Home Blog Page 1702

Bill Simmons: A New NBA Media Deal is “Going to be Bad for TNT”

BSM Staff
-
0
Bill Simmons: A New NBA Media Deal is “Going to be Bad for TNT”

On the latest edition of The Bill Simmons Podcast, Simmons discussed a couple of very interesting topics related to the NBA. If you are a regular listener to the podcast, you know it has been mentioned before, Simmons believes the NBA will expand soon and that the two markets will be Seattle and Las Vegas. “Expansion is definitely coming,” he said this week.

Simmons started doing calculations on what the expansion fees might bring should two teams be added. He estimates it could be as much as $9 billion total between two cities, which would see NBA owners each get a check for $300 million.

As for the upcoming media rights negotiations, Simmons also made some very strong points. “They’ve played it close to the vest, but I am pretty convinced that they’re going to go to a streamer in a way harder way than people realize,” he said. “And it’s for some of the reasons that we’ve talked about on this podcast before. You saw it with the NFL, with the Amazon Thursday Night Football, with Sunday Ticket on YouTube TV and YouTube. And then the Peacock game they had.”

Simmons says data is the main reason he sees the NBA going in this direction. “The secret sauce with this is they got an incredible amount of intel on their audience, on audience behavior, how long people watch, where those people are watching from, what ads they like. It’s a whole other level,” Simmons said.

“So, you compare it to having your games on CBS or TNT, or even like if they’re showing it on Max vs. showing it on Amazon or showing it on Google/YouTube. The amount of intelligence you get, you almost can’t put a price on. And for Adam Silver and the owners, like they know this. It would be irresponsible for them to not put at least a decent chunk of their games on one of these streamers. Because they’re not just getting the money from the streamer. They’re getting this relationship, they’re getting this advanced metrics on their audience, on viewerships, on how they should approach game presentation — just everything. There’s no way they’re not doing it.

“So, I actually think the media deal is going to be a little bigger than has been reported. because I think that anybody that’s gotten into the live sports stuff with football has been delighted by it. Right? It’s been great. Even Apple doing the MLS, they’ve been delighted by that. So, this is where it’s going, and I think the NBA likes to be on the forefront…of this stuff. So, the media deal’s going to be significant.”

Simmons does not anticipate TNT comes out a winner in what is ahead. “And If I had to bet, I think it’s going to be bad for TNT,” he said. “Because TNT is kind of the old school, past-tense way of doing this stuff. I know they’re trying to get in there in Max and they’re trying to belatedly do a whole bunch of stuf`f. They’re in that bundle with ESPN and Fox,” he said. “But you know — Amazon and Google/YouTube, it’s just a whole other animal for what they’re able to do. So we’ll see how it goes. But the point is, a lot of money’s coming.”

Mike Pereira Returns as UFL, CFB and NFL Rules Analyst

BSM Staff
-
0
Mike Pereira Returns as UFL, CFB and NFL Rules Analyst

FOX Sports rules analyst Mike Pereira has announced he will be back on FOX Sports football coverage. Pereira, who started with FOX Sports in 2010, missed last season due to major back surgery. The former NFL Vice President of Officiating posted on his X account he would be back to work starting this weekend in his role as Head of Officiating for the United Football Leage (UFL).

“About 6 months ago, I posted that I was going to take a year off at Fox due to back surgery,” he wrote. “Five months ago I had my back fused on 7 levels, T11 to S1. 8 1/2 hours of surgery! In recovery, they asked me what my goals were. I gave them two. First was to be able to walk again…

“Second was I want to get back to work again. Well, I am walking a couple of miles a day and doing a lot of PT. And…I’m going back to work tomorrow doing two UFL games on Fox starting at 1pm Eastern. I’ve made it and will be back this fall doing college and NFL games.

“I want to thank all of you who sent positive messages to me constantly including family and friends. You motivated me more than you know. I’m indebted to you all! I’m back! (like it or not).”

The hiring of Pereira as a rules analyst was considered groundbreaking at the time. FOX became the first network to have a dedicated rules analyst before CBS, NBC, ESPN and Amazon all hired analysts of their own.

WGN Radio Host Lisa Dent: I Was Always A Talk Show Host Even While Working Other Formats

BNM Staff
-
0
WGN Radio Host Lisa Dent: I Was Always A Talk Show Host Even While Working Other Formats

WGN Radio afternoon host Lisa Dent has plenty to celebrate, as she was named the Best Non-Morning Drive Talk/Personality Host in a major market in the 49th annual Gracie Awards.

