Fang's Bites

NBC Sports Group All Over the Preakness Stakes

The middle jewel of horse racing’s Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes, takes place this Saturday from the Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore.

Orb or as Larry Collus called in the Kentucky Derby, “OOOOORRRRRRBBBB!”, will be running for history as the only horse with a chance to win the Triple Crown.

NBC Sports Network begins the coverage Friday at 3 p.m. ET with some classic Preaknesses, then an hour later, NBCSN airs the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes.

Then on Saturday, NBC’s coverage of the Preakness will be surrounded by pre and postrace coverage by NBC Sports Network beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET.

The usual NBC horse racing crew will be on hand to cover the Preakness Stakes. The NBC press release outlines everything.

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NBC Crows About Kentucky Derby Viewership

NBC has to be pleased about the viewership for the Kentucky Derby. As Orb circled the Churchill Downs track to win the 139th edition of the Run for the Roses, an estimated 16.2 million people watched the race marking the third time in five years that the Kentucky Derby has reached over 16 million viewers. The number is 9% higher than last year and 12% from 2011.

Overall, the Derby hit a 9.7 rating with a 21 share and that’s up 8% from 2012. So you can surmise that NBC’s strategy to promote the race on its multiple platforms is very successful.

By the way, Louisville had the highest rating of all local markets with an astonishing 43.7 rating with a 69 share. That’s amazing number.

Here’s NBC’s press release.

16.2 MILLION WATCH KENTUCKY DERBY ON NBC

2^nd Most-Watched Kentucky Derby Since 1989
Viewership up 9% from Last Year; Up 12% from 2011
9.7 National Rating up 8% from Last Year; Up 14% from 2011
NBC Sports ‘Big Event Strategy’ Leads to More Than 16 Million Viewers for 3^rd Time in 5 years

NEW YORK – May 7, 2013 – NBC Sports’ coverage of Saturday’s Kentucky Derby drew 16.2 million viewers, making it the second most-watched Kentucky Derby since 1989. The viewership for the race is up nine percent from last year’s Derby (14.8 million), and up 12 percent from the Derby in 2011 (14.5 million), according to official national data provided today by The Nielsen Company.

Utilizing NBC Sports’ ‘Big Event Strategy,’ three of the last five Kentucky Derby races have recorded at least 16 million viewers.

Saturday’s race (6:05-6:53 p.m. ET), won by Orb, is the second most-watched Kentucky Derby dating back to 1989 (18.5 million on ABC), only surpassed by the 2010 Derby won by Super Saver (16.5 million).

• The household rating of 9.7/21 is the best since 2010 (9.8/23), and tied 2009 as the second highest-rated Derby since 1992 (10.3/30 on ABC).
• The 9.7/21 rating is up eight percent from last year’s race (9.0/20) and up 14 percent from 2011 (8.5/19).
• The pre-race on NBC (5-6:05 p.m. ET) drew 9.1 million viewers, an increase of 12 percent from last year (8.1 million) and is the second-best pre-race viewership dating back to 1992.
• NBC Sports Network’s five-hour pre-race show (11 a.m. – 4 p.m. ET) drew 500k viewers, up 19 percent from last year (421k).

MORE PEOPLE WATCH THE DERBY ON NBC: NBC Sports’ coverage of the Kentucky Derby over the last 13 races averages more than 2 million more viewers than the previous 12 Kentucky Derby broadcasts on ABC (14.3 million vs.12.0 million, up 19 percent). NBC’s average viewership of 14.3 million over the last 13 Kentucky Derby broadcasts is more than six million more than the last six years that ABC aired the Derby (1995-2000).

KENTUCKY DERBY CONTINUES TO BE A HIT WITH FEMALE VIEWERS: The Kentucky Derby once again proved to be very popular with female viewers. In fact, 52 percent of Derby viewers were women, making it the only annual sporting event that draws more female viewers than male viewers.

KENTUCKY DERBY VIEWERSHIP
2013	16.2 million	NBC	Orb
2012	14.8 million	NBC	I’ll Have Another
2011	14.5 million	NBC	Animal Kingdom
2010	16.5 million	NBC	Super Saver
2009	16.1 million	NBC	Mine That Bird
2008	14.2 million	NBC	Big Brown
2007	13.7 million	NBC	Street Sense
2006	12.9 million	NBC	Barbaro
2005	13.6 million	NBC	Giacomo
2004	14.6 million	NBC	Smarty Jones
2003	11.8 million	NBC	Funny Cide
2002	12.8 million	NBC	War Emblem
2001	13.5 million	NBC	Monarchos
2000	9.1 million	ABC	Fusaichi Pegasus
1999	9.9 million	ABC	Charismatic
1998	9.5 million	ABC	Real Quiet
1997	11.3 million	ABC	Silver Charm
1996	11.0 million	ABC	Grindestone
1995	9.3 million	ABC	Thunder Gulch
1994	12.1 million	ABC	Go For Gin
1993	11.5 million	ABC	Sea Hero
1992	13.7 million	ABC	Lil E Tee
1991	13.4 million	ABC	Strike The Gold
1990	15.6 million	ABC	Unbridled
1989	18.5 million	ABC	Sunday Silence

TOP METERED MARKETS FOR 2013 KENTUCKY DERBY (Race Portion)

1.	Louisville	43.7/69
2.	Ft. Myers	19.7/37
3.	Cincinnati	18.8/37
T4.	Knoxville	18.4/31
T4.	West Palm Beach	18.4/35
6.	Buffalo	15.9/33
7.	Oklahoma City	15.1/25
8.	Columbus	14.8/31
9.	Indianapolis	13.9/28
10.	Nashville	13.2/22
11.	Jacksonville	13.1/21
12.	Orlando	12.8/28
13.	Richmond	12.7/22
14.	Tampa-St. Pete	12.5/23
15.	Baltimore	12.4/26
T16.	Boston	12.2/28
T16.	Washington D.C.	12.2/27
18.	Dayton	11.7/24
19.	Minneapolis-St. Paul	11.6/28
T20.	Greensboro	11.5/23
T20.	New York	11.5/26

That’s all.

The 139th Kentucky Derby Replay

In case you missed the Run for the Roses on Saturday, I have the entire race for you below.

Orb won despite starting the race in the back of the pack. Now we’ll see if he can become the first horse since Affirmed in 1978 to win the Triple Crown. Larry Collmus had a fantastic call including gems like “Normandy Invasion is storming home!” and the tremendous “OOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRBBBBBBB!!!!!” Larry needs to work that in on every Triple Crown race from now on.

Here’s the race as it aired on NBC Sports.

The Preakness Stakes, the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown will be run on Saturday, May 18 at the Pimlico Raceway outside Baltimore, MD. That will also air on NBC.

NBC Sports Group is all over the Run for the Roses

Starting Wednesday, NBC Sports Group will begin coverage of Kentucky Derby Week leading to the actual Run for the Roses on Saturday. NBC Sports Network will carry the Kentucky Derby Draw on Wednesday as well as the Kentucky Oaks on Friday.

NBC will have the actual race after 6:30 p.m. ET and we’ll see which horse will be the leading candidate for the Triple Crown.

Tom Hammond and Bob Costas will lead the crew. The bald-headed Randy Moss and Jerry Bailey will be analysts. Mike Battaglia and Bob Neumeier will handicap and report from Churchill Downs. Kenny Rice, Donna Brothers and Jay Privman will be trackside. Larry Collmus will call the race. Michelle Beadle will be on-site to provide features. And someone named Coco Rocha will conduct celebrity interviews and talk fashion.

Overall, there will be 14½ hours of Kentucky Derby coverage on NBC and NBC Sports Network.

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NBC Sports Group Crows About Its 58 Sports Emmy Nominations

NBC received a total of 58 nominations for the 34th annual Sports Emmy Awards. The NBC Sports Group consisting of NBC, NBC Sports Network, Golf Channel, Bravo, CNBC, MSNBC and NBCOlympics.com received the most nominations of any sports media group over ESPN, Fox Sports Media Group, CBS and Turner Sports. Of course, NBC is coming off an Olympics so that will increase its nominations.

Among the major nods include Bob Costas and Dan Patrick for Studio Host, Al Michaels for Play-by-Play, Cris Collinsworth as Event Analyst, Tony Dungy for Studio Analyst, multiple nominees for Sports Reporter including last year’s winner Michele Tafoya and last year’s nominee Pierre McGuire (why?), Sunday Night Football for Live Sports Series, Super Bowl XLVI in the Live Sports Special category and there were plenty for the London Olympics.

Let’s take a look at what NBC Sports Group is saying.

NBC SPORTS GROUP GARNERS 58 SPORTS EMMY AWARD NOMINATIONS, MOST OF ANY SPORTS MEDIA COMPANY

Total Nominations for NBC Sports Group up from 33 Last Year
NBC Leads All Networks (Broadcast or Cable) with 36 Nominations
London Olympics Receives 19 Nominations
NBC Sports Group’s NFL Coverage Receives 16 Nominations
Super Bowl XLVI Receives Nomination for Outstanding Live Sports Special
Sunday Night Football & Football Night in America Nominated for Outstanding Live Sports Series & Outstanding Studio Show – Weekly
On-Air Personalities Costas, Michaels, Emrick, Collinsworth, Dungy, Patrick, Mayock, Tafoya, McGuire, Boldon & Joyce Nominated
NBC Sports Network Garners 9 Nominations; NBCOlympics.com Receives 3; Golf Channel Earns 2

NEW YORK – March 20, 2013 – NBC Sports Group received 58 total Sports Emmy Award nominations for 2012, the most nominations for any sports media company or network. NBC led all networks, broadcast or cable, with 36 nominations. The announcement was made today by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. The winners will be announced by the Academy on Tuesday, May 7.

Highlights of NBC Sports Group’s nominations include:

• The London Olympics received 19 nominations, including Outstanding Live Event Turnaround;
• NBC’s NFL coverage received 16 nominations;
• Super Bowl XLVI on NBC was nominated for Outstanding Live Sports Special;
• Once again, Sunday Night Football on NBC was nominated for Outstanding Live Sports Series, which it has won each of the last four years;
• Football Night in America was nominated for the third consecutive year for Outstanding Studio Show – Weekly;
• NBC’s NFL Wild Card Saturday received its second nomination for Outstanding Playoff Coverage;
• NBC Sports Network received nine nominations, the most in its history, and Golf Channel earned two.
• NBC Sports Group’s digital assets NBCOlympics.com and NBCSports.com received a combined four nominations.
• 11 nominations in individual talent categories:

• Bob Costas (Studio Host)
• Dan Patrick (Studio Host)
• Al Michaels (Play-by-Play)
• Cris Collinsworth (Event Analyst)
• Michele Tafoya (Reporter)
• Tony Dungy (Studio Analyst)
• Mike Mayock (Event Analyst)
• Mike Emrick (Play-by-Play)
• Pierre McGuire (Reporter)
• Ato Boldon (Event Analyst)
• Andrea Joyce (Reporter)

All of the national platforms of NBC Sports Group — NBC Sports, NBC Sports Network, Golf Channel, NBCOlympics.com and NBCSports.com — received nominations. Most notably, NBC Sports Group received 19 nominations related to coverage of the London Olympics and 16 nominations for its NFL coverage. Golf Channel earned two nominations, NBCOlympics.com received three nominations and NBCSports.com was honored with one. MSNBC, CNBC, Bravo and Telemundo each received nominations for their London Olympics coverage.

The complete list of NBC Sports Group nominations are as follows:

• Outstanding Live Sports Special: Super Bowl XLVI (NBC)
• Outstanding Live Sports Series: Sunday Night Football (NBC)
• Outstanding Live Event Turnaround: London Olympics (NBC)
• Outstanding Live Event Turnaround: USA Pro Challenge (NBC)
• Outstanding Playoff Coverage: NFL Wild Card Saturday (NBC)
• Outstanding Edited Sports Special: Still Standing: The Earl Campbell Story (NBC Sports Network)
• Outstanding Studio Show – Weekly: Football Night in America(NBC)
• Outstanding Long Feature: London Olympics – Olga Korbut (NBC)
• Outstanding Open/Tease: Sunday Night Football (NBC)
• Outstanding Open/Tease: London Olympics – Measure & Motion (NBC)
• Outstanding Open/Tease: Red Bull Signature Series – Show Open (NBC)
• Outstanding New Approaches, Sports Event Coverage: Super Bowl XLVI Extra (NBCSports.com)
• Outstanding New Approaches, Sports Event Coverage: London Olympics – Live From London (NBCOlympics.com)
• Outstanding New Approaches, Sports Programming: London Olympics – Countdown to London (NBCOlympics.com)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Studio Host: Bob Costas (NBC/NBC Sports Network)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Studio Host: Dan Patrick (NBC/NBC Sports Network/DirecTV)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Play-by-Play: Al Michaels (NBC)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Play-by-Play: Mike Emrick (NBC/NBC Sports Network)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Studio Analyst: Tony Dungy (NBC)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Sports Event Analyst: Cris Collinsworth (NBC)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Sports Event Analyst: Mike Mayock (NBC/NFL Network)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Sports Event Analyst: Ato Boldon (NBC)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Sports Reporter: Michele Tafoya (NBC)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Sports Reporter: Pierre McGuire (NBC/NBC Sports Network)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Sports Reporter: Andrea Joyce (NBC/NBC Sports Network)
• Outstanding Technical Team Remote: America’s Cup World Series (NBC)
• Outstanding Technical Team Remote: London Olympics (NBC)
• Outstanding Technical Team Studio: London Olympics (NBC/NBC Sports Network/MSNBC/Telemundo/Bravo)
• Outstanding Camera Work: London Olympics – Measure & Motion (NBC)
• Outstanding Camera Work: 2012 Ironman World Championship (NBC)
• Outstanding Editing: London Olympics – Profiles of the London Games (NBC)
• Dick Schaap Writing Award: London Olympics – Measure & Motion (NBC)
• Outstanding Post Produced Audio/Sound: London Olympics – Measure & Motion (NBC)
• Outstanding Graphic Design: Sunday Night Football (NBC)
• Outstanding Graphic Design: London Olympics (NBC/NBC Sports Network)
• Outstanding Production Design / Art Direction: Sunday Night Football – Open (NBC)
• George Wensel Technical Achievement Award: London Olympics – The Multi-Screen Olympics (NBC/NBC Sports Network/ NBCOlympics.com/ MSNBC/ CNBC/ Telemundo/Bravo)
• George Wensel Technical Achievement Award: London Olympics/NBC Golf Tour – 360 Cam (NBC)
• Outstanding Sports Promotional Announcement – Episodic:
  • London Olympics – Britain Just Got Great (NBC)
  • Triple Crown Trailer (NBC)
  • Feherty Live from Ryder Cup(Golf Channel)

That will do it. More Emmy nomination press releases next.

