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Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Boss: ‘We’re Super Invested’ In NCAA Tournament

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Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Boss: ‘We’re Super Invested’ In NCAA Tournament

Many observers, both in the industry and outside of it, are trying to make sense of the future of sports at Warner Bros. Discovery.

On the one hand, the company told the teams whose media rights it holds that they are done with the RSN business. On the other, reports say the company is dedicated to retaining broadcast rights for the NBA despite CEO David Zaslav saying the company could live without it.

Later this month, the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament begins. Games will be seen on TNT, TBS, and TruTV for the 13th year. It is a contract that pre-dates Warner Bros. Discovery taking over the networks, so it is fair to ask how much the company values the event.

“Very committed, I mean very committed,” Luis Silberwasser, the company’s chairman of sports and CEO, said when asked on a media conference call on Tuesday. “We have a very longstanding partnership since 2011. We have a deal with the NCAA and with CBS that goes for many more years. It is one of our premiere events. Our strategy on sports may be slightly different, we don’t have a sports network, per se, so we need to be disciplined and very choiceful about the things that we agree to do and want to do. But once we do, once that becomes part of our portfolio, we go all in.”

The stories of Warner Bros. Discovery trying to manage its tremendous debt are well-known. It has included shelving movies already completed to take tax write-offs, eliminating several positions, and more.

Silberwasser says those issues will not affect the way the company covers the NCAA Tournament.

“It is something that we value tremendously. It is part of our premiere and premium sports rights portfolio, and we see it as one of the best things we have. We look forward to our partnership, and we’re super invested, and we’re all in.”

Sean McManus was also on the call. The CBS Sports Chairman noted that the partnership between the cable networks and CBS was made before Warner Media merged with Discovery. Still, he sees stability. He expects the opening round play-in games to remain on TruTV, with the channel, TNT, and TBS continuing to air games in the first and second rounds, TBS to carry Sweet 16 and Elite 8 games, and every other year, for the network to have the Final Four.

“We’ve had some discussion about possibly altering that so we get the championship game every year and Turner gets the Final Four every year or vice versa, but those discussions have never come to fruition and they’ve never been all that serious,” he said. “I think the pattern that is in place works really well for the partnership. And I don’t see it changing in the future.”

Chad Withrow: Kendrick Perkins Isn’t A Racist, He’s Just Not Smart

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ESPN NBA analyst Kendrick Perkins has recently taken heat for his insinuation that White players in the league are more likely to win MVP due to the overwhelming majority of voters also being white. OutKick360’s Chad Withrow doesn’t believe Perkins is racist — which many have accused Perkins of being — but believes he’s simply not intelligent.

“He’s implying that white voters for MVP are racist and they moved the goal posts for white players when they’re really good, and they have a higher likelihood of winning MVP,” Withrow said. “Now, I disagree with that stance. Here’s the thing though: I don’t think that this makes Kendrick Perkins a racist. I think what we consistently see from Kendrick Perkins is that he’s just not very smart.”

Withrow then commented that he believes ESPN is partially responsible for Perkins being in his current predicament.

“He’s not an intelligent guy, and when you put a guy in this format every single day — who’s not particularly smart — you’re going to get outcomes like this. They’re putting him in an awful spot because he’s not very intelligent. I don’t think he’s an evil guy, I don’t think he’s a racist guy, I don’t think he’s very smart and when he goes head-to-head with JJ Redick — Duke-educated JJ Redick — or even Stephen A. Smith, he’s going to appear dumb next to these guys.

“There’s this idea oftentimes in media that ‘We need to put someone on camera that’s like our viewers’. You gotta also think about there’s a reason people are on TV sometimes. It’s because they can deliver a really good point, or they can argue something, or they’re good on television. You don’t just put anyone on TV because you think ‘Our viewers are like this, so it will be good’…Kendrick Perkins is the perfect example of this. I’ve thought this throughout his media career. He’s not smart. That’s my biggest problem.”

The comments from Withrow come after Perkins and Redick sparred over the comments during First Take Tuesday, which Redick claiming the insinuation is what is wrong with the program.

Mike Gallagher: Tucker Carlson Protected Family of Brian Sicknick

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Mike Gallagher: Tucker Carlson Protected Family of Brian Sicknick

During a segment that he claimed “demolished” the narratives surrounding the January 6th Insurrection, Fox News host Tucker Carlson claimed Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick died of causes unrelated to his role in the riot. The claim received pushback from many pundits, but conservative radio host Mike Gallagher believes Carlson did the Sicknick family a favor.

During The Mike Gallagher Show, the host pondered why Carlson wouldn’t discuss Sicknick appearing to usher those who had broken into the Capitol. He questioned if Carlson was doing the family a favor.

