Media
Nearly a quarter of a million Boston area DirecTV subscribers have been cut off from a pair of Boston television stations since Saturday. Unless the stations owners and DirecTV can come up with a resolution to their dispute chances are good those customer’s will have to go elsewhere to watch the Super Bowl on February 5.
WHDH TV Channel 7 and WLVI TV Channel 56 owners Sunbeam Television Corp. blacked out it’s stations signals from DirecTV while it seeks an increase in the fees that DirecTV pays to carry the station.
Sunbeam says that DirecTV refuses to come anywhere near what the established market rate is for those fees and that the proposed rates from DirecTV are too low.
DirecTV executives have accused Sunbeam of a “shameless attempt to extort a more than 300 percent fee increase that our customers will have to absorb."
DirecTV had asked Sunbeam to keep the signals to WHDH and WLVI available over the weekend but to no avail. WHDH has suggested that customers switch satellite companies, change to cable or buy digital rabbit ear antenna’s to receive the stations over the air signals.
A DirecTV blackout of the Super Bowl broadcast which is being carried by NBC affiliate WHDH this year in the Boston market could be huge with two teams with deep, local roots facing each other.
Several Boston area businesses that have the DirecTV service are concerned. They are counting on the Super Bowl and the participation of the Patriots and Giants to bring customers to their bars. If no agreement is reached by February 5th those businesses are in line to lose a lot of money by not being able to show the game.
Follow Steve on Twitter @SteveMichaelsII
no comments
With no managerial openings going his way, former Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona has found himself a new job. He'll be replacing the new manager of the Red Sox, Bobby Valentine, at ESPN.
Here's the release from ESPN:
Terry Francona, two-time World Champion manager of the Boston Red Sox, has joined ESPN in a multiplatform role which will include serving as an analyst for Sunday Night Baseball, the network’s exclusive national game of the week. Francona will join Dan Shulman and Orel Hershiser in the Sunday Night Baseball booth, replacing current Red Sox manager and former ESPN analyst Bobby Valentine. He will make his ESPN debut tonight, Dec. 5, on SportsCenter and Baseball Tonight from the Winter Meetings in Dallas.
Francona will also provide analysis for Baseball Tonight, among other news and information shows, and ESPN’s coverage of the Little League World Series. Additionally, he will be a featured guest on ESPN Radio’s national shows and contributor to ESPN.com and ESPNBoston.com.
“Terry is a brilliant baseball mind, with two World Series rings over the last eight seasons, and we’re thrilled to welcome him to our team,” said Norby Williamson, executive vice president, production. “Ted Williams for Joe DiMaggio never happened, but this is ESPN’s version with Bobby moving to the Red Sox dugout and Terry replacing him on Sunday Night Baseball.”
“I’m excited to join ESPN and to be able to talk about my passion for baseball with fans who love the game as much as me,” said Francona. “In some ways, I’ll be a rookie all over again, but I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
Francona provided analysis for Fox Sports during the American League Championship Series in 2011.
Francona managed the Red Sox for eight seasons (2004-11), leading the team to a pair of World Series championships (2004; 2007) and a record of 744-552. He previously managed the Philadelphia Phillies from 1997-2000.
Francona served as a bench coach for the Oakland Athletics in 2003 and the Texas Rangers in 2002. He also served as a special assistant to baseball operations with the Cleveland Indians in 2001. Francona managed in the Minor Leagues from 1992-95.
Francona played in the Major Leagues from 1981-90 with the Montreal Expos (1981-85), Chicago Cubs (1986), Cincinnati Reds (1987), Cleveland Indians (1988) and Milwaukee Brewers (1989-90). He was drafted by the Expos in 1980 out of the University of Arizona, where he won the Golden Spikes Award as the nation’s top amateur player that same year.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
Photo credit: Reuters Pictures
ESPN hottie Erin Andrews is in Atlanta this weekend for the SEC Championship Game between LSU and Georgia. David Pollack came along with her and she showed us all of his adoring fans on a video posted on YouTube.
But right at the end of the video, she gives us some tongue as seen above.
Photo credit: Erin Andrews YouTube
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
HARTFORD, Conn. (November 1, 2011) – CPTV Sports, formerly the Connecticut Sports Network (CTSN), is Connecticut’s only 24-hour local sports network, covering statewide high school sports college match-ups, professional sports competitions and more.
