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Bob Fescoe and Josh Klingler: RedZone for Olympics is Great; Need it for NCAA Tournament

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Bob Fescoe and Josh Klingler: RedZone for Olympics is Great; Need it for NCAA Tournament

Bob Fescoe and Josh Klingler from 610 Sports in Kansas City talked about the new NFL RedZone-style whip around show NBC Sports announced it will do for the Olympics. Klingler noted RedZone was a “collective yes” amongst football fans and while he said he still prefers to watch a game, his partner Bob Fescoe is all in on RedZone.

“I was with you until September of 2023 when [Sunday Ticket] went to YouTube TV,” Fescoe said. “And I’m like, ‘I’m just not spending money on Sunday Ticket anymore,’ it’s too much money, it really wasn’t worth it for me anymore. I have Direct TV, I said ‘let me see what this RedZone is all about that everybody has been raving about.’ I will never go back to Sunday Ticket, because that’s how awesome RedZone is for me. If the Chiefs aren’t on…you know what, I don’t want to be beholden to just one football game. I love the fact that you can watch RedZone, and you experience Sunday.”

NBC Sports announced Gold Zone  which will stream on Peacock during NBC’s coverage of the Olympic Games Paris 2024. There could be up to 40 events happening at the same time during the Olympic Games. Gold Zone will look to provide viewers with live views of the best and most exciting moments.

Klingler spoke about how talented the RedZone staff is saying, “…The guys that do it, awesome, awesome at their jobs. It’s unbelievable. So why not hire them for something else? And they have. The RedZone is coming to the Olympics, and they’ve hired Scott Hanson and Andrew Siciliano (who have been hosts on the RedZone).”

“What a brilliant move by NBC,” Fescoe said. Klingler replied, “This seems like the way to watch the Olympics.”

This led to the conversation about having something similar for the NCAA Tournament. The hosts harkened back to the days of Greg Gumbel interrupting a game broadcast to tell you about a big finish happening somewhere else and taking you for a live look-in. Fescoe said he prefers that to having all of the games available.

“We need [a RedZone type channel] for the NCAA Tournament,” he said. “I’m stunned that this is not part of your NCAA Tournament coverage. I like the ability to have every game available, I think it’s awesome…Give me the ability to have Red Zone for the NCAA Tournament. At least for the first weekend… when you have a boatload of games going on…If I could have a game on one TV and then the NCAA Tournament’s version of RedZone on another TV, man, I would be loving life.”

The listeners of the show even got in on the idea, with one of them sending in the suggestion of “NetZone” as the name for the channel.

Audacy Shuttering Cadence13, 2400Sports Podcast Studios to Unify Brand

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Audacy has announced it will close its Cadence13 and 2400Sports podcast studios to unify the company’s podcast brands under one unit.

While no staffing cuts are expected, the company hopes utilizing one brand — Audacy Podcasts — will help in the sales effort of its burgeoning podcast efforts.

Audacy bought a 45% stake in Cadence13 in 2017 and completed a buyout of the company two years later. After valuing the podcast studio at $50 million at the time of purchase, the company reportedly prepped a 2022 sale of Cadence13 with hopes of garnering a $100 million purchase price. However, a deal never came to fruition. It launched 2400Sports in 2021 after becoming the official podcast partner of Major League Baseball.

“Consolidating our owned and operated podcasts under the Audacy umbrella enables us to deliver a single value proposition to the advertising community, streamline our portfolio narrative, and build further equity in the Audacy brand,” Chief Digital Officer J.D. Crowley told staffers in an internal memo.

While the company shutters two podcast brands, it will keep its Pineapple Street Studios brand active. Currently, that group offers production for outside content partners and advertisers, and hosts several companion podcasts for television companies like HBO and Netflix.

Report: ‘Sports Illustrated FanNation’ In Limbo Amidst New Minute Media Deal

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Report: ‘Sports Illustrated FanNation’ In Limbo Amidst New Minute Media Deal

Sports Illustrated and many of its arms have a new home with Minute Media but one of SI’s subsidiaries is in limbo. According to Front Office Sports‘ A.J. Perez, while Minute has firmly grasped SI, the SI Swimsuit Edition, and SI Kids, its grip on SI FanNation isn’t so solid.