Dent spent decades working on country radio — being inducted into the Country Radio Hall of Fame in 2016 — before shifting to working at WGN Radio in 2021.

And while she spent the majority of her career outside the talk radio space, she shared that she’s always been a talk host at heart.

“Always,” she said. “That’s why I think for 25 years in my career I did mornings, so I had more freedom to talk about what was happening and get away from the music a little bit and really be focused on what was happening in Chicago.”

Lisa Dent started her radio career as an assistant chief engineer in Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin, because the station wouldn’t put women on the air. She eventually worked her way to stations in Rockford, San Diego, Minneapolis, and other stations in Chicago before signing on with the news/talk outlet. And despite all of her travels, she says she had her sights set on her current station.

“The whole time, from the moment I left Rockford, my focus was always WGN,” Dent told hosts John Williams and Bob Sirott after the news was announced that she took home the Gracie Award.

Gregg Giannotti: New WFAN Program Director Could be “Bombshell”

BSM Staff
-
1
Gregg Giannotti: New WFAN Program Director Could be “Bombshell”

There was scuttlebutt this morning on Boomer & Gio on WFAN. Hosts Gregg Giannotti and Boomer Esiason talked about who the next Program Director might be at the Audacy-owned station in New York. It sounds like we may soon know who the replacement will be for Spike Eskin, the current PD who will be headed back to Philadelphia.

Gregg Giannotti said, “I was told that end of the week was something that could be a possibility. Not for an announcement…I was told by a candidate. They would not announce it today, this was just like, ‘I think the decision will be made…”

Boomer Esiason interjected, “Sounds to me like someone has been offered the job and they’ll accept the job today.” To which ‘Gio’ replied, “Or won’t…like this is it, are you doing it or are you not doing it?…If that person says yes, then it’s over and it’s his job. But if that person says no, which would be a crazy wild rollercoaster to end up with ‘no,’ because this person was campaigning for the job at one point. And then now to turn around and say ‘no,’ I don’t know how that could happen.”

Giannotti was then asked, “Is it a slam dunk he is going to accept it?” and he replied, “No.”

Boomer Esiason asked a few questions and found out that he knows who the person is but has not worked with the person. He told ‘Gio’ he wants to hear the name when they go to break.

Giannotti said he has spoken to multiple candidates for the position and that he is aware of a “Choice A and a Choice B,” and later clarified that the second list is multiple people who he described as “interchangeable.”

About the individual who he says is “Choice A,” Giannotti said, “Choice A, by the way, I will say…bombshell spot.”

In further conversation listeners and viewers of the show learned Spike Eskin has been “giddy” lately, which has also led to speculation that things are moving forward. Additionally, the pair mentioned two names who would not be taking the position – former WFAN program director Marc Chernoff and SiriusXM Vice President of Sports Programming Eric Spitz.

Earlier in the discussion, Giannotti said he believes Spike Eskin’s contract expires with WFAN on June 20th.

In mid-December it was announced Eskin would return to SportsRadio 94WIP in Philadelphia as afternoon drive co-host. Eskin will leave his current position, which he has held since July, 2021. At the time of that announcement, it was said Eskin would return to the WIP airwaves, on a full-time basis, once his successor at WFAN and CBS Sports Radio has been found.

Nielsen Ends Radio Ratings in 3 More Markets

BNM Staff
-
0
Nielsen Ends Radio Ratings in 3 More Markets

Nielsen has made the decision to end the radio ratings for three diary markets with the spring 2024 ratings period being the final book.

The markets are Greenville-New Bern-Jacksonville, North Carolina; Sunbury-Selinsgrove-Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, and Visalia-Tulare-Hanford, California.

The move is notable because the Greenville-New Bern-Jacksonville market is a top 100 market, ranking 99th. It was previously a constantly-measured market, while the other two markets (#215 and #109, respectively) were two-book markets.

Removing three more markets comes after the end of seven markets in 2023, including Abilene, TX; Lake Charles, LA; and Rapid City, SD. The company also left nine markets in 2020.

In total, Nielsen has ended rating services for more than 30 markets since 2016.

