about Gatorade dropping a line of Tiger Woods-theme drinks before the Tiger Slam into a fire hydrant.

The Sports Business Daily looks at the latest Tiger Woods news including the lack of his TV ads since his scandal broke the day after Thanksgiving.

Reed Albergotti of the Wall Street Journal writes that Woods may not be getting the best PR advice.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says now is the time to buy Tiger Woods memorabilia.

Darren talks with Kobe Bryant about his new Nike shoe.

The Boston Globe’s Chad Finn writes about Peter Gammons’ decision to join NESN and the MLB Network.

The Boston Herald’s John Tomase and Michael Silverman also have a story about Gammons’ departure from ESPN.

Jessica Heslam of the Herald has a look at the sports radio ratings.

Will Leitch of New York Magazine wonders if the Tiger Woods story is changing sports journalism.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union is a bit surprised that NBC and the NFL chose to stand pat with its Sunday Night game in Week 15.

Ken McMillan of the Hudson Valley Times Herald-Record says up to 10 college bowl games will be on local sports radio this holiday season.

Ken says CBS Sports will have its top college football announcing team on Army-Navy this weekend.

Laura Nachman says another Philadelphia Inquirer reporter is moving to Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia’s upgraded website.

Sarah Talalay of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel writes that Orange Bowl officials as well as Miami tourism officials are hoping Iowa fans will make the trip to see their team in droves as they did in 2003.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News says it appears Josh Lewin will return to call the Texas Rangers on TV for next season and beyond.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle looks at the local ratings of the college football conference championships as well as high school football.

Over to Ed Sherman of Crain’s Chicago Business who wants to put an end to the Tiger Woods coverage.

Ed writes about a new website devoted to Chicago high school sports.

Ed looks at more shuffling between the Tribune and Sun-Times.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal writes that the Bucks get another shot on national TV this Friday.

Chicago Tribune Olympics reporter Philip Hersh says webcasts are no longer the bane of figure skating.

Barry Stavro of the Los Angeles Times writes that Lakers fans will hear some different voices on the radio calling games this weekend.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has the NFL TV schedule for Week 14.

Tom says the Bowl Championship Series is extremely unfair.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star looks at the battle between the mainstream sports media and the sports leagues.

William Houston of Truth & Rumours says the Tiger Woods story is inciting both thoughtful and stupid comments.

Glen Dickson of Broadcasting & Cable says the Cowboys will use its huge videoboard to conduct a 3-D test on Sunday during its game with the Chargers.

R. Thomas Umstead of Multichannel News writes that Spike’s Ultimate Fighter season finale drew its highest ratings to date.

Some NFL ratings from the Sports Media Watch.

First, Sunday Night’s Packers-Cardinals game did well for NBC.

Fox saw excellent ratings for Cowboys-Giants.

But CBS experienced a big drop for its regional coverage.

ESPN’s Monday Night Football did very well.

SMW wraps up the ratings from Week 12.

SMW has the weekend overnight ratings.

And the SMW talks with Kenny “The Jet” Smith of TNT’s Inside the NBA.

Chris Byrne of the Eye on Sports Media shows us the new face of Canadian sportscasting.

Emmett Jones of the Sports Business Digest has Ana Ivanovic’s dress for the Australian Open next month (it’s next month?!!!).

Maury Brown in the Biz of Baseball says Bloomberg is making a big push to get a foothold into baseball analytics.

We end with Kristine Leahy doing The Five on WEEI.com.

That’s it for now.

Some Leftover Press Releases

I need to post some press releases that have been lingering in the Fang’s Bites inbox for the last few days. Let’s put them up now.

ESPN has announced five additions to its World Cup coverage team.

Five Former FIFA World Cup Players and Premier League Club Manager Join ESPN for 2010 FIFA World Cup

Ruud Gullit, Steve McManaman, John Harkes, Alexi Lalas, Efan Ekoku and Roberto Martinez to Provide Match and Studio Analysis

ESPN has announced that five former FIFA World Cup players – Ruud Gullit, Steve McManaman, John Harkes, Alexi Lalas and Efan Ekoku – and the Premier League’s Wigan Athletic manager Roberto Martinez will serve as match and studio analysts for the company’s unprecedented coverage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa (June 11–July 11, 2010). The six commentators, five of whom were members of a combined seven FIFA World Cup tournament teams and one, a rising star in the Premiership’s managerial ranks, will be part of ESPN’s English-language commentary team in the United States on ESPN, ESPN2, ABC and ESPN360.com.

Gullit, the former Dutch national team star, was one of the top footballers of his generation with is best professional years in the Italian Serie A (1987-1994) playing for AC Milan and Sampdoria. Englishman McManaman played for the Premier League’s Liverpool FC and Real Madrid in Spain’s La Liga, while Nigerian standout Ekoku played for several English Premier League clubs, including Norwich City. Spanish-born Martinez played for Spanish and English clubs before transitioning to the managerial ranks. He will return to Wigan after his 2010 FIFA World Cup role for ESPN in the U.S.

McManaman and Ekoku, who serve as television commentators in England, made their U.S. debuts on ESPN2 Friday during the network’s comprehensive coverage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup Draw. Harkes and Lalas, two of the most recognizable faces in U.S. Soccer history, currently serve as soccer analysts for the network.

“Ruud, Steve, Efan, John and Alexi will bring fans the first-hand experience they all have from being part of the most popular – and, arguably the most competitive – sporting event in the world, while Roberto will offer a tactician’s insight,” said Jed Drake, ESPN senior vice president and executive producer, event production. “Their in-depth knowledge of the game and post-career roles as television commentators and manager will help elevate our coverage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup across ESPN’s media platforms.”

Assignments are to be determined, and other ESPN commentators for the 2010 FIFA World Cup will be announced at a later date. Biographical highlights:

Ruud Gullit

Gullit, who excelled at numerous positions on the pitch, was signed by AC Milan in 1987 from PSV Eindhoven in the Dutch Eredivisie for a then record £18 million. Gullit led his three club teams – HFC Harlem (1981), Feyenoord Rotterdam (1984), and PSV Eindhoven (1986 and ’87) – to Dutch league titles before his exceptional run at AC Milan that saw the famed club capture the Scudetto (Italian Football Championship) three times (1988, 1992 and ’93). He played for Netherlands in the 1990 FIFA World Cup and was named World Soccer Magazine “World Footballer of the Year” in 1987 and 1989. In 1994, Gullit moved to Chelsea in the Premier League.

Gullit coined the term “sexy football” as a commentator in England in 1996 to describe teams who play attractive soccer with deft touches and defense-penetrating, pass-and-move style of play. In 1987, when he was awarded the European Footballer of the Year, Gullit dedicated the honor to Nelson Mandela, then imprisoned by the Apartheid regime in South Africa. The move endeared him to Mandela and South Africans who applauded his public stance against injustice. In joining ESPN’s FIFA World Cup team, Gullit will travel to South Africa to provide U.S. television analysis for this historic sports event in the country’s history.

Gullit served as a soccer commentator for ITV for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, and he works as an analyst for the UEFA Champions League matches on Sky Sports. Gullit has also served as manager for three European clubs – Chelsea, Newcastle United, Feyenoord Rotterdam – and Major League Soccer’s Los Angeles Galaxy.

Steve McManaman

One of England’s most decorated footballers, McManaman was the first British player to win the UEFA Champions League title twice, and he was the first English footballer to win the Champions League with a non-English club. He signed as a professional with Liverpool FC in 1990 and after making 364 appearances for the club transferred to Real Madrid in July 1999. He played for England in the 1998 FIFA World Cup and in the UEFA European Football Championships in 1996 and 2000.

Following his retirement from professional soccer in 2005, McManaman embarked on a new career in television as a commentator and pundit, providing analysis for ITV during the 2005 Champions League Final, for ESPN Star Sports in Singapore in 2006, and for Setanta Sports.

Efan Ekoku

Ekoku tallied an impressive 16 goals in 38 appearances for Norwich City during the 1993-94 Premier League season to earn a spot on the Nigerian national team for the 1994 FIFA World Cup. That same season, he scored Norwich’s first ever goal in European competition against Vitesse in the UEFA Cup (Sept. 15, 1993). Ten days later at Goodison Park, he became the first player to score more than three goals in a Premier League match with four goals as Norwich beat Everton 5-1. Ekoku also played for other clubs, including Wimbledon and Sheffield Wednesday

After his retirement from professional soccer, Ekoku earned his FA (Football Association) and UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) coaching licenses. He currently works as commentator for the BBC for Barclays Premier League matches.

John Harkes

One of the most accomplished American-born players ever, Harkes captained the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team and was a fixture in the midfield for the 1990 and 1994 FIFA World Cup tournaments, as well as the 1988 Olympics. During his 13-year international career, Harkes captained Major League Soccer’s D.C. United to back-to-back MLS Cup titles (1996 and 1997), the 1998 CONCACAF Champions’ Cup and Inter-American Cup championships. He was one of the first Americans to succeed at the highest levels in England, playing for five seasons (1991-96) for Sheffield Wednesday and helping to pave the way for other U.S. soccer players in Europe. He retired from professional soccer in 2003.

Harkes joined ESPN in March 2007 as the lead soccer analyst for Major League Soccer telecasts and U.S. Men’s National Team matches, including qualifying matches and the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.

Alexi Lalas

Lalas is one of the fiercest defenders in American soccer history. A standout for the U.S. National Soccer Team at the 1994 and 1998 FIFA World Cup tournaments, his exceptional play earned him an all-tournament mention during the ‘94 event when the U.S. side advanced to the knockout round. He parlayed that success into a professional contract with Italian club Padova, becoming one of the first Americans to play in the Serie A.

Following a 10-year professional career in Europe and Major League Soccer in the United States, Lalas moved into club management. He was president and general manager of the Los Angeles Galaxy when David Beckham joined the club from Real Madrid. Since January, Lalas has been a studio analyst for ESPN.

Roberto Martinez

Martinez is regarded as one of the rising stars in the Premiership’s club coaching ranks, having been highly sought after following two full seasons as manager of Swansea City FC. In his first full season with the club (2007-2008), he led Swansea to one of its best seasons and earned a promotion from League One. In 2008–09, Martínez presided over Swansea’s return to England’s second tier division for the first time in 24 years. In June 2009, he became Wigan’s new manager.

Martínez played for his home town club, CF Balaguer, in the Spanish Third Division before moving to Real Zaragoza in La Liga where he made his senior debut. He moved to Wigan Athletic on a free transfer in July 1995 and made over 200 appearances for the club through 2001.

ESPN Inc.’s 2010 FIFA World Cup Coverage in the United States

South Africa 2010 will be ESPN’s eighth FIFA World Cup and coverage of the event promises to be the most comprehensive in company history. ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC will air all 64 matches live and in high definition. ESPN360.com, ESPN’s signature broadband network available in 41 million homes, will feature live English-language simulcast of matches on ESPN and ESPN2. ESPN Deportes, the Spanish-language all sports network, will air up to 40 matches in Portuguese live in the U.S.

Additionally, ESPN will present 2010 FIFA World Cup television studio programming from site in South Africa, offering U.S. sports fans the most comprehensive news and information coverage throughout the month-long soccer showcase. Studio coverage of the quadrennial global event will include SportsCenter segments, a nightly World Cup Live program, and pre-, halftime and post-match shows, with additional studio programming and World Cup-branded segments, totaling more than 65 hours of coverage, originating from two sets in and around Johannesburg.

ESPN Coverage of Past FIFA World Cup Events:

Germany 2006 – All 64 matches live and in high definition

Korea/Japan 2002 – 58 ESPN and ESPN2 matches live (6 tape-delayed broadcasts on ABC)

France 1998 – All 64 matches live on ESPN (27), ESPN2 (23) and ABC Sports (14)

USA 1994 – All 52 matches – ESPN (41) and ABC (11)

Mexico 1986 – 15 matches on ESPN (U.S. cable television rights)

Spain 1982 – 7 matches on ESPN

Here’s quotage from ESPN regarding last week’s World Cup Draw.

ESPN Analysts Breakdown 2010 FIFA World Cup Draw

ESPN soccer analysts John Harkes, Alexi Lalas, Steve McManaman and Efan Ekoku offer their perspectives on the 2010 FIFA World Cup Draw, which took place last Friday at the Cape Town International Convention Center in South Africa, as all 32 teams were slotted into the eight groups (of four teams) for the 64-match tournament next summer (June 11-July 11, 2010) in South Africa:

On the United States draw in next year’s tournament and on the England match on June 12 …

Harkes: “It’s a great challenge to play against one of the great teams in the world like England. This is a good opportunity for the U.S., to play that underdog role, and, with Algeria and Slovenia, those two teams are unknown. The U.S. have never faced them, so that becomes unpredictable. As a coach, you really need to do the research and scout them. I do think Group C has a good opportunity for the U.S. to advance out of the first round.

“There are so many players who play there in England. They know these guys. They have a relationship, a banter, they talk everyday. It’s exciting. There’s a huge adrenaline rush when you play against any of the big teams from around the world, but to play against England with so many great players on that squad is going to be a good challenge.

“The one thing about England, they’ve changed in the last 10-12 months and the reason for that is (Fabio) Capello. He’s a great orchestrator of building teams and not individuals. He’s brought the best out of them. They have a very good team.”

Lalas: “I was ecstatic. I think it’s a great group and the best group the U.S. has drawn in a World Cup. The opportunity the U.S. has to get out of the group is immense. England, of the seeded teams, would have been one of the teams I would have wanted to play, so that fell in nicely because I think the U.S. can not just give them a game but get points out of it. If it’s three points, that’s great. If it’s one point, that’s okay – it’s a great result in terms of having that first game. We know how important playing well in that first match is. When the U.S. gets a point out of that first game, history has shown they’ve gone through. With all respect to Slovenia and Algeria, these are teams that the U.S. should do well against and get points, and if they don’t, it will certainly be a disappointment, but ultimately a failure.

“I have for many, many years fought this snobbery that exists about everything that happens over in the U.S. soccer-wise is second-rate and isn’t good enough. Well, here’s an opportunity for the U.S. and for guys like Landon Donovan to prove they have the ability to compete and to play well against what a lot of people perceive to be in England as a superior level of soccer and a superior level of football.”

On the U.S. facing Slovenia and Algeria …

Harkes: “It’s that unknown, that unpredictability that you get from these teams. One of the things that’s always been said about the African teams is how unpredictable they area. They’re strong, they’re powerful and they’ve got speed. So that’s something they have to be able to contend with. And with Slovenia, beating Russia at the end shows they have a little bit of grit and determination themselves, coming off that qualification with confidence.”

Lalas: “That England game is huge. It’s big and there will be a lot of focus but you qualify with your performance over the three games (in pool play). I do believe the U.S. will get points and should be favored in those games but making that transition from one game where you’re the underdog to the next games where you’re the favorite is not easy to do mid-tournament.”

An English perspective on Group C …

McManaman: “As an Englishman, I have to say we have to be fairly happy. It’s a draw that everybody will look up and think that we should qualify, and I think that’s all you can ask for. Looking at all the draws like the Brazilians, Portuguese and the Ivory Coast (in Group G), there lots of difficult games and one big team is unfortunately going to be left out, and when you look at ours and you’d be fairly confident that we should progress, I’d be very disappointed if England didn’t get through.”

On the keys to success for the U.S. side …

Harkes: “Good health. They have to have players who are fit. Losing Charlie Davies and Onyewu is going to be difficult for them to replace. It’s all about the preparation and they just have to let it unfold, but the U.S., they just have to continue to believe.”

On the toughest group …

Harkes: “Group G. I think Brazil and Ivory Coast get through. Ivory Coast have too many good players and they are coming off a high. Didier Drogba is very hard to stop.”

Lalas: “Group G. You have Kaka for Brazil, Didier Drogba for Ivory Coast and Cristiano Ronaldo for Portugal – three of the biggest players in the world and one of them is going to go home with his team. I still see Brazil figuring it out, and I think Portugal is going to be the odd man out.”

On dark horse teams to watch …

Harkes: “I like Uruguay. A lot of people kind of overlook them coming out of COMNEBOL and South America. They have a little bit of a European kind of attitude mixed with their play, so it could favor them. I also like Ivory Coast. They have a very good side.”

Lalas: “Ivory Coast. If they get out of that ‘Group of Death’ – and I think they will, with the confidence they will have going through that and the players that they have, and their ability, I see them having a real legitimate shot of being the first African nation to win a World Cup.”

Ekoku: “Probably Ghana is the number one African team now. They will be the team likely to do well.”

McManaman: “We all hope for a dark horse. It’s the surprise that makes it interesting.”

On a potential tournament winner …

Lalas: “Germany. As we go to Africa and we celebrate this incredible creativity and free-wheeling type of style, the team that comes out and is clinical and regimented and structured the way a German team can be is going to win it. Plus, they’re going to be playing in a climate that completely suits them.”

On host nation South Africa …

Ekoku: “It’s not the strongest team we’ve seen. They’re in for a rough ride. South Africa has got lots of work to do. I don’t see them going very far.”

NBC announced yesterday that Joe Theismann and Joe Gibbs will join Tom Hammond for the early NFL Wild Card playoff game on January 9.

JOE GIBBS & JOE THEISMANN JOIN TOM HAMMOND ON NBC’s NFL WILD CARD SATURDAY, JANUARY 9, 2010

Michaels & Collinsworth to Call Primetime Wild Card Game

NEW YORK – Dec. 7, 2009 – Hall-of-Fame head coach Joe Gibbs, who coached the Washington Redskins to three Super Bowl championships, and two-time Pro Bowl quarterback Joe Theismann of the NFL Network, will join NBC Sports' Tom Hammond to call the first game of NBC Sports' NFL Wild Card doubleheader on Saturday, Jan. 9, 2010.

Gibbs returns to NBC for the first time since he served as an analyst for NFL Live, NBC Sports' NFL pre-game show, from 1994-1997. This will be Theismann's first broadcast for NBC. Theismann quarterbacked Gibbs' Redskins to a win in Super Bowl XVII. The announcement was made Monday by Dick Ebersol, Chairman, NBC Universal Sports & Olympics.

"Football Night in America" reporter Tiki Barber will serve as the sideline reporter. The game will be co-produced by NBC's Tommy Roy and Rob Hyland and directed by Fox's Artie Kempner.

"Joe Gibbs is one of the most beloved people to have ever worked at NBC Sports and we're so happy that he's made a pit stop to work for us again," Ebersol said. "Joe Theismann has always provided insightful analysis and we all can't wait to see him join his former coach."

Gibbs said: "I'm really excited about coming back to NBC Sports. I'm also excited about working with Joe again but he'll probably argue with me the whole night. I'm going to make him promise to let me get in a word edgewise."

Theismann said: "I really appreciate the opportunity to broadcast the Wild Card game. There's always a chance that Cinderella will find the slipper. I'm ecstatic to be working with my old coach. I owe so much to him. But I don't know if he's going to be able to handle three straight hours with me. I drove him crazy for six years."

NBC Sports will broadcast live coverage of NFL Wild Card Saturday Doubleheader, on Jan. 9 starting at 4 p.m. ET with a special edition of "Football Night in America" followed by the first Wild Card matchup. At 8 p.m. ET, the "NBC Sunday Night Football" team of Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Andrea Kremer will call the second Wild Card game.

Gibbs returns to NBC for the first time since he served as an analyst for NFL Live, NBC's NFL pregame show, from 1994-1997. He first coached the Redskins from 1981-1992 when he led the team to wins in Super Bowls XVII, XXII and XXVI each with three different quarterbacks, XVII with Theismann. After retiring from coaching in 1992, Gibbs turned his focus to his NASCAR team, Joe Gibbs Racing, which has three championships under his ownership, one with Bobby Labonte and two with Tony Stewart. Gibbs returned to coach the Redskins from 2004-2007. In his 16 years as a Redskins head coach, Gibbs had only three losing seasons and led the team to the playoffs 10 times. He has an overall record of 171-101 including a 17-7 record in the postseason. He remains an advisor to Redskins owner Daniel Snyder.

Theismann, who currently analyzes game film for the NFL Network's "Playbook," served as an analyst for ESPN's Sunday Night Football from 1988-2005 and for ESPN's Monday Night Football in 2006. In 1985, Theismann, while still an active player, was an analyst on Super Bowl XIX on ABC working alongside Frank Gifford and Don Meredith. Theismann was a fourth-round pick out of Notre Dame in the 1971 NFL draft and went to the Canadian Football League where he played three seasons for the Toronto Argonauts. He then went on to play 11 years with the Redskins (1974-1985) and was named NFL MVP in 1983.

Hammond, one of sports broadcasting's most-respected and versatile talents, has called one of NBC's Wild Card playoff games since 2006 and is the lead play-by-play voice on Notre Dame football telecasts. The versatile Hammond, who has been with NBC Sports since the late 1970's, will serve as the figure skating play-by-play commentator during the Vancouver Olympic Winter Games, his ninth Olympic assignment for NBC Sports. He also hosts NBC Sports' award-winning coverage of the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.

The early Wild Card game will be produced by Tommy Roy, who produced Super Bowl XXXII, the last NFL game on NBC prior to the NFL's return in 2006. Roy also was executive producer for Super Bowls XXXII, XXX and XXVIII. Rob Hyland, NBC's Notre Dame producer, will co-produce with Roy. Fox Sports' Artie Kempner, who served as the lead NFL director for Fox's NFL package from 2003-2008 and directed Super Bowl XLII will direct the early game. Kempner also serves as Fox's lead NASCAR director.

Fred Gaudelli is the producer of NBC's "Sunday Night Football" and Drew Esocoff is the director. They will handle the primetime Wild Card Saturday game. This is Gaudelli and Esocoff's fourth season at the helm of NBC's "Sunday Night Football," the duo have produced and directed every "Sunday Night Football" broadcast since moving to NBC Sports after producing and directing "Monday Night Football" for ABC.