According to Perez, while the landmark 10-year deal between Authentic Brands Group and Minute Media includes Sports Illustrated FanNation, the company’s collection of SB Nation-esque fan blogs, FanNation’s staff may still be up in the air. Minute Media met with FanNation management and the leaders of the SI brand left upbeat. According to Minute, the company is committed to restoring the Sports Illustrated name in high regard.

“Sports Illustrated is the gold standard for sports journalism in the U.S. and around the world and has been for nearly 70 years across both print and digital media,” wrote Minute Media CEO and founder Asaf Peled, according to FOS. “The weight and power of that distinction cannot be understated.”

However, both sides aren’t out of the woods just yet. The Arena Group, the previous SI license owner, intends to meet with FanNation’s 300 contracted writers to potentially create a new sports site after losing SI, potentially leaving FanNation in a rough spot if a sizable number of writers opt to stay with Arena.

In January, The Arena Group lost the Sports Illustrated license and subsequently laid off its entire staff. Many mourned the end of Sports Illustrated but just as quickly as it left, it returned under new management. Still, the SI writers are keen on protecting the brand (and their jobs) even under a new parent company that understands content creation.

“We have said from the start that our top priorities are to keep Sports Illustrated alive, uphold the legacy of the institution and protect our union jobs,” Emma Baccellieri, staff writer for SI and vice chair for the SI Union, said in a statement to Front Office Sports. “We look forward to discussing a future with Minute Media that does that.”

Perez says Minute Media will take the next couple of weeks to assess future staffing and organizational needs. Depending on how the meeting with The Arena Group goes, this could open up needs in the brand’s FanNation site.

Alanna Rizzo Joins Foul Territory Team; Will Host ‘Fair Territory’ with Ken Rosenthal

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Alanna Rizzo Joins Foul Territory Team; Will Host ‘Fair Territory’ with Ken Rosenthal

Foul Territory announced the addition of national baseball personality Alanna Rizzo to their roster in a variety of roles. Rizzo joins Ken Rosenthal to co-host Fair Territory live at 12:30p ET on Thursdays on the Foul Territory network. This marks the expansion of the show to twice per week – Mondays and Thursdays.

Rizzo will also launch a new podcast, Dodgers Territory, which will air two shows per week. Rizzo will host the podcast along with All Dodgers host Clint Pasillas. Rizzo is also set to make some appearances on Foul Territory.

Rizzo is a regular contributor to MLB Network’s High Heat with Christopher Russo. She served as an in-game reporter and host for SportsNet LA’s coverage of the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2014 to 2022, including covering the Dodgers’ three trips to the World Series in 2017, 2018 and 2020. 2024 will be Rizzo’s 20th season covering MLB.

Foul Territory is a daily streaming platform that launched in March 2023, and features some of the most outspoken and successful former players in the game including A.J. Pierzynski, Todd
Frazier, Erik Kratz, Adam Jones, Lorenzo Cain, Jason Kipnis and Trevor May. The Live show is
co-hosted by noted baseball personality, Scott Braun, and features regular contributions from
national insider Ken Rosenthal along with guest appearances from current stars of
the game. Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, Pete Alonso, Corbin Burnes, Chris Sale, Corbin Carroll,
Andrew McCutchen, Carlos Correa, Max Muncy, Zac Gallen, Adley Rutschman, Jordan
Montgomery, Gunnar Henderson, Josh Hader, Alex Bregman, Shane Bieber, Tyler Glasnow, Pablo Lopez, Edwin Diaz, Trea Turner, Zack Wheeler, Francisco Lindor, Adam Wainwright, Eloy Jimenez and Max Scherzer are among the over 300 guest appearances by active big leaguers.

Soledad O’Brien to Receive 2024 Insight Award at NAB Show

BNM Staff
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The Library of American Broadcasting Foundation has announced it will bestow longtime journalist Soledad O’Brien with the 2024 Insight Award at the NAB Show in Las Vegas next month.