“It is hard to admit that not only was Brian Sicknick — the officer that they all claimed was killed by the protestors — not only was he up and appeared healthy and walking around the Capitol, he was enthusiastically directing people protestors through the Capitol. Tucker didn’t even mention that for some reason,” Gallagher said, “but your eyes can see it. Maybe Tucker didn’t want to disrespect the family. I don’t know why he didn’t just say it. Maybe he thought you can see it with your own eyes and it was just too painful to say it.

“This is supposedly after the time where he was assaulted with some kind of spray whether bear spray or mace. The New York Times falsely claimed that he was bludgeoned to death with a fire extinguisher. Anderson Cooper on CNN repeated that bald-faced lie. It turned out to be completely false. He died of a stroke the day after the riot. The medical examiner ruled that it was a death by natural causes.”

Sicknick’s family does not view the encapsulation by Carlson as a friendly one. In a statement released Monday evening, the family claimed it was “outraged at the ongoing attack on our family by the unscrupulous and outright sleazy so called ‘news’ network of Fox News who will do the bidding of Trump or any of his sycophant followers, no matter what damage is done to the families of the fallen.”

“Carlson’s ‘truth’ is to pick and choose footage that supports his delusional views that the Jan 6th Insurrection was peaceful,” the statement continued.

“Leave us the hell alone and instead of spreading more lies f rom Supreme Leader Trump, why don’t you focus on real news?” the statement concluded.

Fred Toucher: ‘I’ve Always Been Fascinated By Cedric Maxwell’s Lifestyle’

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Fred Toucher: ‘I’ve Always Been Fascinated By Cedric Maxwell’s Lifestyle’

Celtics fans love Cedric “Cornbread” Maxwell. Fellow broadcasters in the NBA? Maybe not as much. On Wednesday morning, Toucher & Rich learned just how common it is for the radio analyst to get into fights with other radio crews.

Jon Wallach, who serves as the update anchor and third mic on the 98.5 The Sports Hub morning show, is also Maxwell’s partner for Celtics’ radio broadcasts. He played audio for Fred Toucher and Rich Shertenlieb from the team’s loss in Cleveland earlier this week.

Forward Grant Williams was fouled at the end of the game. Jim Jones, the radio analyst for the Cleveland Cavaliers, clearly disagreed with the call.

“That’s a foul, Jim,” Maxwell can be heard shouting. “That’s a damn foul!”

“For those of you that don’t have a camera on it, Max is talking trash to the Cleveland broadcast team, who is sitting right next to us,” Jon Wallach can then be heard telling the audience.

Wallach told Toucher & Rich that Cedric Maxwell has a storied history of fighting with other broadcast crews. Shertenlieb said he could remember arguments with broadcasters for the Lakers and the 76ers. Wallach noted that the argument with the 76ers’ crew also included the Philadelphia crowd.

“It’s great. It’s entertainment,” Fred Toucher responded.

He added that Maxwell is something of an enigma, which makes him unique amongst broadcasters.

“I’ve always been fascinated by Cedric Maxwell’s lifestyle,” Toucher said, marveling at the fact that the former guard avoided driving entirely until recently and that when the team is on the road, Maxwell prefers to stay in his hotel room rather than explore different cities.

Bill O’Reilly: Tucker Carlson’s January 6th Encapsulation A Lie

BNM Staff
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Fox News host Tucker Carlson produced a segment on Monday’s program showcasing portions of the more than 40,000 hours of security camera footage taken from the US Capitol during the January 6th Insurrection. Former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly wasn’t appreciative of the way Carlson represented the event.

During his No Spin News and Analysis program, O’Reilly lamented the way January 6th had been handled by prominent Democratic lawmakers and pushed back against the insinuation that Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick died due to his involvement in defending the Capitol during the riots. O’Reilly contended that narratives around the day had been fabricated by those seeking to discredit former President Trump.

He then turned his attention to Fox News, and shared his disagreement with Carlson’s encapsulation, without naming the host.

“The tape shown by the Fox News Channel de-intensified how bad it was. Because the Fox editors, the producers, they took what they wanted to take,” O’Reilly said. “They didn’t show you the whole tape. The selectively took what they wanted to make points. Some of the points were valid, some were not. This wasn’t some sort of tourist excursion. This was a violent break-in. Doors, windows were smashed. People were out of control…so to try to diminish that it wasn’t a big deal that’s — on the other side — a lie. It was a big deal! It was appalling.”

During the segment Monday, Carlson claimed that people who broke into the Capitol on January 6th were not rioters, they were “sightseers” in his estimation, saying “very little about January 6th was organized or violent”.

“Footage from inside the Capitol overturns the story you have heard about January 6th,” Carlson said.

O’Reilly opined by simply stating “people will believe what they want to believe”.