Dave Ramsey: ‘It Took Us a Little While to Get Good’ at ‘The Ramsey Way’

BNM Staff
-
0
Dave Ramsey: ‘It Took Us a Little While to Get Good’ at ‘The Ramsey Way’

Dave Ramsey has built a multi-million dollar company on a set of principles entitled The Ramsey Way. However, he admits it wasn’t easy to get that foundation set completely.

While discussing hiring and getting employees to operate in the manner he’d like them to with an entrepreneur during the EntreLeadership Podcast, Dave Ramsey shared with the contractor from Atlanta that he himself had to go through some trial and error to get his business working the way he envisioned it.

“We’ve got like a ‘Ramsey Way’ to do things. So if you come in and do sales, and you’re a good salesman, that’s different than doing sales at Ramsey,” the company founder said. “And so you’re gonna walk with one of our salespeople for a little while, and you gotta learn the ‘Ramsey Way’ to make that sale.”

Dave Ramsey admitted the process takes time, and Ramsey Solutions is proof of that.

“It took us a while to get good at that. We sucked at it at first. And so we would have salespeople doing sales five different ways. And we had all these inconsistencies and different kinds of complaints from different kinds of customers, depending on who their rep was,” said Ramsey. “Somebody can function within their personality, but we’ve got some core tenants on accounting, some core tenants on project management, and some core tenants on sales.”

Eric Bischoff Ends ‘Strictly Business’ Podcast; Launches New YouTube Show

BSM Staff
-
0
Eric Bischoff Ends ‘Strictly Business’ Podcast; Launches New YouTube Show

Eric Bischoff, the former Turner Broadcasting executive who famously beat WWE in ratings with WCW for 83 consecutive weeks has ended one show and launched another. Bischoff and Conrad Thompson will continue to produce Bischoff’s main podcast, 83 Weeks, however, an additional show which Bischoff was doing with Jon Alba, Strictly Business, will come to an end.

“Unfortunately, this week’s episode of Strictly Business with Eric Bischoff will be the last edition of the podcast,” said Alba in a post on his X account. “Eric’s schedule is loaded these days, and for good reasons, he’ll [be] putting his efforts into other endeavors.”

One of those endeavors will be a new YouTube show, Wise Choices, which Bischoff has already debuted. Bischoff said he and Alba’s schedules were getting tougher to align and that his new show will be a solo project he can produce based on his own schedule.

“Trying to align my busy schedule with Jon’s busy schedule and then if we wanted to have a guest on, we had to coordinate with that person’s schedule,” Bischoff said. “It was just getting too difficult and now, for the first time, I will do a solo project and be on my own.”

Bischoff’s first solo YouTube show focused on his reply to AEW owner Tony Khan who posted on his X account in reply to Alba’s post on Strictly Business coming to an end, “Sunsetting this fraud of a business podcast before the next AEW media deal is a wise choice.”

Megyn Kelly: Don Lemon Made ‘Absurd’ Demands During Negotiations With Elon Musk

BNM Staff
-
0

Don Lemon recently saw his contract with the Elon Musk-owned X platform canceled after a contentious interview with the billionaire. Megyn Kelly alleges there was more to it than the interview conduct, however.

According to various reports, Don Lemon asked Elon Musk for an $8 million annual salary, with $5 million paid upfront. He also reportedly asked for an equity stake in the company, veto power over its news policies and hirings, a free Tesla Cybertruck, and the option to host the first podcast from space. Lemon initially denied that he made the demands, before admitting they were all part of the negotiation.

While discussing how far Lemon’s new digital video program has fallen after his initial interview with Musk on The Megyn Kelly Show, she shared that the contract demands made by the former CNN host were ridiculous, in her opinion.

After playing a clip of Don Lemon appearing on The Tamron Hall Show where the pair agreed that you make outlandish demands while negotiating contracts, Kelly decried the practice.

“That is absurd! Trust me, as somebody who actually has negotiated several contracts in cable news and broadcast news, it’s exactly the opposite of what you do. You make a demand that is reasonable — that you think you could get…but you don’t want to make yourself look like an a–hole. You’re off on a new foot with your employer, you don’t want to make yourself look like an a–hole,” Kelly reiterated.

“Nobody in history has asked to be the first person in space and for full editorial control for news decisions made. Like, maybe Rachel Maddow has that at MSNBC, ’cause she appears to be running the joint. But Don Lemon at Twitter?! When (Elon Musk) is resurrecting him from the dead?! The hubris!”