Interesting that Fox is loaning out a director for the Wild Card game.

Universal Sports has signed an agreement with the International Skating Union for several figure skating and speed skating events.

Universal Sports and International Skating Union ink Four-Year Multi-Platform Distribution Deal

World Figure Skating and Speed Skating Championships Highlight Agreement

Los Angeles, December 7, 2009: Universal Sports and UniversalSports.com will be the home of the International Skating Union’s (ISU) key events through 2013, highlighted by the ISU World Figure Skating Championships and ISU Speed Skating Championships and ISU Short Track Speed Skating Championships. The announcement was made by Universal Sports Chairman and CEO Claude Ruibal and ISU President Ottavio Cinquanta.

“We’re very excited to have reached this wide-ranging deal with the ISU making Universal Sports the long-term home for key ISU events,” says Ruibal.

“These prestigious events will provide our consumers with what has traditionally been some of the most compelling and entertaining Olympic sports content. As a new sports network, we are proud and encouraged that ISU has selected Universal Sports as their USA distributor to highlight their amazing athletes as they compete in their respective competitions.”

“The ISU is thrilled to have a permanent home for our major competitions showcased by Universal Sports in the United States,” says Cinquanta. “Our major figure and speed skating events and championships will be well-served by this partnership with Universal Sports, which will offer our viewers a vibrant, multi-platform opportunity to interact with our stars.”

Details of the events and rights to be showcased annually by Universal Sports include the following:

Figure Skating:

ISU World Figure Skating Championships

ISU European Figure Skating Championships

ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships

ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships

ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships

ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Individual Events (5) and Final (1)—does not include 2009-10 season and excludes all Skate America events

Speed Skating:

Essent ISU European Speed Skating Championships

Essent ISU World Sprint Speed Skating Championships

Essent ISU World Allround Speed Skating Championships

Essent ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships (not held during 2009-10 due to Winter Olympics)

Short Track

ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships

And here’s who you see on tonight’s Tony Barnhart Show on CBS College Sports.

BCS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR BILL HANCOCK AND LEGENDARY NAVY AND DALLAS COWBOYS QUARTERBACK ROGER STAUBACH THIS WEEK ON “THE TONY BARNHART SHOW” ON CBS COLLEGE SPORTS NETWORK

Barnhart Examines the Fiesta Bowl Match-up: Boise State vs. TCU, Plus Staubach on Army-Navy

CBS COLLEGE SPORTS NETWORK’s THE TONY BARNHART SHOW, a weekly one-hour primetime college football talk show, features the Executive Director of the BCS Bill Hancock, plus former Navy and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, on Tuesday, Dec. 8 (9:00 PM, ET).

“Mr. College Football,” Tony Barnhart, hosts the show along with Brian Jones. The hard-hitting program debates and analyzes the hot topics and issues facing college football both on and off-the-field. This week, Barnhart and Jones take an in-depth look at the Fiesta Bowl match-up between undefeated teams Boise State and TCU, and discuss the Army-Navy game with Staubach.

Throughout the season, the show has featured a variety of high-profile guests from the college football community, including coaches, administrators, writers, broadcasters and former players to the program. The distinguished guests will offer in-depth, lively, opinionated, topical discussions on the world of college football.

The TONY BARNHART SHOW will air each Tuesday throughout the college football season at 9:00 PM, ET. Mike Aresco serves as Executive Producer. Tyler Hale and Stefan Van Engen produce.

I still have a bunch of releases, but those can wait for later.

Previews of Weekend Programming

I’ve given you the college football and NFL previews. Let’s give you previews of other weekend programming.

NBC Sports airs plenty of figure skating and will air Skate Canada this weekend.

SKATE CANADA COVERAGE ON NBC SPORTS & UNIVERSAL SPORTS THIS WEEKEND FROM KITCHENER, ONTARIO

Universal Sports to Provide Coverage Throughout the Competition

NEW YORK – Nov. 19, 2009- NBC Sports and Universal Sports present almost nine hours of coverage this weekend of the 2009 Skate Canada, the sixth stop of the 2009 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series this weekend from Kitchener, Ontario. Skaters from Team USA will compete against athletes from 14 other countries, all vying for points and prize money and ultimately spots representing their country at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games. Coverage on NBC Sports begins Sunday at 2 p.m. ET and coverage on Universal Sports begins Friday at 8:00 p.m. ET. NBC Sports will broadcast two hours of coverage featuring the Men's and Ladies Free Skate. Universal Sports will carry live coverage of the Men's and Pairs finals and the Men's, Ladies and Pairs short programs. COMMENTATORS: NBC Sports Olympic figure skating broadcast team of Scott Hamilton, Andrea Joyce and David Pelletier will call the action.

LADIES: Reigning U.S. champion Alissa Czisny has earned three medals in the Grand Prix Series, including the bronze at this event last season. Joining Czisny is the 2008 U.S. champion, Mirai Nagasu, who is competing in her second season in the Grand Prix Series. Reigning U.S. bronze medalist Caroline Zhang, also a two-time World Junior silver medallist, returns to Skate Canada after placing fifth last season.

MEN: Reigning U.S. champion Jeremy Abbott will compete at Skate Canada for the second time in attempts to top his eighth place standing from when he competed back in 2007. Joining Abbott is Stephen Carriere, the 2008 U.S. bronze medalist, who is making his first Skate Canada appearance.  The 2008 Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final silver medallist, Armin Mahbanoozadeh, is hoping to earn a medal in his debut season of the Grand Prix series. 

PAIRS: Reigning U.S. silver medalists Caydee Denney and Jeremy Barrett made their Grand Prix Series debut this season at the NHK Trophy, where they finished fourth. It is the first Grand Prix Series event of the season for Caitlin Yankowskas & John Coughlin, who won gold at Ice Challenge in Graz, Austria, earlier this month.

ICE DANCING: Reigning U.S. silver medalists Emily Samuelson and Evan Bates took fourth at Trophée Bompard last month. This is the first Skate Canada appearance for the 2008 World Junior champions, who last season won bronze at the NHK Trophy and placed fourth at Skate America. Competing alongside Samuleson and Bates will be the 2008 U.S. junior champions Madison Hubbell and Keiffer Hubbell. These 2006 Junior Grand Prix Final champions placed eighth in their Grand Prix debut at Trophée Eric Bompard in October.

UNIVERSAL SPORTS COVERAGE: Universal Sports, available in more than 56 million homes, will broadcast 8 ½ hours of same day coverage of Skate Canada from Kitchener, Ontario. Details below (all times ET):

Friday 11/20Pairs and Ladies Short Program – 8-9:30 p.m. ET

Saturday 11/21 Pairs Free and Men's Short Program – 5-7 p.m. ET; Men's Free Skate – 8-9 p.m. ET

Sunday 11/22Ladies Free Skate – 4-6 p.m. ET (Reair of NBC Sports Show)

NBC also airs one of those figure skating specials that it has become known for. This one involves Motown legend Smokey Robinson.

SMOKEY ROBINSON TRIBUTE ON ICE THIS SUNDAY ON NBC

NEW YORK – November 19, 2009- Soul legend Smokey Robinson provides the musical background for "Smokey Robinson Tribute on Ice" at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Fla. this Sunday at 4 p.m. ET.  His classics include "My Girl," "You've Really Got A Hold On Me," "The Tears of a Clown," "I Second That Emotion" and "The Tracks of My Tears."

Among the skating stars featured this weekend are three-time U.S. Champion and two-time World bronze medalist Michael Weiss, 1996 World Champion and six-time U.S. National Champion Todd Eldredge, 2008 World Champion and 2006 Olympic bronze medalist Jeffrey Buttle and eight-time British National Champion and three-time Olympian Steven Cousins

Hosting the event are Peggy Fleming and Andrea Joyce.

Before CBS’ airing of college football on Saturday, CBS Sports Spectacular airs some fishing competition.

CBS SPORTS BULLETIN BOARD — CBS SPORTS SPECTACULAR ANGLES “TOYOTA TEXAS BASS CLASSIC” ON SATURDAY CBS SPORTS SPECTACULAR goes fishing at the TOYOTA TEXAS BASS CLASSIC

on Saturday, Nov. 21 (2:00-3:00 PM, ET; taped 10/16-10/18). This unique bass fishing tournament is comprised of 60 of the top professional anglers from around the world competing for the first place prize of $250,000 in cash and prizes to be awarded to the inaugural Professional Anglers Association (PAA) Tournament Series World Champion. Last year’s winning team captain Kelly Jordan returns for this year’s event being held for the first time in Lake Conroe, Texas. This year’s event moves from a team format to an individual competition and combines the conservation aspects of Lake Conroe’s slot limits with certified observers and on-the-water scales, allowing anglers to weigh fish normally not allowed on a slot-limit lake. Robbie Floyd and Dave Mercer call the action for CBS Sports. CBS Sports’ Bryan Lilley serves as coordinating producer.

Harold Bryant is Vice President, Production, CBS Sports.

And Sirius XM Radio will air the College Basketball Hall of Fame Inductions on Sunday as Magic Johnson and Larry Bird lead the Class of 2009.

SIRIUS XM TO OFFER EXCLUSIVE RADIO COVERAGE OF THE COLLEGE BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME INDUCTION CEREMONY ON NOV. 22

Live broadcasts from the College Basketball Experience and Midland Theater in Kansas City will air nationwide on SIRIUS channel 122 and XM channel 143

Listeners will hear one-on-one interviews with Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and other inductees

SIRIUS XM offers unparalleled college basketball coverage throughout the season, airing dozens of games each week

NEW YORK – November 19, 2009 - SIRIUS XM Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI) announced today that it will offer listeners exclusive radio coverage from the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Sunday, November 22.

SIRIUS XM’s Sports Nation channel (SIRIUS channel 122 and XM channel 143) will carry live coverage of the induction ceremony from Kansas City’s Midland Theater (9:00-11:00 pm ET) as legendary players Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Travis Grant and Wayman Tisdale, coaches Jud Heathcote and Gene Bartow, and contributors Bill Wall and Walter Byers, are enshrined into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.

Prior to the induction ceremony, SIRIUS XM’s Gary Williams will be on site to host a special three hour preview show (6:00-9:00 pm ET on SIRIUS XM Sports Nation) from the College Basketball Experience, home to the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, in Kansas City, MO. The special will feature one-on-one interviews with all of the inductees in attendance, as well as many of the other former players, current and former coaches, and other renowned figures from college basketball who will be at the event.

Throughout the 2009 season, SIRIUS XM offers college basketball fans unrivaled coverage of the sport with live play-by-play of dozens of games every week from colleges and universities throughout the country, including 22 of the top 25 teams in the current Associated Press college basketball poll. For a schedule of upcoming games on SIRIUS XM, visit www.sirius.com/collegesports and www.xmradio.com/collegesports.

In addition to live play-by-play, SIRIUS XM airs original talk shows that cover college basketball from tip off until the final buzzer with news, highlights and season-long analysis of the nation’s teams and conferences through the national championship in April.

Mad Dog Radio (SIRIUS channel 123 and XM channel 144) offers live sports talk daily including the exclusive show, Basketball and Beyond with Coach K, hosted by Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski every Wednesday night (7:00-8:00 pm ET).

Rivals Radio, hosted by Bill King and Chris Childers, covers the college game in-depth every weekday morning (7:00-11:00 am ET) year-round exclusively on SIRIUS XM’s Sports Nation (SIRIUS channel 122 and XM channel 143).

For more info, please visit www.sirius.com/collegesports and www.xmradio.com/collegesports.

For info on the College Basketball Experience and National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, please visit www.collegebasketballexperience.com.

We have a few more press releases so keep your RSS, Twitter and Network Blog feeds updated.

Some Wednesday Press Releases

I have a few press releases to provide you. A couple of quotage releases and a two other general releases for you are on the docket for this particular post. Then if all goes well, I might do a late night links session. I haven’t done one in a very long while.

First, we have quotes from NBA TV’s Fan Night game on Tuesday.

Notes from NBA TV’s Fan Night – Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Golden State Warriors (108) @ Cleveland Cavaliers (114)

Voting is open on NBA.com for next week’s Fan Night match-up that will air on Tuesday, Nov. 24. Fans can select between the following games:

Indiana Pacers @ Toronto Raptors

Philadelphia 76ers @ Washington Wizards

Golden State Warriors @ Dallas Mavericks

New Jersey Nets @ Denver Nuggets

Oklahoma City Thunder @ Utah Jazz

New York Knicks @ L.A. Lakers

CLIP OF THE DAY

(click on link below to watch)

NBA TV’s Chris Webber talks about playing for Golden State Warriors head coach Don Nelson two different times during his career

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

Pre-Game Show

Ernie Johnson, Chris Webber and Kevin McHale

McHale on Golden State’s team chemistry after trading (Stephen) Jackson to the Charlotte Bobcats: “When the players come out and say it will be better when Stephen Jackson goes, which they started a couple of weeks ago, that is really an indication that it is very disruptive. I think (the Warriors) will play free and easy tonight.”

Webber on the Golden State Warriors: “When you are on a team that has a bad feeling in the locker room, it is really good to get a breath of fresh air. And I think for Golden State this is a breath of fresh air. When you win and when you lose it is good to just be able to concentrate on your team and the game and not everything that is going inside and outside the locker room.”

McHale on coaches getting teams back on track after turmoil: “You have to stay with what you believe in and you can’t be changing. Some coaches say, ‘tonight we are going to play defense, tomorrow we are going to play offense.’ The players get confused and pretty soon they say that the coach has no idea what he is talking about. Stay with your pattern, do what you do. The message has to be the same every single day in the locker room and then the players start buying in and believing. I think that Nellie (coach Don Nelson’s) message is going to be the same. Score a lot of points.”

Webber on playing for Golden State’s coach Don Nelson: “I actually got two chances to play for (Nelson), once when I was a young rookie and I think I could have made better decisions then…definitely, I know I could have made better decisions then. He could have as well, as far as explaining the game to young guys. Then I got to play with him my last year in the league for about 10 games and I’ve seen a difference in the way he handles players. To me, he is a player’s coach, definitely a good personality. But that may set some guys up and I think that could be a double-edged sword at times.”

Webber on the Cleveland Cavaliers’ adjustment to center Shaquille O’Neal: “I think they are a really good team. Right now LeBron (James) is finding his way, finding out how to play with Shaq (O’Neal) because you don’t want to get in Shaq’s way and still continuing to be a leader. I think they are going to be okay, they have great players. It is going to take some time to mesh.”

McHale on most important part of the Cavaliers besides LeBron James: “I think when Mo Williams started playing like Mo Williams of last year during All-Star that really changed up their team. I think it took a little while for Mo to say, ‘I have to go play,’ because Mo wasn’t playing well and I like the fact that he said, ‘this is on me, I have to play better.’ You like when players do that. Players are always passing the buck saying it is not my fault. He said this is my fault and I think he is the guy that is going to make them go.”

Webber on the hype surrounding Bucks guard Brandon Jennings: “Right now, I believe the hype. I believe that this is not a mistake and that he is very skilled and can shoot off the dribble, shoot the open three and he can pass. It is too early, I usually don’t judge this early but I am going to give him the heads up and say he is the real deal.”

McHale on Bucks guard Brandon Jennings: “What he has really been able to do is mature. He went over to Europe last year and he said the culture was a huge shock to him. He matured so much. I think that was the best thing that happened to him.”

McHale on whether a team will pick up Allen Iverson: “It is going to have to be the right team at the right time. I would have to say right now, as of today, no.”

Webber on Allen Iverson: “If he can’t go to the Lakers because of Kobe Bryant, if he can’t go to Cleveland because of the influence of Shaq…I would not have him around young players. He is the guy that has to score; he is the guy that wants the ball. Do you want to honestly sell tickets and let him shoot 50 times or do you want someone that can help your team win? I don’t think a team in championship mode is going to be willing to take a risk and draft him after the experiment at Detroit last year.”

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

Halftime Report

Johnson, Webber and McHale

McHale on Thunder forward Kevin Durant: “(Durant) can flat out score the basketball in many ways. He got a good start with Oklahoma City tonight. The thing is that he is so long. He can just go over the top of people and make shots.”

Webber on Cavaliers guard Anthony Parker: “There is no place better to be a shooter, unless you are playing with (Steve) Nash. To be around the best player with the ball in his hands (in LeBron), Parker is going to get those shots up. In the second half, I’m going to be interested in looking at LeBron. I think he is going to turn his killer instinct on even more because he and Corey Maggette were getting into it a little bit earlier. So I think he is going to amp it up and get guys just like Parker involved and force his will on this team.”

McHale on Golden State being under-manned: “One of two things can happen, you either get disheartened and say, ‘we are under-manned and say we can’t play, we can’t win.’ Or the guys can say, ‘I can shoot all I want because the coach can’t take me out.’ There is a point where they can say, ‘it doesn’t matter the coach can’t take me out,’ so maybe they will relax and play.”

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

NBA GameTime

Johnson, Webber and McHale

Webber’s assessment of the Cleveland Cavaliers: “I feel that by Shaq being out they are getting the rhythm. Everyone is getting to play. Guys are getting the ball when it matters most. If Shaq was playing, he would have had the ball. I think this is going to help. Even when (Anderson) Varejao comes back and guys are on the bench, I think it is going to help with their confidence later on in the playoffs.”

Webber on Golden State guard J.J. Hickson’s career high: “We heard that LeBron was working with him over the summer. I’m a big believer in chemistry and a big believer in guys that are on the bench that practice and go against the starters every day. I’m always like let those guys out of the cage because when those wild animals get out they have been waiting to play. He has that energy so I think this will work out well for him.”

McHale on Golden State’s play against the Cavaliers: “I did think they played a little looser without Stephen Jackson. The guys in the locker room were saying he needed to go, he wasn’t good here. He left and I thought they played with energy. I thought they played loose and had some chemistry out there.”

Webber on why he believes in the Atlanta Hawks: “I’m going to actually start to believe in Atlanta. Atlanta is a team I didn’t want to believe in. I didn’t like the fact that the guys were that young. I didn’t like the fact that they were happy to get to the playoffs and the antics that happened in the playoffs. I was rooting for them when they played against Boston and took them to seven games. This team made me a believer. They play like a veteran team which is something I thought they were never ready for. I never thought they had the mentality. Josh Smith is playing awesome this year. I think this team is ready to make some big steps this year.”

This brings us to quotes and notes from the Tony Barnhart Show on CBS College Sports.

NEWS, NOTES AND QUOTES FROM “THE TONY BARNHART SHOW” ON CBS COLLEGE SPORTS NETWORK

DIRECTOR OF THE BLIND SIDE JOHN LEE HANCOCK AND CO-STARS

PHILLIP FULMER AND TOM LEMMING, PLUS CBS SPORTS’ JIM NANTZ ON “THE TONY BARNHART SHOW”

CBS COLLEGE SPORTS NETWORK’S THE TONY BARNHART SHOW, a new weekly one-hour primetime college football talk show featured John Lee Hancock, director of the new movie The Blind Side, along with two of its co-stars, CBS College Sports Network announcers Phillip Fulmer and Tom Lemming; plus CBS Sports’ Jim Nantz on Tuesday, Nov. 17 (9:00 PM, ET).

“Mr. College Football,” Tony Barnhart hosts the show along with Brian Jones. The hard-hitting program debates and analyzes the hot topics and issues facing college football both on and off-the-field.

The TONY BARNHART SHOW airs each Tuesday throughout the college football season at 9:00 PM, ET. Mike Aresco serves as Executive Producer. Tyler Hale and Stefan Van Engen produce.

* * * * *

The following are excerpts from the show:

(PHILLIP FULMER ON RETURNING TO COACHING):

Barnhart: Why do you want to coach? As crazy as this business is, why do you want to coach again?

Fulmer: Well I do because I enjoy it. I enjoy the competition. I enjoy putting teams together. I feel the same passion right now that I did when I took over 17 years ago at Tennessee…I’ve got something to prove and I want to get to a point where we’re competing for championships. I love being around it. I’m not ready to retire at all. I think I’ve got 10, 12 good years left of being an active coach. I love recruiting. I can go to any part of the country, you know, to do it, because we’ve recruited all over the country at Tennessee…But if the opportunity, the right opportunity, presents itself, I’m certainly going to look at it. And I think I’ll be interviewing them as much as they’re interviewing me at this point.

(TONY BARNHART ON NOTRE DAME):

How effective can any coach be at Notre Dame? The world has changed dramatically since Lou Holtz won Notre Dame’s last National title in 1988. An entire generation of players has grown up in a time when the school has just not been relevant on the national stage. In an age of Facebook and Twitter when almost every game is on television and the great players are staying closer to home, is it even possible to get enough of them to buy into the Notre Dame mystique to make the Irish a National Championship contender? I say no. We’ve talked about the decline of the Big Ten because of geography, weather and other factors. The same rules apply to Notre Dame, it’s still a great job because of the tradition and passion of the fans, but the next head coach had better walk into South Bend with his eyes wide open, there is a lot of work to do.

CBC makes the official announcement that it will air a second season of the wildly successful “Battle of the Blades” and we also discover that the production company behind the competition plans to license the show worldwide so expect a US edition sometime soon.

CBC-TV’S BATTLE OF THE BLADES RENEWED FOR SECOND SEASON

Groundbreaking Canadian series a ratings and advertising success story

CBC Television announced today that its hit series BATTLE OF THE BLADES, featuring world-class figure skaters and former NHL’ers, will return next fall for a second season. The 14-episode series sold out to live audiences every week, and wrapped up on Monday, Nov. 16 with an unconfirmed television audience of 1.736 million tuning in for the one-hour results finale.