Fox News: Maria Bartiromo Interview Offer to Dominion CEO Proves ‘No Actual Malice’

BNM Staff
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A recent filing by Fox News in defense of a defamation lawsuit brought forth by Dominion Voting Systems contends the cable news channel did not act with actual malice and points to an offer made by Maria Bartiromo to the election machine company’s CEO as evidence to support its case.

In the filing, Fox News contends that it offered Dominion the opportunity to share its side of the story, with Bartiromo offering to interview the company’s CEO in an email exchange with Dominion representative Tony Fratto.

In the exchange, Fratto told the Fox News host that claims from Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell — lawyers for then-President Trump — were “verifiably false”, adding that they were “tinfoil hat conspiracy stuff”.

“I’m not saying you should ignore the story, but Rudy is literally making things up as he goes,” Fratto said.

“Are you saying I should not cover a sitting president contesting a presidential election?” Bartiromo pondered. “Should I just blow it off & go with the rest of the media who has taken us down rabbit holes based on their ideologies now for 4 years and counting? Is that what you suggest I do?”

After being told that Dominion employees were receiving death threats after being harrassed by Powell, Bartiromo then agreed that she would push Powell on her election claims. Later in the exchange, Bartiromo asked “Do you want me to have Dominion CEO on?”

According to the network, Dominion CEO John Poulos said that potential customers of the company “don’t care about the media. It’s just more words from their perspective”. The network also claims that an independent arbiter for the voting machine company showed it had not experienced “a loss of clientele” and that it actually attracted new customers.

“Thanks to today’s filings, Dominion has been caught red-handed again using more distortions and misinformation in their PR campaign to smear FOX News and trample on free speech and freedom of the press,” a Fox News spokesperson told Barrett News Media. “We already know they will say and do anything to try to win this case, but to twist and even misattribute quotes to the highest levels of our company is truly beyond the pale.”  

Rupert Murdoch Believed Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham ‘Maybe Went Too Far’ In 2020 Election Denials

BNM Staff
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New emails uncovered in the Dominion Voting Systems defamation lawsuit against Fox News reveal Rupert Murdoch believed hosts on the network were reason rioters stormed the Capital on January 6th.

The election machine company released more than 6,500 pages of exhibits Tuesday, and while many are heavily redacted, some emails and text messages show the behind-the-scenes feelings of Murdoch, as well as Fox Corp. board member and former Vice Presidential nominee Paul Ryan.

In an email to Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott on January 21st, 2021, Murdoch asked “Is it ‘unarguable that high-profile Fox voices fed the story that the election was stolen and that January 6th an important chance to have the result overturned”? Maybe Sean (Hannity) and Laura (Ingraham) went too far.”

Murdoch then noted that Hannity had privately shared his disdain for Trump, but questioned “what did he tell his viewers?”

In a separate email exchange, Ryan told Murdoch “the sooner we can put down the echoes of falsehoods from our side, the faster we can get onto principled loyal opposition. I truly hope our contributors, along with Tucker (Carlson), Laura (Ingraham), and Sean (Hannity) get that and execute.”

Murdoch responded by saying “everything changed” on January 6th, adding Trump’s businesses were “ruined” before questioning if he could resign with the understanding that Mike Pence would pardon him.

“The emails, texts, and deposition testimony speak for themselves. We welcome all scrutiny of our evidence because it all leads to the same place — Fox knowingly spread lies causing enormous damage to an American company,” Dominion said in a statement.

In response, Fox News has continually pointed towards protections afforded in the First Amendment, alleging that Dominion has “cherry-picked” and “misrepresented” the contents of the emails and text messages.

“Thanks to today’s filings, Dominion has been caught red-handed again using more distortions and misinformation in their PR campaign to smear FOX News and trample on free speech and freedom of the press,” a Fox News spokesperson told Barrett News Media. “We already know they will say and do anything to try to win this case, but to twist and even misattribute quotes to the highest levels of our company is truly beyond the pale.”  

Grace Curley: CNN Won’t Ask Adam Kinzinger Tough Questions About January 6 Committee

BNM Staff
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Grace Curley: CNN Won’t Ask Adam Kinzinger Tough Questions About January 6 Committee

Grace Curley, a syndicated radio host, shared her thoughts on the media’s reaction to the January 6 tapes broadcast on the “Tucker Carlson Show.” 

During an interview Tuesday on CNN, Adam Kinzinger, recently hired as a senior political commentator for the network, criticized Carlson’s narrative and those who believe it. Kinzinger suggested that people who currently believe Carlson’s version of events will likely not admit to it in the future once the history has been set straight by the January 6th committee.