Launched on November 1, CPTV Sports is available on Comcast cable channels 185, 187 and 744 and on the Cox Communications cable system channel 144. High school sports and CIAC championship games are sponsored by Connecticut Lighting Centers and New England Musculoskeletal Institute at UConn Health Center. In addition, high school football is made possible in part by Connecticut Rental Centers.
For November 1-4, CPTV Sports’ program highlights include:
Tuesday, November 1
8 p.m. You Make the Call with Geno Auriemma
Wednesday, November 2
7 p.m. Boys High School Football – Conard vs. New Britain
Thursday, November 3
7 p.m. High School Boys Football – Hillhouse at Xavier
Friday, November 4
6:30 p.m. High School Boys Football – Ellington/Somers at Enfield
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
no comments
HARTFORD, Conn. (November 1, 2011) – CPTV is excited to announce that it is bringing an all-new type of sports coverage to Connecticut with CPTV Sports, a statewide, 24/7 sports channel that covers high school, college and additional sporting events throughout the state.
Scheduled to launch in November on Comcast and Cox cable systems in Connecticut, CPTV Sports is a not-for-profit channel owned and managed by Connecticut Public Television (CPTV) that broadcasts coverage of sporting events and match-ups from more than 40 schools and organizations, including the University of Connecticut, University of Hartford, Central Connecticut State University, Post University and the CIAC state high school championships. The channel will expand to additional cable and over-the-air carriage in early 2012.
CPTV Sports will provide viewers coverage of mainstream sports such as baseball with the New Britain Rock Cats, basketball with the Hartford Lightning and the CT-6 Tournament, hockey with the CT Whale, and soccer with the CT Soccer League, as well as unique sporting events like auto racing from Stafford Motor Speedway, the SpiritFest Cheerleading Championships, and the Connecticut Special Olympics games. Future planned programming includes sports such as rugby, softball, cricket, roller derby, BMX, and others. The channel will also broadcast additional programming related to sports, such as programs on sports medicine.
CPTV Sports will be one of CPTV’s digital channels and will also be broadcast in high-definition television, and will take advantage of CPTV’s unique ability to bring local people and events to exciting life with intimate storytelling and reporting.
The team behind CPTV Sports includes broadcast professionals Bob Yalen, formerly with ESPN and ABC Sports, who serves as channel director and Joe Coss, Post University Sports Information Director, who serves as production manager.
“At CPTV, we know that the best in sports entertainment can be found, not in Boston or New York, but right here in the Nutmeg State,” said Jerry Franklin, President and CEO of the Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network. “Tune in this November as CPTV Sports hits the airwaves, bringing coverage of all the exciting, inspiring fun that can be found right in Connecticut residents’ own backyards.”
no commentsBOSTON (June 6, 2011) – WEEI and NESN are proud to announce that the 10th annual WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon will take place at Fenway Park on Tuesday and Wednesday, August 30th and 31st from 6am to midnight. The emotional two day event has become one of the biggest fundraisers of the Jimmy Fund’s year. In 2010, more than $3.1 million dollars were raised, bringing the nine year total to nearly $26 million dollars.
Donations are already well underway thanks to the 4th Annual “Tame the Tigers” golf tournament, held this past month on May 19th at The International in Bolton, MA. The event was the most successful to date, raising over $100,000 and was a sell-out for the second straight year.
This year’s Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon will focus on the progress that has been made in cancer research over the past decade. The 36-hour broadcast will once again feature truly compelling stories from Jimmy Fund patients and doctors, as well as celebrity guests from the sports and entertainment worlds.
Julie Kahn, VP and Market Manager for Entercom Boston said, “For the past ten years, WEEI and NESN have been allies when it comes to the fight against cancer. The generosity of WEEI’s listeners and NESN’s viewers is overwhelming and we are grateful to them year after year.”
“Our entire company is committed to this event and all of our employees are actively engaged in this two day telethon,” said Sean McGrail, NESN’s President and CEO. “This collective commitment meaningfully touches all of us and hopefully makes a real difference to the people who are fighting this challenging disease.”
“It is incredible to think that this is the 10th year for the radio-telethon. The progress that has been made in cancer research and care since we started is staggering,” said Jason Wolfe, VP of Programming for WEEI. Wolfe continued, “Patients are living longer, healthier lives, and in many cases, cancer free. These are the two best days of our year and I’m looking forward to another super event.”
