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Warner Bros. Discovery Sports President Departs

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Warner Bros. Discovery Sports President Departs

Lenny Daniels is leaving Warner Bros. Discovery after 27 years with the company.

Daniels is the President of the company’s sports division in the United States, overseeing the contracts and strategic vision for the organization.

In a memo sent to staff obtained by Sports Business Journal, CEO Luis Silberwasser said “While this change will take place right away, Lenny has agreed to work with me to ensure a smooth transition.” He also added “I have enjoyed working with Lenny during these past few months and I respect his decision. Lenny has never been one to place a spotlight on himself; he’s always been quick to shine it on those around him. His enthusiasm and light-hearted demeanor are among his most endearing qualities, and they will be missed.”

The departure by Daniels coincides with a round of layoffs by the company and also the beginning of long-term agreements with the NHL and MLB. The network is also about to embark on negotiations with the NBA for its next media rights deal, with Warner Bros. Discovery CEO and President David Zaslav recently saying “we don’t have to have the NBA“.

Howie Carr: Don Lemon Used Len Khodorkovsky as Ratings Ploy

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Things got a bit heated on CNN Monday during a segment with Don Lemon interviewing former Trump aide Len Khodorkovsky. 

Lemon pressed Khodorkovsky as to whether former President Donald Trump was an anti-Semite. “I can tell an anti-Semite when I hear one. And I tell you with confidence that President Trump is not an anti-Semite,” Khodorkovsky said. 

Syndicated radio host Howie Carr reacted to the clip on his show. Carr insisted that Lemon used Khodorkovsky’s interview as a ratings ploy as he struggles to gain traction on his new morning show.

“Don Lemon has now been exiled to morning drive on CNN where his ratings are even more abysmal than they were in primetime,” stated Carr. 

Carr said Khodorkovsky was brought on specifically to denounce Donald Trump as an anti-Semite. Khodorkovsky’s grandparents survived the holocaust. Carr said Khodorkovsky did not play again with Lemon’s line of questioning. 

“This is why they bring you on to these shows,” said Carr. “CNN, MSNBC, the only way you’re going to come on is if you’re going to be a Republican that’s evolving and deciding that Donald Trump is a bad guy.” 

According to the Daily Mail, Khodorkovsky, who is Jewish, appeared on CNN to react to Trump’s dinner at Mar-a-Lago with white nationalist Nick Fuentes.

Elon Musk Accuses Apple of Threatening To Censor Twitter

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Elon Musk is ready to go toe-to-toe with Apple. In a series of tweets Monday, Musk stated that Apple threatened to remove Twitter from its app store. Musk then published a poll asking users if Apple should publish all censorship actions it takes that affect customers. 

According to The New York Post, the action of removing a social media app from the store would not be unprecedented. Apple removed Gab and Parler in 2021 before eventually restoring Parler last year. 

“Did you know that Apple puts a 30% tax on everything you buy through their app store?” Musk said. “Apple has mostly stopped advertising on Twitter. Do they hate free speech in America?”

Apple reportedly spent an estimated $131,600 on Twitter ads between Nov. 10 and Nov. 16, down from $220,800 between Oct. 16 and Oct. 22, the week before Musk closed the Twitter deal.

The paper reported that in the first quarter of 2022, Apple was the top advertiser on Twitter, spending $48 million and accounting for more than 4% of total revenue for the period, the Washington Post reported, citing an internal Twitter document.

Musk also posted a meme suggesting he was willing to “go to war” with Apple rather than paying the commission.

Danny Balis Joins 97.1 The Freak

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Longtime Sportsradio 96.7/1310 The Ticket producer Danny Balis is joining 97.1 The Freak in Dallas.

Balis was introduced Monday as the newest member of The Downbeat cast, which already features Mike Rhyner, Mike Sirois, and Michael Gruber.

“He was the one I want, and I get what I want here,” Rhyner said during Monday’s announcement.

“I’m excited,” said Balis. “I feel kind of nervous because I haven’t done this in a long time. I thought this may not ever happen to me again, to do radio with people I’ve known for a very, very long time.”