It’s A Thursday Link Thing

Let’s do some linkage now. Fifth straight day! This is a record!

Michael Florek at USA Today’s Game On blog notes that Time Magazine will have six separate covers in four regions for its Olympic preview issue. For the U.S., guys will have Lolo Jones to gawk at, women get Ryan Lochte. Gymnast Gabby Douglas also adorns a cover.

To Tripp Mickle of Sports Business Journal who profiles NBC Olympics Executive Producer Jim Bell who is not only following in his mentor, Dick Ebersol’s footsteps, but still has to do his regular job of overseeing the Today show as well.

Sports Business Daily says a nightly Olympic light show in London will display colors based on the overall mood of Tweets during the Games. I kid you not.

Nick Zaccardi and Richard Deitsch at Sports Illustrated provide you with fifty Twitter feeds you should follow during the Olympics.

Speaking of SI, Ed Sherman at The Sherman Report delves into the staff cuts made this week at the fabled magazine.

Brian Steinberg of Advertising Age looks at where SI made its staff cuts.

Tim Baysinger of Broadcasting & Cable notes a new NFL analyst hire for ESPN.

Noreen O’Leary at Adweek writes that Cadillac has launched a new short film to target consumers just before the Olympics.

Jenny Tsao at Arbitron notes that sports radio on FM is drawing a higher and younger audience than AM.

Matt Hayes from the Sporting News reports that the college football four team playoff system could get a huge rights fee and that ESPN is a big favorite to get the whole kit and caboodle.

John Koblin of Deadspin finds more evidence of ESPN.com writer Lynn Hoppes lifting material.

Tom Ley at Deadspin had a funny battle with a horse dressage site this week. And thanks to Deadspin’s readers, the dressage site’s editor had to humbly apologize. The comments in both stories are just plain hilarious.

And Issac Rauch of Deadspin has video that has become a worldwide sensation, Australian hurdler Michelle Jenneke’s pre-race dance before her heat at the IAAF World Junior Athletics Championships.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times writes about Sports Illustrated’s staff cuts.

Jerry Barmash at Fishbowl NY says the MLB All-Star Game drew well in New York.

Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette says the local ESPN Radio affiliate will have a weekly show devoted to the Saratoga horse racing season starting tonight.

Adam Sichko of the Albany Business Review says a local TV studio will assist NBC in producing its summer horse racing series at Saratoga.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union writes that a local radio station will pick up the Buffalo Bills this season.

Ken McMillan at the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says Fox Soccer will air over 20 college soccer gamesin the fall.

In Press Box, Tim Richardson reports that a decision is close on the MASN/Washington Natonals rights fee dispute.

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog writes that DC NFL Team linebacker Ryan Kerrigan guest anchored on Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic this week.

Rich Tandler of CSNWashington.com talks with Kerrigan about his experiences on the TV side.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer notes that two sports radio hosts with local ties made Talkers Magazine’s Heavy 100 list.

Paul M. Banks at Chicago Sports Media Watch talks with ESPN Chicago NBA beat writer Nick Friedell.

Jack Denker of the Fremont (NE) Tribune profiles a native who’s working behind-the-scenes at ESPN.

Scott D. Pierce of the Salt Lake Tribune says NBC is hoping for big numbers from the London Olympics.

Dave Paresh of the San Francisco Chronicle says NBC and Adobe have teamed up to create two Olympic mobile apps.

David P. Greisman at Boxing Scene says NBC is seeking to increase the time in-between rounds so it can squeeze in more commercials.

Joe Favorito says the Houston Rockets should be taking a page from the Brooklyn Nets’ playbook and start reaching out the community.

We are done.

Doing Some Tuesday Linkage

I was expecting to be out of the office today, but with the temperatures over 90 in Southern New England, being inside with air conditioning is probably the way to go today. I hope wherever you are, you’re staying cool and away from the sun.

I have some links.

Georg Szalai of the Hollywood Reporter says the BBC is defending the size of its staff devoted to covering the London Olympics pointing out that NBC is bringing almost four times BBC’s number.

Tim Baysinger of Broadcasting & Cable writes that ESPN has hired an internationally-known soccer journalist to bolster its website.

Tim says Golf Channel has made a couple of hires.

George Winslow at Broadcasting & Cable writes that the Pac-12 Networks have selected Cisco to distribute video throughout its systems.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News says a US-based martial arts network is attempting to gain a foothold in Europe.

Gabriel Belton of Adweek looks at a new Olympics-themed ad from GlaxoSmithKline.

Rupal Parekh at Advertising Age says Ralph Lauren is taking a huge PR hit over its “Made in Communist China” US Olympic Opening Ceremony uniforms.

Michelle Smith of espnW profiles Lydia Murphy-Stephens who’s helping to launch the Pac-12 Networks.

Timothy Burke at Deadspin notes that NBC’s Today Show ran video of the wrong man during an interview with Philadelphia Eagles’  quarterback Michael Vick.

John Koblin of Deadspin says Sports Illustrated will not run an excerpt of Joe Posnanski’s upcoming book on Joe Paterno.

Ed Sherman in The Sherman Report says a promotional video for Posnanski’s book seems to be seriously outdated in the wake of the Freeh Report released last week.

Joe Lucia of Awful Announcing explores whether Baseball Night in America was a ratings success for Fox.

Matt Yoder of AA talks with ESPN tome author James Andrew Miller in a podcast.

And Matt speaks with Yahoo’s Dan Wetzel about Penn State and the BCS in a new podcast.

How about one more podcast? Sports Illustrated’s Jimmy Traina interviews Fox’s Erin Andrews on why she left ESPN.

Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo’s Puck Daddy explores whether the NHL’s new TV deals with NBC and HBO could prevent a prolonged lockout unlike the last one which wiped out an entire season.

At the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Eric Deggans of the Tampa Bay Times says the Freeh Report shows that journalists cannot take a college football program at face value.

Also at the National Sports Journalism Center, Michael Bradley blasts ESPN and Big Ten Network for their coverage of the Freeh Report.

Sports Video Group looks at a company that is streaming the Olympics to 70 countries worldwide.

Cork Gaines of the Business Insider Sports Page says ESPN actually censored its own Body Issue cover of New England  Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski this morning.

Newsday’s Neil Best ventures into NBC’s “Billion Dollar Lab” for the 2012 Olympics.

Jerry Barmash of Fishbowl NY notes that WFAN’s Mike Francesa tops the Talkers Magazine Heavy Hundred Sports Radio Talk Show Hosts.

The Albany Times Union’s Pete Dougherty discusses Golf Channel’s new hires.

Evan Weiner in the New Jersey Newsroom says the NFL is pricing out the regular fan.

Keith Groller of the Allentown (PA) Morning News says a former Eagles and Steelers offensive lineman is now working for NFL Films.

David Zurawik of the Baltimore Sun is telling readers that Taylor Teagarden’s inadvertent “S” bomb after the Orioles win over Detroit on Fox Saturday is not a big deal.

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog looks at where the local sports radio talkers rank on Talkers Heavy Hundred List.

Dan has video of a new Robert Griffin III commercial.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner explores the Nationals’ TV and radio ratings.

Mel Bracht of The Oklahoman notes that native Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers will be profiled on HBO’s Real Sports tonight.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer has video of Charlie Sheen appearing with Joe Morgan (?) on Jay Leno’s Show of Hacks.

Paul M. Banks of Chicago Sports Media Watch says ESPN The Magazine’s Body Issue included a local Olympic volleyballer.

The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Chris Scott says the site’s own online TV service will be live from the Del Mar Racetrack this week for Opening Day.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News notes that the White House had trouble transcribing ESPN’s Mark Jones’ interview of President Obama during last night’s USA vs. Brazil pre-Olympic basketball exhibition game.

Bruce Dowbiggin at the Toronto Globe and Mail says NHL fans may not see hockey until at least Thanksgiving at the earliest.

Paulsen at Sports Media Watch has some ratings news and notes.

That’s going to end the links for today.

The Thursday Linkage

So weird to have the 4th of July in the middle of the week. You get the holiday after two work days and then have two work days afterwards. Some of you have the entire week off which is good, but for me, there’s no such thing as a vacation. In fact, I haven’t had a vacation since August 2001. That’s true. Anyway, you don’t care about that. Let’s get to the links.

Michael Hiestand of USA Today lists which sports media personality has donated money to which politician.

Michael says ESPN NASCAR pit reporter Jamie Little will work her last race for a few months this weekend.

The BBC reports that a single yellow cable that will carry the Olympics from London to Europe was almost cut in Belgium.

Trefis Team at Forbes says ESPN contributes heavily to Disney’s stock price, but that could be reduced over time.

Keach Hagey of the Wall Street Journal looks at the new NBC Sports/Sports Illustrated partnership.

Mike Barnes of the Hollywood Reporter says former mustachioed Oakland Raiders defensive lineman turned pitchman Ben Davidson has died at the age of 72.

Mike Reynolds at Multichannel News writes that ESPN set a viewership record for the EURO 2012 final.

Bill Cromwell of Media Life reports that NBC is close to selling out its Olympic ad inventory.

The Associated Press says the ACC has signed a 12 year deal with the Orange Bowl.

Ed Sherman at The Sherman Report talks with Chris “Mad Dog” Russo about his two decade long partnership with WFAN’s Mike Francesa.

Joe Lucia at Awful Announcing writes that ESPN’s Chris Fowler gave John McEnroe a lesson about Twitter parody accounts at Wimbledon this week.

Joe tells us about reporter-on-reporter Twitter crime between ESPN’s Buster Olney and CBS’ Jon Heyman.

Melissa Jacobs at the Football Girl agrees with Erin Andrews’ assessment that sideline reporters are a necessity when used correctly.

Speaking of Erin, she speaks with Adam Silverstein of the Only Gators blog about moving to Fox.

Dave Nagle in ESPN’s Front Row public relations blog notes the network’s new broadcast position at Wimbledon.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times says Barclays’ recent troubles are trickling down to the Brooklyn Nets as they prepare to occupy their new home.

Claire Atkinson of the New York Post reports that The Whistle, a sports media company geared towards kids, will have a programming block on NBC Sports Network starting in September.

Dan Steinberg in the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog notes that DC NFL Team radio analyst Sam Huff will work a reduced schedule this season.

Mel Bracht at The Oklahoman says the U.S. Olympic Trials topped the local ratings this past weekend.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that Annika Sorenstam joins the NBC golf team this weekend at the U.S. Women’s Open.

Paul M. Banks at Chicago Sports Media Watch urges the White Sox to calm down in asking people to do last-minute voting for the All-Star Game.

Scott D. Pierce of the Salt Lake Tribune says the Pac-12 Network will be a success in Utah knowing the failings of the mtn.

Bill Mooney of the Thoroughbred Times says Fox Sports Net will air the West Virginia Derby next month.

Media Rantz notes that the NBC President who was responsible for the “Heidi Game” and forever changed how sports was aired on TV has passed away.

The Canadian Sports Media Blog says CTV will bring back a few features for this year’s Olympics that were used in 2010 for Vancouver.

EPL Talk has a partial list of English Premier League games that will be aired in the States on ESPN2 and Fox Soccer.

Sports Media Watch says TNT took a ratings hit for last Saturday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race.

Emmett Jones at Sports Business Digest notes that the US Olympic Committee will pass on bidding for the 2022 Games dashing hopes for a couple of cities. It means the earliest an Olympics will be held in the United States will be 2024.

And those are the links that I could manage to squeeze out of the internet today.

Cranking Out Some Friday Megalinks

Ok, linkage has been really scarce over the last month and a half and I apologize for that. My schedules have been quite busy and it’s been tough to sit down for the time it takes to gather the links. I hope that changes over the next month or so.

I have some National links for you right now. I’ll follow up with more stuff later.

Here are the Weekend Viewing Picks for you.

National

Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch speaks with the people at the Poynter Institute who are the ESPN Ombudsman.

Nate Davis at USA Today’s The Huddle has the Miami Dolphins not so enthusiastic about being on Hard Knocks this season.

Michael Hiestand of USA Today talks with ESPN’s Sean McDonough who will undergo brain surgery later this year.

Ira Boudwell of Bloomberg Businessweek says ESPN is getting out of the high school sports business saying it’s not broad enough.

Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski says this week’s blowout between David Stern and Jim Rome proves that the NBA Commissioner needs to go.

John Ourand of Sports Business Daily says Fox Sports San Diego is launching an ad campaign against Time Warner Cable which has still not picked up the regional sports network.

Good Morning America’s and former ESPN SportsCenter host Robin Roberts says she will beat the rare blood disorder that will require a bone marrow transplant.

Michael O’Connell of the Hollywood Reporter notes that the NBA Finals are pacing ABC to good ratings this week.

At Broadcasting & Cable, Tim Baysinger writes that this week’s Dream Team documentary gave NBA TV its best viewership ever.

Mike Reynolds at Multichannel News says GolTV scored with this week’s soccer international friendly match between Brazil and Argentina.

Toni Fitzgerald of Media Life reports that NBC will debut two new sitcoms right smack dab in the middle of the Olympics.

Ed Sherman at the Sherman Report looks at the geriatric broadcasting team calling the NBA Finals for ESPN Radio.

Glenn Davis at SportsGrid notes that even after the winning the Stanley Cup this week, the Los Angeles Kings still aren’t getting respect from the local media.

Former Deadspin editor A.J. Daulerio returns to his former stomping grounds to do a massive takedown of Jay “The Rat” Mariotti.

Also from Deadspin, John Koblin writes that there doesn’t seem to be a clamoring for Erin Andrews beyond ESPN.

Jason Dachman of Sports Video Group says NBA TV and NBA Entertainment are appealing to the hardcore basketball fan for their Finals coverage.

Jason McIntyre of The Big Lead says Sports Illustrated could be laying off part of its staff.

Matt Yoder at Awful Announcing has tweets from people who hated Chris Berman on the U.S. Open yesterday.

Sports Media Watch notes that this year’s Stanley Cup Final did not resonate with viewers.

SMW also has some various ratings news and notes.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell writes that Brooklyn Nets gear is selling very well.

MediaRantz tells us that Sean Salisbury will be getting a new internet radio gig.

UPDATE, 4:30 p.m.: Time for more linkage here.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Chad Finn of the Boston Globe reports that May was a very good month for sports radio station WEEI as it finished ahead of 98.5 The Sports Hub.

At SB Nation, Bruce Allen of Boston Sports Media Watch writes about golfer David Duval taking a turn in the broadcast tower at the U.S. Open.

Bill Doyle of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette discusses Johnny Miller holding court for NBC at the U.S. Open at the Olympic Club in San Francisco this week.

Newsday’s Neil Best talks with ESPN college baseball analyst Kyle Petersen who will be introducing many Long Islanders to the College World Series today.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post goes after the Yankees for pricing out fans from the “Beautiful People” seats at Yankee Stadium.

