TV MONITOR: Last night's 11:00pm ET edition of FSN's
"Primetime" (Fox Sports Net South) led with Barry Sanders'
expected retirement, followed with Cubs-Expos. ESPN's
11:00pm ET edition of "SportsCenter" also led with the
latest on Sanders, followed by Red Sox-Blue Jays. CNN/SI's
11:00pm ET edition of "Sports Tonight" led with the news on
Sanders, followed with Brewers-Braves (THE DAILY).
MORE FROM BEN WRIGHT: Former sportscaster Ben Wright,
who has written about his golf experiences in the new book,
"Good Bounces and Bad Lies," is interviewed by USA TODAY's
Michael Hiestand. Wright comes across "miffed" at NBC, as
he "suggests" that NBC Sports Chair Dick Ebersol "wanted to
hire him" in '97 and '98 but was "twice overruled by upper
management, which already was concerned about [Marv]
Albert's sexual assault case." Wright told Hiestand:
"That's really haunted me. I know Albert has pledged to
give up wearing silk panties or whatever, but it's hard to
understand why he's back on and I'm not." NBC Sports
VP/Press Information Ed Markey: "We had two meetings with
Ben Wright. However, his recollection of those meetings is
substantially different than ours" (USA TODAY, 7/28).
TV NEWS & NOTES: USA TODAY's Rudy Martzke reports that
CBS has hired Jay Glazer of News Corp.'s N.Y. Post as its
"NFL Today" off-air NFL information man (USA TODAY, 7/28).
Meanwhile, Marv Levy will join Fox Sports Net's one-hour
weekly NFL pregame show, "NFL This Morning" (FSN)....PGA
Tour officials "aren't going to allow" Tiger Woods and David
Duval to wear mics during ABC's upcoming primetime match
"because it's a live event" (USA TODAY, 7/28).
ESPN MAGAZINE'S COVER HIT: In Dallas, Kevin
Blackistone, on Saints RB Ricky Williams donning a wedding
dress alongside Saints coach Mike Ditka in a tuxedo on the
latest ESPN Magazine: "If anything can be gleaned from
Williams pictured as a cross-dresser, it is that one of the
incentive clauses must have required that he risk looking
really silly before the world." ESPN Magazine Editor John
Papanek: "We had a lot of fun with it. Both Ditka and Ricky
were good sports" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 7/28).
HERE IT'S ALL EARS: BARRON's Lauren Rublin profiles
Disney and cites industry insiders recommending that the
company "should spin off non-core assets, including some
publishing properties and perhaps even ABC radio." Rublin:
"A major writeoff related to Disney's NFL programming
contract might further warm hearts in Wall Street's
Fantasyland" (BARRON'S, 7/26 issue)....ESPN "SportsCenter"
Producer Cameron Penn responds to a recent GQ article by
Peter Richmond in a Letter to the Editor and says, "While I
won't argue with [Richmond's] assertion that some highlight
shows have become high-wire acts too often thick with
shtick, two of his jabs at our programming and personalities
shouldn't go without rebuttal. ... Our anchors write their
own copy each night. ... As for Richmond's accusation that
our relationships with sports' governing bodies prevent us
from thoroughly examining the ills that affect each sport,
it could not be more off target" (GQ, 8/99 issue).
THESE TWO ARE GETTING A BIT PERSONAL: In Chicago, Ron
Rapoport responded to Keith Olbermann's criticism of him for
questioning ESPN anchor Dan Patrick's appearance in a Coors
ad (See THE DAILY, 7/26): "My very own feud. And with none
other than the most self-important man in television, at
that. ... What Olbermann does not address is the concern I
and others have expressed about Patrick pretending his hands
are clean because he doesn't hold a beer in his hand or
utter its name. So watch it, Keith, or I'll start telling
people about that local news show in Los Angeles where you
used to stop giving the scores so you could get a scale and
weigh yourself" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 7/27).