The Insight Award recognizes individuals or organizations that “show an outstanding artistic or journalistic work or body of work that enhances the public’s understanding of the role, operation, history, or impact of media in our society.”

Previous winners of the award include LaVar Burton and 60 Minutes.

“Soledad O’Brien is an outstanding journalist and documentarian whose award-winning work represents the best of broadcasting,” said LABF Co-chairs Jack Goodman, former NAB general counsel and longtime DC-based communications attorney, and Heidi Raphael, Beasley Media Group chief communications officer. “We are excited to honor Soledad with the Library of American Broadcasting’s Insight Award at NAB Show. This honor is well-deserved, and we look forward to celebrating her incredible work.”

O’Brien currently hosts Matter of Fact with Soledad O’Brien, a nationally syndicated public affairs news show produced by Hearts. She also has previously hosted a podcast for iHeartMedia, and has worked with CNN, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, National Geographic, BET, PBS, and HBO. She has won four Emmy Awards, three Peabody Awards, four Gracie Awards, and was inducted into the Broadcasting+Cable Hall of Fame in 2023.

Cable TV Only Medium to See Drop in Political Advertising in 2024, BIA Report Shows

BNM Staff
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Cable TV Only Medium to See Drop in Political Advertising in 2024, BIA Report Shows

BIA Advisory Services has shared its political spending projections for 2024, and the news is encouraging for the media industry, as spending is expected to grow exponentially. But cable TV won’t be a benefactor of that growth.

While spending from political campaigns and PACs is expected to reach $11.1 billion, an uptick of 24% compared to 2022 and 15.5% compared to the last presidential election, cable TV is the only media channel that will see a decrease in revenue.

The medium is forecasted to see a drop of nearly $183 million in 224 compared to the last two major political cycles. It will still, however, reach $1.1 billion in ad spending in 2024, according to the BIA report.

As with past elections, over-the-air TV will see the major revenues with political ad dollars forecasted to reach $4.6 billion. Another $4.9 billion will be spent on TV digital.

Steve Cochran: It’s ‘Disturbing’ That We No Longer Trust Experts

BNM Staff
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We live in an increasingly divided world. Facts are often argued for validity, while opinions have become more prevalent in news. WLS 890 AM host Steve Cochran laments one avenue of media coverage.

Cochran welcomed NBC News and MSNBC legal analyst Barbara McQuade, who has authored a new book called Attack From Within: How Disinformation is Sabotaging America. In the discussion, Cochran noted that the lack of faith in people who are truly experts in subjects has been a downfall of American media.

“One of the things that’s really disturbing to me — and I think it’s at the core of the problem — is we no longer trust experts,” Cochran said. “And I always use the analogy if I get on a plane, I’m not going to tell the pilot ‘I watched a YouTube video, I think I can take it from here.’ But we don’t trust doctors, or we say we don’t. We don’t trust experts any more.”

McQuade agreed, saying it’s a “really dangerous thing” before adding that hopefully talking about the issue will make news consumers understand how important it is to trust those with vast experiences.

Steve Cochran noted knowing what he doesn’t know has always been a strong suit.

“I don’t even know what stage I am in other than if you make the logical conclusion, and I’m giving you credit for logic, that no doctor is trustworthy or anybody that you heard because of a Facebook post isn’t trustworthy. How do I get you to the point where you at least consider they went to medical school, you didn’t. They know how to fly a plane, you don’t. I know how to be on the radio. I know how to do a talk show, you don’t. I mean, that’s the whole basis of society.”

Steak Shapiro: The Best Filmmaking and Storytelling are Happening in Sports Docs

BSM Staff
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Steak Shapiro: The Best Filmmaking and Storytelling are Happening in Sports Docs

Steak Shapiro said on 92.9 The Game in Atlanta that he took his partner Sandra Golden’s advice and started watching Full Swing Season 2′ on Netflix. “I think it’s good, but I think it’s good like all of them are,” Shapiro said. “Like The Dynasty is really good…like the NASCAR stuff is really good, like the tennis one that just came out recently, the Messi documentary is out, the Giannis documentary is out.”

