YAHOO SPORTS’ Greg Wyshynski reported Montreal Gazette columnist Jack Todd “recently took on” Bruins G Tim Thomas and his decision not to visit the White House as President Obama celebrated the Stanley Cup champions, indicating Thomas opted not to go because Obama “is black.” The paper later “scrubbed the racism line from the column.” The original column read, “You know Thomas would not have done this with the liberal Democrat Bill Clinton in the White House. Truth is, he felt free to dis Barack Obama, because Obama is black.” Gazette Sports Editor Stu Cowen in a statement said, "Jack Todd is a freelancer. He used to be a full-time employee at The Gazette, but took a voluntary buyout package a few years ago and now writes his weekly Monday Morning QB column.” He added the story was “posted online before I saw it.” Cowen: “I made the call to take out the line … before it went to print because while it was Jack's opinion as a columnist, he didn't back it up” (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 1/30).
NEW DEAL: The GUARDIAN's John Plunkett reports Sky Sports has “signed a new four-year deal for exclusive UK television rights to domestic England international cricket fixtures until the end of 2017.” The agreement with the England and Wales Cricket Board announced today “includes all England's home Test, one-day and T20 matches as well as at least 60 days of domestic cricket.” The deal “also covers TV, mobile and online.” Today's agreement “extends Sky's current deal, which was due to end in 2013, with an option for a further two years taking it to 2019” (GUARDIAN.co.uk, 1/31).
FOND FAREWELL: In Denver, Dusty Saunders noted Alanna Rizzo’s “attractive, on-camera demeanor was a major reason the fast-growing MLB Network last week signed her to a two-year-deal beginning this spring.” During Rizzo’s tenure at Root Sports Rocky Mountain, she often was “roaming the seats and the playing fields during Rockies games,” and provided “an entertaining, understated style while discussing games and interviewing players and fans” (DENVER POST, 1/31).
NOTES: Sun Media appointed John Kryk “to the newly created position of NFL columnist, effective after the Super Bowl.” Kryk becomes “the first full-time, year-round NFL beat columnist in Canadian sports journalism history.” He will “complement Sun Media's existing team of NFL experts with his multi-media, multi-platform analysis and insight” (TORONTOSUN.com, 1/30)....In Tulsa, Dave Sittler wrote he is retiring, though his column Sunday "it isn’t the final one.” Sittler: “My bosses at the Tulsa World have graciously offered me the opportunity to continue writing columns from time to time” (TULSAWORLD.com, 1/29).