Jerry Barmash at Fishbowl NY notes that SNY will unveil the all-time Mets team at a gala event on Sunday.

Ken McMillan of the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says the US Women’s National Soccer Team will be on TV and the web this weekend.

Ken says local Time Warner Cable subscribers will have access to the new Pac-12 Networks this summer.

Ken Schott at the Schenectady Gazette says NBC Sports Group has announced the 2012 Summer at Saratoga schedule.

Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union talks with Jim Rome who marks his 16th year in New York’s Capital Region.

Pete says one of harness racing’s famous races changes networks this year.

Keith Groller of the Allentown (PA) Morning Call profiles a local cable TV sports reporter who is filling a double role this summer.

Keith has more on her in his blog.

In Press Box, Dave Hughes of DCRTV.com writes that a decision on the Washington Nationals TV rights has been delayed.

South

Barry Jackson from the Miami Herald has some NBA Finals Game 2 postgame reaction as well as Jon Barry saying he’s not a Miami Heat Hater.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle says Fox Sports Houston was well-prepared and staffed for Wednesday’s perfect game thrown against the Astros by Matt Cain of the San Francisco Giants.

Mel Bracht at The Oklahoman writes that ESPN on ABC was all over the non-foul call against the Thunder’s Kevin Durant during Game 2 of the NBA Finals.

The Oklahoman rounds up what sports reporters are saying on Twitter about the NBA Finals.

Midwest

John Kiesewetter at the Cincinnati Enquirer says an all-star high school football game will be shown locally this weekend.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that ESPN is dropping its high school sports operation.

Bob criticizes Jim Rome for his questioning of NBA Communist China Sympathizer David Stern.

Paul M. Banks at Chicago Sports Media Watch says Cubs announcers Len Kasper and Bob Brenly were silent when comedian Jeff Garlin brought up trading Alfonso Soriano.

Paul Christian of the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin notes the rare occurrence of the U.S. Open and the NBA Finals going head-to-head on TV this Father’s Day.

Dan Caesar from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that viewers of Fox Sports Midwest may need a scorecard to tell who’s in the Cardinals TV booth over the next few days.

Dan notes that next week will mark a decade since the passing of Jack Buck and Cardinals pitcher Darryl Kile.

West

Chadd Cripe of the Idaho Statesman says this fall’s Boise State-Southern Mississippi game will get the Fox treatment.

Scott D. Pierce of the Salt Lake Tribune says Utahans are nervous about getting the Pac-12 Networkcomparing it to their experience with the ill-fated the mtn.

John Maffei of the North County Times writes that Fox Sports San Diego has set its sights squarely on Time Warner Cable.

Jim Carlisle at the Ventura County Star says ESPN’s NBA Countdown show seems to work fine without a host.

Jim talks with NBC’s Johnny Miller about the U.S. Open.

Jim has his weekend viewing picks.

Melissa Rohlin of the Los Angeles Times says Game 2 of the NBA Finals drew a good overnight number for ABC.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News talks with former Kings voices about the Stanley Cup victory.

Tom has some more in his blog.

Canada

The Toronto Globe and Mail’s Bruce Dowbiggin blames both Jim Rome and David Stern for their ugly exchange this week.

The Toronto Sports Media Blog says the NBA and NHL Commissioners are taking it on their chins this week.

And that’s going to do it.

I’ll Have Another Goes For Horse Racing’s Triple Crown on NBC Sports Group

This Saturday, I’ll Have Another will attempt to become the first horse to win The Triple Crown since Seattle Slew achieved the feat in 1978. He’ll run in the Belmont Stakes on Saturday. NBC Sports Group will be all over the race with coverage beginning on Thursday with re-airs on NBC Sports Network of the first two Jewels of the Triple Crown, this year’s Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.

Then on Friday, NBC Sports Network will show some classic Belmont races and a Live from Belmont program late in the afternoon.

On Saturday, NBC Sports Network and NBC will combine for 4½ hours of coverage. Here’s the NBC Sports Group press release.

I’LL HAVE ANOTHER SEEKS FIRST TRIPLE CROWN IN 34 YEARS AS NBC SPORTS GROUP PRESENTS THE 144th BELMONT STAKES

11 Hours of Belmont-Week Coverage Begins Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET with I’ll Have Another – Charging Toward History on NBC Sports Network Coverage Culminates with 144^th Belmont Stakes on NBC, Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET
NBC Sports Group’s Increased Coverage Includes 30 Extra Minutes on NBC, the I’ll Have Another Special, and Re-broadcasts of I’ll Have Another’s Thrilling Kentucky Derby and Preakness Victories

NEW YORK – June 4, 2012 – The NBC Sports Group will surround I’ll Have Another’s quest to become the first horse in 34 years to capture horse racing’s elusive Triple Crown with 11 hours of coverage across both NBC and the NBC Sports Network. Coverage includes: a 30-minute documentary I’ll Have Another – Charging Toward History on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET; re-broadcasts of I’ll Have Another’s victories in both the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes Thursday night on NBC Sports Network; Belmont classics on Friday on NBC Sports Network; a one-hour Live from Belmont on Friday on NBC Sports Network; and 4.5 hours of coverage from Belmont on both NBC and NBC Sports Network on Saturday. The coverage begins at 4:30 p.m. ET on Saturday on NBC, and is preceded by 1.5 hours of coverage on NBC Sports Network, and followed by a 30-minute post-race show on the channel.

COMMENTATORS: NBC Sports Group’s coverage of the 144^th Belmont Stakes will feature co-hosts Bob Costas, a 23-time Emmy Award-winner, and NBC’s lead horse racing voice Tom Hammond; Hall-of-Fame jockey and three-time Belmont Stakes winner Gary Stevens; analyst Randy Moss; contributing analysts/handicappers Mike Battaglia and Bob Neumeier; host Laffit Pincay, III; Hall-of Fame jockey and two-time Belmont Stakes-winner Jerry Bailey; reporters Kenny Rice, Donna Brothers and Jay Privman; and race caller Larry Collmus.

PRODUCTION TEAM: NBC’s coverage will be produced by Rob Hyland, the producer of this year’s Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes, and a veteran of the network’s horse racing coverage since 2001, and directed by Sunday Night Football and NBC Sports’ horse racing director, Drew Esocoff.

The coverage on NBC Sports Network is produced by Pierre Moossa and directed by Doug Grabert. Fred Gaudelli is the coordinating producer of NBC Sports Group’s Triple Crown coverage. The executive producer of NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network is Sam Flood, who has produced 11 Triple Crown races for the network.

ABC

14.8 MILLION WATCH KENTUCKY DERBY: NBC’s coverage of the 2012 Kentucky Derby drew 14.8 million viewers, the third most-watched Kentucky Derby in 23 years, and up two percent from last year’s Derby. Since implementing NBC Sports Group’s ‘Big Event Strategy,’ the last four Kentucky Derby races have all recorded at least 14.5 million viewers.

NBC’s coverage of the Kentucky Derby over the last 12 years averages more than 2 million more viewers than the previous 12 Kentucky Derby broadcasts on ABC (14.1 million vs.12.0 million, up 17 percent).

8.1 MILLION WATCH PREAKNESS STAKES: NBC Sports coverage of the Preakness Stakes drew 8.1 million viewers, the fourth consecutive year that the Preakness drew more than eight million viewers. Since NBC began broadcasting the Preakness in 2001, every Preakness telecast on NBC over that period attracted more viewers than any Preakness telecast on ABC in the previous seven years. Viewership for the Preakness is up an average of 60% in the 12 years on NBC compared to the previous eight years on ABC.

That’s all.

Let’s Get To Some Linkage

Before the day is through, let’s do some linkage for you.

Steve Berkowitz from USA Today looks at the Pac-12′s TV contract which is the richest in college sports (for now).

Speaking of USA Today, Ed Sherman of The Sherman Report says the newspaper is restructuring its sports department and about a dozen staffers have been laid off. That includes Friend of Fang’s Bites Mike McCarthy and Game On! blogger Tom Weir. Very sad to see this. I met Mike a few years ago when we covered an event at ESPN. Good reporter and writer. I hope to be linking to him again soon.

Ed also writes about ESPN holding onto the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest.

ESPN Ombudsman Jason Fry of the Poynter Institute watches ESPN’s interviewing guru critique the questioning style of some of its reporters.

Marisa Guthrie at the Hollywood Reporter looks at NBCUniversal’s plans to offer some 5,500 hours of coverage on the Olympics.

John Eggerton of Broadcasting & Cable says Golf Channel will have live coverage of U.S. Open qualifying on June 4.

Tim Baysinger at B&C recaps last night’s Sports Business Journal/Sports Business Daily’s Sports Business Awards.

Rich Thomaselli from Advertising Age says the NHL’s social media and traditional ad campaigns have helped bring casual fans to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

After being disrespected by its own local media last week, the Los Angeles Kings made this infographic giving a brief history on its logo, names of players and number of times the team has been in the postseason. This season, the Kings have stepped its social media campaign and website to provide fans with a very humorous, but also informative experience. Keep it up, Kings. You guys rock!

Eric Deggans of the Tampa Bay Times, writing in the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, notes the difficultly for women to find a proper role in sports television.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton’s past is preventing collectors from lining up at his doorstep.

Congratulations to Steve Lepore of Puck The Media who has become SB Nation’s NHL Media writer. Steve is a hard worker who has created a very good niche for himself. And his first column for SB Nation is about the ratings for the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Western Conference Final clincher.

Steve also writes about the controversy over NHL on NBC charlatan Pierre McGuire’s withholding of information over an incident between the benches during Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final.

Jerry Barmash of Fishbowl NY says MSG Network will air two specials on the upcoming Belmont Stakes in which I’ll Have Another will go for horse racing’s Triple Crown.

Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette says in addition, MSG Plus will air some horse races this summer.

Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union writes that ESPN has expanded its 3-D coverage of Wimbledon.

Ken McMillan from the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says Al Jazeera will be launching two soccer channels this summer.

Keith Groller at the Allentown (PA) Morning Call looks at ESPN on ABC’s plans for Sunday’s Indianapolis 500.

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog says former ESPN’er Dave Feldman is leaving the local market to go home to his native Northern California.

Dan says former DC NFL Team running back and sports radio host John Riggins will be hosting an outdoors show next year.

Jim Williams from the Washington Examiner says a deadline is fast approaching in which the Nationals will find out how much MASN will be paying them for TV rights.

Mark Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times says the Rays are paying tribute to Fox Sports MLB reporter Ken Rosenthal by wearing bow ties.

Tom Jones of the Times says MLB Network analyst Mitch Williams ripped Tropicana Field.

David Barron from the Houston Chronicle looks at the proposed uses for the abandoned Astrodome.

John Kiesewetter in the Cincinnati Enquirer says Fox Sports is on the Reds’ bandwagon.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that MLB Walking, Talking Conflict of Interest Bud Selig is holding firm to his retirement date.

Paul M. Banks at Chicago Sports Media Watch says the Big Ten Network has helped to expand the league and in part, raise Northwestern’s profile.

Gordon Monson of the Salt Lake Tribune says even though the Utah Jazz bought the sports radio station where he works, he’ll remain an independent voice.

Chris Jenkins from the San Diego Union-Tribune says Fox Sports San Diego’s Mark Sweeney is a natural fit as Padres analyst.

Tim Sullivan of the Union-Tribune says he enjoys listening to the Padres on the radio.

The Los Angeles Daily News’ Tom Hoffarth can’t believe he’s seeing a farmers dating service ad on NBC Sports Network.

Laura Stone of the Toronto Star writes that a new feature by CBC for the NHL Stanley Cup Final has some hardcore female sports fans hopping mad.

Timothy Burke at Deadspin looks at the Twitter police for college sports programs.

Sports Media Watch notes the increased ratings for the series-clinching game of the NHL Stanley Cup Western Conference Final on NBC Sports Network.

Joe Favorito examines the right way and the wrong way to attract Twitter followers.

Dave Kohl at The Broadcast Booth marvels at the LA media for getting the Kings logo and players wrong during local newscasts.

And I’ll end the linkage there for now. Enjoy the rest of your day.

Replay of 2012 Preakness Stakes

Let’s provide the replay of one of the more exciting Triple Crown races we’ve seen in quite some time. Kentucky Derby winner I’ll Have Another ran down Bodemeister in the final stretch when it appeared that Bodemeister had the Preakness won. And the Triple Crown will be on the line when the Belmont Stakes is run on Saturday, June 9.

By the way, to see how close the finish was, check out this great picture from Jerry Jackson of the Baltimore Sun.

Let’s see the race again as it aired on NBC and adeptly called by Larry Collmus.

And the Belmont Stakes will be on NBC, Saturday, June 9.

NBC Carries The 2nd Leg of The Triple Crown With The Preakness Stakes

Today, NBC Sports Group has The Preakness Stakes live from Pimlico Race Course outside Baltimore, MD.

This is where it will be determined if I’ll Have Another has what it takes to be a Triple Crown Champion, the first since Affirmed in 1978. Bodemeister who finished second in the Kentucky  could have something to say about that.

The usual NBC horse racing crew led by Bob Costas and Tom Hammond will be on hand. Larry Collnus will call the race. Laffit Pincay III, Bob Neumeier, Mike Battaglia, Kenny Rice and Donna Brothers will lend support.

NBC Sports Network hits the air with preface coverage at 2 p.m. ET and NBC comes in at 4:30 p.m.

Here’s the NBC press release.

NBC SPORTS GROUP PRESENTS THE  PREAKNESS STAKES
I’LL HAVE ANOTHER VS. BODEMEISTER

Coverage From Pimlico Begins Today at 2 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network and Culminates with the 137^th Preakness Stakes on NBC on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET
“My feel on Bodemeister is he’s just had too many races. He’s had five this year, and the advantage that I’ll Have Another has, in my opinion, is that he’s the fresher horse. – NBC Sports Handicapper Bob Neumeier
“Every year I say I don’t like the new shooters, but the new shooters have been in the exacta eight times and in the trifecta nine times in the last 10 years.” – NBC Sports Handicapper Mike Battaglia
NBC Sports Group’s Triple Crown Coverage Continues with the Belmont Stakes Saturday, June 9

NEW YORK – May 17, 2012 – Kentucky Derby winner I’ll Have Another leads the field as the NBC Sports Group presents 6½ hours of coverage of the 137^th running of the Preakness Stakes, the middle jewel of the Triple Crown. Coverage begins from Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md., today at 2 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network, and culminates with the Preakness Stakes Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET on NBC.

With a win Saturday at the Preakness, I’ll Have Another will head to the Belmont in hopes of becoming the first horse to win the Triple Crown since Affirmed, with jockey Steve Cauthen, in 1978. NBC Sports Group’s coverage of the Belmont Stakes begins Friday, June 8.

