TV MONITOR: Last night's 11:00pm ET edition of CNN/SI's
"Sports Tonight" and ESPN's "SportsCenter," which aired at
about 12:50am ET due to MLB, both led with Reds-Astros,
followed by Braves-Mets. The 11:00pm ET edition of FSN's
"Primetime" (Fox Sports Net South) led with Braves-Mets,
followed by Reds-Astros. The first non-MLB story on all
three programs, at 8:34 into "Sports Tonight," 9:59 into
"SportsCenter" and 11:35 into "Primetime," was an update on
the condition of 49ers QB Steve Young (THE DAILY).
THE PROMISE OF HDTV: USA TODAY's Michael Hiestand
previews HDTV coverage of NHL games and writes that the
service "seems as promising as anything else" for the future
of hockey on TV, but "for now, it's pricey." MSG Senior VP
Mike McCarthy, on hockey broadcasts in HDTV: "Hockey on TV
has been tragic. But with HDTV, it's like sitting in the
third row. It's just not as cold" (USA TODAY, 9/30).
ONLINE NEWS: The 76ers will televise next Wednesday's
training camp practice in Chapel Hill, NC, on their Web
site, www.sixers.com, from 6-8:00pm ET. The team will also
provide daily updates from the camp via the site
(PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS, 9/30)....Results from the August
Media Metrix survey reveals that ESPN Internet Ventures'
combined home/work reach stands at 6.3 million unique users,
greater than SportsLine USA and CNNSI.com combined (6.1
million unique users). Meanwhile, ESPN.com alone had a
greater reach than the collection of SportsLine USA sites
combined (4.1 million users vs. 4 million unique users) and
a greater reach than CNNSI.com and Fox Sports Online
combined (4.1 million unique users vs. 2.6 million unique
users). ESPN.com's average minutes per unique user in
August was 62, up 130% over its nearest competitor,
CNNSI.com, which had 27 minutes (ESPN Internet Ventures).
ESPN HIT AND MISSES? In Richmond, Jerry Lindquist gives
ESPN "thumbs up" for its story on alleged academic fraud
with the Univ. of TN football program, but a "thumbs down"
for "teasing the story for an hour Sunday before finally
getting to it after midnight. That's a big boo boo. So is
the network using the scoop to promote its Internet site"
(RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH, 9/30).
OTHER NOTES: DirecTV plans "to begin airing 24 channels
of live programming," including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNews and
ESPN Classic, on three airlines (DAILY VARIETY, 9/30)....In
Toronto, William Houston reports that TSN "pulled in Toronto
Blue Jays-sized audiences" -- 292,000 viewers on Friday and
362,000 on Saturday -- for its coverage of the Ryder Cup
(Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 9/30)....The Golf Channel renewed its
exclusive deal to cover The European Tour in the U.S.,
Canada and Japan through 2003. The renewal gives The Golf
Channel the rights to "at least" 30 events a year (AP,
9/30)....Fox Sports Net Ohio has added Friday's Reds-Brewers
game at 8:00pm (ET) because of the "intense interest" in the
Reds' playoff chances (CINCINNATI POST, 9/29). If the Reds
earn a playoff berth, Reds fans will "be able to watch" the
game on over-the-air TV. WBQC-UPN GM Elliott Block said
that the station "purchased the rights for an undisclosed
amount." The "only exception" would be an October 9
"commitment" to SEC football (CINCINNATI POST, 9/28)....NBAE
won the Golden Podium Award Tuesday at the Sportel Int'l
Sports TV Convention in Monte Carlo for its super-slow-
motion one-shot sequence of segments of game action (NBAE).