Overall viewership has been tremendous, with an average of 1.749 million viewers 2+ watching the seven performance shows on Sunday evenings, and 1.332 million Canadians 2+ tuning in for the Monday night results shows. Combined, BATTLE OF THE BLADES reached one out of three Canadians with a total unduplicated reach of over 10 million.

“We could not be happier with the audience and advertising response to this truly Canadian series,” said Kirstine Stewart, general manager, CBC Television. “CBC continues to generate successful and relevant top-tier programming and the return of Battle of the Blades is another welcome addition to our star-studded lineup.”

The program’s unique format and mass appeal provided an ideal platform for advertisers. Season one sponsors DanActive, ARTISTRY Brands, McDonald’s and Kruger Products showcased their brands to millions of Canadians through innovative program integrations and sponsorship opportunities, including: co-branded vignettes; the DanActive Warm-up Zone; the ARTISTRY Style Studio; and signage and product sampling at the legendary Maple Leaf Gardens. Season two of BATTLE OF THE BLADES will provide even more customized opportunities for advertisers to connect with Canadians.

The overwhelming response to the show concept has led Insight Productions to look at expanding the franchise globally.

“We are thrilled that Battle of the Blades has captured such a wide and diverse male and female viewing audience,” said John Brunton, president & executive producer, Insight Productions. “It has tremendous international potential as a big name sports and entertainment brand, and we look forward to growing this franchise significantly over the coming years.”

Viewers can learn more about the competitors at www.cbc.ca/battle, the official online portal for the series and the source for everything about BATTLE OF THE BLADES. In addition to videos and behind-the-scene photos, the site offers viewers the opportunity to become fans of their favourite pair and track each participant’s activity as they strive to be the final pair remaining at the end of the series.

BATTLE OF THE BLADES is the brainchild of Kevin Albrecht with development by Sandra Bezic. BATTLE OF THE BLADES executive producers are John Brunton, Barbara Bowlby and Kevin Albrecht. It is produced by Insight Productions in association with CBC Television.

And this is what tournaments Golf Channel’s airing this week.

GOLF CHANNEL TOURNAMENT COVERAGE

Nov. 16-22, 2009

LPGA Tour Championship

Dates: 11/19 – 11/22

Venue: The Houstonian Golf and Country Club, Richmond, Texas

Airtimes (Eastern):

Thursday 4 – 6 p.m. (Live)

Friday 4 – 6 p.m. (Live)

Saturday 4 – 6 p.m. (Live)

Sunday 3 – 5 p.m. (Live)

GOLF CHANNEL On-Air Talent:

Brian Hammons (Play by Play)

Dottie Pepper (Analyst)

Kay Cockerill (Tower)

Val Skinner (On Course)

Charlie Rymer (On Course)

Stephanie Sparks (Interviews)

Broadcast Notes: Returning to the Houston area for the first full-field LPGA event in 20 years, the LPGA Tour Championship features 120 of the world’s best players in the season-ending event, competing for a share of the $1.5 million purse, with the world’s top-ranked player Lorena Ochoa and Louise Suggs Rookie of the Year Jiyai Shin competing for the Player of the Year Honors….U.S. Solheim Cup team member Angela Stanford will be fitted with a microphone during Thursday’s opening round of play…New LPGA Commissioner Michael Whan will join Hammons and Pepper in the booth during Friday’s live coverage.

Dubai World Championship

Dates: 11/19 – 11/22

Venue: Earth Course, Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Airtimes (Eastern):

Thursday 3 – 8 a.m. (Live)

Friday 3 – 8 a.m. (Live)

Friday 3 – 8 a.m. (Live)

Saturday 3 – 8 a.m. (Live)

Thursday – Sunday 9:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. (Replay)

Broadcast Notes: The top-60 players in the Race to Dubai – a season-long competition on the European Tour – will compete in the season-ending Dubai World Championship, where the winner will win $1.5 million and a seven-year European Tour exemption. The winner of the Dubai World Championship will earn $1.2 million and a five-year European Tour exemption. The field includes current race-leader Lee Westwood, Ernie Els, Sergio Garcia, Padraig Harrington, Rory McIlroy, Jeev Milkha Singh, Geoff Ogilvy, Henrik Stenson, Camilo Villegas and Martin Kaymer…The Dubai World Championship will be broadcast in high definition.

That’s going to do it for this post. Another press release post is next.

The Winners of The Battle of The Blades Are…

Craig Simpson and former gold medalist Jaime Salé. Here’s the CBC press release. I do hope the show becomes available in the US. I keep hearing that this caught the imagination of the Canadian viewing public and the competition was quite good.

JAMIE SALÉ AND CRAIG SIMPSON ARE DECLARED

THE WINNING PAIR OF THE BATTLE OF THE BLADES

Winners receive $100,000 for donation to The Spinal Cord Injury

Treatment Centre (Northern Alberta) Society

The results are in and Canadian viewers have spoken. After seven weeks of intense competition, Jamie Salé and Craig Simpson were declared the final winners of the BATTLE OF THE BLADES, as voting results were revealed during tonight’s broadcast of the series finale. Salé and Simpson receive $100,000 for donation to their charity of choice: The Spinal Cord Injury Treatment Centre (Northern Alberta) Society (SCITCS).

“This has been an incredible journey,” said Simpson. “The opportunity to learn something different every week and try something new, it’s simply been exhilarating!”

“I’d like to thank our families, kids and everyone who helped us along the way,” added Salé. “This was an amazing commitment and sacrifice for everyone.”

The Edmonton duo has impressed audiences from early on in the competition. Judge Sandra Bezic praised their most recent routine as a fantastic culmination of all their work and judge Dick Button commended them for taking on dangerous moves and making them their own. Simpson was also the first male skater in the series to do a waltz jump and both he and Salé delighted audiences with their madcap tribute to Austin Powers. The fact that Simpson has suffered from a bad back during much of the competition makes their performances even more remarkable.

Shae-Lynn Bourne and Claude Lemieux along with Marie-France Dubreuil and Stéphane Richer are the runner ups in the competition. For their efforts, Make-A-Wish Canada and MA Fondation, the respective charities for both pairs, will each receive a $25,000 donation. The judges also congratulated both pairs for their outstanding efforts and for showing their full commitment to the sport of figure skating throughout the competition.

Tonight’s finale wraps up a competition that began with eight pairs performing over seven weeks to a variety of different musical themes. Each week saw increasingly complex routines as the number of pairs remaining in the competition raised the stakes higher and higher to collect viewer votes, impress the judges and go all-out to win the grand prize.

Viewers can learn more about the show at www.cbc.ca/battle, the official online portal for the series and the source for everything about BATTLE OF THE BLADES, including videos, behind-the-scene photos and information about each pair in the competition.

BATTLE OF THE BLADES is the brainchild of Kevin Albrecht with development by Sandra Bezic. BATTLE OF THE BLADES executive producers are John Brunton, Barbara Bowlby and Kevin Albrecht. It is produced by Insight Productions in association with CBC Television.

The Spinal Cord Injury Treatment Centre (Northern Alberta) Society (SCITCS) raises awareness for those living with spinal cord injuries by enhancing their quality of life through research, education and support programs. For over 20 years, Craig Simpson has raised money for SCITCS with over $1.5 million donated to date.

Make-A-Wish Canada grants wishes to children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich their experience with hope, strength and joy. Having a wish granted gives children a chance to take a break from being sick while creating memories that last a lifetime.

MA Fondation seeks to save children from shaken baby syndrome and violence. Much of their funding goes to L’Hôpital Ste. Justine in Montreal, helping newborns with shaken baby syndrome, and L’Hôpital Marie Enfant, which cares for child victims of sexual and physical abuse.

Thanks to the CBC for sending the releases for Battle of the Blades every week.

A Couple of CBC Releases

I don’t think I’ve ever had two CBC press releases in one day so I’m going to post them here for you.

First, CBC has released a new Hockey Night in Canada app for the iPhone and iPod Touch.

CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA INTRODUCES iPhone & iPod APP

Free App features live box scores, stats, and CBCSports.ca articles

CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA has introduced a new way for hockey fans to follow every player, every goal and every game with the all-new CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA Application for iPhone and iPod Touch. The free app, launched this week, provides users with instant access to live box scores, statistics and results from all NHL games whenever and wherever they are.

Game statistics are broken down for every team, player and game. Division and conference standings are instantly updated, as are NHL player highlights. Users can find out who is leading the NHL in points, goals, plus/minus, goals against average, save percentage and wins.

The new iPhone and iPod Touch app features breaking news headlines, comprehensive stories and in-depth features from CBCSports.ca, and users can navigate the complete NHL schedule including CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA broadcasts.

The free app can be downloaded by visiting cbc.ca/mobile/iphone, CBCSports.ca/hockey or by visiting the Free Application section of the iTunes store.

And this is the preview of the Battle of the Blades season finale.

A THREE-WAY SHOWDOWN, SPECIAL GUESTS AND GROUP NUMBERS

CELEBRATE THE BATTLE OF THE BLADES FINALE

Canadians to decide who of the remaining three pairs will win $100,000 for charity

The final decision will be in the hands of Canadians, Sunday, Nov. 15, as they choose who of the remaining three pairs will win BATTLE OF THE BLADES, at Toronto’s historic Maple Leaf Gardens. Results will then be announced during a full-blown ice extravaganza, which is set for the series finale, Monday, Nov. 16. Both shows start at 8 p.m., on CBC Television.

The final battle begins on Sunday, when the following three remaining pairs will perform to music of their choice: Shae-Lynn Bourne and Claude Lemieux, Marie-France Dubreuil and Stéphane Richer, and Jamie Salé and Craig Simpson. Competition shifts to collaboration after the individual performances when the members of all three pairs join together for a special group performance. The evening will also begin in style with a special group number featuring the men from BATTLE OF THE BLADES.

The competition wraps up the following night with a special one-hour show for the finale results episode. Kicking things off will be a group performance featuring all eight pairs from the competition, set to the show’s theme song, Bryan Adams’ There Will Never Be Another Tonight.

Monday’s show will also include a guest performance by the show’s co-host and skating mentor Kurt Browning, followed by a special routine by returning competitor Barbara Underhill and her former professional skating partner Paul Martini. This will be the first time Underhill and Martini have skated together since they performed a farewell show at Toronto’s Maple Leaf Gardens in 1998.

The magic on the ice continues with a guest performance by Salé and her husband and skating partner David Pelletier, who as a coach on the show has also been featured in weekly Point of View segments offering tips on figure skating. Dubreuil and her husband and professional skating partner Patrice Lauzon will also join together on the ice for a special guest performance.

When the winning pair is revealed, on Monday’s show, they will receive a $100,000 cheque made out to the charity of their choice. Three charities remain as possible recipients of this prize money. Bourne and Lemieux are skating for Make-A-Wish Canada; Dubreuil and Richer are competing for MA Fondation; and Salé and Simpson are battling it out for The Spinal Cord Injury Treatment Centre (Northern Alberta) Society.

Viewers can learn more about the competitors at www.cbc.ca/battle, the official online portal for the series and the source for everything about BATTLE OF THE BLADES. In addition to videos and behind-the-scene photos, the site offers viewers the opportunity to become fans of their favourite pair and track each participant’s activity as they strive to be the final pair remaining at the end of the series.

BATTLE OF THE BLADES is the brainchild of Kevin Albrecht with development by Sandra Bezic. BATTLE OF THE BLADES executive producers are John Brunton, Barbara Bowlby and Kevin Albrecht. It is produced by Insight Productions in association with CBC Television.

That’s it.

Three Winter Sports Releases

I’ll put together three releases in this post. One regarding the NBA, one about the NHL and the other on figure skating. It works, believe me.

We begin with NBA TV and its programming for the week plus the live “Fan Game” it will carry on Tuesday.

Nuggets @ Bulls Wins Vote for NBA TV’s Fan Night Game on Tuesday

NBA TV’s Tuesday Fan Night will feature the Denver Nuggets @ Chicago Bulls match-up, which received 31% of the vote, edging out the Oklahoma City Thunder @ Sacramento Kings game, which received 28% of the vote on NBA.com. The game will air on Tues., Nov. 10 at 8 p.m. (ET) with host Ernie Johnson and analysts Chris Webber and Kevin McHale on-hand for studio coverage beginning at 7:30 p.m. (ET). Fan Night voting will continue on NBA.com from Tues., Nov. 10 (8 a.m. ET) – Thurs., Nov. 12 (Midnight ET) as fans select the match-up for Tues., Nov. 17 between eight games:

· Golden State Warriors @ Cleveland Cavaliers

· Oklahoma City Thunder @ Miami Heat

· Indiana Pacers @ New Jersey Nets

· L.A. Clippers @ New Orleans Hornets

· Phoenix Suns @ Houston Rockets

· Toronto Raptors @ Denver Nuggets

· Chicago Bulls @ Sacramento Kings

· Detroit Pistons @ L.A. Lakers

Tipping off Tuesday night is The Jump on NBA.com, a live, interactive show that allows fans to submit questions and comments to NBA.com’s Kyle Montgomery, Dennis Scott and Brent Barry via NBA.com, Facebook or Twitter. The show will stream live each week at 1 p.m. ET.

Every Wednesday NBA TV features an NBA Special; this Wednesday at 8 p.m. (ET) the network will air “NBA Special: Basketball without Borders 2009.” The 30-min special follows NBA All-Stars Dwight Howard, Chris Bosh and Dirk Nowitzki, among others, as they make the journey Beijing, Mexico City and Johannesburg, respectively, to help grow the game of basketball and bring attention to important social issues.

In addition to the Fan Night game, NBA TV will also feature live games on Monday, Nov. 9 at 7 p.m. (ET) with the Phoenix Suns @ Philadelphia 76ers, on Saturday, Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. (ET) with the Portland Trail Blazers @ Charlotte Bobcats and on Sunday, Nov. 15 at 7 p.m. (ET) with the L.A. Clippers @ Oklahoma City Thunder.

Check out TNT and NBA TV Insider David Aldridge’s new NBA.com column The Morning Tip that recaps NBA action and includes analysis and musings on players, teams, games, news and everything NBA-related. Follow this link to read his latest edition: www.nba.com/2009/news/features/david_aldridge/11/09/morning.tip.lebron/index.html

NBA TV PROGRAMMING SCHEDULE:

NOVEMBER 9 – NOVEMBER 15 (all times ET)

MONDAY, NOV. 9
12-1 p.m. NBA.COM FANTASY INSIDER Rick Kamla, Dennis Scott
6:30 – 7 p.m. Pregame Show Rick Kamla, Steve Smith, Brent Barry
7-9:30 p.m. NBA Regular Season: Phoenix Suns @ Philadelphia 76ers Local Announcers
9:30 p.m.- 2 a.m. NBA GameTime Rick Kamla, Steve Smith, Brent Barry

TUESDAY, NOV. 10: FAN NIGHT
1 p.m. (NBA.com) The Jump on NBA.com Kyle Montgomery, Dennis Scott, Brent Barry
6-6:30 p.m. THE BEAT Marc Fein, David Aldridge
7:30- 8 p.m. Pregame Show Ernie Johnson, Chris Webber, Kevin McHale
8- 10:30 p.m. NBA Regular Season: Denver Nuggets @ Chicago Bulls Local Announcers
10:30 p.m.- 1:30 a.m. NBA GameTime Ernie Johnson, Chris Webber, Kevin McHale
11 p.m.- 1:30 a.m. NBA GameTime Andre Aldridge, Eric Snow

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 11
7-7:30 p.m. All-Access with Ahmad Ahmad Rashad
7:30-8 p.m. REAL NBA
8-8:30 p.m. NBA SPECIAL: Basketball without Borders 2009
8:30-9 p.m. All-Access with Ahmad (REAIR)
9- 11 p.m. NBA GameTime Andre Aldridge, Kenny Smith, Eric Snow
11 p.m.-12 a.m. All-Access/REAL NBA (REAIR)
12- 2 a.m. NBA GameTime Andre Aldridge, Kenny Smith, Eric Snow

THURSDAY, NOV. 12
7-8 p.m. BEST OF THE 2000′s NBAE Presents: 2001
8- 10 p.m. BEST OF THE 2000′s 76ers/ Lakers, 2001 NBA Finals- Game #1
10-11 p.m. BEST OF THE 2000′s NBAE Presents: 2001- Re-Air
11 p.m.- 1 a.m. BEST OF THE 2000′s Bucks/Magic, 2001 Eastern Conference 1st Round Game #3

FRIDAY, NOV. 13
7 p.m.- 2 a.m. NBA GameTime Rick Kamla, Steve Smith

SATURDAY, NOV. 14
12:30-1 p.m. FIBA World Basketball Studio Show
1-3 p.m. Euroleague Game of the Week: Regal FC Barcelona vs. Asvel Villeurbanne
6:30-7 p.m. Pregame Show Andre Aldridge, Eric Snow
7-9:30 p.m. NBA Regular Season: Portland Trail Blazers @ Charlotte Bobcats Local Announcers
9:30p.m.-12 a.m. NBA GameTime Andre Aldridge, Eric Snow

SUNDAY, NOV. 15
6:30-7 p.m. Pregame Show Marc Fein, Steve Smith
7-9:30 p.m. NBA Regular Season: Los Angeles Clippers @ Oklahoma City Thunder Local Announcers
9:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. NBA GameTime Marc Fein, Steve Smith

Over to Versus which will have three guest analysts joining its Hockey Central studio this month.

THREE STANLEY CUP WINNERS JOIN THE HOCKEY CENTRAL TEAM IN NOVEMBER

NEW YORK, N.Y. (November 9, 2009)-VERSUS today announced three guest analysts synonymous with NHL success will join the Hockey Central studio crew in November. Mike Keenan will be the first guest to join Bill Patrick, Keith Jones and Brian Engblom in the Hockey Central studio on Tuesday, November 10, when the Boston Bruins host the Pittsburgh Penguins at 7 p.m. ET. Keenan coached 1386 career games with eight NHL teams and led the New York Rangers to their historic Stanley Cup victory in 1994; a feat that hadn't been accomplished in more than 50 years.  On Monday, November 16, Peter Laviolette will be in the studio when the Philadelphia Flyers host the New Jersey Devils at 7 p.m. ET. Laviolette coached 487 career games spanning two teams and led the Carolina Hurricanes to Stanley Cup victory in 2006. Darren McCarty, 17-year NHL veteran and four-time Stanley Cup Champion with the Detroit Red Wings, will join the Hockey Central crew on Monday, November 23. Throughout his career, McCarty garnered 288 career points and 1477 regular season penalty minutes and 49 points and 228 penalty minutes in the playoffs. Given his storied career with the Red Wings, he will be able to offer unprecedented insight and analysis during VERSUS' Detroit Red Wings and Nashville Predators telecast.  In addition to their November appearances, these guest analysts will also be joining the studio team on select telecasts throughout the NHL regular season.  Details regarding subsequent Hockey Central appearances will be announced when information becomes available.

And to CBC which announced that no one was “iced” from tonight’s Battle of the Blades competition.

ALL THREE REMAINING PAIRS ADVANCE

TO THE BATTLE OF THE BLADES FINALE

Injury to Marie-France Dubreuil leaves the decision in Canada’s hands

As a result of a back injury sustained earlier today, Marie-France Dubreuil was unable to skate in the scheduled Monday night skate-off on BATTLE OF THE BLADES. Judge Sandra Bezic declared all remaining three pairs safe for this week, leaving the decision to Canadians to decide next week which pair will win $100,000 for the charity of their choice.

“We felt, and the skaters agreed, that no one wanted to win this competition by default,” says Bezic. “We’re relieved that Marie-France’s injuries may allow her to skate next week. Our primary concern is for the safety of our skaters and we believe this is the fairest way to determine a winner.”

Before the judging panel made its decision, it was revealed that the two pairs with the fewest votes in the sixth week of competition were Dubreuil and Stéphane Richer along with Jamie Salé and Craig Simpson. However, instead of the usual skate-off, Salé and Simpson as well as Shae-Lynn Bourne and Claude Lemieux performed their programs for exhibition only.

The three pairs competing in the final week of the show on Sunday, November 15 are: Shae-Lynn Bourne and Claude Lemieux, Marie-France Dubreuil and Stéphane Richer, Jamie Salé and Craig Simpson.

Viewers can learn more about the competitors at www.cbc.ca/battle, the official online portal for the series and the source for everything about BATTLE OF THE BLADES. In addition to videos and behind-the-scene photos, the site offers viewers the opportunity to become fans of their favourite pair and track each participant’s activity as they strive to be the final pair remaining at the end of the series.

BATTLE OF THE BLADES is the brainchild of Kevin Albrecht with development by Sandra Bezic. BATTLE OF THE BLADES executive producers are John Brunton, Barbara Bowlby and Kevin Albrecht. It is produced by Insight Productions in association with CBC Television.

That will conclude this post. Two more press release posts are on the way.

Upcoming Programming Releases

This is mostly for the weekend. I have to make sure I don’t allow the releases to pile up like this, but sometimes it can’t be helped.

Anyway, this is from NBC and it’ll be showing figure skating for the most part, but there’s other programming this weekend.

