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Mike Greenberg: ‘Millions Of People Watched Super Bowl Just For Rihanna’

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Every year, the Super Bowl is the most-watched event on American television. Viewership usually is more than double the most-watched game in the regular season. That means plenty of people are there to experience the game as a pop culture event. Mike Greenberg pointed out that meant that Rihanna was just as important to Super Bowl LVII as Patrick Mahomes.

“It’s millions and millions of other people last night that considered the football game something they were just sitting through to watch the Rihanna concert,” he said on Monday’s edition of #Greeny on ESPN Radio. “That is true, and that is not exclusive to non-sports fans.”

The NFL pivoted from new acts to established rock and pop stars following the infamous “wardrobe malfunction” in Super Bowl XXXVIII when Justin Timberlake ripped Janet Jackson’s top exposing her breast.

Following years of disinterest, the league welcomed more modern hitmakers back to the event in 2011. Greenberg said that has changed the appeal of the halftime show and the appeal of the Super Bowl in general.

“The halftime show has never been bigger or more valuable and Rihanna was terrific,” he said.

While it may be tempting to say that the people who are particularly excited for the halftime show do not care about the Super Bowl, Mike Greenberg saw with his own eyes that is not true. Sports fans watching the Super Bowl in his home expressed their excitement to see Rihanna perform.

“I got two 24-year-olds in my house last night. My nephew and one of his buddies in my house last night, and they are both as big of sports fans as you can possibly be and had money on a million different things in the game last night and everything else, but they were both also really looking forward to Rihanna and loved every second of it.”

The Super Bowl halftime show is an invaluable platform. An article in Forbes last week explained that while Apple foots the production costs for the show, no performer is paid to provide halftime entertainment. The appeal is all of the eyeballs and ears on the event. The exposure has translated into significant leaps in streams and ticket sales for past performers.

Dave Portnoy: Roger Goodell Takes Himself Too Seriously To Let Barstool Feud Go

BSM Staff
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Barstool and the NFL do not see eye-to-eye. That is well-documented. While the league did eventually relent and let the Barstool podcast Bussin’ With the Boys record shows from Media Row last week, Dave Portnoy doesn’t expect that he and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell will ever see eye-to-eye.

New York street journalist Adam Glyn caught up with Portnoy in Arizona last week and asked if he could ever see a day when Goodell gets over the issues he has with Portnoy and Barstool.

“I guess when your job is to just be a dog that gets kicked around, you know, he has no talent. He doesn’t have any brains. He’s just a punching bag for the owners and takes all the heat. You have to have some kind of authority,” Portnoy said. “It’s like small d**k syndrome. Like a guy that drives a big truck. He has no self-confidence in himself, so this is the one thing he can stick with.”

There have been several public headbutts between the NFL and Barstool. They have included Portnoy being arrested for protesting outside of the league offices, him being removed from Super Bowl media night, Roger Goodell being questioned about his feelings on the company in front of Congress, and Barstool printing t-shirts featuring the commissioner wearing a clown nose.

In May 2020, Dave Portnoy won a charity auction to watch Monday Night Football in Roger Goodell’s home. The league refused to accept the winning bid. Portnoy told Glyn that amounted to “stealing from charity”. He also said that Goodell refuses to see the value of letting the feud go.

“If Goodell even had an ounce of self-awareness, he’d laugh it off and it’d be done, but he takes himself so seriously.” 

KWAM Adds Dave Ramsey to Weekday Lineup

BNM Staff
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KWAM Adds Dave Ramsey to Weekday Lineup

The Mighty 990 KWAM has announced it has added Dave Ramsey to its weekday lineup.

The Ramsey Show will now air from 9:00-11:00 AM on the Memphis news/talk station.

The nationally-syndicated radio show — which recently celebrated its 30th anniversary — is hosted by the eight-time best-selling personal finance author. The Ramsey Solutions CEO helps people handle and manage their personal finances from his Nashville studios.

KWAM’s daily lineup now consists of:

6:00-9:00 AM: Wake Up Memphis
9:00-11:00 AM: The Ramsey Show
11:00 AM-2:00 PM: The Todd Starnes Show
2:00-3:00 PM: America First with Sebastian Gorka
3:00-5:00 PM: The Earle Farrell 4Memphis Show
5:00-8:00 PM: The Lars Larson Show
8:00-9:00 PM: No Spin News with Bill O’Reilly
9:00 PM-11:00 PM: The Rita Cosby Show

The addition of Dave Ramsey will see the end of nationally syndicated Armstrong & Getty’s run on the station.