COMMENTATORS: NBC’s coverage of the 137^th Preakness Stakes is hosted by Tom Hammond alongside two-time Preakness Stakes-winning jockey Gary Stevens; analyst Randy Moss; contributing analysts/handicappers Mike Battaglia and Bob Neumeier; host Laffit Pincay, III; reporters Kenny Rice, Donna Brothers and Jay Privman; and race caller Larry Collmus, a Baltimore native.

Additionally, Hall-of-Fame jockey and two-time Kentucky Derby-winner Jerry Bailey will join NBC Sports Network’s commentary team on Preakness day. Bailey won the Preakness twice – aboard Hansel in 1991 and Red Bullet in 2000.

FEATURES AND STORYLINES: The features NBC Sports Group is preparing for its Preakness coverage include:

• A look at jockey Mario Gutierrez and his unlikely journey to win the Kentucky Derby;
• Randy Moss sit-down interview with Doug O’Neil, the controversial trainer of Kentucky Derby winner I’ll Have Another;
• Feature on Under Armor CEO Kevin Plank and his commitment to horse racing in the state of Maryland. Plank’s horse Tiger Walk is entered in the Preakness.
• Stevens and Bailey will break down the Kentucky Derby trips of the returning horses: I’ll Have Another, Bodemeister, Went the Day Well and Creative Cause.

PRODUCTION TEAM: The coverage on NBC will be produced by Rob Hyland, a veteran of the network’s horse racing coverage since 2001, and directed by Sunday Night Football and NBC Sports’ horse racing director, Drew Esocoff. The coverage on NBC Sports Network is produced by Billy Matthews and directed by Doug Grabert. The executive producer of NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network is Sam Flood, who has produced 11 Triple Crown races for the network.

PREAKNESS STAKES
Saturday May 19	2:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.	Preakness Stakes Saturday	NBC Sports Network
	4:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.	Preakness Stakes	NBC
	6:30 p.m. – 7 p.m.	Preakness Post-Race Show	NBC Sports Network

THE HANDICAPPERS

NBC Sports handicappers Neumeier and Battaglia provided their thoughts on the Preakness in separate interviews and came to similar conclusions about the race. Their answers are below:

THE PREAKNESS ACCORDING TO NEUMEIER: “There’s a reasonable chance that this race could be what they call a merry-go-round. That expression basically means that nobody passes anybody on the lead – it’s an old racing expression. Bodemeister should have a lead and I think he’ll be dogged by I’ll Have Another, barring something crazy. Bodemeister might get weary down the stretch and I’ll Have Another might pass him, but I like both horses – 1-2 on either side. Those are the favorites. That’s how it shapes up to me.”

THE PREAKNESS ACCORDING BATTAGLIA: “Bodemeister is going to have it a little easier on the front end than he did at the Derby. It’s not going to be that same suicidal pace. When you look at this race, there are four Kentucky Derby horses back and all are solid contenders. I think that Bodemeister has an edge because of the pace factor, but it’s tough to throw out the other three – I’ll Have Another, Creative Cause and Went the Day Well.”

BATTAGLIA ON DERBY WINNER NOT FAVORED AT THE PREAKNESS: “Normally the Derby winner is the favorite. But I think they got it correct here. I think that it’ll be a slight favoritism – not a big favoritism – for Bodemeister. He and I’ll Have Another will be close in wagering.”

NEUMEIER ON BODEMEISTER: “My feel on Bodemeister is he’s just had too many races. He’s had five this year, and the advantage that I’ll Have Another has, in my opinion, is that he’s the fresher horse. Bodemeister has had two more races this year than I’ll Have Another, and they only have so many in them, so that would be my only fear about Bodemeister. He’s just been overraced.”

NEUMEIER ON I’LL HAVE ANOTHER: “I’ll Have Another has an excellent chance to win this race. Absolutely. He’ll be dogging Bodemeister, and when the time comes to make the run, he’s certainly fresh enough with two weeks off.”

BATTAGLIA ON THE NEW SHOOTERS (Horses in the Preakness that didn’t run in the Kentucky Derby): “Every year I say I don’t like the new shooters, but a new shooter have been in the exacta eight times, and in the trifecta nine times in the last ten years.”

NEUMEIER’S PICKS: “If I were to rank them, I’d put I’ll Have Another first, Bodemeister second, Creative Cause and Went the Day Well a toss-up for third.”

BATTAGLIA’S PICKS: “It’s going to be Bodemeister. It’s the four Derby horses (finishing in the top four). I keep looking at Went the Day Well and think that he’s going to be able to close a little bit better, so I think that he could be there. It’ll be close between him and I’ll Have Another for second, Creative Cause will be right there in fourth, but I’ve got Bodemeister on top.”

PREAKNESS EXTRA

Similar to Kentucky Derby Extra, Preakness Extra is the online connection to coverage of the Preakness Stakes. Available at NBCSports.com with live streaming of the NBC broadcast of the Preakness, other features of Preakness Extra include:

• An online-only isolation camera on Kentucky Derby winner I’ll Have Another during the race;
• Online-only analysis by NBC and NBC Sports Network commentators in days leading up to race plus post race, online commentary by NBC commentators;
• Replays and highlights from the Kentucky Derby and earlier prep races;
• A video simulation of how this year’s Preakness might play out with 2012 Preakness entrants in virtual competition simulating Preakness conditions and track.

PREAKNESS STAKES ALL-ACCESS

NBC Sports Group will implement its All-Access social media strategy for Preakness week on both NBC and NBC Sports Network. A dedicated social media producer will be on-site for behind-the-scenes content including Breaking News, photos and video from Pimlico.

Twitter: Viewers and Tweeters alike will be encouraged to join the conversation by using the hashtag #PREAKNESS. Reminders will appear on screen throughout all of NBC’s Preakness coverage.

• On-air integration of live tweets from celebrities, horse-racing experts and @NBCSN will be featured on screen throughout the broadcasts to keep viewers up to date with what’s happening and trending on Twitter.
• For the ultimate horse racing fan, @NBCSN will live tweet all week leading up to the Preakness, including the Preakness Draw, and provide interactive trivia and “Did You Know” tweets during the Preakness Classic broadcast. It will give fans behind the scenes access and information like never before.

Facebook: Fans will have the chance to join in on the Preakness broadcast:

• Everyone at home can pick their winner with the “Choose the Winning Horse” Facebook poll on www.facebook.com/NBCSports. The nation’s votes will be tallied and shown on-air during the Preakness broadcast.

PREAKNESS A RATINGS SUCCESS ON NBC:

Since NBC began broadcasting the Preakness in 2001, every Preakness telecast on NBC over that period attracted more viewers than any Preakness telecast on ABC in the previous seven years. Viewership for the Preakness is up an average of 63% in the 11 years on NBC compared to the previous eight years on ABC.

PREAKNESS ON NBC (2001-2011)

Year Viewers
2011 8.8 million
2010 8.4 million
2009 10.9 million
2008 7.9 million
2007 8.4 million
2006 10.1 million
2005 9.3 million
2004 11.6 million
2003 8.6 million
2002 9.2 million
2001 8.7 million

PREAKNESS ON ABC (1993-2000)

Year Viewers
2000 5.5 million
1999 4.9 million
1998 5.2 million
1997 6.9 million
1996 5.1 million
1995 4.7 million
1994 6.5 million
1993 7.0 million

14.8 MILLION WATCH KENTUCKY DERBY: NBC’s coverage of Saturday’s Kentucky Derby drew 14.8 million viewers, the third most-watched Kentucky Derby in 23 years, and up two percent from last year’s Derby. Since implementing NBC Sports Group’s ‘Big Event Strategy,’ the last four Kentucky Derby races have all recorded at least 14.5 million viewers.

NBC’s coverage of the Kentucky Derby over the last 12 years averages more than 2 million more viewers than the previous 12 Kentucky Derby broadcasts on ABC (14.1 million vs.12.0 million, up 17 percent).

Link to NBC’s coverage of the Kentucky Derby and hear Larry Collmus call the race: http://fangsbites.com/2012/05/the-138th-kentucky-derby-replay/

That’s all. Enjoy The Preakness Stakes.

Almost 15 Million People Watch Kentucky Derby on NBC; 3rd Most Since 1990

NBC has sent a press release stating that Saturday’s Kentucky Derby was the 3rd most-watched Derby dating back to 1989. However, as the very sharp-eyed Paulsen at Sports Media Watch points out, NBC’s own press release is a bit skewed stating that in 1990, the race on ABC drew better numbers so in reality, Saturday’s race is the 3rd most-watched dating back to 1990, 22 years, not 23 as the press release states.

So moving onto the meat of the release, an average of 14.8 million people watched the Derby meaning that the numbers are 2% higher from last year. The final rating of a 9.0 and a 20 share is 6% higher than 2011. And NBC is quick to point out that its coverage of the Kentucky Derby is on an average drawing two million more viewers on the network over the last 12 years than when it was on ABC.

We have the numbers, plus a look at the Top 20 rated markets for the first leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown.

14.8 MILLION WATCH KENTUCKY DERBY ON NBC

Viewership up from Last Year; 3^rd Most-Watched Kentucky Derby in 23 Years
9.0 National Rating up 6% from Last Year
Fourth Straight Year NBC’s Coverage Surpasses 14.5 Million

NEW YORK – May 8, 2012 – NBC Sports’ coverage of Saturday’s Kentucky Derby drew 14.8 million viewers, the third most-watched Kentucky Derby in 23 years, and up two percent from last year’s Derby according to official national data provided today by The Nielsen Company. The household rating of 9.0/20 is up six percent from last year’s race. Since implementing NBC Sports’ ‘Big Event Strategy,’ the last four Kentucky Derby races have all recorded at least 14.5 million viewers.

NBC Sports’ coverage of the Kentucky Derby over the last 12 years averages more than 2 million more viewers than the previous 12 Kentucky Derby broadcasts on ABC (14.1 million vs.12.0 million, up 17 percent).

Saturday’s race (6:06-6:54 p.m. ET), won by I’ll Have Another, is up two percent from last year’s 14.5 million, making it the third most-watched Kentucky Derby since 1989 when Sunday Silence won the Derby (18.5 million). The household rating of 9.0/20 is up six percent from last year’s race (8.5/19).

KENTUCKY DERBY CONTINUES TO BE A HIT WITH FEMALE VIEWERS: The Kentucky Derby once again proved to be very popular with female viewers. In fact, 51 percent of Derby viewers 18+ were women, making it the only annual sporting event that draws more female than male viewers.

KENTUCKY DERBY VIEWERSHIP

2012 14.8 million NBC I’ll Have Another
2011 14.5 million NBC Animal Kingdom
2010 16.5 million NBC Super Saver
2009 16.3 million NBC Mine That Bird
2008 14.2 million NBC Big Brown
2007 13.8 million NBC Street Sense
2006 12.9 million NBC Barbaro
2005 13.6 million NBC Giacomo
2004 14.6 million NBC Smarty Jones
2003 11.8 million NBC Funny Cide
2002 12.8 million NBC War Emblem
2001 13.8 million NBC Monarchos
2000 9.1 million ABC Fusaichi Pegasus
1999 9.9 million ABC Charismatic
1998 9.5 million ABC Real Quiet
1997 11.3 million ABC Silver Charm
1996 11.0 million ABC Grindestone
1995 9.3 million ABC Thunder Gulch
1994 12.1 million ABC Go For Gin
1993 11.5 million ABC Sea Hero
1992 13.7 million ABC Lil E Tee
1991 13.4 million ABC Strike The Gold
1990 15.6 million ABC Unbridled
1989 18.5 million ABC Sunday Silence

TOP METERED MARKETS FOR 2012 KENTUCKY DERBY

1. Louisville, 31.7/59
2. Cincinnati, 18.3/37
3. Ft. Myers, 17.0/31
T4. Hartford, 13.4/26
T4. West Palm Beach, 13.4/24
T4. Buffalo, 13.4/27
7. Columbus, 13.3/27
8. Knoxville, 13.0/24
9. St. Louis, 13.1/28
10. Boston, 12.8/31
11. Indianapolis, 12.2/25
12. Tampa, 12.1/26
13. Orlando, 11.7/26
14. Baltimore, 11.1/24
15. Richmond, 11.0/21
T16. Pittsburgh, 10.9/25
T16. Greensboro, 10.9/21
18. Milwaukee, 10.7/22
T19. New York, 10.4/23
T19. Nashville, 10.4/20
T19. Providence, 10.4/21
T19. Dayton, 10.4/21

More stuff is on the way. Keep your feeds updated.

The 138th Kentucky Derby Replay

I have the video from NBC Sports which shows the running of the 138th Kentucky Derby. I’ll Have Another was the winner coming from behind defeating a gallant Bodemeister which went in front at the outset and tried to hold on, but tired at the end.

It was the first win for first-time Derby jockey Mario Gutierrez and also the first win for trainer Doug O’Neill. Great race and it shows why it’s called the Fastest Two Minutes in Sports.

Also a great call by Larry Collmus now in his second year in calling the Triple Crown for NBC Sports. Overall, a very good job by NBC with the exception of the celebrity interviews and having Jenna Wolfe on board.

It’s hoped that I’ll Have Another and Bodemeister will face off again at the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Raceway in Baltimore in two weeks.

Here’s the race as called by Larry Collmus.

NBC will air the Preakness Stakes, the second leg in horse racing’s Triple Crown on Saturday, May 19.

Giving You Some Mid-Week Links

Time for some linkage on this Wednesday.

In case you missed it from early this morning, I wrote a post on how you can avoid paying the $3.99 fee to watch the March Madness Live app on your mobile, iPad or online.

And Maine Sports Media has a legal promo code which you can use to avoid paying the fee while supplies are still available.

Tim Layden of Sports Illustrated has a great story on when the NCAA Tournament truly became March Madness back in 1981 when NBC switched from buzzer beater to buzzer beater. I remember every one of these moments that Layden describes. Yes, I’m old.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand handicaps where ESPN’s Erin Andrews could be headed once her contract is up.

Joe Lucia at Awful Announcing says Erin Andrews isn’t the only free agent at ESPN.

Michael Bradley at the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center writes having March Madness online is a good thing for everyone.

Michael Smith and John Ourand at Sports Business Daily report that the Big 12 is close to signing a rights extension with current TV partners ESPN and Fox Sports Net.

Tom Lorenzo of SportsGrid has video of President Obama making his Final Four picks on ESPN.

R. Thomas Umstead of Multichannel News says FX had strong ratings for the premiere “The Ultimate Fighter”.

Emma Bazilian of Adweek writes that Time.com is launching a sports blog.

Brian Lowry of Fox Sports says CBS/Turner is not worried about losing viewers to the March Madness Live online app.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell suggests if Tim Tebow gets traded to Jacksonville, it would be huge for the franchise.

At Fishbowl NY, Jerry Barmash notes that WFAN’s Boomer & Carton will be skating for charity next week.