“It’s disgusting. Look, you know, the sad thing is you have people that have only gotten their news on FOX News that will never have the opportunity to hear the truth,” said Kinzinger via Real Clear Politics. “Because what Tucker Carlson — he has employed at his entire time he has been a grifter TV show host, because he knows better than this, by the way.” 

Curley expressed frustration with the lack of follow-up questions during Kinzinger’s CNN interview, particularly around why the Democrats did not release the Jan 6 tapes earlier and their handling of the Brian Sicknick case. 

“Why did you lie about Brian Sicknick,” Curley said. “Forget Tucker Carlson about whether he could wake up and look into the mirror or not, I don’t care, and I don’t understand why you care either. I would redirect the witness if I were Kaitlin Collins.” 

Kinzinger was part of the January 6th committee tasked with investigating the U.S. Capitol riots. Curley acknowledged that Kinzinger’s position as a political commentator for the network makes it unlikely that he would face tough questioning from his colleagues.

8 Radio Companies Ask FCC To Eliminate Ownership Caps

BNM Staff
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Recently, eight radio companies, namely Connoisseur Media, LLC, Townsquare Media, Inc., Mid-West Family Broadcasting, Midwest Communications, Inc., Frandsen Family Stations, Forever Media, Inc., Neuhoff Communications, Eagle Communications, Inc., Patrick Communications, LLC, and Legend Communications, LLC, submitted comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding ownership caps. 

These caps limit the number of radio stations that an entity can own in a particular radio market. The comments were submitted by the top executives of these radio companies, including founders, CEOs, senior vice presidents, general counsels, presidents, chief operating officers, and managing partners.

As per a report by Radio Ink, the broadcasters are requesting the FCC to eliminate the local radio ownership rules say they were implemented 27 years ago in a different media landscape. The current regulations restrict the consolidation of local radio and, according to the submissions, hinder the ability of radio stations to compete with tech giants. 

The broadcasters argue that the competition for audience and advertising has intensified since 2021 and is expected to continue as non-broadcast media outlets, owned and controlled by the largest companies in America, continue to expand. Unless outdated and overly restrictive ownership restrictions are removed, over-the-air radio stations will struggle to provide current service levels, which is not in the public interest.

The executives collectively urge the FCC to remove the antiquated regulatory barriers hindering radio’s ability to compete in the modern market. They are endorsing a proposal from 2019 to eliminate local radio ownership rules. 

The remarks were expressed and endorsed by a group of industry leaders, including Jeffrey D. Warshaw, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Connoisseur Media, LLC; Thomas A. Walker, President of Mid-West Family Broadcasting; M. Kent Frandsen, President of Frandsen Family Stations; Michael Hulvey, Chief Executive Officer of Neuhoff Communications; W. Lawrence Patrick, Managing Partner of Patrick Communications, LLC; Allison Zolot, Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Townsquare Media, Inc.; Michael Wright, Chief Operating Officer of Midwest Communications, Inc.; Lynn Deppen, President of Forever Media, Inc.; Gary Shorman, Chairman of Eagle Communications, Inc.; and Susan K. Patrick, Managing Partner of Legend Communications, LLC.

Reporter Christina Buttons Exits Daily Wire Over Site’s Treatment of Transgender Issues

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Christina Buttons, an investigative reporter with The Daily Wire for the past six months, announced in a blog post titled “Why I’m Leaving the Daily Wire” that she has resigned. 

She had been writing about transgender issues, specifically pediatric gender medicine. Still, she became disheartened by recent videos and posts that do not align with The Daily Wire’s original stance of safeguarding children and tolerance for alternative adult lifestyles. 

“The political Right often rails against ‘identity politics’ and group labels, yet many fail to distinguish between transgender people and transgender activists,” she said. “Not all transgender people are transgender activists, and in fact, many—especially of the older generation—find the extremism of contemporary trans activism appalling.”  

She said she took issue with the extremist rhetoric of Matt Walsh, who has defended his inflammatory comments as an excellent strategy to rally the conservative base, and Michael Knowles, who made a controversial statement at CPAC that transgenderism needs to be “eradicated from public life”. Buttons argue that it is essential to distinguish between transgender people and transgender activists, as not all are the same. 

“As a journalist, I have to believe there are reachable centrists, including moderate liberals, who are uncomfortable with gender ideology but who have been insulated from serious coverage of this medical scandal,” she added. 

She notes that transgender identities are not always fixed and that what she calls “de-transitioners” will need support, especially in the face of attacks from their former community. Finally, she calls for a more compassionate approach to those struggling with gender issues, as inflammatory statements only alienate those in the middle.

“Many wonderful journalists at this organization continue to do stellar work, and I hold no animosity toward any of them. But when my employer can no longer make good on the promise I was given at the start of my employment, my only recourse is to resign,” Buttons said.

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