Sean McManus: CBS Sports Didn’t Have ‘Intervention’ With Tony Romo

BSM Staff
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Earlier this month, a report from Andrew Marchand of The New York Post claimed CBS Sports tried an intervention with its much-maligned top NFL analyst Tony Romo. CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus has refuted those claims.

During an interview with Chris “Mad Dog” Russo ahead of Super Bowl LVII, McManus acknowledged he met with Romo and continues to meet with him periodically, but claimed any insinuation that it could be called an intervention was untrue.

“The thought that there is some kind of story behind the fact that I sat down with Tony to talk about how he can get better is just inaccurate,” McManus said.

McManus added he thought the reporting of the meeting with Romo was “being overplayed” before saying “we can all get better”.

It is the second time CBS Sports has pushed back on the report that it is unhappy with Romo’s performance. CBS Spokesperson Jen Sabatelle said “to call this an intervention is a complete mischaracterization, we meet regularly with our on-air talent,” after Marchand’s original report on the matter.

After beginning his television career with high praise, many have criticized Romo for his drop in performance. Reports surrounding his lack of preparation have persisted, with Marchand going as far as to report that Jim Nantz being reluctant to set Romo up to succeed if the former Cowboys quarterback doesn’t show more interest in honing his craft.

New York Public Radio Sued by Former Employee For Racial Discrimination

BNM Staff
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New York Public Radio Sued by Former Employee For Racial Discrimination

Former New York Public Radio reporter Jami Floyd has filed a lawsuit against the outlet after she was fired in April 2022.

In her lawsuit, Floyd alleges she was hesitant to join the network because of its reputation of not supporting Black employees. After joining the outlet in 2015, Floyd claimed she faced “a racially hostile work environment” and claims she was “bullied, demeaned, and undermined” during her tenure.

“Despite being a talented, well-educated and smart Black woman with significantly more experience than most employees in the Newsroom at WNYC, it was made clear to Floyd that she was not respected, editorially trusted, or admired,” the lawsuit reads.

Floyd — who served as the All Things Considered host on WNYC until September 2020 — was fired in April of last year after allegations of plagiarism came to light. According to an internal review, 45 articles she wrote for the WNYC website and Gothamist had portions plagiarized without proper attribution. The 45 articles were subsequently deleted “due to violations of our editorial standards”.

After her dismissal, Floyd claimed she was “not the first Black woman victimized in this company”, and refused to sign a separation agreement. She told reporters at the time of her firing that she planned to sue the network.

“For years Black and brown people, in general, and Black women, specifically, have had their careers derailed by their time at New York Public Radio,” she said after her exit, claiming she was hazed by “bullies” inside the organization.  

KNX News to Host ‘A Generation Lost’ Town Hall

BNM Staff
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KNX News is slated to host a town hall centered around the unseen and unspoken effects the COVID-19 pandemic brought on.

On Wednesday, February 22nd at 5:00 PM PT, KNX News will air an hour-long, commercial-free discussion titled A Generation Lost on what lasting damage the COVID-19 pandemic caused for children and teenagers, and what experts have seen and forecast for the years to come.

The panel will include:
Jill Baker, Superintendent, Long Beach Unified School District
Gary Clark, director of undergraduate admissions at UCLA
Chito Cajayon, Dean, Los Angeles Trade Tech College
Sean Reardon, Director, Education Opportunity Project at Stanford

Students will be welcomed to share their experiences of disrupted learning, social patterns, and more.

The panel will explore how the pandemic altered the way children learn, work, and play, and how it has affected their mental health. The roundtable will also discuss what potential damage was done to higher education over the past three years.

It will also converse on what has been studied, what hasn’t, and what potentially is still unknown about the development of young people during the pandemic.

Boomer Esiason: Deal Between Keith Hernandez & SNY To Be Announced This Week

BSM Staff
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Keith Hernandez is returning to the Mets’ broadcast booth. Boomer Esiason said Monday on WFAN that SNY has reached an agreement with the five-time All-Star to keep him on television alongside Gary Cohen and Ron Darling.

“I have it on what I feel is really good sources that he will be back in the SNY booth,” Esiason told radio partner Gregg Giannotti and their listeners. “And hopefully it will be announced this week.”

New York Mets fans were worried about what the future may hold for Hernandez. He and the network had struggled to come to an agreement. Giannotti speculated that SNY had been trying to get Hernandez to accept a lowball offer and wondered if Mets owner Steve Cohen stepped in to help close the deal.

“Stevie has nothing to do with that,” Esiason said. “This is SNY. It’s a separate entity from Steve Cohen.”

SNY is owned by the Mets’ former owners, the Wilpon family. Giannotti said that is what made fans so skeptical of the negotiations.