Golden mentioned the Formula One show on Netflix, Drive to Survive, which has produced six seasons. About that show, Shapiro said, “The Formula One show kind of set the standard in terms of quality…and by the way, just announced, the Wide Receiver, not QB, this year it is going to be Wide Receiver.”

Shapiro asked his co-host, “So, what do you think it is that Apple and Netflix and Hulu and Max and they are all leaning in like crazy…?”

Golden immediately said, “Because it doesn’t just relate to ‘guy in car that’s a sports fan,’ it relates to a guy and their gal sitting on the couch and they get you in immediately, by involving the family, the wife and the kids…and their houses.”

Shapiro replied, “Their houses are interesting, but listen…It’s always going to come back to – tell a great story. And athletes and teams and coaches have fascinating stories. I’ve been saying for years, the greatest reality show of all-time, we all know what it is, it’s sports, because you have no freaking idea what’s going to happen. They understand that and they take you behind the scenes. These are also elite athletes, so you get to understand what it takes to be that, the strain it takes on the family. The stories in golf – the good, the bad and the ugly, right?”

The discussion turned to what these documentaries are succeeding at with their viewers, which is getting more than just the sports fans in the household to watch. Shapiro said his wife and daugher, who would not normally watch much sports programming, are watching along with him when he puts on The Dynasty or Full Swing.

“The best filmmaking and storytelling are happening in sports documentaries,” Shapiro concluded. As they wrapped up the discussion, they talked about how much they are looking forward to Receiver and what Omaha Productions ends up doing with the Caitlin Clark documentary they are working on.

Cenk Uygur Offers to Moderate Debate Between Don Lemon and Elon Musk

BNM Staff
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There continues to be a strong media reaction to the interview between Don Lemon and Elon Musk. The Young Turks‘ Cenk Uygur is offering to mediate and moderate a conversation between the two.

One of the biggest criticisms Lemon received from conservative media members was his line of questioning about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion to the billionaire.

That portion of the conversation led The Young Turks host to want to hold another conversation between the former cable news star and X owner.

“After watching the interview, I wanted to almost moderate a debate on race — which is a whole different topic — between you and Elon,” Uygur told Lemon during an appearance on the digital video show.

“Let’s do it!”, Lemon responded.

“That would be amazing and I’d love it,” added Uygur.

NESN Celebrates 40th Anniversary with Live Sports, Four-Part Special

BSM Staff
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NESN Celebrates 40th Anniversary with Live Sports, Four-Part Special

NESN turns the big 4-0 this year and the network is celebrating in the only way it knows how — by airing live and pre-produced sports content. The network will celebrate the 40th Anniversary of its first live sports broadcast with two live sports broadcasts, an Original 6 matchup between the Boston Bruins and New York Rangers, and a spring training game between the Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles.

The Bruins broadcast will feature dedicated NESN 40th anniversary coverage during the pre and postgame shows, the Sox game will show footage from NESN’s first broadcasted spring training game on March 21, 1984, integrated into the telecast, airing on NESN+. Historical footage from the past four decades will be integrated into live Red Sox and Bruins games on the network throughout both seasons.

NESN will also air a four-part special, called “NESN Favorites,” highlighting content from the network by decade, starting with the 1980s through the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s. The four-part special will feature four 30-minute episodes dedicated to each of the four decades, consisting of archival footage of key moments from the decade with reaction from NESN talent and employees, athletes and legacy sponsors.

NESN viewers can also relive memorable moments from the station’s past when it airs 40 of the most impactful NESN telecasts over the course of the year, starting in April and airing at 10 a.m. ET on Sundays. There will even be an oral history of the network on NESN.com, spotlighting watershed moments from past NESN broadcasts, re-lived through the eyes of people who covered those moments on the network.

The festivities begin today and will continue throughout the year. NESN will also feature unique 40th Anniversary logos and branding throughout the year.

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