To the Schenectady Gazette where Ken Schott says ESPN has named its announcing teams for the NCAA Division I Men’s Hockey Championships.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union says the overnight ratings for the NCAA Tournament’s FIRST FOUR™ games were down from last year.

Pete says NBA TV will be all over the NBA Trade Deadline.

Ken McMillan from the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record writes that Time Warner Cable will air the New York State high school basketball championships.

Keith Groller of the Allentown (PA) Morning Call says Drexel got plenty of sympathy from the TV analysts during NCAA Tournament Selection Sunday.

Tom Jones of the Tampa Bay Times reports that a local sports radio talk show host who used a racial slur earlier this week has left the station.

Eric Deggans of the Times also has a story on the controversy.

Mel Bracht of The Oklahoman says the NBA’s Thunder topped the local ratings last week.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer writes that Fox Sports Ohio is now airing “Reds Live” nightly.

In Crain’s Chicago Business, Ed Sherman notes that Bulls and White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf grants a rare interview tonight.

Ed says a new Chicago sports news website is preparing to launch next month joining an already crowded marketplace.

Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times talks with ESPN’s Dick Vitale.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says CBC will shift focus from the Toronto Maple Leafs to the playoff-bound Ottawa Senators.

Sports Media Watch looks at the overnight ratings for the opening night doubleheader of the NCAA Tournament.

SMW tells us that the Knicks and Rangers are performing well in the ratings for MSG Network.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media learns that NBC will air its first-ever NHL playoff doubleheader in April.

Steve says NBC Sports Network will carry Thursday’s Pittsburgh Penguins-New York Rangers game marking the return (again) of Sidney Crosby to the ice.

Steve also provides the coverage plans for NBC Sports Network and TSN for Crosby’s return.

Joe Favorito says horse racing is trying to make some inroads into the March sports calendar.

Ty Duffy of The Big Lead wonders if an ESPN anchor attempted to recruit a high school basketball player for his alma mater.

And that is where the links will end for today.

More posts are on the way. Keep your feeds updated.

Doing Some Friday Megalinks

With a rainy day in Southern New England, it’s time to provide you with some media links. Lots of them on a Friday.

You can check out the Weekend Viewing Picks for the sports and entertainment programming suggestions.

Now to the links.

National

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand talks with NBC’s Al Michaels about calling his 8th Super Bowl and 2nd for NBC.

Mike Ozanian from Forbes says NFL TV rightsholders will be able to reap financial benefits while non-rightsholders end up holding the bag.

Sam Mamudi of Marketwatch.com says you can follow along the USA Today Super Bowl Ad Meter results in real time thanks to a new Facebook app.

Michael O’Connell from the Hollywood Reporter has a sneak peek at some of the Super Bowls ads.

Kelly McBride of the ESPN Poynter Review Project looks at why ESPN made so much of Tim Tebow.

Alex Klein at Romanesko looks into why the Yale Daily News sat on a story for several months and how it took the New York Times to report on former quarterback Patrick Witt’s alleged sexual assault on campus. You may remember that Witt was a candidate to become a Rhodes Scholar but then skipped his interview. Now we know why.

Todd Spangler at Multichannel News says ESPN will let viewers see additional highlights and material from the Winter X Games via the Shazam mobile app.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel writes that NBC Sports Network goes into the NHL All-Star Weekend with increased ratings for the games.

Austin Karp of Sports Business Daily also has a story on the increased NHL ratings for NBC Sports Network.

Gabriel Beltrone from Adweek says Coke will have a Super Bowl microsite where its famous polar bears will react to the game and ads in real time.

David Gianatasio of Adweek writes one local Super Bowl spot will urge you to pee during its commercial.

E.J. Schultz at Advertising Age has Anheuser-Busch’s Super Bowl plans.

Matt Hardigree at Jalopnik says he’s solved the mystery behind the advertiser behind the Ferris Bueller-themed Super Bowl spot.

Adam Jacobi, the college football writer at CBSSports.com, who put the link to Onward State’s erroneous tweet about Joe Paterno’s death last Saturday has been fired. Jacobi says he understands the decision and has apologized to the Paterno family for his mistake.

Brandon Costa of Sports Video Group says NBC will take a lighter approach for Sunday’s NFL Pro Bowl in Hawaii.

Harry A. Jessell at TV NewsCheck notes that while the national TV ratings for the NFL are good, go inside the local numbers and they’re even better.

ESPN PR man Bill Hofheimer gives you an inside look at the network’s Super Bowl studios in Indianapolis.

Sports Media Watch says college basketball ratings are up on both ESPN and ESPN2.

SMW has some news and notes on some various people in the sports media.

Matt Yoder at Awful Announcing goes into some of the on-screen typos on TV this week.

Jeff Pearlman gets vindication from Chris “Mad Dog” Russo.

Steven Crist from the Daily Racing Form feels returning the Breeders Cup to NBC can only help horse racing.

All Access says a Hartford, CT FM station has flipped to all-sports.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Chad Finn of the Boston Globe says NESN has selected the replacement for Heidi Watney on its Red Sox broadcasts.

Chad says of all of the local TV outlets, Comcast SportsNet New England will have the largest contingent covering the Super Bowl in Indianapolis.

Johnny Diaz from the Globe says Boston DirecTV subscribers will see the Super Bowl after all.

Bill Doyle from the Worcester Telegram & Gazette talks with NBC’s Rodney Harrison about Super Bowl XLII and how some present New England Patriots still remaining from the game want revenge.

Stuart Elliot at the New York Times says some Super Bowl advertisers are returning buyers.

Richard Sandomir of the Times has Joe Namath’s reaction to the HBO/NFL Films documentary on his career that premieres tomorrow.

Richard adds that Namath is right now estranged from his former team, the New York Jets.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post says the Namath documentary for the most part is good.

Justin Terranova of the Post speaks with NBC NHL charlatan Pierre McGuire.

Mike Silva at Sports Media Watchdog wonders why Kim Jones left YES.

Pete Dougherty from the Albany Times Union says a local sports talk show will broadcast live from the Super Bowl next week.

Pete talks with the host of that talk show who also wears other hats in the Albany market.

Ken McMillan from the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says NYC residents will be able to hear the local and national radio calls of the Super Bowl next Sunday.

The Harrisburg (PA) Patriot-News notes the firing of a CBSSports.com writer for falsely reporting Joe Paterno’s death.

DCRTV’s Dave Hughes at Press Row has media notes from the Baltimore-DC area.

South

The Tallahassee (FL) Democrat writes that a local sports talk show host who left his former station this week will be back on the air at another station later this year.

Billy Cox of the Sarasota (FL) Herald Tribune says ESPN’s Dick Vitale will be the subject of a profile produced by ….. ESPN!

Josh Bowe of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says Fox Sports Southwest will stream Lone Star Conference football games and a highlight show over the internet.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle talks with a retiring local sports anchor who looks back at the 2011 Texans rather fondly.

Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman reviews the HBO/NFL Films documentary on Joe Namath.

Mel says ESPNU will be all over National Signing Day.

Midwest

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer talks with former Bengal Artrell Hawkins who is now co-hosting Fox Sports Radio’s national morning show.

Jeff Moss of the Detroit Sports Rag looks into the new program director and on-air host of a local sports radio station.

Bob Wolfley at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Wisconsin sports teams did well in the national TV ratings last year.

Dan McGrath of the Chicago News Cooperative notes the 20 year anniversary of sports talk radio in the Windy City.

Paul Christian of the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin says new Minnesota Twins radio voice Cory Provus has big shoes to fill.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch talks with Bob Costas about returning to host his familiar town hall format next week.

West

Thomas Harding of MLB.com says Root Sports Rocky Mountain’s Alana Rizzo is leaving the network’s Colorado Rockies broadcast team and heading for MLB Network.

John Maffei at the North County Times says HBO’s documentary on Joe Namath is on par with previous efforts.

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star also reviews the documentary.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News talks with Kings radio analyst Daryl Evans and also lists his best/worst LA broadcast analysts.

Tom has more on Evans in his blog.

Canada

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says it’s time to play the NHL All-Star Game outdoors.

And that will do it.

Some Late Monday Night Linkage

I’ll do some links that I’ve gathered over the day. You deserve some.

Michael Hiestand of USA Today discusses the monster ratings for Championship Sunday in the NFL.

Michael says with NBC reacquiring the rights to the Breeders Cup, ESPN has gotten out of the horse racing business.

And Michael discusses Jim Rome’s CBS debut before the AFC Championship.

Stuart Miller of Multichannel News says league-owned networks are looking to fill time through imaginative programming.

John Ourand at Sports Business Journal notes that the dispute between MSG Network and Time Warner Cable could threaten the Buffalo Sabres’ number one spot in the local NHL ratings.

John says carriage talks for Time Warner’s new regional sports network featuring the Los Angeles Lakers and for the Pac-12 Network are about to begin in California.

Michael Smith of SBJ says Turner Sports will be running the Fan Fest and other events at the NCAA Final Four this year.

Some stories on how the media handled or did not handle the premature reports of Joe Paterno’s death.

Ronnie Ramos at the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center says there are lessons to be learned from the way the Paterno story was reported on Saturday.

Craig Silverman of the Poynter Institute tells us how the Associated Press did not fall into the trap of reporting Paterno’s death.

Davis Shaver on Onward State, the online publication that made the erroneous report, explains the events on Saturday.

Michael Malone of Broadcasting & Cable notes that local TV stations in the Penn State vicinity showed restraint on the Paterno story.

Brian Stelter of the New York Times looks into how the Paterno story burned online news sources.

Now to other links.

John Daly of the Daly Planet delves into how Danica Patrick will influence NASCAR this season.

Barry Janoff of The Big Lead writes about Danica’s GoDaddy.com Super Bowl ad.

Sam Laird of Mashable notes that Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis will be the first to have a social media command center.

Sam informs advertisers what the typical NFL fan looks like.

Now some remembrances of the late Andy Musser who along with the late Harry Kalas, the late Richie Ashburn and Chris Wheeler, formed one of the best local broadcast teams whey they called the Philadelphia Phillies from the 1970′s into the 1990′s. Musser died Sunday at the age of 74. Musser was a consummate professional who called the Phillies, the Eagles, the 76ers and Villanova basketball. He did all of them well. A man who was content to be the number two broadcaster on the Phillies behind Kalas, he would call games on both radio and TV for the team.

Todd Zolecki of MLB.com has an obituary of Musser.

The Philadelphia Inquirer says a memorial service will be held at the end of the month for Musser.

Tyler Kepner of the New York Times says Musser was a true gentleman.

And I hope to have more stories about Musser in Tuesday’s links.

Dan Fogarty of SportsGrid has video of a Baltimore news anchor trying to prop up a depressed Ravens fan base.

Dan has another video of a Ravens fan kicking out an entire viewing party after the failed field goal by Billy Cundiff on Sunday.

Glen Davis of SportsGrid has the clip of the Ravens’ Terrell Suggs giving Skip Bayless a verbal beatdown.

Bob’s Blitz notes that Boomer Esiason and Jillian Michaels will co-host this year’s “Super Bowl’s Greatest Commercials.”

Patrick Burns of Deadspin did some excellent work to break down SportsCenter’s coverage on ESPN over an 11 day span earlier this month.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times notes how Gary Carter’s daughter is chronicling her father’s struggles with a brain tumor.

Matt Flegenheimer of the Times writes about how New York Knicks fans are actually going to games in the wake of the Time Warner Cable-MSG Network dispute.

Back to Brian Stelter of the Times who profiles NFL Films.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post wonders why CBS won’t bring up Ray Lewis’ stabby past.

Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette notes the big ratings for NFL Conference Championship Sunday.

Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union has the ESPN Family of Networks college lacrosse schedule.

Ken says YES will air Jorge Posada’s retirement from the Yankees on Tuesday.

Ken McMillan at the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says ESPN will air a half-dozen Spring Training MLB games in March.

At the Baltimore Sun, David Zurawik says CBS got the job done during the AFC Championship.

David says the local ratings for the AFC Championship may have set a record.

David writes that the AFC Championship definitely set a social media record.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner writes about Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic’s new show.

Tom Jones from the Tampa Bay Times looks back at a tumultuous weekend in sports television.

David Barron at the Houston Chronicle writes about the NFL Conference Championship Games’ ratings.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer has Thom Brennaman threatening promising to call Reds games on the radio with his dad, Marty.

Dusty Saunders from the Denver Post reviews the HBO Sports documentary on Joe Namath.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News discusses the Breeders Cup going primetime on NBC later this year.

Bill Shakin of the Los Angeles Times goes over the process of the Dodgers sale that began in earnest on Monday.

Sports Media Watch says the NBA’s move to becoming a mostly cable television league has paid off.

SMW has some various news and notes.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media says the Boston Bruins had a mixed bag over the weekend on NESN.

Dave Kohl at the Broadcast Booth says live sports continues to rack in the ratings.

Joe Favorito looks at the growth of squash, Twitter trouble and how to use the social media service properly.

Joe Lucia at Awful Announcing wonders how CBS’ Jim Nantz could confuse two Baltimore Ravens’ wide receivers.

And that will do it for your late night linkage.

NBC Reacquires The Breeders Cup From ESPN

NBC lost the Breeders Cup in 2005 to ESPN and this was after NBC had aired the inaugural set of races in 1984 and had remained a partner until 2005. Now after a six year absence, NBC Sports has regained the Breeders Cup and will use its cable partner, NBC Sports Network to air most of the races. Interestingly, the Breeders Cup Classic will air in primetime for the first time on NBC.

NBC Sports Group and the Breeders Cup have entered into a multi-year agreement and this combined with the Triple Crown plus a summer racing series at Saratoga makes NBC and NBC Sports Network the networks of record for horse racing.

The events will take place at the famed Santa Anita Park which allows NBC to move the Classic to primetime on November 3 of this year.

We have the press release from NBC Sports.

BREEDERS’ CUP AND NBC SPORTS GROUP SECURE MULTI-YEAR MEDIA RIGHTS AGREEMENT

Agreement Includes First Ever Live Primetime Coverage of the Breeders’ Cup Classic
NBC and NBC Sports Network Begin Breeders’ Cup Broadcasts This November

NEW YORK – January 23, 2012 – The Breeders’ Cup and the NBC Sports Group today announced a multi-year media rights partnership beginning with the 2012 Breeders’ Cup World Championships, November 2-3, from Santa Anita Park, featuring the first-ever running of the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic in primetime. The agreement was announced by Craig Fravel, Breeders’ Cup Limited President and CEO, and Jon Miller, President of Programming, NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network.

NBC and NBC Sports Network will combine to present 9 ½ hours of live coverage of the 2012 Breeders’ Cup from Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif., including live primetime coverage of the Breeders’ Cup Classic on NBC on Saturday, Nov. 3 (8-9 p.m. ET). This marks the first time in its history that the Classic is broadcast live in primetime. The Breeders’ Cup returns to NBC where it was broadcast from its inception in 1984 through 2005. Financial terms of the deals were not disclosed.