Ben Shapiro Addresses Exit of Candace Owens From The Daily Wire

BNM Staff
-
0
Ben Shapiro Addresses Exit of Candace Owens From The Daily Wire

Last week, Candace Owens departed The Daily Wire after a high-profile back-and-forth with the outlet’s co-founder, Ben Shapiro. He’s now speaking out about the end of the relationship.

While appearing on The Rubin Report with Dave Rubin, Shapiro agreed with Owens that she’s “free,” from The Daily Wire, he just disagrees with her sentiment that she was somehow muzzled at the company.

“She’s free to do whatever she wants to do, and to be wherever she wants to be,” said Ben Shapiro. “A platform should have a very broad range of speech that it allows, including speech that maybe even the creators don’t believe is inside what they would consider to be the Overton window.

“It’s a very different thing than direct subsidization of particular opinions. So The Daily Wire would not have a host — would not pay a host — who was staunchly pro-abortion, and would have no obligation to pay a host who is staunchly pro-abortion. So when it comes to the hosts on The Daily Wire, obviously, everyone was able to say what they want. Nobody ever comes to me and says, ‘You can’t say x,’ nobody ever says it to (Matt) Walsh and no one ever said that to Candace.”

He continued by noting there was a “non-meeting of the minds” that led to the exit of Candace Owens, but insisted there isn’t an issue with the outlet’s hosts ability to say what they wish.

“There’s no free speech problem with The Daily Wire. And we don’t wish to pay a particular host or that host saying ‘I don’t wish to work here anymore,’ because, again, there’s a parting of the ways that is not really open for discussion at this point.”

Ben Shapiro added that hosts at the outlet don’t have to worry about their jobs simply because they disagree with his opinion on a particular topic. He shared an anecdote that a similar situation recently arose with Matt Walsh.

“I can safely say (the departure of Candace Owens) is not about disagreements over Israel,” he said. “Matt Walsh has taken the position that America ought not be involved in the Middle East at all. Now his position so far, as I understand it, and I’ve talked to him about it, is that in the conflict between Israel and Hamas, Israel is obviously a more moral party than the genocidal terrorist cause, but also it’s very far away. He doesn’t care, and it doesn’t involve America.

“That’s just a pure isolationist position. I disagree with that. I think it’s wrong, and I think that is short-sighted, but again, he’s on our platform that is well within the range of acceptable discourse at the Daily Wire. So the notion that you have to mirror my exact perspectives on what Israel is doing in Gaza is obviously not true based on the roster of hosts that we currently have. There are a lot of other factors obviously at play.”

Final ‘Good Morning Football’ Episode from New York Studio Airs Before Hiatus, Move to LA

BSM Staff
-
0
Final ‘Good Morning Football’ Episode from New York Studio Airs Before Hiatus, Move to LA

Today marks the last Good Morning Football episode to air from its New York studios on NFL Network. After today, the show will take a brief hiatus, then move across the country to Los Angeles. But which of the shows beloved cast members will move along with it?

We already know host Jamie Erdahl will be there once she gives birth to her child. The newest GMFB show member gave an emotional send-off to the show’s New York studios before announcing she was headed for maternity leave and would see everyone in LA.

Host Kyle Brandt delivered this message late last night, saying that viewers should tune in to he and his colleagues and that “he has a lot to say.”

As the show ended today, Brandt said, “I am not saying goodbye to any of you…Candidly, I have a lot of questions myself. Here’s what I know: I personally will be intensely involved in Good Morning Football moving forward. And I want to spend the rest of my career with the NFL. And Good Morning Football is not ending, it is expanding. And it’s exciting because it’s a bigger show and it’s more show…It’s all in and it’s all happening and yes, we will be covering the draft. GMFB is leaving home for college…it’s time to evolve. And we are flattered that you are wondering and maybe worried about what’s coming next with the show…I am very proud of what we have built here…it has been a dream job and I know we are going to make a fantastic show from Los Angeles…I’ll see you this summer.”

Earlier this week host Peter Schrager delivered his own goodbye message — one that may sound like a man who’s not ready to move his family across the country at a moment’s notice:

However, no hosts outside of Erdahl have given confirmation that they’re either staying or going.

The NFL’s move to take the show from New York to Los Angeles has been widely criticized by fans and media members alike. Bill Simmons wondered if the move wouldn’t spell just the end of GMFB but the NFL Network as a whole. It has some wondering if this is the end of football’s best show.

1...1,7011,7021,703...2,889Page 1,702 of 2,889