Balis left The Ticket in May, citing an interest in focusing on other areas of his life outside of radio. He served as a producer at the station for 22 years before stepping aside. At the time, he said “The room for growth for me up here is not going to open up until all you knuckleheads retire,” the 54-year-old joked.

In addition to his work with The Freak, Balis continues to co-own the Twilite Lounge in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex.

97.1 The Freak launched in October, and features a “broad-based, personality driven format” that features several former Dallas sports radio personalities including Rhyner, and Ben and Skin among others.

Google, iHeartMedia Settle Multi-Million-Dollar Lawsuit with FTC On Alleged Scam

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Google, iHeartMedia Settle Multi-Million-Dollar Lawsuit with FTC On Alleged Scam

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has settled a multi-million-dollar lawsuit with Google and iHeartMedia following a controversy over the endorsement of a Google-made smartphone.

According to RadioInk, the promotion saw Google and iHeartMedia pay influencers to promote the Google Pixel 4 phone and offer testimony on their purported use of the device.

The lawsuit involved seven states and the FTC. A settlement was announced on Monday. Google and iHeartMedia will have to pay more than nine million dollars in fees. The settlement does not prohibit the two companies from partnering again for promotions.

The complaint alleged Google provided a script to iHeartMedia to have their talent read, in which they touted the Google Pixel 4’s unique camera and photography software. The suit also said that the influencers never used the product.

On one occasion, according to the report, an employee asked Google if it would be possible to give radio talent devices, a Google staffer reportedly wrote back that “this is not feasible…as the product is not on shelves yet,”

“It is common sense that people put more stock in first-hand experiences,” Maura Healey, the attorney general for Massachusetts, said on Monday. 

According to The Verge, Google said the company was “pleased” to settle the lawsuit

Jason Barrett Podcast: Damon Bruce, 95.7 The Game

Jason Barrett
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Jason Barrett Podcast: Damon Bruce, 95.7 The Game

Damon Bruce shares the story of how he ended up at 95.7 The Game in San Francisco and the influence Jason Barrett had on his career.

iTunes: https://buff.ly/3nTJC5K 

Spotify: https://buff.ly/3z9hErM

iHeart: https://buff.ly/3oyi0U0

Google: https://buff.ly/3vh7Tqu

Amazon: https://buff.ly/3w9hqAh

Stephen A. Smith Slams Washington Post For Jerry Jones Reporting

BSM Staff
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After reporting from The Washington Post revealed a photo of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones standing on the steps of North Little Rock High School as six black students attempted to integrate in 1957, ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith has slammed the outlet’s reporting and defended Jones on First Take Monday.

“I’m pretty pissed off,” said Smith. “I’m pissed off but not for reasons that people would think. I am very, very fond of Jerry Jones, and I’m not hiding that from anybody. Is his record perfect? No, but I’m pissed off because he doesn’t deserve what just happened. He doesn’t deserve it. One report, our report, said he was 14 years old. Another report said he was 15 years old. At minimum that’s 65 years ago.

“You’re going to bring up a picture of Jerry Jones standing at this protest — no question — what was happening is not something that anybody — as a black person — should be appreciative about. You had six students trying to desegregate the school,” Smith said before stating that racism is still “alive and well’ in America, noting black men especially face it daily.

“But you’re going to bring up a photo of him when he was 14, 15 years old? 65 or 66 years ago? This is where cancel culture gets into the mix. You’re making an attempt to eradicate him, what he stands for and all he has done.”

Smith continued by saying he doesn’t have a problem with the photo, and Jones’ youth changes the potential for outrage, noting if he was 30 or 35 rather than a teenager, that would be a bigger indicator of his character.

Washington Post Reporter Sally Jenkins Details Jerry Jones Reporting to Dan Le Batard

BSM Staff
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Washington Post Reporter Sally Jenkins Details Jerry Jones Reporting to Dan Le Batard

A report from The Washington Post that featured a photo of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones witnessing the controversial integration of North Little Rock High School in 1957 caused a stir late last week, and one of the reporters on the project, Sally Jenkins, detailed how it came to be to Dan Le Batard Monday.