“Everyone here is delighted that the Breeders’ Cup has returned home,” said Jon Miller, President, Programming, NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network. “Bringing back this prestigious event, combined with our long-term partnerships for the Triple Crown with Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Derby, in addition to the Preakness and Belmont cements the NBC Sports Group as the home of horse racing.”

The Breeders’ Cup, Thoroughbred racing’s most prestigious global racing event, consists of 15 races held over two-days with over $25 million in purses at stake. The culminating event of the Breeders’ Cup, the Breeders’ Cup Classic, is contested at 1 ¼ miles on the main track, for 3-year-olds and older, and is often the determining race for the coveted Horse of the Year title. Over the years, 11 Classic winners have been voted Horse of the Year. In 2009 at Santa Anita Park, the great racemare Zenyatta became the first female to ever win the Classic.

“We are extremely excited to begin our new relationship with NBC and the NBC Sports Group in televising the Breeders’ Cup World Championships as the finale to its expanded commitment to Thoroughbred racing,” said Craig Fravel, President and CEO of Breeders’ Cup Ltd. “In addition to fans enjoying the best in international competition over the two days of the Championships on NBC Sports Network, we look forward to NBC showcasing the Breeders’ Cup Classic in primetime.”

2012 BREEDERS’ CUP TELEVISION SCHEDULE:
All Times Live, ET

Friday, November 2 — 4-8 p.m., NBC Sports Network
Saturday, November 3 — 3:30-8 p.m., NBC Sports Network
Saturday, November 3 — 8-9 p.m., NBC

NBC SPORTS GROUP AND HORSE RACING: The NBC Sports Group is the exclusive home to the most important and prestigious events in horse racing, including the Triple Crown and the Breeders’ Cup, which was broadcast on NBC from 1984-2005. Last year marked the first time that all three Triple Crown races appeared on one network since NBC last aired the Triple Crown in 2005. NBC has been the exclusive home of the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes since 2001.

NBC Sports Group is also the home to Summer at Saratoga, seven straight weekends of live horse racing from Saratoga Race Course, and, in November, NBC partnered with The Jockey Club for a Road to the Kentucky Derby series that will provide live coverage of six major prep races for the 2012 Kentucky Derby.

More coming up later.

UPDATE, 11:33 a.m.: ESPN has released a statement on losing the Breeders Cup to NBC.

In the last few years, ESPN has reduced its coverage of horse racing and this event no longer fits with our overall content strategy. We value our relationship with the Breeders’ Cup and jointly decided this is the best option for their event. We look forward to continuing to work with them on international coverage.

The Best in Sports Broadcasting in 2011

I’m not going to go too wild on this. Other sites are doing similar posts as well.

I’ll provide what I feel are the best calls in Sports Broadcasting this year. The only way to do this is to post videos and that’s what I’ll do. I know I said Best and Worst earlier, but the search is taking too long. We’ll provide the best calls in 2011.

We’ll go sport-by-sport and you can either agree or disagree.

Baseball

Dan Shulman, ESPN Radio — Game 6, World Series, David Freese Walk-off home run

Gary Thorne, MLB International — Same as above. Two great calls of the same moment.

Boxing

Larry Merchant vs. Floyd Mayweather, HBO Pay Per View — Floyd cursed out Larry and then Larry had the comeback of the year.

College Basketball

Gus Johnson, CBS Sports — Pac-10 Championship, Isiah Thomas hits the game-winning shot. “COLD BLOODED!”

College Football

Joe Tessitore, ESPN — “TOUCHDOWN! THEY DID IT!!” Iowa State upsets Oklahoma State knocking the Cowboys out of the BCS.

Joe Tessitore, ESPN on ABC — “Iowa State, USC and Baylor just made a mess of the BCS.” Baylor upsets Oklahoma less than 24 hours later and Joe Tessitore was there.

Golf

Dan Hicks, Johnny Miller and the Golf Channel on NBC crew — The 72nd hole for Rory McIlroy as he wins the US Open at Congressional. Great job by Dan and Johnny as they describe Rory McIlroy winning his first major championship.

Horse Racing

Larry Collmus, NBC — The 137th Kentucky Derby. It marked Larry’s first race for NBC as he replaced Tom Durkin who left in 2010. And he got a huge upset as Animal Kingdom won the race.

Jack Edwards Calls of the Year

Living in New England and having access to NESN and Jack Edwards is the gift that keeps on giving. He was in rare form in 2011. We begin with Jack mocking Chad LaRose of the Carolina Hurricanes with a “Yapping, yapping, yapping all the way to the box.” Classic Jack.

“GET UP!” In Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, Roman Hamrlik of the Montreal Canadiens went down and Jack decided to yell at him.

In Game 7, Hamrlik went down again, but the Bruins went on to score and Jack decided to rub it in.

And after the B’s closed out the Habs, Jack decided to make some puzzling final comments about royalty and having fun. Eight months later, I’m still trying to figure them out.

NFL

none

NHL

Mike Emrick, Versus — Tim Thomas makes a tremendous save in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Women’s World Cup

Ian Darke, ESPN — “ABBY WAMBACH HAS SAVED THE USA’S LIFE IN THIS WOMEN’S WORLD CUP!” Ian Darke had a tremendous call of the goal that tied Brazil in extra time in the quarterfinals.

And that will do it for us.

Bringing Out The Wednesday Links

Ok, going to try to give you a full set of links today. Let’s get started.

Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch has his 2011 Media Awards. Very good list of people getting awards this year.

Michael Hiestand from USA Today writes that when all is said and done, the NFL’s TV ratings for this season will finish down compared to last season’s record highs.

The Nielsen Wire blog notes that the NFL almost had the entire Top 10 highest rated Single Telecast category to itself.

Sofia M. Fernandez of the Hollywood Reporter lists the 11 most triumphant, terrifying and bizarre moments in sports television.

Mike Reynolds at Broadcasting & Cable writes that four networks will air coverage of the NHL Winter Classic Alumni Game on New Year’s Eve.

Mike adds that TNT got cable’s fourth-largest audience ever for an NBA regular season game with its airing of Celtics-Knicks on Christmas Day.

At Multichannel News, Mike says TNT also received good numbers for its Tuesday night NBA doubleheader.

Mike looks at NBC Sports Network’s first original programming project that airs just a half-hour after its launch on January 2.

SportsbyBrooks reports that even if college football analyst Craig James hadn’t run for U.S. Senate, ESPN would have likely dropped him in 2012.

Dan Fogarty at SportsGrid says Shaquille O’Neal had his first real funny moment on TNT Tuesday night.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says an Ohio car dealer hopes to make some buzz if the Cleveland Browns not just beat, but shut out the Pittsburgh Steelers this Sunday.

Jamison Hedley of ESPN.com reports that the Cincinnati Bengals have avoided their 7th blackout of the season.

Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union writes about ESPN pulling First Take co-host Dana Jacobsen off the show and assigning her to other duties.

Sara Ganim of the Harrisburg (PA) Patriot-News says the attorney for embattled former Penn State assistant coach Jerry Sandusky is shopping his client and his wife for a potential interview on a natioal network.

Neal Zoren of the Delaware County Times talks with Philadelphia Flyers TV analyst Rich Tocchet who will have two duties at the NHL Winter Classic.

Tom Jones of the now-Tampa Bay (no longer the St. Petersburg) Times gives his year in review in local and national sports media.

The Louisville Courier-Journal reports that one of its writers has won an Eclipse Award for Writing about horse racing.

Jerry Garcia at the San Antonio Express-News says the Spurs topped the local TV ratings on Monday.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has his winners and losers for 2011 in sports business and media.

Scott D. Pierce of the Salt Lake Tribune talks with CBS’ Verne Lundquist about Utah’s appearance in the Sun Bowl and other matters.

Bruce Dowbiggin in the Toronto Globe and Mail has his top televised images of 2011.

Sports Media Watch has a look at the Top 20 Sports Media stories of the year, starting with #20-16, #15-11 and #10-6.

Awful Announcing looks at the Don Cherry Piano Desk.

Barry Petchesky of Deadspin remembers writing a fan letter to ESPN and getting something in return.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media lists his People of the Year in Hockey Broadcasting for 2011.

The Big Lead notes that ESPN research finds that women don’t like the network’s debate shows. I can’t find any men who like them either.

And we’re done.

NBC Sports Group Announces “Road To The Kentucky Derby” Series

Following the new “Summer at Saratoga” and “Autumn at Keeneland” horse racing series that premiered this year on both NBC and Versus, the NBC Sports Group has announced a spring horse racing series that will lead up to the First Saturday in May which is when the Kentucky Derby is held and marks the first leg of the Triple Crown. NBC, NBC Sports Network and CNBC will air prep races that will thin out of the field and provide the three year old contenders for the 2012 Kentucky Derby. Among the races that NBC has obtained the rights to include the Santa Anita Derby, the Wood Memorial, the Arkansas Derby and the Florida Derby. NBC Sports Network will be on for the first two programs followed by NBC and then CNBC rounds out the package.

We have details from the NBC Sports Group.

THE JOCKEY CLUB PARTNERS WITH NBC SPORTS GROUP AND RACETRACKS TO BROADCAST “ROAD TO THE KENTUCKY DERBY” SERIES

Four Consecutive Weekends on NBC, NBC Sports Network and CNBC in the Spring of 2012

NEW YORK – November 8, 2011 – The Jockey Club, in collaboration with the NBC Sports Group, CNBC and six racetracks, will provide live coverage of six major prep races for the 2012 Kentucky Derby over four consecutive weekends next spring, it was announced today.

The series will be highlighted by a 90-minute live broadcast on NBC featuring the New York City Wood Memorial at Aqueduct and the Santa Anita Derby at Santa Anita Park on April 7, 2012.

The other four Kentucky Derby prep races are the Spiral Stakes from Turfway Park on March 24 and the Florida Derby from Gulfstream Park on March 31, both of which will air on the NBC Sports Network (which will be renamed from VERSUS on Jan. 2, 2012), and the Blue Grass Stakes from Keeneland Race Course and the Arkansas Derby from Oaklawn Park, which will air on CNBC on April 14.

“The Jockey Club is proud to work with our television and racetrack partners to bring more of our sport’s best racing to a national audience,” Ogden Mills Phipps, Chariman of The Jockey Club said. “Increasing the television presence of Thoroughbred racing is just the first step in a long term, multi-media strategy focused on fan retention and development. Together with racetracks and other industry organizations, we plan to aggressively cross-promote Thoroughbred racing on a variety of traditional and new digital media platforms.”

“These races are important steppingstones to the Kentucky Derby,” said Jon Miller, President, Programming, NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network. “And this programming further demonstrates the NBC Sports Group’s commitment to the sport of Thoroughbred racing, which already includes long-term deals for the Triple Crown races as well as with Saratoga and Keeneland.”

Increased television coverage of Thoroughbred racing and the development of a new digital media strategy were among nine recommendations identified in the major economic study of the Thoroughbred industry that was commissioned by The Jockey Club, and conducted in association with the management consulting firm McKinsey & Company, earlier this year. The findings and recommendations were announced in August at The Jockey Club’s Round Table Conference in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

ROAD TO THE KENTUCKY DERBY COVERAGE (All Times ET)

Saturday, March 24, 2012, 5-6 p.m. (NBC Sports Network)
Spiral Stakes and Bourbonette Oaks (Turfway Park)

Saturday, March 31, 2012, 5-6 p.m. (NBC Sports Network)
Florida Derby and Gulfstream Oaks (Gulfstream Park)

Saturday, April 7, 2012, 4:30-6 p.m. (NBC)
New York City Wood Memorial (Aqueduct Racetrack) and Santa Anita Derby (Santa Anita Park)

Saturday, April 14, 2012, 6-7 p.m. ET (CNBC)
Blue Grass Stakes (Keeneland) and Arkansas Derby (Oaklawn Park)

That will do it.

NBC Extends “Summer at Saratoga” For Two More Years

NBC Sports Group was apparently happy with its Summer at Saratoga horse racing series that it has extended its agreement with the Saratoga Race Course and the New York Racing Association through the 2013 season. This year, NBC and Versus combined to show 8 hours of horse racing over a span of seven weeks. Tentatively in 2012, NBC and NBC Sports Network will air 6 hours of racing over 5 weeks. That schedule is subject to change, but overall, the schedule appears to go from early August into September.

This gives NBC Sports Network some live summer programming on weekends. We have the press release from NBC Sports Group.

NYRA AND NBC SPORTS GROUP EXTEND SUMMER AT SARATOGA PARTNERSHIP THROUGH 2013

NEW YORK and SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – September 21, 2011 – Due to the success of the inaugural series, the New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) and the NBC Sports Group have announced a two-year extension for Summer at Saratoga, which will bring live national coverage of the Saratoga Race Course meet through 2013.

This year’s NBC Sports Group coverage of the Saratoga meet marked the most extensive live national broadcast presence ever of racing from the prestigious track, including three hour-long shows on NBC and five on VERSUS, spanning seven weekends in total. VERSUS will be re-named the NBC Sports Network on Jan. 2, 2012.

“The NBC Sports Group’s landmark coverage of this summer’s Saratoga meet was phenomenal,” said NYRA President and CEO Charles Hayward. “NBC and VERSUS took everything that is special about Saratoga, from the incredible racing to the unparalleled fan experience to the storied history and beauty of the track and the town, and conveyed those elements to viewers across the country. We are very excited to extend this partnership for at least two more years and are already looking forward to the 2012 meet.”

“We are excited to extend our partnership with Charles Hayward and NYRA, one of our valued Triple Crown partners, to present Summer at Saratoga for two more years,” said Jon Miller, President of Programming, NBC Sports and VERSUS. “Saratoga is one of the iconic venues in American sports, and we couldn’t be happier with the multi-platform success we shared in the first year of this partnership.”

Highlights of this summer’s NBC and VERSUS coverage included Stay Thirsty surging to the top of the 3-year-old division with victories in the Jim Dandy and Travers; Tizway making his Horse of the Year case with an emphatic Whitney triumph; and Havre de Grace becoming only the second filly in history to win the Woodward.

The tentative schedule for the NBC Sports Group’s live coverage of Summer at Saratoga for 2012 is as follows:

• Saturday, August 11 – 6-7 p.m. ET – NBC Sports Network
• Sunday, August 12 – 4-6 p.m. ET – NBC Sports Network
• Saturday, August 18 – 5-6 p.m. ET – NBC Sports Network
• Saturday, August 25 – 4-6 p.m. ET – NBC
• Saturday, September 1 – 5-6 p.m. ET – NBC

Saratoga Race Course was named one of the world’s top 10 venues of the 20th century by Sports Illustrated. From late July through Labor Day, many of the sport’s top owners, trainers, jockeys, and horses gather in Saratoga Springs for the premier thoroughbred racing meet in the country. First held in 1863, the Saratoga meet regularly draws more than 20,000 passionate racing fans to the track on a daily basis.