GRAND PRIX OF FIGURE SKATING THIS WEEKEND ON NBC SPORTS

NBC Sports & Universal Sports Combine to Present 10 Hours of Coverage From Nagano

NEW YORK – November 5, 2009- NBC Sports and Universal Sports present 10 hours of coverage this weekend of the fourth stop of the 2009 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series this Sunday from Nagano, Japan. Skaters from Team USA will compete against athletes from 13 other countries, all vying for points and prize money and ultimately spots representing their country at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games. Coverage on NBC Sports begins Sunday at 2 p.m. ET and coverage on Universal Sports begins Friday at 5 p.m. ET. NBC Sports' broadcast will feature coverage of the ladies and men's free skates and Universal Sports will carry coverage of the pairs and ice dancing finals and the men's and ladies short programs. LADIES: Leading the U.S. ladies contingent is two-time World Junior bronze medalist Ashley Wagner.  Wagner took second at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series in Moscow last month. Among those competing against her in Nagano is Becky Bereswill who was the 2008 Junior Grand Prix Final champion.  MEN: On the men's side 2008 World bronze medalist Johnny Weir, who took home silver from this event in 2008 and gold in 2004, will compete.  Joining him in Nagano is 2009 U.S. champion and 2008 Grand Prix Final champion Jeremy Abbott and two – time World Junior champion (2008-09), 2008 US Junior champion and the 2007 Junior Grand Prix Final champion Adam Rippon. PAIRS: Americans Caydee Denney and Jeremy Barrett will make their Grand Prix series debut in Nagano; pairing up in June 2008, they won the silver medal at the 2009 U.S. Championships and ninth-place finish at the World Championships. The champions from The Grand Prix event in Paris last month, Rena Inoue and John Baldwin will also be strong contenders in Nagano. ICE DANCING: Returning U.S. champions, Meryl Davis and Charlie White will vie to stay on top while at Nagano. Davis and White are the 2009 U.S. and Four Continents champions and they missed the bronze medal at the 2009 World Championships by just .04 points. Davis and White are joined by fellow Americans, Jane Summersett and Todd Gilles.

Andrea Joyce (play by play), Paul Wylie and Peter Carruthers (analysts) and David Pelletier (reporter) call the action. UNIVERSAL SPORTS COVERAGE: Universal Sports, available in more than 56 million homes, will broadcast more than 50 hours of Grand Prix coverage, including live and near-live taped programming and rebroadcasts of the featured programming that appears on NBC Sports. Universal Sports coverage details of the Grand Prix of Figure Skating  Nagano are below (all times ET): Friday, Nov. 6, 5-7 p.m. ET/Encore Presentation - 9-11 p.m. ET Saturday, Nov. 7, 5-7 p.m. ET Sunday, Nov. 8, 7-9 p.m. ETWORLD OF ADVENTURE SPORTS, SUNDAY, 1 PM ETNBC Sports presents the Emmy Award winning World of Adventure Sports, an action and adventure sports series, this Sunday at 1 p.m. ET. The show highlights an array of adrenaline-inspired feats and adventurous sporting events from around the world. Featured sports include the Red Bull Surfing Mentawais Trip, Teton Gravity Skiers, rock climbing, the Canadian Freestyle Ski Team, and off-road unicycling.

The Red Bull Surfing Mentawais Trip documents the first time World Champions, explosive young talent and current World Title contenders share cabin space aboard the surf charter 'Indies Trader IV' with a group of specialized performance coaches. Athletes include Jordy Smith, Mick Fanning, Julian Wilson and other top surf talent. The Teton Gravity Skiers travel to Alagna, Italy for some more epic footage from their latest move RE:Session. First "FreeBASE" ascent, Dean Potter, one of the most revered climbers in the world, attempts the first ascent without ropes on one of the most difficult faces of the Eiger. WOAS gets up close and personal with the Canadian Freestyle Ski Team at their practice facility in Quebec City as they prepare for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Columbia Sportswear Pioneers ExtremeUnicyclist Dan Heaton, shows off his passion for off-road unicycling.

PBR FINALS, SUNDAY, 4 PM ETNBC Sports will air the 2009 Professional Bull Riders (PBR) Built Ford Tough World Finals. The PBR is the premier bull riding organization in the world, boasting contestants from the United States, Mexico, Australia, Brazil, and Canada. The finals will showcase the greatest bull riding athletes on the planet in Las Vegas as they vie for more than $3 million in prize money. The top 15 riders based upon their total cumulative scores after seven rounds will qualify to compete in one final decisive round of competition.

On Saturday, Fox Sports Ohio goes behind the scenes with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Cameras will be everywhere.

FOX SPORTS OHIO PROVIDES COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS FANS ALL ACCESS

The network will offer fans a behind-the-scenes look at the Jackets tomorrow beginning at 7pm.

COLUMBUS, OHIO – FOX Sports Ohio announces Columbus Blue Jackets All Access, this Saturday, November 7 when the Jackets take on the Carolina Hurricanes at Nationwide Arena. This special game telecast will offer fans a unique behind-the-scenes view of the game with more access to players, coaches and fans than ever before.

Featuring a live camera inside the Blue Jackets locker room before the game, fans will get an extraordinary look at their favorite players’ pre-game routines and follow the Jackets onto the ice. Viewers will also get to experience the game through Jackets left wing Jason Chimera, as he will wear a microphone during the course of the game. In addition, Head Coach Ken Hitchcock will join FOX Sports Ohio announcer John Michael each intermission to talk about the game.

The telecast will also feature a behind-the-scenes look at press row, visits to the team radio and television broadcast booths, as well as elements fans have come to expect during FOX Sports Ohio Blue Jackets telecasts, including player interviews between periods and in-period bench interviews with assistant coaches.

“Working with Coach Ken Hitchcock and his staff, we have come up with a way to provide this type of behind-the-scenes experience to our viewers while at the same time protect the strategic planning that goes into each game,” said Henry Ford, Senior Vice President and General Manager, FOX Sports Ohio. “We want to thank Coach Hitchcock and the entire Blue Jackets staff for allowing us to bring this unique perspective to Blue Jackets fans all over the FOX Sports Ohio coverage area.”

And the new season of Studio 42 with Bob Costas premieres on Monday with an interview of MLB Walking, Talking Conflict of Interest Bud Selig.

NEW SEASON OF MLB NETWORK’S STUDIO 42 WITH BOB COSTAS PREMIERES NOVEMBER 10 WITH COMMISSIONER SELIG

New Episodes Featuring Baseball’s Most Significant Figures & Topics to Air Every Tuesday in November

Secaucus, NJ, November 6, 2009 – A new season of MLB Network’s Studio 42 with Bob Costas premieres on Tuesday, November 10 with an exclusive sit-down interview with Major League Baseball Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig at 8:00 p.m. ET. In the premiere episode, Costas and Selig discuss umpiring, stadium ticket prices, competitive balance, scheduling, performance enhancing drugs and former MLB player and manager Pete Rose.

Costas, one of the most accomplished and highly decorated sports broadcasters in history, will continue to host new one-hour interviews every Tuesday in November, including a conversation with longtime Detroit Tigers broadcaster Ernie Harwell on November 17. Additional episodes focusing on the history of baseball and the game’s most significant figures and topics will follow.

The first season of Studio 42 with Bob Costas debuted on January 1, 2009 with an interview with Don Larsen & Yogi Berra that was interspersed throughout the airing of Larsen’s perfect game in the 1956 World Series, which appeared on television for the first time since its original broadcast. Other interviews throughout the season featured former St. Louis Cardinals teammates Hall of Famer Bob Gibson and Tim McCarver, St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre, author and former New York Yankees pitcher Jim Bouton, and former Major League Baseball umpires Don Denkinger, Bruce Froemming and Steve Palermo.

“‘Studio 42’ gives us the time and the setting to do justice to a wide variety of baseball subjects. Some are topical and journalistic; others are appreciations of the game and its history. Either way, it’s great to be able to cover baseball this way,” said Costas.

“Whether he’s discussing the latest headlines in baseball with the Commissioner or recalling some of the great moments in the game’s history with Larsen and Berra, Bob’s deep passion for the game of baseball is apparent in every interview he conducts in Studio 42,” said Tony Petitti, President and Chief Executive Officer of MLB Network. “The first season of Studio 42 with Bob Costas let us showcase some of the biggest names and stories in baseball and we’re excited to continue to give fans an in-depth look at some of the game’s most important stories from today and from its history.”

There’s one last release post and we’re done for the night. This has been a lot of work tonight.

Some Press Releases on A Monday Night

Let’s give you a few releases that can be read for tonight. That was an awkward sentence.

Anyway, New York City Marathon winner Meb Keflezighi appears on the Late Show with David Letterman to do the Top Ten tonight.

NEW YORK CITY MARATHON WINNER MEB KEFLEZIGHI TO PRESENT THE TOP TEN LIST ON CBS’S “LATE SHOW with DAVID LETTERMAN,” MONDAY, NOV. 2

Keflezighi Is First American Man to Win Prestigious Race Since 1982

NEW YORK, Nov. 2 – Meb Keflezighi, the first American man to win the New York City Marathon since 1982, speeds over to the LATE SHOW with DAVID LETTERMAN to present the Top Ten List on the broadcast tonight, Monday, Nov. 2 (11:35 PM-12:37 AM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Keflezighi, the 2004 Olympic marathon silver medalist, took the men’s title in the prestigious race in 2 hours, 9 minutes and 15 seconds, capturing his first major marathon title and ending a 27-year drought for the U.S. in the event.

Also visiting the LATE SHOW tonight are Emmy Award-winning actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus, star of the CBS comedy series “The New Adventures of Old Christine”; chef Guy Fieri; and country music superstar Carrie Underwood. The LATE SHOW with DAVID LETTERMAN is a production of Worldwide Pants Incorporated. Barbara Gaines, Matt Roberts, Jude Brennan, Maria Pope and Rob Burnett are the executive producers.

Official CBS website: http://www.cbs.com/late_night/late_show/

Tie Domi and his figure skating partner, Christine Hough-Sweeney are the next to be eliminated from CBC’s Battle of the Blades.

CHRISTINE HOUGH-SWEENEY AND TIE DOMI ARE

THE NEXT TO BE ICED ON CBC-TV’s BATTLE OF THE BLADES

Marie-France Dubreuil and Stéphane Richer back for another week

Christine Hough-Sweeney and hometown favourite Tie Domi were the fifth pair iced, as the results were revealed during tonight’s broadcast on BATTLE OF THE BLADES. Marie-France Dubreuil and Stéphane Richer are the fifth pair to be saved, joining the two remaining pairs for a chance to win $100,000 for the charity of their choice.

The two pairs with the fewest votes in the fifth week of competition were Hough-Sweeney and Domi, who performed to These Boots Are Made for Walking, and Dubreuil and Richer, who skated to Blues in the Night. Both pairs performed again before regular judges Sandra Bezic, Dick Button and guest judges Kristi Yamaguchi and her husband Bret Hedican, recently retired from the NHL, for a final chance to remain on the show.

For their efforts, Hough-Sweeney and Domi’s Canadian charity, Diabetes Hope Foundation, will receive a $25,000 donation. Diabetes Hope Foundation is the only Canadian organization of its kind helping children and adolescents with diabetes to achieve success in all areas of their lives.

The three pairs returning to compete on Sunday, November 8 are: Shae-Lynn Bourne and Claude Lemieux, Marie-France Dubreuil and Stéphane Richer, Jamie Salé and Craig Simpson. Each of these pairs will perform twice during Sunday’s show. The first routine will be to Canadian hits and the second will be a repeat of their best previous performance.

Katarina Witt, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and four-time figure skating World Champion, will preside as a guest judge for the sixth week of BATTLE OF THE BLADES, Sunday, November 8 and Monday, November 9. Witt has experience with a show of her own involving figure skaters paired with celebrities, so her remarks will provide a unique perspective, alongside those from regular judges Bezic and Button. All three will also determine who of the bottom two ranking pairs—as determined by viewer votes—gets iced on Monday’s skate-off show.

Viewers can learn more about the competitors at www.cbc.ca/battle, the official online portal for the series and the source for everything about BATTLE OF THE BLADES. In addition to videos and behind-the-scene photos, the site offers viewers the opportunity to become fans of their favourite pair and track each participant’s activity as they strive to be the final pair remaining at the end of the series.

BATTLE OF THE BLADES is the brainchild of Kevin Albrecht with development by Sandra Bezic. BATTLE OF THE BLADES executive producers are John Brunton, Barbara Bowlby and Kevin Albrecht. It is produced by Insight Productions in association with CBC Television.

I suggested to Hockey Night in Canada Radio host Jeff Marek that he ask a certain question when Tie appears on his Sirius Satellite Radio show tomorrow, but I think Jeff wants to keep his job and remain alive.

And this is what’s on this week on Golf Channel.

COMING UP ON GOLF CHANNEL… Nov. 2 – 8, 2009

Big Break Hits Main Street U.S.A.

Coverage of the 2009 World Golf Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony;

Palmer Makes Guest Appearance on The Golf Fix Season Finale

Original Programming Premieres and Highlights

(All times eastern)

Big Break Disney Golf

Time: Tuesday 10 – 11 p.m.

Hosts: Vince Cellini, Stephanie Sparks

The nine remaining contestants on Big Break Disney Golf will venture inside the Magic Kingdom to compete on Main Street U.S.A. for immunity and the opportunity to win $5,000 in a unique version of the Flop Wall Challenge. The challenges then move to Oak Trail Course at Walt Disney World Resort, where all facets of the competitors’ games will be tested as they battle to avoid elimination. Tuesday’s new episode will re-air Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET.

World Golf Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

Time: Monday 10 p.m. – 12 a.m.

Host: Rich Lerner

The World Golf Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will honor the late President Dwight D. Eisenhower, two-time Masters Champion Jose Maria Olazabal, Christy O’Connor and Lanny Wadkins as the class of 2009. Taking place at the World Golf Village in St. Augustine, Fla., the two-hour special will include presenters Arnold Palmer, Jim Nantz, Christy O’Connor Jr., and a pre-recorded message from Seve Ballesteros.

Top 10: Bouncebacks

Time: Tuesday 9-9:30 p.m.

Host: Lauren Thompson

Host Lauren Thompson will count down the top 10 comebacks in golf, proving that no lead is insurmountable, no mistake too costly and, against all odds, recovery is possible. The countdown will include Team U.S.A.’s comeback to win the 1999 Ryder Cup, Tiger Woods’ 30 on the back nine of the opening round of the 1997 Masters after opening with a 40 and Ben Hogan’s triumphant return to the 1950 U.S. Open following a near-fatal car crash. The show will feature interviews with Padraig Harrington, Patty Sheehan, Ben Crenshaw, Frank Nobilo, Roger Maltbie and Jimmy Roberts.

News and Talk Show Programming Highlights

Golf Central

Live Airings: Monday – Sunday 6-6:30 p.m. (Live)

Tuesday (Monday Night) 1-1:30 a.m.

Tuesday, Sunday 11:30 p.m. – 12 a.m.

Thursday 10:30-11 p.m.

Friday – Saturday 9:30-10 p.m.

Monday – Wednesday, Golf Central will recap all of the top storylines from the Viking Classic, the Charles Schwab Cup Championship and preview Tiger Woods’ return to golf at the WGC-HSBC Champions. Following live tournament coverage Thursday – Sunday at 6 p.m. ET, Golf Central will deliver the all of the golf news and highlights from the various tours. Scott Walker will report for Golf Central from the World Golf Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.

Golf Channel will also feature two tournaments being played abroad.

GOLF CHANNEL to Feature Tiger Woods in Live Tournament Coverage of WGC – HSBC Champions and JBWere Masters

Orlando, Fla. (Oct. 29, 2009) – The PGA TOUR season may be nearing an end but there still is golf for Tiger Woods to play. The world’s number-one player can be seen live on GOLF CHANNEL this week and next week competing in world-class events against top competition at international venues.

In the WGC – HSBC Champions in Shanghai, China, Woods looks to add to a record 16 victories in World Golf Championship events. With the HSBC Champions elevated to a WGC event for the first time, it is one that Woods has yet to win. The same cannot be said for PGA Championship winner Y.E. Yang, who captured the title in 2006 and is one of many seeking to be the first to win the event twice. The WGC – HSBC Champions will feature three of the four 2009 major winners – Yang, Angel Cabrera (Masters) and Stewart Cink (Open Championship) – 2007 HSBC Champions winner Phil Mickelson and defending champion Sergio Garcia.

GOLF CHANNEL will air the WGC – HSBC live in HD at 11 p.m. ET on Wed and Thursday and at 10 p.m. ET on Friday and Saturday. In addition, coverage will be replayed both at 11 a.m. ET and 6:30 p.m. ET on Thursday and next Friday (Nov. 6) and 10 a.m. ET and 6:30 p.m. ET next weekend (Nov. 7 and 8).

GOLF CHANNEL and Woods are then off to the JBWere Masters at Kingston Heath Golf Club in Melbourne, Australia. A co-sanctioned European Tour and PGA Tour of Australasia event, the field, in addition to Woods, showcases home favorites Geoff Ogilvy, Stuart Appleby, Aaron Baddeley, Craig Parry, John Senden, Adam Scott and defending champion Rod Pampling. The tournament will air live Nov. 11 and 12 at 10 p.m. ET and at 8 p.m. ET on Nov 13 and 14. Each round’s replay can be seen the following day at 9:30 a.m. ET.

In addition to live tournament action, GOLF CHANNEL will air Woods-related programming with highlights from his major victories and Top 10 shows featuring both his mastery of the short-game and classic duels.

Airtimes for the WGC – HSBC Champions (Nov. 4 –

(All times ET)

First Round – Wednesday, 11 p.m – 3 a.m. (Live)/Thursday, 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. (Replay)/Thursday, 6:30 – 10:30 p.m. (Replay)

Second Round – Thursday, 11 p.m – 3 a.m. (Live)/Friday, 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. (Replay)/Friday, 6:30 – 9:30 p.m. (Replay)

Third Round – Friday, 10 p.m. – 3 a.m. (Live)/Saturday, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. (Replay)/Saturday, 6:30 – 9:30 p.m. (Replay)

Fourth Round – Saturday, 10 p.m. – 3 a.m. (Live)/Sunday, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. (Replay)/Sunday, 6:30 – 10:30 p.m. (Replay)

Airtimes for the JBWere Masters (Nov 11 – 14)

(All times ET)

First Round – Nov. 11, 10 p.m – 1 a.m. (Live)/Nov. 12, 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (Replay)

Second Round – Nov. 12, 10 p.m – 1 a.m. (Live)/Nov. 13, 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (Replay)

Third Round – Nov. 13, 8 p.m. – Midnight (Live)/Nov. 14, 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (Replay)

Fourth Round – Nov. 14, 8 p.m. – Midnight (Live)/Nov. 15, 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (Replay)

Finally, NASCAR driver Tony Stewart will offer his annual “Stewie” Awards on Sirius XM Satellite Radio next month.

TWO-TIME NASCAR CHAMPION TONY STEWART TO PRESENT THIRD ANNUAL ‘STEWIE AWARDS’ LIVE ON SIRIUS XM RADIO DEC. 3

Stewart and co-host Matt Yocum return to honor the best, boldest and funniest moments from the 2009 NASCAR season

“The Stewies” will be presented live from the Rio Las Vegas during NASCAR Champions Week

NEW YORK – October 29, 2009 - SIRIUS XM Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI) announced today that two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion Tony Stewart will host the third annual ‘Stewie Awards,’ the acclaimed awards show that honors the most memorable moments of the NASCAR season.

The ‘Stewies,’ which first debuted in 2007 and features Stewart’s entertaining and irreverent take on the best, boldest and funniest moments from the recently concluded season, will be awarded during a live broadcast hosted by Stewart and Matt Yocum from the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas on Thursday, December 3 (10:00 pm – midnight ET / 7:00 – 9:00 pm PT). The live broadcast will air on SIRIUS NASCAR Radio, available to listeners nationwide on SIRIUS channel 128 and XM channel 128 with the “Best of SIRIUS” programming package.

The two-hour event will feature live interviews with the 2009 champion and other drivers in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup in Las Vegas, plus other special guests.

“We had so much fun doing this show the last two years that we decided the season just wouldn’t be complete without handing out a few more Stewies,” said Stewart. “Matt and I are thrilled to team up with SIRIUS XM for another event and to be able to do it in one of the most exciting cities in the world will be awesome. They say, ‘What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.’ Not in this case. SIRIUS and XM listeners around the country can tune in live to check it all out.”

Stewart and Yocum will announce the nominees in the award categories in the coming weeks. Following the announcement of the nominees, fans around the country can determine the winners by casting their votes online at www.sirius.com/stewieawards.

The 2009 ‘Stewies’ categories will include:

Ø “Feels Like The First Time” Award – Recognizing the most notable “first” of the NASCAR season.

Ø Best Original Drama – Honoring the year’s most exciting race moment

Ø Best Original Comedy – Honoring the year’s most entertaining “incident”

Ø Best Vocal Performance – Honoring the year’s most memorable quote

Ø Smokey Yunick Award (Best Engineering and Special Effects) – Acknowledging the year’s most creative – and illegal – modifications to a race car

Ø Bonehead Move of the Year Award

Ø ‘I Got Dumped’ Award – Acknowledging the year’s most memorable on-track bumping

Ø Hal Needham Award (Best Stunt Sequence) – Acknowledging the year’s most spectacular crash

Ø Best Driver2Crew Chatter Exchange – Acknowledging the year’s most memorable driver-to-pit crew communication

Ø Golden Stewie Award – Chosen by Stewart and Yocum and honoring a legendary driver from the Golden Era of racing

Ø “Stewie” Lifetime Achievement Award

Stewart and Yocum hosted their critically-acclaimed show, Tony Stewart Live, on SIRIUS XM Radio from 2007 through 2008. Prior to the 2009 NASCAR season, Stewart announced he would be partnering with Haas Automation to form a new Sprint Cup team, Stewart-Haas Racing, where he would be an owner and driver. Stewart-Haas Racing’s inaugural season on the track has been a tremendous success, with Stewart earning four wins and 15 top-five finishes. He and teammate Ryan Newman both qualified for the Chase for the Sprint Cup, where Stewart is currently fourth in the standings.

Stewart, a two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion (2002, 2005) and one of only 14 drivers in the history of NASCAR to win multiple Cup Series titles, has 37 Sprint Cup wins, 10 poles, 144 top-fives and 229 top-10s in 388 career starts.

That does it.

Various Press Releases for the Weekend

I think I’ll do three releases for you that previews programming for this weekend.