“It was part of a larger project,” Jenkins said of the discovery of the photo. “We came across this photo of Jones. It’s at the start of the school year at North Little Rock High School. He’s on the cusp of his 15th birthday and he’s very clearly identifiable in the photo, which ran on the front page of The New York Times in 1957 because Little Rock was undergoing a real crisis of desegregating it’s schools to the the point that (President Dwight D.) Eisenhower had to send the 101st Airborne into Little Rock to quell violence over black kids trying to go to white schools.

“We knew that Jerry Jones had witness — or at least lived through — a tough civil rights era in Little Rock, and we wanted to talk to him about that. We just started to research it to ask him questions about it and we came across that photo.”

The Washington Post debuted a nine-part series entitled “Blackout” that dove into why there are not more minority head coaches in the NFL. They asked every NFL owner for an interview for the project, but Jones was the only one to agree.

Stugotz asked Jenkins if it was fair to judge someone from a photo taken of them while they were a child, referring to some of the media backlish pushed towards Jones because of the photo.

“Of course not,” Jenkins said. “What is fair is to ask him about what he witnessed, ask him what he experienced, ask him how his views may have changed, or if they did change at all, ask him how he has evolved on issues of social justice or racial justice. And the fact is he has evolved, particularly recently. He started out as a real hard-liner on the Colin Kaepernick situation. At one point, Jerry Jones said ‘The Dallas Cowboys will stand for the anthem and tow the line’, and he’s really softened on that.”

She later conceded the answers Jones provided won’t satisfy everyone, and said there are legitimate questions about his positioning in the photograph, noting the Little Rock Six were spit on, and had the n-word shouted at them from those standing on the steps where Jones was located.

Rob Dibble, 97.9 ESPN Help Collect Nearly 5,000 Turkeys

BSM Staff
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97.9 ESPN Hartford host Rob Dibble helped collect more than 5,000 frozen turkeys and over 8m000 pounds of non-perishable foood items last week.

The station, along with other iHeart Connecticut stations, also raised more than $189,000 during the 23rd annual Turkey Tuesday at Connecticut Foodshare’s headquarters.

“We are continually grateful of the outpouring of donations from our listeners and Connecticut community on our annual events to ensure a Thanksgiving for all,” said iHeartMedia Hartford and New Haven Vice President of Marketing Vanessa Wojtusiak. “This year, the support from listeners, sponsors, partners and volunteers helped make a remarkable state-wide impact.”

Dibble has been a longtime support of Connecticut Foodshare, hosting its director Al Marino on his show several times throughout the year to ensure families in Connecticut have access to the food bank.

Ray Didinger Subject of NFL Films Feature, Tells Angelo Cataldi He’s Stayed Busy in Retirement

BSM Staff
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Former 94WIP host and Philadelphia Daily News and NBC Sports Philadelphia writer Ray Didinger retired earlier this year, but he told Angelo Cataldi he’s remained busy even though he stepped away from his media career.

“It’s been busier than I thought,” Didinger said. “Just because of the way things have gone in the city. The Phillies going to the World Series, the Eagles are 10-1, I don’t think any of us thought it was going to be this kind of run. Consequently, my phone hasn’t stopped ringing. I had no idea everyone in the world has a podcast so I’ve been getting all those calls. My name and my phone number are on way too many rolodexes all around the country. When somebody says ‘Hey, let’s do a piece about Philly’, my phone rings. It’s been busy but it’s been good. It’s been great to see what this has meant to the city.”

Didinger hosted shows from 10:00 AM-1:00 PM on Saturdays and Sundays for 94WIP. In total, he spent more than 50 years covering the NFL before retiring in May.

After Cataldi asked for Didinger’s opinion on the 2022 Eagles, he asked the now-retired reporter if he was still using his yellow notepad. Didinger admitted he does still use the notepad, and Cataldi chastised his former colleague after he said he would retire the notepad. Cataldi joked when he retires after the Eagles season concludes, he hopes to lose co-hosts Al Morganti and Rhea Hughes’ phone numbers.

Didinger will be the subject of an NFL Films feature about his longtime career covering the league. The program will air on FS1 on Friday at 12:30 AM.

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