ESPN decided to respond to the trending story line that their big stars are looking for the next train out of Bristol.

Last week, Erin Andrews joined Michelle Beadle and Jim Rome as high-profile personalities waving bye-bye to ESPN. On top of that, Jason McIntyre of Big Lead has recent posts speculating that Doug Gottlieb (a TV/radio package from CBS) and Dan Shulman (possible interest from Fox and NBC) also could fly out the door.

What’s wrong with the WWL?

So it isn’t a coincidence that the ESPN PR machine has put out releases heralding new multi-year packages for Adam Schefter, John Clayton, Mel Kiper, and Ed Werder. Stuart Scott’s new deal got special treatment on ESPN’s Front Row.

It struck me as unusual that ESPN would put out releases for mere contract renewals. I mean, will ESPN execs sleep better knowing Werder is back in the fold for a few more years? No offense, Ed, but you know what I mean.

It turns out these releases go beyond the latest news. They also were meant to deliver a message.

Said ESPN spokesman Mike Soltys in an email to me:

With all the erroneous reports of an “exodus” from Bristol we decided to inject a few facts into the debate. The vast majority of our folks love it here and stay, so for the time being we are reminding people of that. Stu yesterday, NFL group today, more soon.

Really, it’s a just a sign of the times. With NBC and CBS amping up their cable and sports talk radio presence, it figures they are going to be in pursuit of ESPN’s recognized personalities. If anything, for most ESPNers, it’s a great time to be up for a new contract. It’s definitely a seller’s market.

As we’ve seen, ESPN will keep some and lose some.

So expect more speculation about ESPN personalities moving elsewhere, and more releases about those who stay.

Not sure what to say, but that’s a tad much of Rob Gronkowski for me. Again, it’s probably a matter of perspective if you know what I mean.

ESPN The Magazine’s body issue comes out Friday. The editors decided to go with six covers that will be randomly distributed. However, clearly the one featuring the New England Patriots tight end will get the most attention. Easy to see why the porn stars love him.

The other covers feature Jose Bautista, Tyson Chandler, Daniela Hantuchova, Candace Parker and Ronda Rousey. Here’s the link with the photos.

Is it a bit over the top (be careful for bad puns)? Sure, but it’s all about selling magazines. Gimmicks sell. While it isn’t Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit issue on the hype meter, the Body Issue does liven up a sleepy July afternoon.

Here’s a Q/A with deputy editor Neely Lohmann that ran on ESPN’s Front Row:

This is your first Body Issue as the top editor. How does this assignment differ from other issues you’ve been responsible for?

Well, I’m pretty sure no other issue involves asking athletes to get naked! But it’s a process that’s taken very seriously by everyone involved. Each athlete has different reasons for wanting to be in the issue — different reservations, different personal feelings about doing it. The whole process — from the initial ask, to all the conversations with them about what they want out of the experience, to finally being with them on the set when they see the images on the monitor and their eyes light up — it’s a very personal journey for the athletes that’s so rewarding to be a part of.

How did you decide on who would be the six cover subjects, and why are there six?

We had an overwhelming number of truly amazing photographs to choose from this year, which is why there are six covers. We wanted to have as many as we could get because whittling the photographs down to the best of the best isn’t easy. When making the final call, we paid attention to diversity — we like to have a good mix of men and women, a good mix of different body types represented, different sports, etc. (NOTE: Distribution of covers is completely random.)

How is a cover shoot different from shoots for a layout? They really aren’t that different. In fact, we often shoot athletes without having any preconceived notions about whether or not they will end up on the cover. We are always in pursuit of the most compelling, most unique photographs we can get. But when we see an image that blows us away, something that everyone really responds to, we know it’s going to be seriously considered for a cover spot—no matter who the athlete is.

How bold and/or shy are the subjects?

We’ve seen it all. You really never know what to expect. Some athletes who you might expect to be shy are totally unencumbered on set — their robe is no where in sight. Others who don’t have any reservations sometimes end up with a last-minute case of nerves. But in all cases, once the athlete spends time with the photographer and sees the images on the monitor, they get excited about what they see and they start to have a lot of fun with it.

How many images were shot for the issue, and how did you whittle it down to the final number of shots used in the final?

I can’t begin to imagine how many images we shot for this issue — thousands, certainly. And whittling down those images to our favorites is both tremendously fun and incredibly difficult. But the photographers do the first edit; they send us the ones they are most happy with. From that group, I work closely with the photo editors, Karen Frank and Nancy Weisman, creative director, John Korpics, and Editor-in-Chief, Chad Millman, to select the ones we feel best represent the athlete. But even then, we have some tough calls. That’s why we include exclusive extras in our online photo gallery. You can view them and behind-the-scenes video with some of the Body athletes at www.espn.com/bodyissue (LIVE at Noon ET)

Wimbledon’s shift to ESPN sparked a big jump in the ratings. Unfortunately, one of those TV viewers was Bud Collins.

For the first time in 45 years, the colorful (emphasis on coloful as you can see) tennis analyst/writer missed the big tournament. Jason Gay of the Wall Street Journal did a piece on Collins, 83, sitting with him at home while he watched the men’s final on TV. It included this passage:

Last fall, during the U.S. Open, Collins ruptured the quad tendon in his left leg in a fall in his New York hotel room. Surgeries followed, nine in total, to repair the damage and complications and what Collins described as “a lot of unsavory things.” He missed the Australian Open and the French, but not attending Wimbledon was the hardest.