Here’s NBC talking about the first figure skating tournament it’ll air this season.

GRAND PRIX OF FIGURE SKATING KICKS OFF THIS WEEKEND ON NBC SPORTS AND UNIVERSAL SPORTS

NBC Sports & Universal Sports Combine to Present 11 Hours of Coverage From Paris

NEW YORK -- October 15, 2009 -- NBC Sports presents coverage of the first stop of the 2009 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series this Sunday from Paris, France. Skaters from Team USA will compete against athletes from 13 other countries, all vying for points and prize money and ultimately spots representing their country at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games. Coverage on NBC Sports begins Sunday at 1 p.m. ET and coverage on Universal Sports begins Friday at 5 p.m. ET. NBC Sports' broadcast will feature coverage of the ladies and men's free skates and Universal Sports will carry coverage of the pairs and ice dancing finals and the men's and ladies short programs. NBC Sports' ladies' coverage highlights reigning two-time World Junior silver medalist and 2009 U.S. bronze medalist Caroline Zhang competing against 2008 U.S. Junior gold medalist Alexe Gilles of France. On the men's side 2007 U.S. silver medalist Ryan Bradley and reigning two-time World Junior champion Adam Rippon compete. Bradley won the silver medal at 2008 Skate Canada and finished fourth at the 2009 AT&T U.S. Figure Skating Championships. 

Andrea Joyce and four-time world and U.S. champion and 1984 Olympic gold medalist Scott Hamilton will call the coverage for NBC Sports from the Universal Sports studios in Los Angeles. They will be joined by 2002 Olympic gold medalist David Pelletier who will report from Paris.  

UNIVERSAL SPORTS COVERAGE: Universal Sports, available in more than 56 million homes, will broadcast more than 50 hours of Grand Prix coverage, including live and near-live taped programming and rebroadcasts of the featured programming that appears on NBC Sports. Universal Sports coverage details of the Grand Prix of Figure Skating -- France are below (all times ET):

Friday, Oct. 16, 5-7 p.m. ET/Encore Presentation: 8-10 p.m. ET
Sat., Oct. 17, 5-7 p.m. ET/Encore Presentation: 10-11 p.m. ET
Sunday, Oct. 18, 5-7 p.m. ET


Joyce and three-time U.S. pairs champion and 1984 Olympic silver medalist Peter Carruthers will handle the call for Universal Sports from L.A. with Pelletier reporting from Paris.

CBS airs the “US Open of Supercross” on Saturday.

CBS SPORTS BROADCASTS “U.S. OPEN OF SUPERCROSS” ON SATURDAY, OCT. 17

CBS SPORTS SPECTACULAR broadcasts the ROCKSTAR ENERGY U.S. OPEN OF SUPERCROSS on Saturday, Oct. 17 (1:30-3:00 PM, ET). Some of the world’s top Supercross racers, including past winners James Stewart and Chad Reed, will take to the track at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas for a head-to-head, one lap race. The winners of each of the three heats will be awarded one point to their two-night racing totals, with the overall winner receiving the coveted $100,000 prize. A new twist this year will be the MMI Mechanics Challenge, featuring the mechanics of the top three finishing riders of each race. They will compete to remove and replace their bike’s back wheel before dashing to the finish line. The winning mechanic will earn a point towards their rider’s overall two-night total. John Sherlock, Jason Weigandt, Jim Holley and Erin Bates will call the action for CBS Sports. CBS Sports’ Sellers Shy serves as coordinating producer.

Harold Bryant is Vice President, Production, CBS Sports.

CBS News’ Armen Keteyian will unveil some new information on Monday regarding the death of Tennessee Titans QB Steve McNair who was found shot to death in July of this year.

CBS NEWS INVESTIGATION REVEALS SURPRISING NEW INFORMATION SURROUNDING THE DEATH OF FORMER NFL SUPERSTAR STEVE MCNAIR – THE TWO-PART “EARLY SHOW” INVESTIGATION WILL BE BROADCAST BEGINNING OCT. 19 ON CBS

Nashville police say former NFL Superstar Steve McNair was killed in the early morning hours of July 4 by his 20-year-old girlfriend who then took her own life. After a three-month investigation, CBS News’ Chief Investigative Correspondent Armen Keteyian has discovered surprising new information that exposes critical flaws in the police investigation and raises troubling questions about the events leading up to the two deaths. Keteyian’s exclusive, two-part investigation, “Steve McNair Murder Mystery,” will be broadcast on THE EARLY SHOW beginning Oct. 19 (7:00-9:00AM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

And I’ll end it there for now.

Battle of the Blades Information

Well, getting CBC press releases enables me to get info on its reality show, Battle of the Blades, its mix of hockey stars attempting to become a pairs figure skater.

The ratings for its premiere episode on Sunday were insane.

BATTLE OF THE BLADES SCORES WITH VIEWERS

OVER 1.95 MILLION TUNE IN TO CBC-TV SUNDAY NIGHT

Live event broadcast wraps up strong weekend programming

More than 1.95 million viewers tuned in to the entire 90-minute first episode of BATTLE OF THE BLADES (the second highest debut for a homegrown series since CBC Television’s Little Mosque on the Prairie). Viewership peaked at 2.482 million. The seven week 14-part series continues tonight with the live skate-off results show at 8 p.m. on CBC Television.

“I’m very proud that CBC is being watched by so many Canadians, BATTLE OF THE BLADES is yet another big hit in what is turning out to be a stellar fall lineup,” said Kirstine Stewart, General Manager, CBC English Services.“We knew that the combination of two iconic Canadian sports was an irresistible premise for a reality television show. We’re thrilled that audiences agree and watched in such large numbers.”

Sunday evening began with CBC Television’s family drama HEARTLAND drawing 1.06 million, the highest audience in the show’s three season history.

BATTLE OF THE BLADES wasn’t the only CBC program with viewers glued to their televisions. According to preliminary overnight data, Game One of the first Saturday night broadcast of the regular season on CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA featuring the Maple Leafs/Capitals, Canadiens/Sabres and Senators/Rangers match-ups drew an average audience of 1.740 million. Game Two between the Flames and Oilers reached an average audience of 1.153 million. Pre-game show Hockey Tonight welcomed 628,000 viewers to the broadcast.

*All numbers based on overnight unconfirmed PPM Data.

The first skaters were booted last night.

KRISTINA LENKO AND BOB PROBERT FIRST TO

BE ICED ON CBC-TV’s BATTLE OF THE BLADES

Marie-France Dubreuil and Stéphane Richer back for another week

Marie-France Dubreuil and Stéphane Richer are the first pair to be saved in the BATTLE OF THE BLADES figure skating competition, joining the six remaining pairs for a chance to win $100,000 for the charity of their choice. Kristina Lenko and Bob Probert were the first eliminated, as the results were revealed during tonight’s broadcast.

The two pairs with the fewest votes in the first week of BATTLE OF THE BLADES were Dubreuil and Richer, who skated to Queen’s We Will Rock You and, Lenko and Probert, who performed their routine to Steppenwolf’s Born to Be Wild. Both pairs performed again before the panel of judges, Sandra Bezic, Dick Button and guest judge Kelly Hrudey, for a final chance to remain in the show. All three praised Monday’s performances and were impressed with both pairs’ improvement from Sunday’s skate. For their efforts, Lenko and Probert’s Canadian charity, Wounded Warriors, will receive a $25,000 donation.

The seven pairs returning to compete on October 11 are: Shae-Lynn Bourne and Claude Lemieux, Isabelle Brasseur and Glenn Anderson, Marie-France Dubreuil and Stéphane Richer, Jodeyne Higgins and Ken Daneyko, Christine Hough-Sweeney and Tie Domi, Jamie Salé and Craig Simpson, Barbara Underhill and Ron Duguay.

Viewers can learn more about the competitors at www.cbc.ca/battle, the official online portal for the series and the source for everything about BATTLE OF THE BLADES. In addition to competition recap videos and behind-the-scene photos, the site offers viewers the opportunity to become fans of their favourite pair and track each participant’s activity as they strive to be the final pair remaining at the end of the series.

BATTLE OF THE BLADES is the brainchild of Kevin Albrecht with development by Sandra Bezic. BATTLE OF THE BLADES executive producers are John Brunton, Barbara Bowlby and Kevin Albrecht. It is produced by Insight Productions in association with CBC Television.

That’s it for this press release theme. And we’ll have one more press release post coming up.

Clearing Out Tuesday’s Press Releases

Let’s finish up the press releases so I can go to bed.

From CBS, ten members of the New York Rangers will help David Letterman with the Top Ten List on Wednesday.

THIS JUST IN…

…from CBS Entertainment

TEN MEMBERS OF THE NEW YORK RANGERS PRESENT THE

TOP TEN LIST ON CBS’s “LATE SHOW with DAVID LETTERMAN,”

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 30

NEW YORK, Sept. 29 — Ten members of the New York Rangers will present the Top Ten List on the LATE SHOW with DAVID LETTERMAN, Wednesday, Sept. 30 (11:35 PM-12:37 AM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. The 2009-2010 National Hockey League regular season kicks off Thursday, Oct. 1, with the Rangers playing their first game against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday, Oct. 2.

Also featured on the Wednesday, Sept. 30 LATE SHOW is an interview with pop superstar Madonna and a performance by musical guest Harry Connick Jr. The LATE SHOW with DAVID LETTERMAN is a production of Worldwide Pants Incorporated. Barbara Gaines, Matt Roberts, Jude Brennan, Maria Pope and Rob Burnett are the executive producers.

Official CBS Web site: http://www.cbs.com/late_night/late_show/

Besides the NFL and the SEC, here’s what else is in store for CBS Sports this weekend.

CBS SPORTS AND PGA OF AMERICA FOSTER LOVE OF GOLF WITH ENCORE PRESENTATION OF REALITY-BASED SHOW ON SATURDAY

CBS Sports presents a one-hour encore presentation of the PGA of America special PLAY GOLF AMERICA: GET GOLF READY on Saturday, Oct. 3 (2:00-3:00 PM, ET; aired on 5/3/09). Hosted by CBS Sports’ Bill Macatee, the show follows a group of six amateur would-be golfers, who come from all walks of life, as they begin to discover a love and passion for the game of golf. The novice golfers begin with lessons at the PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla. where they are given instructions from some of America’s top instructors including Top 50 Instructor and PGA of America Director of Instruction T.J. Tomasi, 2008 PGA Teacher of the Year Martin Hall, and top female instructor and the second woman to play in a PGA Tour event Suzy Whaley, as well as many other top flight instructors. CBS Sports’ Chris Svendsen serves as the coordinating producer.

CBS SPORTS SPECTACULAR COWBOYS UP WITH PRO BULL RIDING’S “GODADDY.com INVITATIONAL” ON SUNDAY

CBS SPORTS SPECTACULAR presents professional bull riding’s GoDADDY.com INVITATIONAL on Sunday, Oct. 4 (5:00-6:00 PM; 3:00-4:00 PM in late NFL markets; taped 10/2-3) from the Rose Garden Arena in Portland, Ore. The GoDADDY.com INVITATIONAL is the 29th stop on the Built Ford Tough Series. With only two more events on the “Road to Vegas” left after Portland, the championship round will go a long way in setting up the world standings for the 2009 PBR World Finals in what has been one of the closest races for a world title in the 16-year history of the PBR. Craig Hummer, Ty Murray and Leah Garcia call the action for CBS Sports. CBS Sports’ Ross Schneiderman serves as coordinating producer.

Harold Bryant is Vice President, Production, CBS Sports.

Golf Channel will be busy this week.

GOLF CHANNEL TOURNAMENT COVERAGE

Oct. 1 – 4, 2009

Turning Stone Resort Championship

Dates: 10/1 – 10/4

Venue: Atunyote Golf Club at Turning Stone Resort, Verona, N.Y.

Airtimes (Eastern):

Thursday 4 – 6 p.m. (Live)

Friday 4 – 6 p.m. (Live)

Saturday 4 – 6 p.m. (Live)

Sunday 4 – 6 p.m. (Live)

GOLF CHANNEL Broadcast Talent:

Rich Lerner (Play by Play)

Brandel Chamblee (Analyst)

Peter Oosterhuis (Tower)

Matt Gogel (On Course)

Andrew Magee (On Course)

Inga Hammond (Interviews)

GOLF CHANNEL Broadcast Notes: The Turning Stone Resort Championship is the first of five events in the PGA TOUR’s Fall Series that will air exclusively on GOLF CHANNEL… Mutual of Omaha Putting Line powered by Aimpoint, a graphics technology that predicts the break of a putt and suggests where a player must aim to hole out, will be used during the telecast will be used on holes 16 and 18.

Navistar LPGA Classic

Dates: 10/1 – 10/4

Venue: The Senator Course, Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, Prattville, Ala.

Airtimes (Eastern):

Thursday 8:30 – 10:30 p.m. (Tape Delayed)

Friday 8:30 – 10:30 p.m. (Tape Delayed)

Saturday 8:30 – 10:30 p.m. (Tape Delayed)

Sunday 8:30 – 10:30 p.m. (Tape Delayed)

GOLF CHANNEL Broadcast Talent:

Brian Hammons (Play by Play)

Beth Daniel (Analyst)

Kay Cockerill (Tower)

Charlie Rymer (Tower)

Val Skinner (On Course)

Todd Lewis (Interviews)

GOLF CHANNEL Broadcast Notes: The top five players on the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings will compete in the Navistar LPGA Classic… Big Break Ka’anapali winner and current LPGA player Kim Welch will be wired for sound during Thursday’s opening round and featured as the “Spotlight Player” of the day.

Soboba Classic

Date: 10/1 – 10/4

Venue: The Country Club at Soboba Springs, San Jacinto, Calif.

Airtimes (Eastern):

Thursday 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. (Live)

Friday 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. (Live)

Saturday 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. (Live)

Sunday 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. (Live)

GOLF CHANNEL Broadcast Talent:

Jerry Foltz (Play by Play)

Curt Byrum (Analyst)

Phil Parkin (Tower)

Jason Buha (On Course)

Stephanie Sparks (Interviews)

GOLF CHANNEL Broadcast Notes: A strong field has gathered this week for the inaugural Soboba Classic. The $1 million event has attracted 66 of the Top-70 money winners on Tour. The only exceptions are Michael Sim, Mathias Gronberg and Darron Stiles, who are all competing on the PGA TOUR this week. The other missing player is Steven Alker… The top-25 money winners at the conclusion of the Nationwide Tour Championship at Daniel Island in Charleston, S.C. (Oct. 22-25) will be awarded PGA TOUR cards for 2010.

Constellation Energy Senior Players Championship

Dates: 10/1 – 10/4

Venue: East Course, Baltimore Country Club, Baltimore, Md.

Airtimes (Eastern):

Thursday 1 – 3:30 p.m. (Live)

Friday 1 – 3:30 p.m. (Live)

GOLF CHANNEL Broadcast Notes: The Constellation Energy Senior Players Championship, the Champions Tour final major of the year, will be televised by GOLF CHANNEL and NBC. GOLF CHANNEL will provide live coverage on Thursday and Friday, while NBC will televise the weekend’s play. Dave Marr will serve as the play-by-play commentator during GOLF CHANNEL’s coverage and will be joined by NBC Sports talent… The tournament will be aired in HD.

Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

Dates: 10/1 – 10/4

Venue: Old Course, St. Andrews, Scotland

Carnoustie and Kingsbarn Golf Course, Fife, Scotland

Airtimes (Eastern):

Thursday 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (Live)

Friday 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (Live)

Saturday 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (Live)

Sunday 7:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (Live)

GOLF CHANNEL Broadcast Notes: GOLF CHANNEL will broadcast the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in HD… GOLF CHANNEL’s Tom Abbott will play in the amateur portion of the pro-am event.

CBC airs the premiere of its “Battle of the Blades” later this week.

LET THE BATTLE BEGIN!

CBC TELEVISON’S BATTLE OF THE BLADES DEBUTS OCT. 4

Sandra Bezic and Dick Button headline judging panel

Canadian figure skating and hockey icons take to the ice in a live competition of artistry and athleticism as CBC Television’s BATTLE OF THE BLADES premieres on Sunday, October 4, at 8 p.m. ET.

Ten charities chosen by the competitors will be the beneficiaries of donations, announced weekly, as pairs are eliminated from the competition on the Monday night result show. At the completion of the seven week series, the winning pair will make a combined donation of $100,000 to their chosen charities. The benefactors include Make-A-Wish Canada, Heart and Stroke Foundation, Alberta Cancer Foundation, MA Foundation, The Foundation Fighting Blindness, Diabetes Hope Foundation, Wounded Warriors, The Spinal Cord Injury Treatment Centre Society, Bloorview Kids Rehab and World Vision Canada.

Bringing together a top-notch group of judges, choreographers and coaches, CBC Television’s BATTLE OF THE BLADES has assembled an all-star cast to ensure that the athletes and viewers are treated to the very best in this ground breaking competition. Each Sunday night, the pairs perform a routine to a specific musical theme and viewers will cast their votes by mobile phone text message, internet (www.cbc.ca/battle) or telephone. The two pairs with the fewest votes return for the Monday night live results show to perform their routines again. The judges will determine which pair goes home and which advances to the next round. Throughout the series a special guest judge, announced each week, will join Sandra Bezic and Dick Button.

Sandra Bezic is widely regarded as one of the most influential people in skating. She is an Olympian and has been a coach, choreographer, producer, on-air analyst, and author in her storied career. Her award winning choreographic work has guided numerous Olympic and World Champions. Bezic has been the driving creative force behind ground breaking live skating tours and more than 30 television specials, winning an Emmy for outstanding choreography and two Gemini’s as a producer. She has also served as a figure skating analyst for NBC for more than 20 years.

Widely considered one of the premier figure skaters of all time, Dick Button steps into his role as judge on BATTLE OF THE BLADES armed with his signature tough, but thoughtful, commentary. During a seven year period he dominated the sport like no other, winning two Olympic gold medals (1948, 1952), five consecutive World Championships (1948-52) and seven U.S. National titles. Button’s career as a figure skating analyst is equally remarkable and has earned him legendary status. He made his television debut with CBS at the 1960 Olympic Winter Games. In 1981 Button became the first winner of an Emmy Award for “Outstanding Sports Personality – Analyst.” Button is a member of the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame and Olympic Hall of Fame.

Internationally renowned choreographers for the cast of BATTLE OF THE BLADES include: Renee Roca a three-time U.S. Champion ice dancer and respected choreographer who’s worked with Olympic Champions, Skating With Celebrities and Katarina Witt’s German production of Stars Auf Eis ; former U.S. National Ice Dance Champion, three-time World Bronze dance medallist and Emmy Award-winning Michael Seibert; Torontonian David Wilson who is widely sought after choreographer by Olympic and World competitors; and Evgeny Platov, who is a two-time Olympic Champion and four-time World Ice Dance Champion skating first for the U.S.S.R, then for the Unified Team and Russia.

The coaches include former Olympians; Doug Ladret who along with his skating partner, Christine Hough-Sweeney, was a Canadian Pair Champion and World and Olympic team member; Patrice Lauzon, a five-time Canadian Ice Dance Champion and two-time World Silver medallist with his partner and now wife, Marie-France Dubreuil; Paul Martini, Canadian Sports Hall of Famer and seven-time World Professional Skating Champion with partner Barbara Underhill; Olympic and World Champion David Pelletier who with his partner Jamie Salé were recently inducted into the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame; rounding out the coaches are Rockey Marval, married to Brasseur and former U.S. National Champion and lastly, Sean Rice, who with his wife/partner Jodeyne Higgins has performed around the world.

BATTLE OF THE BLADES is the brainchild of Kevin Albrecht with development by Sandra Bezic. BATTLE OF THE BLADES executive producers are John Brunton, Barbara Bowlby and Kevin Albrecht. It is produced by Insight Productions in association with CBC Television.

Finally, Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia has a documentary on the old Spectrum. And thanks to the great people at CSN Philly for sending Fang’s Bites this release.

COMCAST SPORTSNET TO AIR SPECIALLY PRODUCED ONE-HOUR DOCUMENTARY ON THE SPECTRUM: “BUILDING A MEMORY” TO DEBUT ON OCTOBER 5

Philadelphia, PA (September 29, 2009) – Comcast SportsNet, the leader in regional sports, celebrates the history of the Spectrum, the legendary arena slated to close at the end of October, with “Building A Memory.” The hour-long documentary is the result of over 200 hours of interviews and is told by the people that called the Spectrum home. “Building A Memory” will debut on Comcast SportsNet on Monday, October 5 at 9 p.m.

When Comcast-Spectacor Chairman Ed Snider declared, “This will be the final year of the Spectrum,” Comcast SportsNet immediately began culling through file footage to document the 42-year history of the Spectrum and compiling a “must interview” list.

Some of the memorable names interviewed for “Building A Memory” include Snider, former Flyers players Bob Clarke, Bernie Parent, Tim Kerr, and General Manager Keith Allen; former 76ers Charles Barkley, Julius Erving, and Gerald Henderson; college basketball legends Mike Krzyzweski, and Christian Laettner; plus music promoter Larry Magid and entertainer Billy Joel.

“Building A Memory” was produced by Comcast SportsNet’s Emmy-Award winning Executive Producer Brad Nau. According to Nau, “The story is told by the people involved – the performers, the athletes, the fans, and the employees – who share their thoughts about the Spectrum.”

“The Spectrum is a very special place for so many millions of people,” said Snider. “’Building A Memory’ highlights the great events, the terrific people and the wonderful memories that the Spectrum created for me and everyone who has ever attended an event there over the past 42 years. I’d also like to commend Brad Nau who gave so tirelessly of his time to produce this great show.”