To help strike out cancer during the WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon, call 877-738-1234 toll free. For more information, to purchase tickets, or to contribute online, go to www.jimmyfundradiotelethon.org.
no commentsTHURSDAY NIGHT IS NEW ENGLAND FOOTBALL NIGHT ON COMCAST SPORTSNET AND CSNNE.COM
All-New Quick Slants, Redesigned Patriots Football Weekly and Fan Favorite New England Tailgate Make Up New Night of Pigskin Coverage
BURLINGTON, MA – Football fans rejoice, Comcast SportsNet is debuting New England Football Night, a new night of on-air and online football coverage featuring three distinct shows that cover the Patriots from every conceivable angle.
Beginning Thursday, September 9, at 7 p.m., New England Football Night leads with a brand new Comcast SportsNet original production - Quick Slants - which will give CSNNE.com’s Patriots Insider Tom Curran a weekly chance to sound off on the Patriots and interact with fans on the week’s hottest NFL topics.
New England Football Night continues with a totally redesigned Patriots Football Weekly (PFW) that will bring to life the publication’s insider coverage of the three-time Super Bowl Champions. Shot entirely on-location at Gillette Stadium, Comcast SportsNet will make Patriots Football Weekly a highly visual and compelling TV news magazine show that focuses solely on the Patriots’ players and coaches.
Completing the night is the always entertaining and informative New England Tailgate hosted by WEEI talk master Glenn Ordway and featuring two NFL standouts Fred Smerlas and Steve DeOssie. Each and every week, Smerlas and DeOssie will use their NFL experience to provide an in-depth breakdown on each Patriots win and loss and a detailed preview of the upcoming game.
“We know how passionate Pats fans are about the team, and New England Football Night is dedicated to providing them with the most comprehensive local coverage. New England Football Night will be the region’s premier locally produced block of Patriots content,” said Bill Bridgen, Comcast SportsNet executive vice president and general manager.
no commentsEditor's Note: This is also featured on Batter-up with Bruno 
Twitter is known for having fake accounts for athletes and famous movie stars and singers. But now it's reached a new level particular to people who honestly have nothing better else to do.
There was a fake Twitter account for former Boston Globe sports columnist and Around the Horn panelist Jackie MacMullan.
I was one of those roughly 500+ followers who was duped into following the account thinking it was the real Jackie Mac.
This evening there was a suspicious tweet that arose from the account saying, J_MacMullan "Hearing Adrian Gonzalez for Ellsbury, Buchholz, Kelly, and Reddick."
Like a smart person I retweeted it, but then decided to delete it a minute later.
About five minutes afterwards Ian M. Browne of MLB.com tweeted: "A co worker just told me that Jackie MacMullan's fake twitter account said Adrian Gonz for Ellsbury, Buchholz Kelly, and Reddick. Classic!" Then I went back to check the fake twitter account and the page magically doesn't exist anymore, but if you search for "Jackie MacMullan" you'll see two accounts. One looks legit, but is fake and one that looks fake and probably is another fake one.
What is seriously wrong with people? And the best part is that MacMullan probably has no idea about it.
Amanda Bruno is a freelance sportswriter for The Springfield Republican and also writes weekly features for the Plus Papers on Wednesdays. She also writes over at Batter-up with Bruno where she shares her thoughts about the Boston Red Sox and the Boston sports media. You can follow her on Twitter @batterupbruno and can reach Amanda through email at brunosportshawk[at]gmail.com.
no comments
It's sad day for the fans of Peter Gammons who has decided to leave ESPN after the Baseball Winter Meetings to pursue other opportunities.
“My decision to leave ESPN and move on at this point in my life has been conflicted. I owe a great deal of my professional life to ESPN, having spent more than half of my 40 years in journalism working for the network, and the choice to move on was made with nothing but the strongest feelings for the people with whom I worked. ESPN gave me a great deal more than I gave it, and will always be a huge part of who I am."
I've always been a fan of Gammons and that's not just because he's a Boston guy. He's always provided valuable insight and was one of the most trusted in the business.
The MLB Network came in last year and hurt ESPN's baseball coverage. I'm pretty sure this could kill it. Gammons will be moderating the Sports Roundtable at Fenway Park as part of the events for Hot Stove Cool Music on January 9, 2010.
Update: Gammons will be joining the MLB Network and will also be doing work for NESN and NESN.com.
no comments