That is it.

“Summer at Saratoga” Ends Today

The end of NBC Sports Group’s horse racing series, “Summer at Saratoga” is today. Versus will air the Forego and Woodward Stakes from the fabled Saratoga Race Course in upstate New York. It’s a series that gave both NBC and Versus some summer programming over a span of six consecutive weeks. We’ll see if this is successful and gives The Group the impetus to bring this back for next summer. Here’s the preview for today’s season finale of “Summer at Saratoga.”

NBC SPORTS GROUP COVERAGE OF “SUMMER AT SARATOGA” SERIES CONCLUDES THIS WEEKEND ON VERSUS

Seven Straight Weekends of Coverage from Saratoga Concludes Saturday at 5 p.m. ET with The Woodward and Forego

NEW YORK – Sept. 1, 2011 – The NBC Sports Group’s seven straight weekends of “Summer at Saratoga” live horse racing from Saratoga Race Course concludes this Saturday, 5-6 p.m. ET with coverage of the Grade 1 Woodward featuring Horse of the Year candidate Havre de Grace, in addition to coverage of the Grade 1 Forego.

COMMENTATORS: Saturday’s coverage will be hosted by Laffit Pincay, III alongside analyst Randy Moss. They will be joined by reporters Donna Brothers and the Daily Racing Form’s Jay Privman. VERSUS will take the race call from the Saratoga track announcer, the legendary Tom Durkin.

NBCSports.com will feature highlights and features from every race, plus online-only features by NBC Sports and VERSUS’ on-air talent.

WOODWARD AND FOREGO: Eyeing Horse of the Year honors, 4-year-old filly Havre de Grace will face males for the first time in her career in the 58^th edition of the 1 1/8-mile Woodward. Havre de Grace has rounded into top form this year, winning three races, including the Apple Blossom. She enters the race off a close second in the Delaware Handicap. Her assignment on Saturday will not be easy as she will face Suburban winner Flat Out and Donn victor Giant Oak, who were respectively second and third in the Whitney.

The telecast will also include the seven-furlong Forego, in which versatile colt Sidney’s Candy will try to win his first graded sprint stakes on dirt and Jackson Bend will attempt to duplicate his impressive triumph in the James Marvin.

In May, The New York Racing Association (NYRA) and the NBC Sports Group announced a partnership to broadcast “Summer at Saratoga,” the most extensive live national television coverage of racing from Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., over seven weekends this summer beginning this Saturday and including the famed $1 million Travers Stakes on August 27.

Saratoga Race Course was named one of the world’s top 10 venues of the 20^th century by Sports Illustrated. From late July through Labor Day, many of the sport’s top owners, trainers, jockeys, and horses gather in Saratoga Springs for the premier thoroughbred racing meet in the country. First held in 1863, the Saratoga meet now draws more than 20,000 passionate racing fans to the track on a daily basis.

Another press release is on the way.

Doing Some Thursday Linkage

Let’s provide links while I can. Trying not to make this a week where links are scarce. Let’s get this done.

First, Jessica E. Vascellaro and Darren Everson of the Wall Street Journal look at how infusions of TV rights money has changed college sports not necessarily for the better.

John Ourand at Sports Business Daily notes that Longhorn Network has picked up its first major cable provider just ahead of Friday’s launch.

Tim Baysinger of Broadcasting & Cable also writes about Longhorn Network’s carriage deal.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News looks at Fox Soccer signing a multiyear deal for the UEFA Europa League.

Emma Bazilian of Adweek says the Bleacher Report has raised $22 million in capital for future expansion of the site.

Toni Fitzgerald of Media Life Magazine explores the rich naming rights deal involving MetLife and the New Meadowlands Stadium.

Dave Kindred at the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center says there are not that many differences between “New School” and “Old School” writers.

Marcus Vanderberg of SportsNewser says the operator of an illegal sports video streaming site was arrested by the Feds yesterday.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell feels Danica Patrick’s popularity has hit the wall.

Dashiell Bennett of the Business Insider’s Sports Page notes that ESPN put up a controversial rendering (now since taken down) of Michael Vick as a white man.

Robert Littal of Black Sports Online has a problem with ESPN’s premise of making Vick a white man.

At ESPN Front Row, PR maven Mike Soltys informs us that the Alleged Worldwide Leader has revised its social networking policy.

Claire Atkinson of the New York Post says any talk of the NFL and Time Warner Cable being close on a deal for NFL Network is just that. Talk.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union notes that TBS has made a change for its Sunday MLB game due to Hurricane Irene.

Ken Schott says a local radio station will have a unique baseball-horse racing on-air schedule this Saturday.

Ken McMillan of the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says the MSG Networks will be airing plenty of college football in the fall.

Ken adds that MSG Network will air a prospects hockey tournament next month.

Keith Groller of the Allentown (PA) Morning Call says an area native is doing overnight sports reports on WFAN.

Justin Fenton and Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun report that police have confirmed that former Orioles pitcher and broadcaster Mike Flanagan took his own life outside his home on Wednesday.

Peter Schmuck of the Sun says now is not the time to speculate why Flanagan chose to end his life.

The Sun’s Kevin Cowherd writes that Flanagan made people laugh as a player and as a broadcaster.

In Press Box, Dave Hughes says Flanagan’s death is still a mystery.

Matt Brooks in the Washington Post’s Early Lead blog says Flanagan’s death has hit the Orioles very hard.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner writes that Danica Patrick’s move to NASCAR makes the Baltimore Grand Prix one of her last IndyCar races of her career.

Ken Tysiac of the Charlotte (NC) Observer says thanks to its new ESPN contract, ACC basketball will get plenty of TV exposure.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News has a primer on the Longhorn Network.

Jimmy Burch of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram has CBS Sports Chair Sean McManus feeling the SEC will be standing pat for the foreseeable future.

Jimmy says Verizon FiOS will be distributing the Longhorn Network across the country.

The Houston Chronicle says a local TV station will begin airing Thursday night high school football games.

David Barron of the Chronicle writes that the Longhorn Network is ready to launch, but won’t be seen widely in Houston.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business says Notre Dame has renewed a radio rights deal with WLS-AM.

Toni Ginnetti of the Chicago Sun-Times looks at a big reveal from ESPN Films’ documentary on the Steve Bartman 2003 NLCS inc

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has Sports Illustrated saying the beating of a San Francisco Giants fan in the Dodger Stadium parking lot earlier this year sealed the fate of the franchise.

Mason Kelly of the Seattle Times says a local high school gym got a facelift thanks to an ESPN program.

Only Deadspin. It has a spy inside ESPN’s State of the Union meeting with higher ups.

Sox & Dawgs looks at SNY’s UConn football coverage.

The Toronto Sports Media blog notes that long-time Maple Leafs voice Dennis Beyak is apparently heading to Winnipeg.

Sports Media Watch has some various football programming notes.

That is going to finish the links for today.

The Friday Night Megalinks

I’ve been to Newton, MA and back, South Kingstown, RI and back and all over my hometown of North Kingstown, RI and all of this today. It’s time to do the megalinks and get them all done in one sitting.

There’s the Weekend Viewing Picks for your sports and entertainment programming.

National

Sports Business Daily goes over the UFC/Fox agreement that will put four live MMA events on network TV and plenty of ancillary programming on Fox’s cable networks.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand writes that Fox Sports Media Group El Presidente Por Vida David Hill has done an about face on airing Mixed Martial Arts.

Sergio Non of USA Today writes that UFC will revamp its shows when they move from Spike and Versus to Fox’s networks.

Sergio has those who will take part in the first UFC on Fox card in November.

Eric Deggans of the St. Petersburg Times writes in the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center that the success of the UFC on Fox all depends on whether the sport can have a breakout star.

Dave Meltzer at Yahoo! says UFC President Dana White couldn’t be happier in making this deal with Fox.

Also from Yahoo!, Kevin Iole says it will be the fighters who will benefit the most from the new UFC on Fox contract.

Cam Martin of SportsNewser has Spike announcing that the new season of UFC’s The Ultimate Fighter will be the last on its airwaves, naturally.

Anthony Crupi of Adweek looks into the particulars of the UFC on Fox deal.

Bill Cromwell of Media Life Magazine writes that the Fox contract gives UFC some instant mainstream credibility.

There will be more UFC on Fox stories sprinkled throughout the megalinks. Let’s move on to other stories now.

The Hollywood Reporter’s Tim Goodman wonders if Showtime’s “The Franchise” is bringing down the San Francisco Giants this season.

Georg Szalai of the Reporter reports that Comcast has withdrawn a lawsuit against DirecTV over an ad campaign for NFL Sunday Ticket.

David Goetzl of MediaPost notes that DirecTV plans to expand its fantasy offerings for NFL Sunday Ticket.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News looks at Versus/NBC Sports Network’s new exclusive NHL night in the first year of its new 10 year contract with the league.

Andrew McMains of Adweek looks at a new inspiring web video produced for the US Olympic Committee.

All Access says the ESPN Radio affiliate in Minnesota’s Twin Cities has chosen the hosts for its midday show.

Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo’s Puck Daddy explores which teams won and lost in the new NHL TV schedules.

Cam Martin of SportsNewser writes that former voice of the North Carolina Tar Heels, Woody Durham, will be honored for his contributions to college football.

The Big Lead wonders if Jay Bilas is the most respected voice at ESPN.

Timothy Burke of SportsGrid investigates how former 2 Live Crew leader Luther Campbell managed to appear to appear on the Dan Patrick Show and the Colin Cowherd Show at the same time.

And Tim presents the Atlanta Braves’ Shake Cam and how it can make fans a bit too excited.

Sports Media Watch says the U-20 World Cup is scoring for Galavision.

Matt Yoder at Awful Announcing has a look at some interesting sports media typos.

Matt shows us how the Baseball Tonight crew had trouble demonstrating its new touchscreen.

Joe Favorito looks at what’s new with professional lacrosse.

Patrick Stafford of Smart Company in Australia speaks with the owner of Footytips.com about how he sold his site to ESPN.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Chad Finn of the Boston Globe says the limited classic programming on NBA TV during the current league lockout can only take the channel so far.

Sox & Dawgs has the video of NESN’s Don Orsillo and Jerry Remy wearing chicken hats in the booth.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times writes on how regional sports networks have increasing power and money to be a game changer for some professional teams.

Richard looks at the UFC on Fox deal that puts Mixed Martial Arts into the mainstream.

Dan Levin from the Times has a good story on how some athletes in Communist China are trying to buck their archaic system.

Mark DeCambre of the New York Post notes that the new Meadowlands Stadium now will have a sponsor when the new NFL season begins.

Justin Terranova in the Post looks at how Fordham University was a training ground for several NYC announcers.

Justin has five questions for SNY Jets analyst Anthony Becht.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union writes about Fox signing UFC for seven years.

Pete says local sports anchor Andrew Catalon’s call of tonight’s Browns-Lions game will be seen on NFL Network this weekend.

Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette says a local radio station will air a full high school football schedule.

Ken says the NBC Sports Group is increasing its commitment to horse racing this fall.

And Ken writes that a new local sports radio talk show will be debuting soon.

To Ken McMillan of the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record who says the New York Rangers will be featured extensively on the national NHL TV schedules.

Crossing Broad has the audio of Philadelphia’s sports radio station WIP announcement that it’s taking over WYSP’s FM frequency killing off a heritage rock station.

Dan Gross of the Philadelphia Daily News says ‘YSP staffers were melancholy about CBS Radio’s announcement killing off the station.

Jeff Wolfe of the Delaware County Times writes about WIP’s displacement of WYSP just as the rocker’s ratings were increasing.

Mike White in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says two local high school games hit the ESPN family of networks this fall.

Shelly Anderson of the Post-Gazette says the Penguins TV announcing crew will return for another season.

In the Baltimore Sun, David Zurawik explains where Ravens fans can find the team on TV and radio.

Dave Hughes of DCRTV.com writes in Press Box that the Ravens did extremely well in the ratings in both Baltimore and Washington, DC in their NFL preseason opener.

Jim Williams from the Washington Examiner talks with DC NFL Team radio voice Larry Michael.

And Jim writes that the Washington Capitals will have plenty of appearances on NBC/Versus (NBC Sports Network).

Mike Madden in the Washington City Paper says the local sports anchor is becoming a thing of the past.

Keith Loria of the Fairfax (VA) Times says native Lindsay Czarniak is about to make her debut on ESPN.

South

The Charleston (WV) Gazette notes that Root Sports Pittsburgh will carry some West Virginia and Marshall programming.

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports that Bob Griese will be joining the Miami Dolphins radio broadcast team replacing the late Jim Mandich.

Andy Kent of the Miami Dolphins website has Griese’s thoughts about joining the broadcast team and also sharing thoughts about Mandich.

Tom Jones of the St. Petersburg Times has some thoughts on the UFC/Fox deal, the Little League World Series on TV and CBS’ production of the PGA Championship.

Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel says Yahoo! Sports does a better job of investigating college sports than the NCAA.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle notes that Saturday’s US National Gymnastics championships get a network primetime slot.

Mike Finger and Brent Zwerneman of the San Antonio Express-News says the Longhorn Network hasn’t given up on airing high school football games in one form or another.

The Daily Oklahoman’s Mel Bracht looks at UFC getting a big payday from Fox.

Midwest

John Kiesewetter in the Cincinnati Enquirer talks with NBC’s Cris Collinsworth who’s going into his third season as Sunday Night Football analyst.

George M. Thomas of the Akron Beacon Journal now knows why DirecTV was so willing to give him a free subscription to NFL Sunday Ticket after learning that the service will be offered to Sony Playstation 3 owners.

The Grand Rapids (MI) Press’ Michael Zuidema notes that a Big Ten Network analyst feels Nebraska is a perfect fit for the conference.

Bob Wolfley at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is amazed at ESPN’s ever-expanding army of NFL analysts and mountain of NFL programming.

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

Scott Dochterman in the Iowa City Gazette says NFL Network has picked up Mediacom for cable subscribers in the Hawkeye State.

West

Scott D. Pierce of the Salt Lake Tribune says it’s not known which network will air the October 15th contest between BYU and Oregon State.

Dick Harmon of the Deseret (UT) News speaks with BYUtv’s Executive Director in a lengthy interview. Part I of which is here. Read Part II here.

Larry Bohannan at the Desert (CA) Sun says there’s evidence of not much live golf shown in a PGA Tour telecast.

John Maffei of the North County Times weighs the pros and cons of airing the Little League World Series.

In the Ventura County Star, Jim Carlisle looks at the contrasting opinions that John and Patrick McEnroe had on the state of American tennis on HBO’s Real Sports this week.

Jim explores the UFC on Fox deal.

Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times says Fox paid a pretty penny to get UFC into the fold.

