MALONE TO BOYCOTT NBC? PUH-LEZE: In Salt Lake, Steve
Luhm writes that Jazz F Karl Malone considered NBC's move
to drop the Jazz-Pistons game Sunday in favor of a national
Lakers-Magic broadcast a "slap in the face" and has "vowed
to never do another interview" with NBC. Malone: "With all
due respect to our PR department -- those guys do a hell of
a job -- I don't want them to come to me on behalf of NBC.
I'm not going to talk to them" (SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, 3/22).
Yesterday's Lakers-Magic game on NBC earned a 5.6/14
preliminary overnight Nielsen rating, which is up 17% from
last year's regional telecasts. The game earned a 12.5/32
in L.A. and a 13.9/31 in Orlando (NBC).
SCHAAP SHOOTER: ESPN's Dick Schaap, on SI columnist
Rick Reilly's appearance in a Miller Lite ad: "Reilly's
explanation is that he's no Mark McGwire, that he's not a
role model, that he has no influence on youngsters. Not
even on his own 14-year-old son? Reilly's agent, who's also
mine, argues that Rick was just a prop in the commercial,
just someone standing next to a swimsuit model. Well,
unlike the rest of the props, Reilly was paid for the beer
commercial. And for his column, I think that's having your
cake and drinking it too" ("The Sports Reporters," 3/21).
MORE NOTES: In Atlanta, Prentis Rogers writes that CBS
"couldn't ask for a better makeup of the Final Four," while
viewers "couldn't have asked for much more from CBS' NCAA
Tournament coverage over the weekend" (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION,
3/22)....USA TODAY's Rudy Martzke writes that CBS's NFL
"information man" Mike Lombardi has left "The NFL Today" for
a player personnel role with the Raiders (USA TODAY, 3/22).
...The CBC "reached a tentative contract" with the Canadian
Media Guild "just hours before a noon strike deadline" on
Friday. CBC's 2,000 technicians are still continuing their
strike (TORONTO SUN, 3/20)....Daytona Int'l Speedway is
selling tickets online at www.daytonausa.com (ISC).
