Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sports media…
Johnny Weir: Juliet Macur of the New York Times reports Weir, who is gay, won’t press Russia’s controversial laws in Sochi, where he will be working as an Olympics analyst for NBC.
Now, Weir, not for the first time, may surprise everyone. Despite his sexual orientation, despite his marriage to a man in 2011, despite his long track record of (not always wisely) saying what is on his mind, Weir said Wednesday that he planned to hold his tongue in Sochi, at least when it comes to speaking out against the Russian law.
“I risk jail time just going there, but the Olympics are not the place to make a political statement,” he said. “I’m not a politician and I don’t really talk about politics. You don’t have to agree with the politics, but you have to respect the culture of a country you are visiting.”
World Series: Keith Olbermann pulls out some interesting numbers and offers his views of why World Series ratings have sagged dramatically since the 1970s. As usual, he does it in his own unique way.
Tim McCarver: Richard Sandomir of the New York Times gets perspective from his many broadcast partners during his long career.
Al Michaels (ABC): “He never thought he was in the ex-jock business — where a lot of guys come off the field and get the job and they theoretically understand things the average person does not. But Tim thought of himself as a broadcaster.”
Two weeks before the 1985 World Series, McCarver replaced Howard Cosell at ABC, joining Michaels and Jim Palmer.
Michaels: “Howard was sour and dour and took all the joy away from everybody on the crew. He had an ‘I-don’t-want-to-be-here’ attitude. When Roone Arledge made the switch, I said, ‘I’ve got McCarver?’ This was the greatest trade of all time.”
Concussions: Richard Deitsch at MMQB discusses how the networks are handling the concussion issue.
“I know three hours for a broadcast seems like a long time, but I really think the topic is so deep that it would take 10 minutes of a broadcast while a football game is going on to try and give that topic any depth whatsoever,” says NBC Sunday Night Football analyst Cris Collinsworth. “It is something I really care about. I have kids who play the game, and I’ve done a lot of studying and discussing the issue with a lot of people. But I think in my case, the [Showtime] ‘Inside The NFL‘ show is a better format for discussion.”
Scott Van Pelt: Jeff Barker of the Baltimore Sun writes about Van Pelt being a proud Maryland alum.
But nobody really expects that to happen. Not to Van Pelt, who is treated on campus as Terrapins royalty. Students often greet the instantly recognizable, bald, 6-foot-6 broadcaster by standing and applauding, chanting “SVP” and asking to pose with him for pictures. He’s their link to the national spotlight, a celebrity they love to call their own.
“The reception I have gotten when I go back there is one of the more remarkable things I have ever experienced,” Van Pelt, 47, says. “It might sound corny, but it’s the truth. It’s an emotional thing to be welcomed back so enthusiastically by them. They know I am one of them and they know I won’t hide from that.”
Thursday night football: Michael Bradley of the National Sports Journalism Center looks at the possibility of the league adding another game to that night.
With the league locked into its current TV deals, there is no forthcoming increase in revenues. The opportunity to offer some games to another network (Turner? NBC Sports? Fox Sports 1?) is almost too much to resist. With broadcast rights fees’ soaring, the NFL would like to ride the wave, especially since no one can predict when prices may moderate. The only certainty in all of this is that NFL programming is hugely popular, and any rumor or comment about expansion triggers significant interest.
Jimmy Traina: Matt Yoder of Awful Announcing does a podcast with Traina on moving to Fox Sports.
In this week’s podcast, we invite one of the sports blogosphere’s favs, Jimmy Traina, who is on the move from Sports Illustrated to Fox Sports. In the last several years, Jimmy has taken Hot Clicks at SI to one of the most popular features not just at the magazine, but across the web in sports. In this podcast, AA chats with Jimmy about the move, the evolution of Hot Clicks, and the media, and an assortment of topics.
Pat Summerall: Classic Sports TV and Media provides a timeline of legendary announcer’s career.
Summerall had a unique career in the NFL TV booth, beginning as an analyst in 1962 on CBS where he eventually ascended to the lead analyst position alongside the likes of Ray Scott and Jack Buck. Midway through the 1974 season, he shifted to play-by-play and formed a memorable tandem with Tom Brookshier as they called 108 games together over 6.5 seasons. In 1981, he started a 22-year run with John Madden including a move to Fox in 1994. Altogether, Summerall worked 400 games with Madden as his lead analyst with 171 of these coming at Fox. In 2004, Summerall filled in for 4 weeks on ESPN Sunday Night Football as Mike Patrick was recovering from a heart attack.