Meg James of the Times also writes about the UFC on Fox deal.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News says when it came down to it, Fox didn’t have much of a choice but to sign UFC.

Tom says one sidebar to the UFC on Fox deal is the fact that Fox Sports Radio will also air MMA events.

Tom writes that former Dodgers radio voice Ross Porter has found his latest gig, calling high school sports online.

Canada

The Toronto Globe and Mail’s Bruce Dowbiggin feels TSN Radio isn’t getting the job done.

The Winnipeg Free Press notes that the Jets will get 22 games aired on CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada.

And the number of links today are hearken back to the first two years of this blog. Lots of links. That’s it.

“Summer at Saratoga” Continues on NBC

The “Summer at Saratoga” series on the NBC Sports Group, this time airing on the “Mothership” with the Alabama Stakes being the featured race. The NBC Sports horse racing crew of Tom Hammond, Gary Stevens, Mike Battaglia and Kenny Rice will all be on hand. Calling the race will be the Voice of Saratoga, Tom Durkin. Here are the details of NBC’s broadcast.

NBC SPORTS GROUP COVERAGE OF “SUMMER AT SARATOGA” SERIES CONTINUES THIS WEEKEND ON NBC

Seven Straight Weekends of Coverage from Saratoga Continues Saturday at 5 p.m. ET with The Alabama

NEW YORK – August 18, 2011 – The NBC Sports Group’s seven straight weekends of “Summer at Saratoga” live horse racing from Saratoga Race Course continues this Saturday, 5-6 p.m. ET on NBC with coverage of the Grade 1, $500,000 Alabama.

COMMENTATORS: Saturday’s coverage will be hosted by Tom Hammond alongside Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens, handicapper Mike Battaglia and reporter Kenny Rice. NBC will take the race call from the Saratoga track announcer, the legendary Tom Durkin.

ABOUT THE BROADCAST: In addition to the Alabama, coverage will include a feature story on It’s Tricky, a contender for the Triple Tiara and a preview of next week’s famed Travers Stakes.

NBCSports.com will feature highlights and features from every race, plus online-only features by NBC Sports and VERSUS’ on-air talent.

THE ALABAMA: To date, six fillies – Top Flight (1932), Damaged Goods (1940), Shuvee (1969), Mom’s Command (1985), Open Mind (1989), and Sky Beauty (1993) – have swept the Acorn, Coaching Club American Oaks, and Alabama. On Saturday, It’s Tricky will attempt to add her name to that list when she faces five formidable 3-year-old fillies in the 131^st running of the prestigious Alabama.

It’s Tricky, a 3-year-old daughter of 2003 Horse of the Year Mineshaft, is poised to don the Triple Tiara, but first she’ll have to defeat a select field of fillies that includes the winners of the Kentucky Oaks (Plum Pretty), Black-Eyed Susan (Royal Delta), Queen’s Plate (Inglorious), and Delaware Oaks (St. John’s River).

NBC AND NYRA: In May, The New York Racing Association (NYRA) and the NBC Sports Group announced a partnership to broadcast “Summer at Saratoga,” the most extensive live national television coverage of racing from Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., over seven weekends this summer beginning this Saturday and including the famed $1 million Travers Stakes on August 27.

NBC SPORTS GROUP SUMMER AT SARATOGA REMAINING COVERAGE (All Times ET):

Aug. 20, Alabama, 5-6 p.m., NBC
Aug. 27, Travers and King’s Bishop, 5-6 p.m., NBC
Sept. 3, Woodward and Forego, 5-6 p.m., VERSUS

That’s it for this post.

NBC Sports To Launch Fall Horse Racing Series

Just as it did for “Summer at Saratoga”, the NBC Sports Group has announced today a fall horse racing series that will take place over two weekends from the Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, KY. Versus will air most of the races with NBC Sports coming in for the last weekend of racing. This “Autumn at Keeneland” series will mark the 75th Anniversary of the track which has been key to the history of horse racing.

The races to be aired include the Shadwell Turf Mile and the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup. We have a look at what will be aired as the NBC Sports Group will air the races in a two week span starting on October 7.

KEENELAND AND NBC SPORTS GROUP PARTNER FOR “AUTUMN AT KEENELAND” SERIES

4 Hours of Live Coverage Over 2 Weekends from Keeneland Begins October 7 on VERSUS

NEW YORK – August 18, 2011 – Keeneland Association and the NBC Sports Group today announced a partnership to broadcast “Autumn at Keeneland,” live racing from Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky., over two weekends this fall beginning on October 7 on VERSUS and culminating with an hour-long live broadcast of Keeneland’s 75^th Anniversary on October 15 on NBC. The announcement was made by Nick Nicholson, President and CEO of Keeneland and Jon Miller, President, Programming, NBC Sports and VERSUS.

Keeneland, which is a national historic landmark, conducts world-class Thoroughbred racing every April and October, with the autumn meet kicking off with FallStars Weekend—a stellar lineup that includes nine graded stakes over three days.

“We can think of no better way to celebrate our anniversary season than with our friends at NBC,” said Nicholson. “They have done an outstanding job with their coverage of Summer at Saratoga, and anytime we can showcase quality racing on a national level, it’s good for our entire sport.”

“Keeneland is one of the true iconic venues in horse racing,” said Miller. With the great results we had from this year’s Triple Crown and the tremendous response we are getting from our Summer at Saratoga package, to be able to add Autumn at Keeneland further cements the NBC Sports Group as the home of horse racing.”

NBC SPORTS GROUP AUTUMN AT KEENELAND COVERAGE (All Times ET)

Friday, October 7, 5-6 p.m., ET, VERSUS

• Featuring the $400,000 Darley Alcibiades (G1) and $175,000 Stoll Keenon Odgen Phoenix Stakes (G3)

Saturday, October 8, 5-6 p.m., ET, VERSUS

• Featuring the $600,000 Shadwell Turf Mile (G1) and $400,000 Dixiana Breeders’ Futurity (G1)

Sunday, October 9, 5-6 p.m., ET, VERSUS

• Featuring the $500,000 Juddmonte Spinster (G1) and $100,000 Bourbon (G3)

Saturday, October 15, 5-6 p.m. ET, NBC

• Featuring the $400,000 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (G1) and $125,000 Keeneland 75^th Anniversary (L)

Founded as a model racetrack in 1936, Keeneland also is the world’s largest Thoroughbred auction company. Fueled by the success of the sales, Keeneland has contributed more than $18 million back to the industry and community through the years.

That will do it.

Let’s Do Some Thursday Linkage

Today is going to be a busy day with the UFC on Fox press conference and the NHL TV schedule announcement. I figure now would be a good time to linkage and I hope I don’t get interrupted here at work.

The big news that broke late yesterday was DirecTV announcing that it would offer its NFL Sunday Ticket package to Sony Playstation 3 platforms. Thomas Umstead of Multichannel News writes that the package will be offered to both non and current DirecTV subscribers.

In Sony’s official Playstation 3 blog, Philip Rosenberg explains what Playstation fans will see with the NFL Sunday Ticket offering.

Kari Lipschutz of Adweek tells us what this move means for Playstation owners.

CBS Radio continues to kill off its heritage rock stations and flip them to FM sports. It killed off rock stations in Boston and Cleveland in favor of new FM sports stations. Today’s it’s Philadelphia’s turn as long-time rocker WYSP will go by the wayside for a simulcast of WIP which was the 2nd station in the country after WFAN to go all-sports. All Access says the flip to sports will occur after Labor Day.

Dan Gross of the Philadelphia Daily News has the full details of the format change.

The Crossing Broad blog provides its reaction to the move.

The 700 Level analyzes what this all means for the Philly sports fan.

Back to Multichannel News, Mike Reynolds writes that the University of Hawaii will launch its own regional sports network on Friday, beating the Longhorn Network’s launch by a week.

Brett McMurphy of CBSSports.com says a big payday for the Big East’s TV contract could lead to major changes in the conference.

The LPGA has announced that it’s hired long-time Golf Channel anchor Kraig Kann as its chief communications officer.

Bob Cook at Forbes.com detests ESPN’s coverage of the Little League World Series.

Brandon Costa at Sports Video Group says the New York Jets will add a 1st and 10 line to its in-house game productions.

At SportsGrid, Timothy Burke has the audio of USA Today’s Danny Sheridan backing off a promise to name the money provider in the Cam Newton scandal and then he attacked bloggers. Not a good way to go, Danny.

To CNBC’s Darren Rovell who wonders why the NFL Players Association settled for as little as it did with the NFL.

At the Business of College Sports, the SportsBizMiss, Kristi Dosh goes over why the SEC did not formally invite Texas A&M to join its conference.

Tim Walker of the Independent in the UK explores the launch of ESPN.com’s Grantland and praises the site.

Jessica Heslam of the Boston Herald says former WEEI personality Pete Sheppard resumes his duties at Patriots.com next month.

Joe Drape at the New York Times says NBC Sports will air horse racing from the Keeneland Race Course in Kentucky in October.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union has a look at the ACC Network schedule.

Laura Nachman notes that Vince Papale won’t be hosting Eagles Confidential this season.

Mike White of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette notes that Root Sports will change its night for high school football programming where it can show most of it live.

Mike Berardino of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel wants to know who should be added to the Miami Dolphins radio broadcast team.

Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal writes that the Grizzlies will be changing radio stations when the NBA returns from lockout.

B.J. Bethel of the Dayton Daily News says ESPN is part of the problem with college football.

James Jahnke of the Detroit Free Press says Lions fans won’t be heckling Matt Millen as he’s been taken off ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown show.

The Holland (MI) Sentinel reports that Fox Sports Detroit will increase its high school football coverage this fall.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that NFL Network will air the 2010 Packers edition of America’s Game the night before the NFL regular season opener.

Ed Sherman of Crain’s Chicago Business notes that a new book on the late Walter Payton will be published in October.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News reviews an HBO Real Sports segment comparing and contrasting the Brothers McEnroe’s opinions on how to revive American tennis.

Tom talks with two-time U.S. Women’s Amateur Champion Danielle Kang.

Gary Lycan of the Orange County Register writes about the New York Jets being heard on Southern California radio this season.

Sports Media Watch notes that the first preseason Monday Night Football game received lower ratings from last year’s opener.

SMW has some various ratings news and notes.

Joe Favorito wonders if the NBA’s D-League can benefit from the NBA lockout.

Ben Koo at Awful Announcing looks at ESPN’s reluctance to cover the Miami payment scandal that was uncovered by Yahoo! Sports this week.

Scott Christ at Bad Left Hook takes a look at boxing’s TV ratings this year to date.

I’m going to end the links there. It’s going to be a busy day here. Keep your RSS and Twitter feeds updated. The posts could get fast and furious this afternoon.

Versus Has A Double Dose of Summer at Saratoga This Weekend

Saturday and Sunday, Versus will air a total of four horse races from Saratoga Race Track. We have details have the NBC Sports Group right here.

NBC SPORTS GROUP COVERAGE OF “SUMMER AT SARATOGA” SERIES CONTINUES THIS WEEKEND ON VERSUS

Seven Straight Weekends of Coverage from Saratoga Continues Saturday at 5 p.m. ET with The Whitney and Sunday at 5 p.m. ET with the Vanderbilt

NEW YORK – August 3, 2011 – The NBC Sports Group’s seven straight weekends of “Summer at Saratoga” live horse racing from Saratoga Race Course continues this weekend with two shows on VERSUS, Saturday, 5-6 p.m. ET with coverage of the Whitney and Test and Sunday, 5-6 p.m. ET with coverage of the Vanderbilt and Honorable Miss.

COMMENTATORS: Saturday’s coverage will be hosted by Laffit Pincay, III alongside analyst Randy Moss. They will be joined by handicapper Bob Neumeier and the Daily Racing Form’s Jay Privman. VERSUS will take the race call from the Saratoga track announcer, the legendary Tom Durkin.

ABOUT THE BROADCASTS: In addition to the four grades stakes races, coverage will include two feature stories. On Saturday, there will be a feature about Al Stall, the trainer of Apart, who won the Whitney last year with Blame – the horse that went on to win the Breeders’ Cup Classic defeating Zenyatta.

Sunday’s feature will look at the owners of Noble’s Promise, a group of everyday people who pooled $10,000 to buy the horse. For some, it is their first trip to Saratoga. This feature will also recount the owners’ Kentucky Derby experience, as Noble’s Promise ran in the 2010 Derby.

NBCSports.com will feature highlights and features from every race, plus online-only features by NBC Sports and VERSUS’ on-air talent.

SATURDAY – WHITNEY AND TEST: Headed by Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap winner Tizway, Saturday’s Grade 1, $750,000 Whitney Invitational Handicap at 1 1/8 miles has also attracted Apart, Duke of Mischief, Flat Out, Friend Or Foe, Giant Oak, Headache, Mission Impazible, Morning Line, Rail Trip, and Rodman. Always one of the meet’s most prestigious races, the Whitney is shaping up as one of the best races for older horses run this year.

Saturday’s Grade 1 Test, seven furlongs for 3-year-old fillies, is expected to draw Grade 1 Prioress winner Her Smile, American Lady, Ava K., Coax Liberty, Pomeroys Pistol, Roman Treasure, Salty Strike and Turbulent Descent, a dual Grade 1 winner in California and runner-up in the June 11 TVG Acorn at Belmont Park.

SUNDAY – VANDERBILT AND HONORABLE MISS: Sunday features a pair of graded sprint stakes, with the Grade 1, six-furlong Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap expected to attract Trappe Shot, who looks to keep his momentum going following a victory in the Grade 2 True North Handicap on Belmont Stakes day. Also probable for the race are Apriority, Atta Boy Roy, Bank Merger, Calibrachoa, Noble’s Promise, and Sean Avery.

The Grade 2 Honorable Miss, a six-furlong handicap for fillies and mares 3-year-olds and up, is likely to attract last year’s G1 Acorn and Test heroine Champagne d’Oro, along with Beat the Blues, Tar Heel Mom, Tidal Pool, and Wild News.

In May, The New York Racing Association (NYRA) and the NBC Sports Group announced a partnership to broadcast “Summer at Saratoga,” the most extensive live national television coverage of racing from Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., over seven weekends this summer beginning this Saturday and including the famed $1 million Travers Stakes on August 27.

NBC SPORTS GROUP SUMMER AT SARATOGA REMAINING COVERAGE (All Times ET)

Saturday, Whitney and Test, 5-6 p.m., VERSUS
Sunday, Vanderbilt and Honorable Miss, 5-6 p.m., VERSUS
Aug. 13, Sword Dancer, 5-6 p.m., VERSUS
Aug. 20, Alabama, 5-6 p.m., NBC
Aug. 27, Travers and King’s Bishop, 5-6 p.m., NBC
Sept. 3, Woodward and Forego, 5-6 p.m., VERSUS

That’s all for now.