Keith Hernandez is a legend amongst Mets fans. He played first base for the club from 1983 until 1989. During that time, he won six Gold Gloves and a Silver Slugger Award. He was named a National League All-Star three times and was a member of the 1986 World Series champions.

He has been a part of Mets’ television broadcasts for the last 17 seasons. Last month, Mike Puma of The New York Post tweeted that the sides were getting close to signing a multi-year deal. Boomer Esiason did not have details of the contract that he says is done. He just expressed relief.

“The closer it got to Spring Training, the more concerned we all, as Met fans, became. We want to be whole and being whole is having him as part of the broadcast.”

Bill Maher Jokes About Differences Between HBO and CNN on New ‘Overtime’ Show

BNM Staff
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Things are a little different on basic cable than they are on HBO, and comedian and host Bill Maher is trying to make the adjustment.

Maher joined the CNN lineup earlier this month when the network began airing his Overtime segment on Fridays at 11:30 PM ET. And during his second show with the network, he let one specific word drop that you’re not allowed to use on basic cable.

While discussing Sarah Huckabee Sanders and charges of nepotism, Maher told guest Kristen Soltis Anderson that acting is one of the biggest places where nepotism thrives, before saying acting was not “f—ing hard”, before chuckling.

“Sorry, CNN. I know. I forgot,” apologized Maher. “You’re not supposed to (say that word). (I’m) not on HBO.”

Due to HBO’s subscriber status, it is protected from FCC violations for unscrupulous language. Meanwhile, due to CNN’s ad-supported status, the network has to comply with more regulations.

Don Lemon: President Biden Correct For Not Agreeing to Fox News Interview

BNM Staff
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President Joe Biden came under criticism for declining an interview with Fox News that would air during the Super Bowl pregame show. CNN This Morning anchor Don Lemon defended the President for his decision.

In what has become somewhat of a tradition, the network broadcasting the Super Bowl — this year, FOX — has aired a sit-down interview with the President to air during that network’s lengthy pre-game show.

This year, however, Fox News requested the interview but was never given a confirmation or denial. On Friday, the White House announced Biden had agreed to interview with FOX Soul, a digital outlet owned by the network with programming that pertains to the Black experience.

In the White House’s view, FOX could utilize the interview conducted by Mike Hill and Vivica A. Fox across all its platforms, but the network axed the interview.

Fox News claims it offered to conduct the interview with “our top news anchors with no strings attached”, but the White House walked away from the opportunity.

Monday morning, Lemon said the President was correct for declining the interview, citing “the Fox ecosystem, where they are, especially on truth and facts.”

“I definitely think that played into it,” Lemon said. “Should he have done it? That’s up to them.”

Lemon furthered his point by discussing the video of Twitter owner Elon Musk sitting with News Corp. and Fox Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch at the Super Bowl as reason for Biden to ignore the request from Fox News.

“That gets people wondering,” Lemon said. “And for some, it is confirmation that ‘See? That’s why he shouldn’t have done the interview with Fox. They’re all in collusion, out to get Joe Biden, and liberals, and the administration.’”

Longtime ESPN Producer Barry Sacks Dies

BSM Staff
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Longtime ESPN Producer Barry Sacks Dies

Barry Sacks, a longtime producer at ESPN and Quinnipiac University professor, died Sunday. He was 63.

Sacks joined ESPN in 1982 and remained with the organization until January 2016. He was pivotal in the rise of both SportsCenter and College GameDay. After departing ESPN, he was the Executive Producer of the WNBA’s Connecticut Suns for five seasons while simultaneously teaching classes part-time at Quinnipiac.

“During his 33-year career in Bristol, Barry touched so many areas of the company,” said ESPN’s Suzy Kolber as she announced the news on Postseason NFL Countdown Sunday. “His passion for sports was unmatched, including his love for the New York Giants. When Chris Berman says ‘G-Men’ on NFL Primetime, that’s an ode to Barry.

“He was also responsible for mentoring so many ESPN production assistants, always asking when deciding whether a play should make the highlight, ‘Did it make you say wow?’ Those of us who got to work with you for many years always said ‘Wow’ about you, Barry.”

“Beloved by his students, Barry was one of the linchpins of our sports journalism offerings, and the reason why so many of his students have had successful careers,” Quinnipiac Associate Vice President of Public Relations John Morgan said in a statement. “The university is offering counseling services to students who have been impacted by this terrible loss.” 

Sacks is survived by his wife, Joann, and son Jesse.

Tributes from former colleagues and friends poured in after the death was announced by ESPN.

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