Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sports media….
Adam Schefter: Matt Yoder of Awful Announcing does a podcast with Schefter about his coverage of the Richie Incognito story.
In this interview, we not only chat with Schefter about his reporting about the Dolphins, but how NFL reporting has evolved and the amount of interest in the league’s news cycle.
-The timeline of his reporting and how it came together for him and Chris Mortensen, including his knowledge of the explosive voicemail. And, why this may just be the beginning of the story.
-The current power of reporting in the NFL and how this story has moved so quickly.
-How NFL reporting is like trying to stop the waves in the ocean.
-Juggling several stories at once including what’s happening in Miami, Aaron Rodgers’ injury, and health scares with head coaches.
-Why the hazing and bullying aspect of the Dolphins story resonates with the greater public.
Sports Illustrated cover: Nina Mandell of USA Today writes about the SI cover featuring David Ortiz and three First Responders from the Boston Marathon tragedy.
The magazine’s creative director, Chris Hercik, then came up with an idea: Sports Illustrated would find the police officers from the iconic picture of the aftermath of the bombing, a photo that appeared on the magazine’s cover, and they would then ask those officers to pose with Ortiz at Fenway.
It seemed like the perfect idea, said SI managing editor Chris Stone.
“What it came down to in the end was was this story really about David Ortiz or is it a bigger story in general?” Hercik said. “I think it’s more about the comeback or revitalization of Boston.”
Mark Fainaru-Wada: The co-author of League of Denial recently spoke to graduate students at the National Sports Journalism Center at Indiana about his new book. Manny Randhawa reports.
“The most valid criticism I think we got is that we really didn’t take a hard look at the NFLPA. And I think there are a couple of reasons for that. One is time; we had a limited amount of time to do the reporting and deliver the book. And we had to make choices as we went through that process. … We tried to deal with it some in the book, but we just ultimately decided, the NFL created this research arm, the NFL was driving the research, and the NFL was sending the message through its research that this is not a problem. At the same time it was attacking independent researchers and I think we just thought that was the way to tell the story in that moment.”
Bill Raftery: The veteran basketball analyst tells Richard Deitsch of SI.com why he left ESPN to call Big East games on Fox Sports 1.
“The Big East was a pretty good connection for me philopshically,” Raftery said. “I love the people at ESPN but I just thought it would be a naturally conclusion for me to go full circle with the Big East.”
Fantasy football: Richard Deitsch at MMQB praises ESPN2’s Fantasy Football Now on Sunday mornings.
“Our host Robert Flores says it at the top of every show—we are here to get you a win,” says FFN coordinating producer Scott Clark, who has worked on the show for the past two years and has worked at ESPN since 1999. “Everything is geared toward fantasy football and helping people with their lineups. We also try to be entertaining doing it. The questions we ask our reporters in the field are very different than the ones reporters are asked on Sunday NFL Countdown or SportsCenter because our questions are geared toward individual players. We will hit on players that will not be discussed on other shows because we will discuss the Top 50 wide receivers or running backs each week.”
Verne Lundquist: Jon Solomon of the al.com does an interview on Lundquist’s 50 years in broadcasting.
“I’ll know (when it’s time to retire),” Lundquist said in a recent interview, noting that Craig Silver, CBS’ longtime coordinating producer for college football, will know as well. “I don’t want to stay too long. We all know guys who did. I don’t want that happening. I don’t want the mistakes multiplying. I’m conscious, we all are. If I misidentify a guy, I feel really bad about it. You don’t get to come back the next day to correct it.”
Phil Simms: Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News likes what the analyst is doing on his various studio shows.
With the studio stuff, he can freelance. Like on the most recent episode of “Monday QB.” Reporter Jason La Canfora went into an all-too-serious soliloquy about the NFL trade deadline and who might be available and where they could be headed. This cat made it seem like NFL GM’s were deciphering ObamaCare.
The normal response would have had Simms chiming in, saying: “Jason, in conversations I’ve had around the league …” Instead, Simms went against the grain, casting aspersions on the report.
“I love hearing this trade rumor stuff. I do love rumors, but most of the stuff is just media created,” Simms said. “If there are two (trades) I will be shocked.”
Jewish sportscasters: ChicagoJewishNews.com talks to several Jewish sportscasters in Chicago about their religion and sports.
(Jordan) Bernfield, who says he has a strong Jewish identity and continues to enjoy celebrating Jewish holidays with his large family, thinks it’s more than coincidence that there are so many Jewish sportscasters in Chicago.
“I think often the Jewish values of striving to be the best, striving to be successful are values that coincide with trying to work in a business as competitive as this,” he says. “It’s because in many Jewish families success is valued, and there are so many Jews who strive to be at the top of a competitive field.”