He was feeling better, but he wasn’t in England.

“I really don’t allow myself to miss it,” Collins said.

“Be honest,” Anita said.

Collins shrugged in his chair. “Of course I miss it.”

Collins said he intends to be at Wimbledon in 2013. Let’s hope so. He’s an all-world nice guy.

*******

Nearly everything broke the right way for ESPN. Fans loved the live matches. ESPN then got some dream scenarios with Serena Williams winning the women’s final and the drama of Brit Andy Murray trying to make history against Roger Federer Sunday.

ESPN earned a 3.1 overnight rating for the finals, up 48% from a 2.1 last year on NBC for Novak Djokovic’ win over Rafael Nadal.

The never-ending debate over Twitter is the latest issue examined by the Poynter Review Project for ESPN. In a long piece, including an overly long explanation of Twitter and social media (most of us already get the concept), writer Jason Fry talks to various ESPN folks about Twitter.

Interestingly, he didn’t quote Vince Doria, ESPN’s senior vice-president for news, who called Twitter “a headache” and voiced strong concerns over it compromising journalistic standards in an interview with me.

Also, Fry didn’t detail the latest ESPN controversy over Twitter: NBA reporter Chris Broussard’s handling of Deron Williams and his re-signing with Brooklyn and other stories last week. I think if you’re going to do an exhaustive review of the subject, you need to touch on what’s currently making news.

In fact, I thought the piece barely scratched the surface on what has been written regarding ESPN and Twitter on many other outlets.

At the end of the piece, Fry did question ESPN’s internal policies regarding Twitter. He writes:

We found the biggest sticking point for reporters and analysts is also a source of considerable confusion. ESPN’s latest social-networking policy forbids breaking “sourced or proprietary news” on Twitter, saying that such information “must be vetted by the TV or Digital news desks. Once reported on an ESPN platform, that news can (and should) be distributed on Twitter and other social sites.”
Some reporters we spoke to repeatedly cited that policy and expressed frustration with it, bemoaning busy times when a news item gets stuck behind other things the desk has to review, allowing competitors to tweet the news first.

However, here’s why ESPN needs to be careful about tweeting news. There’s a passage on Adam Schefter on holding off on a tweet about Tim Tebow getting traded to Jacksonville:

Take March’s Tim Tebow trade, Schefter said. The Denver Broncos agreed to trade the quarterback to the New York Jets, but when the deal apparently fell apart, they tried to work out a trade to the Jacksonville Jaguars instead, only to reverse course and return to the Jets. At one point, Schefter recalled, a credible person involved in the deal told him that Tebow was headed to Jacksonville. Rather than tweet that, Schefter waited to check in with other people — and another credible source told him to hold off.
“The story had changed so much that day, I thought it was really important for me to double- and triple-check it,” he said. “I could have put on Twitter that Tim Tebow was being traded to Jacksonville. Had I done that, I would have been remembered as the guy who got the Tim Tebow story wrong.”

As Doria said in my interview, being right still is what it’s all about.

This is a time when I really wish I had one of those old-fashioned Associated Press machines that had bells ringing to signify a big breaking story.

FLASH–ERIN ANDREWS LEAVING ESPN. TWITTER EXPLODES.

According to Richard Deitsch of SI.com, Andrews could be headed for Fox Sports. From Richard:

SI.com has learned that Fox Sports is aggressively pursuing ESPN sportscaster  Erin Andrews for a role at its network. The network’s executives recently met  with Andrews regarding a major role in Fox’s college football coverage.

Shortly after SI.com reported the news that Fox was pursuing Andrews, ESPN  released a statement that said Andrews had left the network. “Erin Andrews is  leaving ESPN,” an ESPN spokesperson said. “She did great work for us and we made  an aggressive offer to keep her. We wish her the best on her next chapter.”

OK, everyone can exhale now.

I’m starting to wonder whether ESPN, and particularly Chris Berman, regrets the decision to have him call the San Diego-Oakland game on Sept. 10.

He’s been pummeled ever since the announcement was made this week. And the game is more than two months away.

Really, does Berman need this abuse at this point in his career?

Dan McNeil, a midday host at WSCR-AM 670 in Chicago, devoted an entire column in the Chicago Tribune to ripping Berman. (Note: I co-wrote a Chicago sports book with McNeil a few years back).

McNeil writes:

Berman is like the blister on the roof of your mouth. You’d love to ignore it, but can’t stop tonguing it.

On the medals stand of blowhards, Berman gets the gold. He is a boorish lout. Huffing and puffing, zigging and zagging.

Later he writes:

But at what point does a guy who became a caricature of himself many years ago get put out to pasture? The Howard Cosell ripoff (“He could … go … all … the … way”) stopped being cute before the Carolina Panthers were born.

I once thought Oddibe “Young Again” McDowell, Bert “Be Home” Blyleven and “Fettuccine” Alfredo Griffin were clever. Then it became time to rip down the St. Pauli Girls posters in my dad’s basement and get an apartment.

Berman long ago jumped the shark, but the wonks who make the big calls don’t get it.

Also in New York, Phil Mushnick took his obligatory shot at Berman in the Post.

Exactly how did ESPN think such news would be received by a public that long ago  recognized Berman as a career self-promoter, his on-air persona a sustained  tribute to Bozo T. Clown? What did ESPN expect, a 21-seltzer-bottle salute?

All in all, it definitely won’t be a quiet summer for Berman.