The Spectrum opened on September 30, 1967, with the Quaker City Jazz Festival. After nearly 40 seasons of Philadelphia Flyers hockey and Philadelphia 76ers basketball, the Spectrum gave way to the Wachovia Center in l996. The two teams moved to their new home, paving the way for a minor league hockey team, the Philadelphia Phantoms, and a new indoor soccer team, the Philadelphia Kixx, to call the Spectrum “home.”

Pearl Jam will have the distinction of being the final act to play the Spectrum when they perform four shows at the end of October as part of the Final Farewell Concert Series at the Spectrum. In addition to Pearl Jam’s final four shows at the Spectrum, the Final Farewell Concert Series also features Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Maxwell, Leonard Cohen, and Daryl Hall and John Oates performing with Todd Rundgren and the Hooters.

“Building A Memory” will air on Comcast SportsNet on Monday, October 5 at 9 p.m.; Wednesday, October 7 at 9 p.m.; Friday, October 9 at 4 p.m.; Tuesday, October 13 at 9 p.m.; and Thursday, October 15 at 4 p.m. The program will also air on The Comcast Network on Monday, October 12 at 10:30 p.m.; Tuesday, October 13 at 7 p.m.; Thursday, October 15 at 10 p.m.; and Wednesday, October 21 at 10 p.m.

And that’s it for now.

Olympic Sports-centric Press Releases

We have some Olympics-related press releases whether they pertain to the Olympics themselves or to the sports we normally see during an Olympiad. So let’s get cracking. I still need to clear more releases tonight.

With the rumor that golf and rugby will be approved for men’s sports for the Olympics, Golf Channel will interrupt programming tomorrow for an announcement from Lausanne, Switzerland.

GOLF CHANNEL Covers Olympic Decision

Orlando, Fla. (Aug. 13, 2009) – GOLF CHANNEL will break into regular scheduled programming Thursday at 9 a.m. ET for a live news conference that will update the fate of golf in the 2016 Olympics. The news conference will include Joe Steranka, chief executive officer of The PGA of America, and Ty Votaw, executive vice president of international affairs and communications for the PGA TOUR.

At 11 a.m. ET, Votaw will join Live From the PGA Championship to discuss the decision of golf becoming an Olympic sport.

In a definite blow to the US Olympic Network, NBC and Universal Sports have renewed their media rights agreement with USA Gymnastics.

NEW YORK and INDIANAPOLIS, Ind., Aug. 12, 2009 - Leading up to the 2012 Olympic Games, gymnastics fans will have more ways to follow USA Gymnastics than ever before with coverage on broadcast and cable television and the Web.  USA Gymnastics has extended its partnership with NBC Sports for broadcast television coverage through 2012. In addition, USA Gymnastics has named Universal Sports as its official cable and digital media partner for this quadrennium. The 2009 Championships will feature live coverage across the broadcast, cable and digital platforms.

"Increasing exposure of USA Gymnastics on broadcast, cable and the Web is a cornerstone of our business plan for this quad," said Steve Penny, president of USA Gymnastics. "USA Gymnastics and NBC Sports have enjoyed a long and fruitful partnership, and our relationship with NBC Sports is fundamental to providing value to our sponsors. The addition of Universal Sports enables us to capitalize on the opportunities available through its digital, cable and Web assets. USA Gymnastics is now vertically integrated into the three media platforms, and our fans will have the opportunity to follow the USA's top gymnasts to a greater degree."

"Our relationship with USA Gymnastics is central to NBC Sports' and Universal Sports' long-term commitment to be the home for Olympic sports and America's exceptional Olympic athletes in between the Games." said Gary Zenkel, President NBC Olympics.   

NBC Sports will continue to cover USA Gymnastics' premier events, such as the American Cup and Visa Championships, along with the Pacific Rim Gymnastics Championships and the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. Through its relationship with the International Gymnastics Federation, Universal Sports will carry extensive coverage of the World Championships and other international events, as well as expanded coverage of USA Gymnastics events and encore presentations of NBC Sports broadcasts. The agreement extends through 2012. 

"This partnership allows us to expand our existing coverage of gymnastics with the full season of USA Gymnastics offerings and deliver it on a multiplatform basis, providing fans the opportunity to see these events whenever and wherever they want all year long," said Claude Ruibal, CEO of Universal Sports. 

For the 2009 Championships, NBC Sports is carrying the final day of the women's competition live in primetime on Aug.15, with a recap of the men's final competition scheduled for Aug. 15 in the afternoon. Universal Sports will carry live simultaneous cable and Web coverage of the evening sessions on Aug. 13-14 and will re-air the NBC Sports broadcasts on a delayed basis.   The combined NBC Sports, Universal Sports and UniversalSports.com schedule is:

UNIVERSAL SPORTS AND UNIVERSALSPORTS.COMTHURSDAY, AUGUST 138  - 10 p.m. ET (LIVE TV and Online): Senior women's first day of competition

FRIDAY, AUGUST 148  - 10 p.m. ET (LIVE TV and Online): Senior men's final day of competition

SATURDAY, AUGUST 158 - 10 p.m. ET (LIVE online): Senior women's final day of competition10 p.m. - 12 a.m. ET (same day tape - TV): Senior women's final competition reair

NBC SPORTSSATURDAY, AUGUST 153  - 4 p.m. ET (tape): Senior men's competition recap8  - 10 p.m. ET (Finals, LIVE): Senior women's final day of competition

Universal Sports and USA Gymnastics will work together to develop new content for universalsports.com. The two will also work cooperatively to promote event coverage, to provide promotional space on usa-gymnastics.org, and to maximize opportunities provided through their individual promotional assets. Earlier in 2009, Universal Sports carried a simulcast of NBC Sports' broadcast of the American Cup and, most recently, provided both cable and Web coverage of the CoverGirl Classic. 

CBC Sports has now announced the lineup of female figure skaters who will join NHL former greats for its “Battle of the Blades” program.

CBC ANNOUNCES ELITE CAST OF CANADIAN FEMALE FIGURE SKATERS TO JOIN NHL GREATS IN BATTLE OF THE BLADES

Former NHL goaltender Sean Burke, tough guy Ken Daneyko and fan favorite

Ron Duguay round out the men’s cast

The grace and athleticism of Canada’s most accomplished and decorated female figure skaters are set to join the star studded cast of CBC Television’s BATTLE OF THE BLADES, premiering in October. With a combined total of 17 Olympic and World Champion medals, Jamie Salé, Shae- Lynn Bourne, Isabelle Brasseur, Barbara Underhill, Marie-France Dubreuil, Christine Hough-Sweeney, Jodeyne Higgins and Kristina Lenko have reached the pinnacle of success in amateur and professional figure skating. Now these elite athletes face their biggest challenge yet – making eight NHL hockey stars understand the nuances and skill of pairs skating.

In addition to these world class female figure skaters, NHL’ers Sean Burke, Ken Daneyko and Ron Duguay have been added to complete the men’s roster. They join previously announced Glenn Anderson, Tie Domi, Bob Probert, Craig Simpson and Stéphane Richer in a fierce competition of athleticism, drama and intrigue. Due to a recent injury, Lanny McDonald is unable to participate in the competition.

Salé and her partner David Pelletier captured the hearts and minds of Canadians with gold medal performances at the 2001 World Championships and 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City. Ten-time Canadian Dance Champion Bourne with her partner Victor Kraatz became the first North American ice dance team ever to capture the World Figure Skating Championship title with their innovative and dynamic style. They were inducted into the Canadian Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 2007. Brasseur and Lloyd Eisler were fearless in their routines and defied gravity with their athletic style of powerful throws and daring lifts. The two-time pairs Olympic bronze medallists and 1993 World Champions were inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2000.

Five- time Canadian Pair Champions Underhill and Paul Martini’s flawless 1984 World Championship performance is considered one of Canada’s great sporting moments. As professionals they dominated pairs skating for a decade and were inducted into the Canadian Figure Skating, Canadian Sports and Canadian Olympic Halls of Fame and this past winter, the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame. Two-time World Figure Skating silver medallists Dubreuil and partner/ husband Patrice Lauzon transformed ice dancing with their breathtakingly romantic free dance Somewhere in Time. Retired from amateur competition two years ago, they continue to perform as professionals.

Hough-Sweeney and her partner Doug Ladret represented Canada at two Winter Olympic Games and enjoyed a prolific professional career including an appearance in the movie Cutting Edge as a Russian pairs team. Former world team member Jodeyne Higgins with her husband and partner Sean Rice are true ice show gypsies. For the past 10 years they have performed as an adagio pair in exotic locations from Hong Kong to Moscow to the famed Le Lido in Paris. Former international dance competitor Lenko has made her mark as an audience favorite in the Torvill and Dean’s Dancing On Ice television series in the U.K. and Australia.

Out to prove that goaltenders are truly the better skaters; Burke brings 20-years of NHL goaltending experience to the cast. The Windsor, Ontario native ranks in the top-20 in all-time wins and represented Canada at the 1988 and 1992 Winter Olympics.

A three-time Stanley Cup Champion with New Jersey, Daneyko brings an imposing presence to the ice. His rugged playing style spanned the course of 20-years, all with the Devils, amassing 2,516 penalty minutes. The ever popular Ron Duguay burst onto the NHL scene in 1977 and quickly developed an iconic following while playing for the New York Rangers. His smooth skating and stylish looks led to a professional hockey career spanning three decades. He currently works as an in-studio hockey analyst.

BATTLE OF THE BLADES is the brainchild of Kevin Albrecht with development by Sandra Bezic. BATTLE OF THE BLADES executive producers are John Brunton, Barbara Bowlby and Kevin Albrecht. It is produced by Insight Productions in association with CBC Television.

That does it for this group of press releases. This isn’t the end of it either so be ready for more.

Tuesday’s Press Releases

Not too many releases tonight so this post won’t be as long as last night’s.

Let’s begin with the Big Ten Network which has now penetrated into New York City and Long Island thanks to its agreement with Cablevision.

Big Ten Network Joins Cablevision’s iO TV® Lineup

New York Metro Area Customers Gain Access To Network This Week

Chicago – The Big Ten Network announced today that its programming will become available in standard and high definition to Cablevision customers throughout the company’s New York metropolitan service area beginning today. Cablevision, the nation’s fifth-largest cable television operator serving 3.1 million customers, will offer the Big Ten Network in standard definition on channel 413 and high definition on channel 720, as part of Cablevision’s iO TV® Sports Pak.

“We’re thrilled that Cablevision will offer the Big Ten Network to their customers,” Big Ten Network President Mark Silverman said. “There are thousands and thousands of Big Ten fans and alumni within Cablevision’s footprint, particularly in the New York metropolitan area, that will now receive unparalleled coverage of Big Ten sports.”

“Cablevision is pleased to add the Big Ten Network to the iO TV® Sports Pak in standard and high definition as we bring its comprehensive sports coverage to sports fans throughout the New York metro area,” said Gary Schanman, Cablevision senior vice president of video product management. “Offering the best in college, professional and extreme sports, the iO Sports Pak delivers more of the games and events fans want to see, at a tremendous value.”

The Big Ten Network will televise at least 35 football games this fall, the vast majority of which will be produced in high definition. During the week, the network will have live studio shows dedicated to Big Ten football including Big Ten Football: Breakdown (Tuesdays, 10 PM ET), Big Ten Football: Sites & Sounds (Wednesdays, 10 PM ET), Big Ten Football: Behind the Schemes (Thursdays, 10 PM ET) and Big Ten Football and Beyond (Fridays, 10 PM ET).

One more press release from BTN. It’s hired a new broadcast executive producer.

Hulsey Named Big Ten Network VP, Production/Executive Producer

Emmy-winning, 10-year Fox Sports veteran brings college, professional sports experience

CHICAGO – The Big Ten Network has hired Mark Hulsey as its new Vice President, Production and Executive Producer. Hulsey comes to Chicago after serving as the Executive Producer at Fox Sports Midwest/Fox Sports Indiana/Fox Sports Kansas City since 2000.

“We’re very fortunate to add someone of Mark Hulsey’s caliber to our team,” Big Ten Network President Mark Silverman said. “With 20 years of managerial experience, including nearly 10 years at FSN Midwest, Mark is the right person to lead our production staff during this next phase of our growth.”

“The Big Ten Network has already made enormous strides during its first two years on the air and I look forward to contributing to its future success,” Hulsey said. “Having grown up in the Midwest and spending all of my life here, I’m very familiar with the great traditions and rivalries in the Big Ten. I can’t wait to get started.”

Under Hulsey’s direction, FSN Midwest annually produces more than 450 live events for seven universities and professional sports teams in a six-state region, including Kansas State University, University of Missouri and University of Nebraska, Indiana Pacers, Kansas City Royals, St. Louis Blues and St. Louis Cardinals. Additionally, he oversees all live event pre-game and post-game coverage, collegiate preview shows and 30-minute specials.

During Hulsey’s tenure, Fox Sports Midwest won multiple Emmy awards for best Live Event Special for coverage of the Cardinals and Blues.

Prior to joining Fox, Hulsey served as the VP, Broadcasting for four years with the Phoenix Coyotes. His career also included stints with the Colorado Avalanche and the Denver Nuggets. Hulsey is a graduate of the University of Kansas.

Hulsey begins July 13, and replaces Leon Schweir, who recently accepted a position at Versus.

The PGA Tour returns to CBS Sports this weekend and remains on the Tiffany Network through August.

GLOVER, GARCIA, PERRY, SINGH, KIM, CINK AND MAHAN SCHEDULED TO COMPETE IN “TRAVELERS CHAMPIONSHIP” ON CBS SPORTS, JUNE 27-28

Stewart Cink returns to Connecticut looking for his third victory at the TRAVELERS CHAMPIONSHIP against a strong field led by 2009 U.S. Open winner Lucas Glover*, Sergio Garcia, Kenny Perry, Vijay Singh, Anthony Kim, Zack Johnson and Hunter Mahan who won in 2007 between runner-up finishes in 2006 and 2008. CBS Sports covers all the action from the TPC at River Highlands in Cromwell, Conn., broadcasting the third and final rounds on Saturday, June 27 and Sunday, June 28 (3:00-6:00 PM, ET, both days), live on the CBS Television Network.

CBS Sports’ golf anchor Jim Nantz and Ian Baker-Finch provide commentary from the 18^th hole tower. Peter Oosterhuis calls the action at the 17^th hole and Gary McCord at the 16^th hole. Peter Kostis and Bobby Clampett serve as on-course reporters.

Cink will attempt to be the first player since Phil Mickelson in 2002 to successfully defend his Travelers Championship title this weekend in a standout field that includes Mahan, Glover, Garcia, Perry, Singh, Kim, Johnson, Ricky Barnes, Justin Leonard, David Toms, Justin Rose, Dustin Johnson, Ben Curtis, Brian Gay, Chad Campbell, Scott Verplank, Aaron Baddeley, Steve Elkington, Tim Herron, J.J. Henry, Jesper Parnevik, Corey Pavin, Paul Goydos and Boo Weekley. *(Glover scheduled to compete as of 6/23/09)

CHIP SHOTS WITH PETER KOSTIS

(On Travelers Championship Field): Clearly there are many guys in the field that played well at Bethpage. But how much did that week take out of them? It was just a really difficult, frustrating week that tested your patience and it will be difficult to get your energy level back up to where it needs to be to compete at Hartford. But their golf games are clearly in good working order based on how they finished at Bethpage. Hunter Mahan could have easily won at Bethpage had his shot on 16 not hit the flagstick. We will never know because that was just a horrendously bad break.

(On Ricky Barnes): I don’t know how Ricky will respond after Bethpage. How is he going to react? Will he build on it or take a step back and say, ‘I have almost secured my card and I am doing well and I am ahead of schedule.’ Or is he exhausted to the point where he does not compete very well?

(On Lucas Glover): Now things have changed for Lucas. This will be his first opportunity to be announced on the first tee as U.S. Open Champion after he won his first major. He always put too much pressure on himself, trying to make things happen, rather than backing off and letting things happen. He needs to remember when he steps on the first tee at Hartford that he is still Lucas Glover, still a good old guy from South Carolina and he needs to play golf the same way. He can’t go out there and try to play like a U.S. Open Champion, whatever that is. If he starts thinking that he is a different person or a different player now because he has won a major, I think he is going to put too much pressure on himself and its going to be difficult for him…

(On Phil Mickelson): On one hand, five runner-up finishes at the U.S. Open means that you have played some tremendous golf. On the other hand, it means that you have failed to get the deal sealed five times. It depends on what perspective you want to take from it. I know he has to be bitterly disappointed this time because of the extenuating circumstances. He has got to sharpen up his play down the stretch. He has had it right there for the taking and just not done it a couple of times. He has either missed a put, had a poor chip or tee shot or whatever the case may be. He needs to keep himself more under control over the last few finishing holes.

Universal Sports will re-air some of the defining moments of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Communist China that originally aired on NBC.

Programs Give Fans Chance to Relive the Best Stories and Moments from 2008 Beijing Olympic Games

Nighttime, Next Day Encore Presentations

LOS ANGELES-June 23, 2009-As a prelude to its robust coverage of the 2009 world championships in swimming, gymnastics and track and field, Universal Sports presents "Pieces of '08, Beijing Stories" featuring many of the inspiring and memorable stories from the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. The first show, "One World, One Dream," aired Monday, June 22, 2009, with an encore presentation today at 12 p.m. ET. "Pieces of '08" consists of 20 shows airing each weeknight at 7 p.m. through July 17, just prior to the start of the Swimming World Championships from Rome, Italy. Encore presentations will be every evening at 11 p.m. ET and the following day at 12 p.m. ET. Additional shows are scheduled to air throughout the summer.

"'Pieces of 08,' truly captures the magic of the Beijing Games-the competition, the emotions, the behind-the-scenes moments-and lets the viewer relive the Games in a completely new way" said Universal Sports' Executive Producer and Emmy-award winning producer David Michaels.  "We pulled from all our resources and created what we feel is a series that will truly strike a chord with our audience and beyond."

Each show is hosted by Jimmy Roberts, NBC's Emmy Award-winning writer and reporter, and follows a different sport, event or athlete through the drama of last August. Including interviews from Beijing and some additional never-before-seen material, the programming relives the best competition events, stories and memorable moments captured by NBC in its coverage of the great Beijing Games of 2008.

"Pieces of '08" offers viewers a look-back at athletes' achievements as a preview to their performances on NBC Sports and Universal Sports at key World Championships in 2009, including the FINA Swimming World Championships (July 18-Aug. 2), the IAAF Track and Field World Championships from Berlin (Aug.15-23) and the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships from London (Oct.13-18).

"These World Championships highlight our continued commitment to year-round Olympic-related programming," said Claude Ruibal, CEO of Universal Sports. "Fans can relive the amazing moments from the Beijing Games, then watch their favorite athletes return to the podium this summer. It's an amazing television line-up for any fan of the Olympic Games."

Gary Zenkel, President of NBC Olympics added, "It's great to have a channel like Universal Sports where we can bring back these great performances from Beijing and highlight the athlete's journey. In addition to being the home of virtually every major Olympic-related sports competition going on outside the Games, Universal Sports will also be a place for the great storytelling that fans have come to associate with NBC's coverage of the Olympic Games."  

"PIECES OF '08, BEIJING STORIES" ON UNIVERSAL SPORTS: Universal Sports, available in 45 million homes, began airing "Pieces of '08, Beijing Stories" on Monday with a three-hour review of the amazing Opening Ceremony entitled "One World, One Dream." The first 10 shows of the series begin at 7 p.m. ET each night, with re-airs at 11 p.m. ET and the next day at 12 p.m. ET:

June 22 - Beijing Games Opening Ceremony, 7 – 10 p.m."One World, One Dream"

June 23 - Men's Gymnastics Team Final, 7 – 9 p.m."Don't Count Us Out"

June 24 - Track & Field Sprint Events, 7 – 9 p.m."The Sprinters"

June 25 - Women's Gymnastics Team Final, 7 – 9 p.m."No Room for Error"

June 26 - Michael Phelps, 7 – 9 p.m."Aquaman"

June 29 - Women's Gymnastics All-Around Final 7 – 9 p.m."The One-Two Punch"

June 30 - Marathon Events, 7 – 9 p.m."Hot Streets of Beijing"

July 1 - Women's Swimming Events, 7 – 9 p.m."Girls Swim Fast Too"

July 2 - U.S. Men's Basketball Team, 7 – 9 p.m."The Redeem Team"

July 3 - Women's Gymnastics Event Finals, 7 – 9 p.m."Last Chance for Gold"

* schedule subject to change; visit UniversalSports.com for up-to-date TV schedules and availability of Universal Sports network.

And for those of you in Canada, get ready to see some hockey legends attempt to undertake figure skating. Imagine former rivals Tie Domi and Bob Probert skating to music. It’s about to happen.

THE LEGENDS AND THE LEGENDARY—MCDONALD, ANDERSON, DOMI, PROBERT, SIMPSON AND RICHER HIT THE ICE FOR CBC TELEVISION’S BATTLE OF THE BLADES

CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada’s Ron MacLean and four-time World Figure Skating Champion Kurt Browning to host national pairs competition

CBC Television announced today the first competitors to sign on to participate in CBC Television’s BATTLE OF THE BLADES. NHL Hall of Famer and fan favourite Lanny McDonald, NHL Hall of Famer and six-time Stanley Cup-winner Glenn Anderson, legendary enforcers Tie Domi and Bob Probert, two-time Stanley Cup-winner and HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA analyst Craig Simpson, and two-time Stanley Cup-winner Stéphane Richer will go head-to-head in this fierce competition. These hockey heavyweights will be paired with some of Canada’s top female figure skaters in a competitive and thrilling pairs showdown beginning this October.

“Whatever else you can say about Canadians, they know hockey and they know figure skating—and are passionate about both,” said Kirstine Layfield, CBC Television’s executive director of network programming. “We’re going to bring the two together in a way that’s never been seen before. It’s going to be great.”

CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA’s Ron MacLean and Canadian figure skating icon Kurt Browning host the seven-week BATTLE OF THE BLADES series. Browning’s storied international career and his infectious personality combined with MacLean’s deep-rooted knowledge and passion for hockey will provide viewers with the insight and intricacies of both sports and their unlikely combination.

All-Star forward Probert holds the Detroit Red Wings’ franchise record for career penalty minutes. Domi is one of the most popular players to ever don a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey and ranks third overall in penalty minutes in NHL history.

A gentleman both on and off the ice, McDonald’s contribution to his teams and community earned him both the Bill Masterson and King Clancy Memorial trophies. Simpson’s influence extends from playing to coaching and currently as an analyst on CBC’s HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA. Simpson is the last Edmonton Oiler to score over 50 goals in one season. Richer is one of the all-time leaders in playoff overtime goals and is the last Montreal Canadien to score over 50 goals in a season. Anderson is considered one of the all-time great playoff performers with 214 playoff points, ranking him fourth overall in playoff history.

BATTLE OF THE BLADES is the brainchild of Kevin Albrecht, and development of Sandra Bezic. BATTLE OF THE BLADES executive producers are John Brunton, Barbara Bowlby and Kevin Albrecht. It is produced by Insight Productions in association with CBC Television.

Well, I do notice the name of the always lovely Sandra Bezic who’s done work on NBC during the Olympics. This might have a chance. Of course, we in the States won’t see it unless it hits YouTube.

The Mid-Week Links

I’ll give you some links today then do some work.

Before I get to that, I have some self plugs. First, if you have not done so, please join my Facebook blog network. Next, if you want keep up on my posts, you can do so on Twitter. I have my own site there. And finally, I have t-shirts and coffee mugs on sale at Zazzle. I don’t ask for much, and I do ask you to patronize my network, Twitter site and buy a t-shirt or mug if you can. I greatly appreciate it.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand talks about the 3-D element to Fox’s BCS National Championship Game on Thursday.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell talks about Boston College’s statements that it will fire football coach Jeff Jagodzinski if he interviews with the New York Jets. Go ahead and fire him, BC. Look at the coaches you get. Every one of them has used BC as a stepping stone. No one stays. It’s because Athletic Director Gene DiFilippo runs the program like Chairman Mao and wants credit for any success for any of the teams that do well. BC wants to be a major athletic program, but at the same time, wants to be like the Ivy League. If you want to be in the Ivy League, apply to be there, but don’t try to be something you’re not. Every once in a while, the basketball program gets to the NCAA Tournament, the hockey program is one of the nation’s elite and the football program has had a good string of success lately, but it’s not going to last. Just go to the Patriot League and you’ll be happy. I don’t mean to go on a rant on Boston College, but I think the fans are unrealistic about the program.

Darren writes that college football’s assistant coaches are the next to see big paydays.

Laura Nachman says Fox is assigning its number one team to the Eagles-Giants game.

Leonard Shapiro of the Washington Post has some New Year’s wishes.

Old School fans will remember “The Superstars”, the ABC show that pitted athletes from different sports against each other in 10 different events. It was a big hit in the 1970′s in the mid 1980′s. ABC is now bringing it back in a different form as Michael Schneider of Variety tells us.

Here’s the opening to first ever “Superstars” program that aired on Wide World of Sports in 1973. Jim McKay was the host. After this, Keith Jackson was the play-by-play man for the program. The quality of the open was not good at first, but be patient to watch Jim explain the competition.

And here’s the swimming competition from the same program. The funny part is seeing Joe Frazier trying to swim. The keyword is try.

The Press-Register (AL) says the most powerful man in college football works at ESPN and feels the bowl system is going to remain intact for awhile.

Langston Wertz, Jr. of the Charlotte Observer writes that TNT’s Charles Barkley has made it hard for viewers to take him seriously after his latest incident.

From the Daily Oklahoman, Mel Bracht has some stuff from Fox Sports’ Charles Davis who will be the analyst on the BCS National Championship Game tomorrow.

Michael David Smith of the AOL Fanhouse has Rob Parker’s appearance on ESPN Radio this morning.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has his reaction to Rob Parker’s resignation from the Detroit News. And Tom lists the nominees for the 2008 Southern California Broadcasters’ Association Awards.

Gary Klein of the Los Angeles Times writes that USC’s Rey Maualuga has apologized to ESPN’s Erin Andrews for his bump and grind dance before the Rose Bowl.

Diane Pucin of the Times warns NBA fans to get ready for Dick Vitale tonight on ESPN’s Miami-Denver game.

Also in the Times, Olympics writer Philip Hersh looks back at the lead players in the Tonya Harding-Nancy Kerrigan soap opera that began in the 1994 US Figure Skating Championships and continued through the Winter Olympics.

In Philip’s story, he links to a story that ABC’s Wide World of Sports did on the assault. Julie Moran is the narrator.

Mathew Barrows of the Sacramento Bee says a familiar Bay Area voice is becoming the new radio play-by-play man of the San Francisco 49ers.

Gary Washburn of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer says former SuperSonics voice Kevin Calabro joins the ESPN Radio affiliate in April.

The Radio Business Report says ESPN Radio in New York is expanding its local afternoon programming.

William Houston from the Toronto Globe and Mail says the Gold Medal game of the World Junior Hockey Championships set a viewership record for TSN.

Christopher Byrne of the Eye on Sports Media hands out his award to Best Sports Information Department Blog.

The Sports Media Watch has the final weekend ratings. And the SMW says the Rose Bowl’s ratings were up from 2008. But the Sugar Bowl’s ratings were down.

The lovely Toni Fitzgerald of Media Life Magazine says Fox won the ratings on Monday thanks to the Fiesta Bowl.

That’s going to do it for now. I’ll be back later.

A Plethora of Press Releases

Since I did not want to take a full hour to give you press releases during the day, I figured I would do it at night when I have a fast computer to work with. And I have a bunch to give you. So let’s get right to them.

First, TNT tells us what’s in store for NBA viewers on Thanksgiving Night.

TNT NBA Thursday Celebrates Thanksgiving with an Exclusive Doubleheader Magic/Wizards followed by Hornets/Nuggets

TNT NBA Thursday coverage continues on Thanksgiving Day, Thurs., November 27, 2008, with an exclusive doubleheader. The night’s action will get underway at 8 p.m. ET when Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic visit Caron Butler and the Washington Wizards. Dick Stockton (play-by-play) and Mike Fratello (analyst) will be courtside with David Aldridge reporting. The second game of the night will feature Carmelo Anthony and the Denver Nuggets hosting Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets at 10:30 p.m. ET. Marv Albert will handle the play-by-play alongside Doug Collins (analyst) and Craig Sager (reporter). The night will conclude with the Emmy® award-winning studio show Inside the NBA presented by Hyundai with Ernie Johnson (host), Charles Barkley (analyst) and Kenny Smith (analyst). The show will also include a feature with TNT’s Jim Huber interviewing former NBA player Wayman Tisdale about his battle with bone cancer and the recent surgery that removed part of his right leg. Tisdale will also talk about his successful second career in jazz and his friendship with country music superstar Toby Keith that has led to their musical collaboration.

TNT NBA THURSDAY SCHEDULE:

Thu., November 27

8 p.m. – NBA Tip-Off
Ernie Johnson (host), Charles Barkley (analyst), Kenny Smith (analyst)

8:15 p.m. – Orlando Magic @ Washington Wizards
Announcers: Dick Stockton (play-by-play), Mike Fratello (analyst) and David Aldridge (reporter)

10:30 p.m. – New Orleans Hornets @ Denver Nuggets
Announcers: Marv Albert (play-by-play), Doug Collins (analyst) and Craig Sager (reporter)

Post-game – Inside the NBA
Ernie Johnson (host), Charles Barkley (analyst) and Kenny Smith (analyst)

TNT NBA THURSDAY UPCOMING SCHEDULE:

Thu., December 4

8 p.m. – NBA Tip-Off
Ernie Johnson (host), Charles Barkley (analyst), Kenny Smith (analyst)

8:15 p.m. – Phoenix Suns @ Dallas Mavericks
Announcers: Kevin Harlan (play-by-play), Doug Collins (analyst) and Craig Sager (reporter)

10:30 p.m. – San Antonio Spurs @ Denver Nuggets
Announcers: Marv Albert (play-by-play), Mike Fratello (analyst), Reggie Miller (analyst) and Cheryl Miller (reporter)

Post-game – Inside the NBA
Ernie Johnson (host), Charles Barkley (analyst) and Kenny Smith (analyst)

Next, TNT’s sister Time Warner network, HBO has its third straight boxing event this Saturday with a Boxing After Dark card.

IT’S A DOUBLE DOSE OF RING ACTION WHEN
HBO BOXING AFTER DARK®: PAUL WILLIAMS VS. VERNO PHILLIPS
AND CHRIS ARREOLA VS. TRAVIS WALKER
IS SEEN SATURDAY, NOV. 29, ON HBO

HBO serves up a double portion of holiday ring action when HBO BOXING AFTER DARK: PAUL WILLIAMS VS. VERNO PHILLIPS AND CHRIS ARREOLA VS. TRAVIS WALKER is seen SATURDAY, NOV. 29 (10:00 p.m. live ET/tape-delayed PT), from the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, Cal., exclusively on HBO. The HBO Sports team will be ringside for the event, which will be available in HDTV, closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino.
The main event features two-time welterweight titleholder Paul Williams (35-1, 26 KOs) of Augusta, Ga., making his debut in the junior middleweight division as he moves up to 154 pounds to take on three-time junior middleweight champ Verno Phillips (42-10-1, 21 KOs) from Denver, in a scheduled 12-round contest. Having regained his welterweight title, Williams now seeks to conquer a new division; he’s also the last man to beat the formidable Antonio Margarito. Phillips, a crafty ring veteran, recently outpointed junior middleweight champ Cory Spinks and is determined to stay on top of his division.

The opening bout at the brand-new Ontario venue features rising heavyweight prospects doing battle in a scheduled 12-round bout. Chris Arreola (25-0, 22 KOs) from nearby Riverside, Cal., puts his perfect record on the line against Houston’s Travis Walker (28-1, 22 KOs), who boasts a near-perfect mark. Both young fighters have been steamrolling the competition and look to impress in the national spotlight.

This Sunday, 60 Minutes conducts the first real sitdown interview with Olympics eight-time gold medalist Michael Phelps.

OLYMPIC SUPERSTAR MICHAEL PHELPS POINTS OUT MISTAKE MADE BY SILVER MEDALIST SWIMMER THAT ENABLED HIM TO WIN HIS RECORD-TYING SEVENTH GOLD MEDAL – “60 MINUTES”

Record Eight-Gold Medal Winner Says he “Had Nothing Left” After Winning his Sixth

A small mistake made by his opponent was the difference Michael Phelps needed to win his seventh gold medal on his way to the single Olympic record of eight, reveals the U.S. Olympic superstar swimmer. Moreover, it came at the perfect time: Phelps was exhausted and “had nothing left” after winning his sixth gold the day before, he tells CNN’s Anderson Cooper. The interview with Phelps will be broadcast on 60 MINUTES Sunday, Nov. 30 (7:00-8:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

Phelps won his seventh gold medal to tie Mark Spitz in the 100-meter butterfly by just one one-hundredth of a second – a victory aided by the mistake made by runner-up Milorad Cavic of Serbia, says Phelps. “He’s picking up his head, so it’s acting like a speed bump,” Phelps says, pointing to the photo of the race’s finish. “So he’s coming up and then trying to lift his head before he touches the wall…[my head] is in a straight streamline. So that’s the difference in the race,” he tells Cooper. “If his head is down, he wins…hands down, wins the race.” Click here for an excerpt.

But before tying Spitz, Phelps, who had won six gold medals in six races, felt he was running out of gas. “I remember saying, ‘I got nothing left,’” says Phelps after winning the 200-meter individual medley on August 15 in Beijing. Phelps’ coach, Bob Bowman, saw it on his face. “If you look at the pictures right after the race and even when I was standing there and he was in the water, I thought, ‘Wow, he is really tired right now.’”

Nevertheless, he went on to make history when he, along with his teammates, won gold in the 4×100 meter medley relay the next day. It was his eighth gold of the Beijing Games, the first time any athlete has ever won that many gold medals in a single Olympics.

When Cooper spoke to Phelps, the 6-feet-4 inch swimmer weighed 205 lbs., the heaviest he’s ever been, he tells Cooper. But it’s not because he’s eating the rumored 12,000 calories per day talked about so often during the Beijing Games. “[The 12,000 calories a day] is not true,” says Phelps. It’s more like eight to 10,000 calories a day when he’s training, he says. It’s still a lot and Phelps says when he in training, it’s necessary. “I have to always just constantly shovel food in because I can lose anywhere from five to 10 pounds in a week.

Phelps is not training right now, but plans to resume the grueling daily schedule that made him the best in the world in January. He will be preparing for the London Olympics in 2012.”

Now that golf is over, NBC shifts its attention to … Figure Skating? And Action Sports?

NANCY KERRIGAN HEADLINES HOLIDAY CELEBRATION ON ICE THIS SUNDAY ON NBC

NEW YORK – November 25, 2008- Olympic silver medalist Nancy Kerrigan headlines “Holiday Celebration on Ice” with contemporary gospel music provided by Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith from The Orleans in Las Vegas, Nev., this Sunday at 4 p.m. ET.

Joining Kerrigan are reigning World Champion Jeffrey Buttle, six-time U.S. National Champion Todd Eldredge, 1994 World Champion Yuka Sato, six-time Canadian National champion Jennifer Robinson, nine-time Canadian National champion Shae-Lynn Bourne and three-time World silver medalist Surya Bonaly.

Grant and Smith are two of gospel music’s most successful cross over artists. Grant has won six Grammy Awards and has had ten top forty pop singles. Smith has won three Grammy awards and an American Music Award since his musical debut in 1983. The two will collaborate for this event to perform songs about love and the holiday season as the skaters take to the ice.

DEW TOUR HIGHLIGHT SHOW, SUNDAY, 2 PM ET

NBC Sports presents a two-hour retrospective of the most exciting and dramatic action from the 5-stop AST Dew Tour of 2008. The recap features the fresh, new faces of action sports such as Skateboard Park champion, Chaz Ortiz, as well as veterans such as four-time BMX Vert champion Jamie Bestwick. The AST Dew Tour, the only season-long professional multi-sport tour in skateboarding, BMX and freestyle motocross is presented in high definition.

Kenan Harkin hosts the show from the PlayStation Pro Awards Ceremony in Orlando, Fla.

That took just 15 minutes to cut and paste. That’s more like it. I have another update so keep your RSS feeds updated.

It’s Your Monday Night Update

Time to give you an update this evening.

First, thanks to Neil Best, I give you the farewell column by Dan Le Batard as he leaves the Miami Herald. In his column, Le Batard mentions that he’s also leaving ESPN, but will return from time to time.

Speaking of Neil, he mentions that Sirius Satellite Radio will have a reunion of sorts as three members of the 1972-73 New York Knicks that won the NBA Championship will be heard on channel 127 tomorrow.

Some ratings news from the Sports Media Watch. First, the Players Championship’s ratings were down on NBC, but not by as much as you would expect with Tiger Woods not in the tournament. And the SMW says the overnights for the NBA on Sunday were pretty good.

Awful Announcing has the NBA Playoff announcing schedule for this week.

Here’s a piece of news for you. Fox Sports is reportedly trying to convince Brett Favre to be part of the Fox NFL Sunday pregame show to replace Barry Switzer.

Tim Lemke of the Washington Times looks at ESPN’s side of the new US Open cable deal.

Chris Casavant of the Connecticut Post laments the end of USA Network’s airing of the US Open.

A couple of posts by Friend of Fang’s Bites, Christopher Byrne of the Eye on Sports Media blog. He says former ESPN/ABC football analyst/sideline reporter Lynn Swann looked out of place on CBS’ bowling broadcast this weekend. And Christopher laments the end of the ABC era in figure skating.

Michael David Smith of the AOL Fanhouse blog has found video of some interesting comments former Sports Illustrated columnist Rick Reilly made about ESPN. Of course, Reilly is scheduled to start working for ESPN in June.

Mike Masuda of the Orlando Sentinel writes in his blog that ESPN needs to stop showing the Red Sox. Wait a minute!

Speaking of the Red Sox, the Providence Journal reports that NESN’s Red Sox Report will be re-edited and re-recorded in Spanish so it can appear on Telemundo stations in New England (scroll down to the bottom).

You want more Red Sox news? LC at the 38Cliches blog says Red Sox radio voice Uncle Joe Castiglione will be appearing at the Grand Opening of a new L.L. Bean store in Maine this week.

John Eggerton of Broadcasting & Cable writes that ESPN has tapped a new VP of ad-sales from NBC Universal.

Linda Moss of Multichannel News reports that DirecTV has moved the Outdoor Channel to its sports tier reducing its subscriber base.

That will do it tonight.

Weekend Links

Sorry for not updating the blog this weekend. I have been only been able to give you viewing picks and I’ve basically had my weekend planned out for me as I’ve had to work both Saturday and Sunday (yes, I had to work on Easter Sunday). That’s what happens when you’re involved in a family-run business, you have to work on days you’d normally have off. This is why I’m a very bitter and angry person, but you don’t want to hear about that. You want links. I’m here to give them to you.

I’ll start with Saturday links and then go on to the Sunday links.

The Dallas Morning News’ Barry Horn talks about some of the best and worst announcing of the NCAA Tournament through Friday.

Jerry Garcia of the San Antonio Express-News says there are other things to watch besides the NCAA Tournament.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes about a dispute about Belo Broadcasting and Charter Communications which has left viewers without the NCAA Tournament in HD.

Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette was busy covering the ECAC Hockey Tournament final in Albany so he did not have a column yesterday. I told him that I would give him a plug for his college hockey coverage, so you can always go to his Parting Schotts blog which always has updates on the sport and the sports media.

Let’s now move to the Sunday columns.

Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News gives praise to regional sports network SNY for the premiere of two shows. While he only gives it fleeting mention, Raissman should have given more prominence to the fact that the Daily News has a show on SNY and he appears on the network regularly. It stinks of a Walking, Talking Conflict of Interest. Raissman is quick to point out Conflicts of Interest. He should have declared his own before giving praise to SNY.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News has more about the new shows on SNY.

The New York Post’s Phil Mushnick wasn’t too happy over CBS’ choices during first round coverage of the NCAA Tournament.

Paul Gough of the Hollywood Reporter says March Madness on Demand got off to a hot start on Thursday.

Howard Herman of the Berkshire (MA) Eagle chronicles his day at the CBS Broadcast Center taking in the NCAA Tournament.

Neil Best in today’s Newsday has a conversation with Bob Knight. In his blog, Neil talks about how Knight in just a short few stints on the Alleged Worldwide Leader has been more coherent than his partner, Digger Phelps who has been on ESPN for almost ten years. And Neil notes that there’s a reason why ESPN has been showing short clips for the NCAA Tournament highlights.

Paul Doyle of the Hartford Courant says ESPN’s college basketball analysts go from Bradley Airport in Hartford to their hotels to ESPN and back again during the NCAA Tournament.

Michael Zuidema of the Grand Rapids (MI) Press writes about ESPN televising the NCAA Women’s Tournament. Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News talks about the ESPN family of networks televising all 63 games of the Women’s Tournament on one platform or another.

The Sports Media Watch has its weekly ratings predictions. And Paul Sen says ESPN/ABC is improving on its NBA coverage, but still has a ways to go.

Tom Hoffarth in his Farther Off the Wall blog picks up an Associated Press story which states that Communist China may censor Olympic broadcasters from showing live shots of Tienamien Square for fears it may bring back memories of the 1989 crackdown that killed hundreds of pro-democracy students and the recent Tibet crackdowns that killed many protestors.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News says the ESPN documentary Black Magic scored in the ratings.

The Chicago Tribune’s Olympic reporter Philip Hersh has a couple of good items in his Globetrotting blog. First, he mentions that because the International Skating Union is lax, he was able to watch the World Figure Skating Championships off the internet without paying a dime. And Hersh pays tribute to Doug Wilson who probably directed his last Figure Skating event for ESPN/ABC in a career that spans five decades.

Tom Perrotta writes in the New York Sun that FSN’s coverage of the Pacific Life Tournament needs a lot of improvement.

Al Norton of BostonNOW talks with NESN’s popular Red Sox analyst Jerry Remy. Lenny Megliola of the MetroWest (MA) Daily News says he’s not ready to watch a Red Sox game at 6 a.m.

And the lovely Jessica Heslam of the Boston Herald talks with the lovely Tina Cervasio about her departure from NESN.

That’s it for the weekend. I’ll have a quick recap of my thoughts on the first weekend of coverage of the NCAA Tournament on both TV and radio coming up.

Your Wednesday Links

Giving you some links today.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand says the now-retired Bob Knight might have a future on TV. One piece of trivia. CBS wanted to hire Bob Knight when it first purchased the rights to the NCAA Tournament in 1981, and he was going to take the job, but he decided to stay at Indiana.

The New York Times’ Richard Sandomir talks with ESPN’s Dick Vitale who returns to work tonight! John Ryan of the San Jose Mercury News also caught up with Vitale. Robyn Norwood of the Los Angeles Times discusses Vitale’s return. Mic Huber of the Sarasota (FL) Herald-Tribune says Dickie V is ready and raring to go. John Dell of the Winston-Salem (NC) Journal writes that Vitale will have a custom-made dry-erase board for his use. Tim Lemke of the Washington Times says Vitale is excited about coming back tonight. Wendell Barnhouse of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram has the transcript of the ESPN conference call with Vitale. Bob Molinaro of the Virginian-Pilot says Dickie V, however, won’t be seen or heard in the ACC region tonight.

