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People & Personalities: Scott Van Pelt Does Not Back Down From Being A Fan

In Baltimore, Jeff Barker writes ESPN's Scott Van Pelt is in "unusual territory" in that he "discusses sports and sports fans for a living and is clearly a fan himself." Many broadcasters "avoid public discussions of their own sports loyalties in the same way that many political reporters avoid talking about their party affiliations." But "not Van Pelt," who is treated on the Univ. of Maryland campus "as Terrapins royalty." He "not only attends" UM football and basketball games, but he also "communicates regularly with the school's current and former athletes." Van Pelt said that he is "not concerned about his ability to remain objective professionally." Van Pelt: "If I am off work and choose to go to a game and cheer for Maryland, who am I bothering? I didn't sign some media version of the Hippocratic Oath to be on TV or radio" (Baltimore SUN, 10/24).

A PERFECT 10: NBC Sports Group yesterday announced that former U.S. Winter Olympians Johnny Weir, Tara Lipinski and Tanith Belbin will join NBC Olympics' on-air team for coverage of the '14 Sochi Games. Weir and Lipinski will serve as figure skating analysts, while Belbin will be a reporter for NBC Olympics' Sports Desk and will present features for the 30-minute daily show "The Olympic Zone" (NBC Sports). Weir said that despite being gay he "planned to hold his tongue in Sochi, at least when it comes to speaking out against" Russia's anti-gay laws. Weir: "I risk jail time just going there, but the Olympics are not the place to make a political statement." NBC Olympics Exec Producer Jim Bell said that the net "had not -- and would not -- muzzle Weir" (N.Y. TIMES, 10/24).

FLY LIKE AN EAGLE: SI's Andrew Lawrence writes CBS' Ian Eagle's "disdain for cinematic flourishes is what makes him so pleasant on Sunday afternoons, when he calls NFL games" for the net. Eagle's "enunciation isn't forced, nor is his vocabulary self-coined." He "doesn't get carried away," and his "niche is keeping things honest." Eagle "doesn't just have the correct down-and-distance or the obscure rule or the stakes of each situation -- he also knows exactly when to layer each detail on the viewer." His "magic is as much about patience as it is precision." Eagle is the "safecracker of announcers, breaking into the scene with a touch so light you'll barely notice" (SI, 10/28 issue).

SEEING RED: USA TODAY's Chris Strauss notes DirecTV host Andrew Siciliano and VP/Production James Crittenden run the company's NFL RedZone Channel, "attempting to show viewers as many real-time scoring plays" as they can. Siciliano "frantically clicks his pen between voice-overs, cracking one-liners as if he were a viewer watching with his buddies." Perhaps the "only one who can sympathize with Siciliano's game-day routine" is NFL Network's Scott Hanson, who runs the similar NFL RedZone. Siciliano said, "It's the greatest job on earth. I get to stand here and watch every game and lose my mind within reason" (USA TODAY, 10/24).

SBJ Morning Buzzcast: March 25, 2024

NFL meeting preview; MLB's opening week ad effort and remembering Peter Angelos.

Big Get Jay Wright, March Madness is upon us and ESPN locks up CFP

On this week’s pod, our Big Get is CBS Sports college basketball analyst Jay Wright. The NCAA Championship-winning coach shares his insight with SBJ’s Austin Karp on key hoops issues and why being well dressed is an important part of his success. Also on the show, Poynter Institute senior writer Tom Jones shares who he has up and who is down in sports media. Later, SBJ’s Ben Portnoy talks the latest on ESPN’s CFP extension and who CBS, TNT Sports and ESPN need to make deep runs in the men’s and women's NCAA basketball tournaments.

SBJ I Factor: Nana-Yaw Asamoah

SBJ I Factor features an interview with AMB Sports and Entertainment Chief Commercial Office Nana-Yaw Asamoah. Asamoah, who moved over to AMBSE last year after 14 years at the NFL, talks with SBJ’s Ben Fischer about how his role model parents and older sisters pushed him to shrive, how the power of lifelong learning fuels successful people, and why AMBSE was an opportunity he could not pass up. Asamoah is 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazine’s awards.

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