Bill Novak of the Capital (WI) Times says the Big Ten Network has granted permission to have next week’s Wisconsin-Indiana game on big screens at the Kohl Center.

Richard Huff of the New York Daily News says it was a mistake of WPIX-TV not to air the New York Giants victory parade.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News talks about the record viewership for the Super Bowl in his Farther Off the Wall blog.

Don Walker of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel likes the NFL Network’s replay of the Super Bowl. Also from the Journal Sentinel, Bob Wolfley says the ratings for the Super Bowl in Milwaukee were the highest for the game in 20 years.

Ray Frager of the Baltimore Sun writes in his Medium Well blog that Fox believes Ryan Seacrest was the reason why the ratings for the Super Bowl pregame show were up this year.

Mike Nahrstedt of the Sporting News went inside the Fox broadcast booth for the Super Bowl.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union writes in his Best Seat in My House blog that Marv Albert has signed a long term extension with TNT to call the NBA. John Eggerton of the Broadcasting & Cable says Marv will call games on TNT through the 2015-16 season. Jon Lafayette of TV Week says the new contract allows Marv to call games on the Turner Sports-run NBA TV.

The Sports Media Watch blog looks at the ratings from the weekend.

The Tacoma (WA) News-Tribune reports all 150 Seattle Mariners games on FSN Northwest will be aired in high def.

Rick Dean of the Topeka (KS) Capital-Journal writes that long-time radio host Greg Sharpe is leaving the area to call the football and baseball games for the University of Nebraska.

Scott Powers of the Orlando Sentinel writes that despite the steroid allegations against Roger Clemens, he’ll still be part of ESPN the Weekend at Disney World later this month.

Philip Hersh of the Chicago Tribune has the story about NBC Sports bringing the 2009 World Figure Skating Championships into its fold.

That’s it for now.

Tuesday Afternoon Updated Links

Let’s give you some more links on this Tuesday.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell tells us that he’s going to have a show on Nike air next Tuesday (unfortunately opposite the season premiere of Jericho).

ESPN wants you to know it’s expanding its multimedia coverage of NASCAR on the web and on your cell phone.

John Eggerton of Broadcasting & Cable says thanks to the Super Bowl, Fox won the weekly ratings battle. Eggerton adds a story in which Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter is proposing a bill protecting churches that want to show the Super Bowl on screens larger than 55 inches.

David Goetzl of Mediapost’s Media Daily News says celebrities scored high ratings among those who TiVo’d the Super Bowl spots.

Neil Best referred to this in his blog the other day and ESPN is now announcing that NFL writer Len Pasquarelli is recovering from heart surgery which he underwent on Saturday following the Pro Football Hall of Fame vote.

Leonard Shapiro of the Washington Post says some analysts at ESPN and at Fox tried to gloss over Spygate.

Dave Del Grande of the Oakland Tribune says Fox missed the big picture during the Super Bowl. And Dave talks to Jaymee Sire, the newest hire to FSN Bay Area.

Bob Young of the Arizona Republic caught up with FSN’s Chris Rose.

Keith Jarrett of the Asheville (NC) Citizen-Times writes that ESPN will black out the Duke-North Carolina game locally to protect the Raycom Sports regional telecast in the ACC region.

The Sporting News picks up a story from sister publication, Sports Business Journal, written by Eric Fisher that the web will be busy tomorrow as National Signing Day kicks off. CSTV says it will have 24 hour coverage of National Signing Day. Natalie Meisler of the Denver Post says CSTV is ready for the big day.

From the Los Angeles Times, Olympics beat writer Philip Hersh reports that NBC will be the home of the World Figure Skating Championships in 2009. ESPN will have the event this year.

Ryan Corazza of Chicago Sports Weekly says the outtake of Chris Berman that was leaked to YouTube last week is probably the tip of the iceberg as far as similar clips are concerned.

The Orlando Magic have announced a new behind-the-scenes show with FSN Florida and Sun Sports.

Jeff Richgels of the Capital (WI) Times has a story on the cost of the Big Ten Network to the cable TV providers.

Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution says Braves games will be divided among three TV outlets this season.

Phil Swann of the TVPredictions.com website says DirecTV plans to show 40 MLB games a week in HD as part of its MLB Extra Innings PPV package.

That’s going to do it.

Our Friday Night Update

Time to give you an update.

Newsday’s Neil Best has been busy at the Super Bowl. First, he recaps Giants coach Tom Coughlin’s press conference. Then Neil writes about the four men who have covered all 42 Super Bowls.

Also from Newsday, Jim Baumbach writes about his experience riding on the Goodyear Blimp.

Chris Pursell of TV Week is in Arizona covering the Super Bowl and he has been blogging all day and will continue throughout the weekend. Chris goes inside ESPN’s Situation Room, the command post for all of its TV and radio operations at the Super Bowl. He also talks with Eric Weinberger, executive producer of the NFL Network, who is hopeful Steve Mariucci stays with the channel instead of taking the Washington Redskins coaching job. And Chris writes that the NFL is now making a big push online.

Also from TV Week, Daisy Whitney writes that Hulu.com, the video sharing service started by NBC and Fox, will have the Super Bowl ads on the site after the game ends.

TV Technology.com tells us that 80% of Super Bowl ads will be aired in HD.

John Consoli of Mediaweek writes that Super Bowl ads have a shelf life after the game.

Jesse Kohl of Media in Canada looks at the Super Bowl ads airing there.

Bob Young of the Arizona Republic catches up with Olympic gold medal swimmer Amanda Beard who’s in town for FSN’s Best Damn Sports Show Period.

Gillian Wee of Bloomberg reports that Super Bowl XLII could set a viewing record.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell gives us his video log from his day at the Super Bowl.

Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch talks with Ryan Seacrest about hosting the red carpet portion of the Fox Super Bowl Sunday pregame show. Ted Cox of the Chicago Daily Herald says Fox is trying to turn the Super Bowl into the Golden Globes.

Mike Nahrstedt of the Sporting News catches up with Fox Sports’ Joe Buck who will call the Big Game on Sunday. Michael E. Hill of the Washington Post talks to Buck’s partner, Troy Aikman, about how he got into the broadcast booth.

Bill Ordine of the Baltimore Sun has some choices for you in case you don’t want to watch the Super Bowl.

Here are the Super Bowl picks of 30 ESPN on-air personalities.

Clint DeBoer of Audioholics.com has a technical article outlining how Fox puts together its high definition broadcast of Super Bowl XLII. David Coburn of Popular Mechanics talks with the inventor of the telestrator, Dr. Leonard Reiffel.

Wayne Friedman of Media Daily News says the Super Bowl was time shifted by as much as an hour by most TiVo subscribers last year.

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star writes about the ESPN one hour special on Kevin Everett of the Buffalo Bills.

Ben Wolfgang of the Pottsville (PA) Republican & Herald says a story on this week’s Inside the NFL on HBO about the NFL stripping the 1925 title from the Pottsville Maroons could not have come at a better time. And Larry O’Rourke from the Allentown (PA) Morning Call says the town is still bitter over the move.

Mike Shields of Mediaweek reports that CBS Sports and CSTV have unveiled a new online community service similar to MySpace.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News reports that ESPN Deportes has been picked up by Bright House Cable in Tampa. John Lafayette of TV Week also has the story.

Jordan Kobritz writes in the Prescott (AZ) Daily Courier looks at the problems with the NHL which begin with the signing of Versus as its national cable TV partner.

Tucker Carlson (not the one from MSNBC) of Charter Communications writes an opinion piece in the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin saying the Big Ten Network offers a bad deal for subscribers. But BTN President Mark Silverman writes back in the same newspaper that the channel is willing to talk to Charter.

Curtis Pashelka of the Contra Costa (CA) Times says the West Coast Conference is happy with its exposure on the ESPN family of networks.

Sports Illustrated picks up an AP story about a play about the late Al McGuire, written by Dick Enberg, that’s coming to Hofstra University later this month.

Jim Balow of the Charleston (WV) Gazette says ESPN will be coming to town in early July to tape the “America’s Strongest Man’s” competition.

Jo-Ann Barnas of the Detroit Free Press finds plenty of fans who were critical of NBC’s coverage of the U.S. Figure Skating Championships last week.

We certainly have more links than I expected tonight, but that’s a good thing. I’ll be back tomorrow with Saturday morning links and my Super Bowl pick.

A Monday Night Update

Time to give you some links this evening.

We start out with some sad news. This link comes courtesy of the Boston Sports Media Watch, Bill Burt of the Lawrence (MA) Eagle-Tribune reports in his blog that the son of Boston Globe columnist Bob Ryan has died. The Boston Globe has the story which states that Keith Ryan apparently took his life. It’s a horrible story. Bob Ryan is one of the nicest men in the sports media and I will certainly have him and his family in my thoughts tonight. Bruce Allen of BSMW gives his sympathies to the Ryan family. And David Scott does as well.

If you’re wondering why Michael Wilbon didn’t appear on “Pardon the Interruption” today, it was because he suffered a minor heart attack very early this morning. The Sports on My Mind blog has the story. Michael is ok.

Over to Newsday’s Neil Best who writes that NFL Network host Rich Eisen is frustrated with Cablevision and Time Warner cable. Neil follows that story up with a post on his blog. And Neil tells us that the Patriots’ interview session with coach Bill Belichick was a snoozefest.

Joe Strupp of Editor & Publisher says this Super Bowl has the most media credentials ever. Toni Fitzgerald of Media Life magazine says Super Bowl XLII has the potential to be the most watched ever. John Consoli of Mediaweek writes that Foxsports.com will have plenty of webcasts and online coverage from Super Bowl XLII.

Ryan Sharrow of the Baltimore Business Journal writes that the Baltimore Ravens will air its preseason games on WBAL-TV which is part of the same company that has the games on radio.

Joel Sherman posts in the New York Post’s TV Sports blog that former Yankees pitcher David Cone will be an analyst on the YES Network.

Some ratings news from the Sports Media Watch blog. First, we get word that the ratings for the NHL All Star Game on Versus were up. It was a small increase, but an increase nonetheless. Next, the 4th round of the Buick Invitational featuring a Tiger Woods runaway beat the late NBA game featuring LeBron James and Kobe Bryant. Paulsen also tells us that the U.S. Figure Skating Championships on NBC finished fourth on Saturday night. Fourth!

Rachel Blount of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune says the telecast on NBC showed that figure skating is not on life support.

In what has to be described as earth shattering news, Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News writes in his Farther Off the Wall blog that the Lingerie Bowl will be a no-show for the second year in a row. Curses!

The Albany Times Union’s Pete Dougherty reports in his Best Seat in My House blog that NBC has chosen the Anaheim Ducks-Detroit Red Wings game for its NHL Game of the Week on February 10.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News writes that the Carolina Hurricanes have signed a contract extension with FSN South to air 65 games a season for at least the next five seasons.

John Ryan of the San Jose Mercury News writes that San Francisco sports radio station KNBR wants to bring Tony Bruno into the fold. Bruno who was on the air on Sporting News Radio has left due to a contract dispute.

The Ski Channel has signed a distribution deal with Cox Cable as R. Thomas Umstead of Multichannel tells us.

That’s it. Back tomorrow.

Trying to Catch Up After Being Out for the Morning

It’s already been a long morning and as I’m multitasking, doing links and some paperwork at the same time, I provide some links while I can.

First, Michael David Smith of the AOL Fanhouse Blog chronicles the return of Dana Jacobsen to ESPN’s First Take today. However, the Christian Defense Coalition will not let the matter die.

USA Today’s Michael McCarthy goes after the common cliches spouted during NFL broadcasts.

The New York Post’s Phil Mushnick reviews a new documentary on the great boxer Rocky Marciano.

Jim Williams of the DC/Baltimore Examiner in his Watch This! blog give us the entire schedule Super Bowl Week schedule for the NFL Network.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union tells us that NHL Center Ice is giving a free preview of its pay per view service this week.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star says the NHL All Stars Skills Competition did not translate well to TV.

ESPN Radio has launched an “ESPN Xtra” channel on XM Satellite Radio.

Emily Steel of the Wall Street Journal writes that Super Bowl ads are now heading online. Mike Branom of the East Valley (AZ) Tribune writes that ESPN has set up an outdoor studio in Scottsdale, AZ as its Super Bowl headquarters. Marisa Guthrie of Broadcasting & Cable gives us an overview of the Super Bowl on Fox. And Glen Dickson of B&C talks about Fox’s production plans for the Big Game.

Carolyn Sackariason from the Aspen Times says the X Games have become a big franchise for ESPN.

NBC says ratings for the U.S. Figure Skating Championships for the Ladies Free Skate on Saturday night were 65% higher than last year when it was aired on a Sunday afternoon on ABC.

Mark Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says the Brewers have had four games selected for Fox regional broadcasts.

That’s it for now.

Friday Megalinks Combined with Saturday Links

My fault that the Friday megalinks weren’t here yesterday. Lots of issues that I don’t need to get into, but I’ll give them to you today with your weekly Saturday links.

Let’s go:

Michael Hiestand of USA Today writes about Fox’s plans for its silly Red Carpet Super Bowl pregame show.

TV Week has the sports TV ratings for the week ending January 20.

Let’s go from East to West

East and Mid-Atlantic

Nancy Marrapese-Burrell of the Boston Globe writes about WBZ-TV being the “official Patriots station”.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times tells us that Marv Albert is still learning from his mentor, the late Marty Glickman.

The New York Daily News’ Bob Raissman lectures the media on how to do their jobs when asking Bill Belichick questions during Super Bowl week.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post says Boomer Esiason is going to have to make a choice soon. Mushnick’s arguments here really don’t water.

Newsday’s Neil Best says Giants fans who want Super Bowl tickets are finding the process frustrating.

Ray Frager of the Baltimore Sun says Orioles fans remain interested in the team despite the recent hard times.

Jim Williams of the DC/Baltimore Examiner says there’s a lot to watch this weekend even if there’s no football.

South

Doug Nye of The State says the Buick Invitational is a pick to click this weekend. And Nye says there was a lot of talk about South Carolina basketball coach Dave Odom’s retirement announcement this week.

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald says WQAM beat rival 790 The Ticket in the most recent Arbitron ratings.

Dave Darling in the Orlando Sentinel says there’s going to be plenty of sports to watch before the Super Bowl.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle says Fox will cover other things besides the Super Bowl on Super Bowl Sunday.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News says former Dallas Mavericks announcer Allen Stone has found a new calling in life.

Ray Buck from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes that Fox Sports’ Terry Bradshaw and Jimmy Johnson share the same philosophy when it comes to the Super Bowl.

Jerry Garcia of the San Antonio Express-News asks are you ready for a lot of football?

Midwest

Judd Zulgad of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune says NBC hopes to bring figure skating back into the national spotlight.

Paul Christian of the Rochester Post-Bulletin writes that NBC is pulling out all of the stops for the U.S. Figure Skating Championships this weekend.

Bob Wolfley has Fox Sports’ Terry Bradshaw and Jimmy Johnson talking about their frozen experience in Green Bay last week.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says KSDK hopes to resolve problems with hockey and golf conflicts when it airs the Cardinals during the spring and summer.

West

Scott D. Pierce in the Deseret Morning News writes that Versus will keep the NHL for the next three seasons.

Jay Posner of the San Diego Union-Tribune says he’s relieved not to hear about LaDanian Tomlinson this week. And here are the ratings in San Diego from last week.

John Maffei of the North County Times says CBS and the Golf Channel are showcasing a lot of the San Diego area thanks to the Buick Invitational.

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star previews the U.S. Figure Skating Championships on NBC.

Christine Daniels writes in the Los Angeles Times about the technical glitch that marred Kelly Tilghman’s apology on the Golf Channel on Thursday.

The Los Angeles Daily News’ Tom Hoffarth says there’s a whole lot of apologizin’ going on. He has a follow up to the column in his Farther Off the Wall blog. And there’s his extensive media notes as well.

Canada

In the Toronto Star, Chris Zelkovich writes that the CBC is hoping to jump into the all-sports parade.

And William Houston writes in the Toronto Globe and Mail that CTV is charging a premium for Super Bowl spots.

I’ll have another post later. Keep it here.

It’s your Saturday Linkage

Let’s give you some links today. Just to let you know, there will be no posts on Sunday. I will be attending the 12th TARCon in New York to meet some of my fellow Amazing Race fans plus I have learned there will be a few racers there as well. Most of the teams will be in California for the West Coast Viewing Party, however, the winning team will be in New York for the check presentation The Early Show on Monday (the e-mail campaign worked) and host Phil Keoghan will be there as well. Looking forward to it. Look for pictures here on Monday and Tuesday.

Also, wanted to thank former Fox Sports Public Relations guru Vince Wladika for sending me a nice note over the last few days. He’s a fan of Fang’s Bites and e-mailed me. It was much appreciated.

So without further delay, here are your links.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that many fans in both Kansas and Missouri won’t be able to see tonight’s basketball game because ESPNU picked it up and it’s not available in most of St. Louis.

Jerry Garcia of the San Antonio Express-News says perhaps the NFL Conference Championship Games should be carried by the Weather Channel instead of CBS and Fox.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News says network executives don’t think snow is a four letter word when it comes to ratings.

Johnny Diaz of the Boston Globe looks at the Boston TV stations all vying for ratings based on their relationships with the New England Patriots.

Jim Williams writes in his DC/Baltimore Examiner Watch This! blog about the return of Tony Kornheiser to radio on Monday.

William Houston in today’s Toronto Globe and Mail writes that NBC is going to focus on the Pittsburgh Penguins and Sidney Crosby in its NHL schedule.

David Abramowicz of the Wall Street Journal previews the week ahead in Sports TV including Kelly Tilghman’s scheduled return to the Golf Channel.

The Canadian Press has golfer Jim Thorpe ripping Golfweek for its noose cover.

Patrick Sauer of Fast Company magazine looks into the strides Yahoo has made against ESPN.com.

Joey Johnston of the Tampa Tribune talks with ESPN’s Jay Bilas about the college basketball version of College Gameday which will air live from Gainesville today.

Paul Grimaldi of the Providence Journal writes about the number of reporters and NFL officials staying in Providence over Boston for the AFC Championship Game (if you don’t know, Providence is closer to the Patriots’ home of Foxboro, MA than Boston and it’s cheaper to stay in Providence than Boston).

Alan Siegel of the Gloucester (MA) Daily Times or as they say in Massachusetts, Glaw-sta, talks with ESPN’s Ron Jaworski about the Patriots’ Tom Brady.

Bill Haisten of the Tulsa World talks with Fox Sports’ Troy Aikman about the NFC Championship Game.

Newsday’s Neil Best has some positive words about Will Leitch’s new book.

Dick Harmon of the Deseret (UT) Morning News blogs that there may be hope for the Mountain West Conference’s TV deals which are probably the worst in the country.

Radar Online, a radio newsletter, looks at some of the gaffes sports announcers have made over the years.

Jo-Ann Barnas of the Detroit Free Press writes about NBC hoping to get some juice out of the US Figure Skating Championships which begin in St. Paul, MN next week. USA Today picks up an Associated Press story written by Nancy Armour which talks about figure skating in transition and US Figure Skating using NBC to promote its sport.

Tennis fans in Australia were irate at Channel 7 for not showing the thrilling five set match between Roger Federer and Janko Tipsarevic.

That will do it.

Some More Friday Links

I’ll give you a few more links before calling it a day.

Newsday’s Neil Best remembers the late Bobby Fischer, who was chess champion back in 1972.

The Los Angeles Daily News’ Tom Hoffarth has more fallout of the Golfweek cover controversy.

Ed Sherman of the Chicago Tribune is hoping to hold off on buying a satellite dish so the Big Ten Network can hash out an agreement with Comcast. While we keep hearing word that BTN and Comcast are talking, Steve Batterson of the Quad City (IA) Times writes that there’s been no such discussion between BTN and Mediacom. Don Doxsie also of the Quad City Times writes that Iowa fans are learning to go without the Big Ten Network.

Doug Nye of The State in South Carolina says knowing past history will enhance a fan’s enjoyment of sports.

Jeff D’Alessio of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution talks with Sports Business Journal’s Daniel Kaplan about the five most powerful people in the NFL.

Ray Buck of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram gets contrasting opinions on Cowboys QB Tony Romo from NFL Network’s Jim Mora and Fox’s Troy Aikman.

Hilary Potkewitz of Crain’s Business New York writes that a New York Giants Super Bowl appearance may not translate into merchandising dollars.

Warren Gerds of the Green Bay Post Gazette says Packers fans may not be able to see the NFC Championship game in HD.

Andy Giegerich of the Portland (OR) Business Journal says Comcast SportsNet Northwest is seeing higher ratings for Trail Blazers games as compared to when FSN Northwest carried them last season.

Ted Cox of the Chicago Daily Herald wonders if NBC can get ratings for the NHL now that the Winter Classic is history.

Mark Katz of the Dayton Daily Herald talks with Dayton native Dan Patrick about doing his daily radio show. And Katz writes that Patrick felt it was the right time to leave ESPN.

Chros McDougall of the Columbian Missourian talks with current ESPNer John Anderson.

Christine McConville of the Boston Herald says NESN plans to expand its Red Sox Spring Training coverage starting next month.

CBC and the International Skating Union have signed a broadcast agreement that includes the World Figure Skating Championships for this and next year. Lyndon Little of the Vancouver Sun isn’t too happy about an early start time for the women’s free skate at the Canadian Figure Skating Championships on Sunday which was done for TV.

Phillip Derriman of the Sydney Morning Herald wonders if the TV channels set up by American sports leagues will be done by sports leagues in Australia.

Quite a bit of links on a late Friday. Not bad. Coming up, College Basketball Viewing Picks, Weekend Viewing Picks, NFL Picks and I still have to do an Amazing Race episode recap from last Sunday so expect all that coming up in the evening hours.