| | The Daily Insider
Morning News & Headlines
Friday, February 7, 2003
9:00am ET | |
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| • | NBA All-Star Technology Summit To Be Held Today In Atlanta |
| • | Rod Bryden To Announce Details Of Accepted Senators’ Bid Today |
| • | YES Network Runs Ads In N.Y. Papers Today Calling For Cablevision Settlement |
| • | Sabres To Request $15M Line Of Credit And Approval To Pay Bonuses |
| • | Coors Sees Biggest One-Day Share Drop In Two Years After Weak Q4 Profits |
| • | Morning Briefs/In Other News/Laugh Track/TV Monitor/Final Jeopardy! |
VERITABLE WHO’S WHO TO TALK TECHNOLOGY TODAY IN ATLANTA
The NBA will host its All-Star Technology Summit from 9:00am-3:15pm ET at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Atlanta, at which panelists and guests will discuss how sports are driving and responding to the adoption of wireless, Internet, broadband, interactive, high-definition and VOD technologies.
NBA Commissioner David Stern and Host Ahmad Rashad will open the summit, which includes six panel discussions: “The Living Room As Mission Control,” “Video-on-Demand: The Next Killer App?,” “Kids, Sports and Technology: Making The Connection,” “Digital Transactions Come of Age,” “The State Of The Sports Consumer” and “How Fans Follow Sports: From Video To Fantasy.”
Selected panelists include Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban, Turner Sports President Mark Lazarus, America Online Vice Chair Ted Leonsis, A-B VP/Global Media & Sports Marketing Tony Ponturo and ESPN Exec VP/Programming & Production Mark Shapiro. View the entire alphabetical list of participants.
Moderators of the summit are CNN Anchor Wolf Blitzer, CNN Senior Analyst Jeff Greenfield, CNN Senior White House Correspondent John King, CNN Host Arthel Neville, TNT’s Ernie Johnson and ESPN Anchor Dan Patrick (THE DAILY).
CNBC’s “Squawk Box” this morning examined the NBA All-Star Game as a marketing platform. Lego VP Melinda Siemionoko: “We see an adult consumer, and for that we have a new line of collectable mini-figures. We also see a broad ethnic consumer, which is something we definitely recognize a need for.” Sprite VP Darryl Cobbin: “Imagine the All-Star Game as the ultimate expression, the utopia of what the NBA is all about. … The NBA gives us a platform on which to credibly reach young people. The league is highly relevant to young people not only in participation, but also in imagery.” CNBC’s Larry Kudlow: “Can we get a total regime change for the Knicks? … We need a total regime change. We need an 18-hour bombing mission” (“Squawk Box,” CNBC, 2/7).
Meanwhile, the NBA All-Star Jam Session continues today at the Georgia World Congress Center from noon-3:00pm ET. Tickets to the event are $15 for adults and $10 for children ages 3-12. View a list of all activities and events.
View an All-Star Weekend hospitality guide, including parking, transportation, hotel and hospital information (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 2/7).
BRYDEN’S BID FOR SENATORS FINALLY ACCEPTED BY CREDITORS
The Toronto GLOBE & MAIL reports that Senators Chair Rod Bryden’s bid to reclaim the team has been accepted by its creditors, and details are expected to be announced today. The bid, which is backed by Triarc CEO Nelson Peltz, includes a “limited partnership and it is valued in excess” of $130M. Units in the new partnership are “expected to go on sale as early as this afternoon” (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 2/7).
The Toronto GLOBE & MAIL also notes that 16,559 people attended last night’s Flyers-Senators game, the team’s “first sub-18,000 crowd since the team was forced to file for bankruptcy protection in early January” (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 2/7).
YES CHALLENGES CABLEVISION TO NEGOTIATE “IN GOOD FAITH”
NEWSDAY reports that the YES Network today runs a full-page ad in five metro N.Y. newspapers, in which YES CEO Leo Hindery “challenges Cablevision to negotiate the 16-month-old cable dispute in good faith ‘before an independent arbitrator, mediator, judge or panel.’” Cablevision dismisses the ad as “nothing more than a phony publicity stunt" (NEWSDAY, 2/7).
Text of the ad reads in part: "If Cablevision doesn’t agree to arbitration or mediation, then it is being less than honest about its true intentions in prolonging this dispute. Cablevision owns MSG Network and Fox Sports New York and it can’t stand the thought of YES competing against them. That is just wrong. It is also illegal, and it is unfair to you."
SABRES TO MAKE REQUESTS IN BANKRUPTCY COURT TODAY
The AP reports that Sabres attorney William Thomas today will request an “additional $15[M] line of credit to cover operating expenses … (and) court approval to pay four players their deferred signing bonuses.” The request for the additional line of credit “was not unexpected.” Thomas will make the requests in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Buffalo (AP, 2/7).
OLYMPICS COMMEMORATION BEGINS TONIGHT IN SALT LAKE CITY
The SALT LAKE TRIBUNE reports Winterfest, an event that commemorates the success of the ‘02 Olympics, begins tonight at 5:00pm MT in Salt Lake City, UT. The event is sponsored by the city and a “reincarnated version” of the SLOC. Activities include “skating exhibitions and musical acts, … relighting the Olympic caldron … and American Indian music and dance.” The Salt Lake 2002 official film, directed by Bud Greenspan, will also premiere (SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, 2/7). Former SLOC CEO & current MA Gov. Mitt Romney is scheduled to attend the event tonight (USA TODAY, 2/6). View the entire Winterfest schedule.
MORNING BRIEFS
Callaway Golf yesterday posted “higher sales and a smaller-than-expected loss during its seasonally slow” Q4. The club manufacturer, however, still “faces a difficult year ahead, as it must battle a weak economy, cutthroat competition and continued losses at its golf ball factory” (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 2/7).
It appears the marketing of the twins didn’t help as much as we all thought, as REUTERS notes that Coors “reported a much weaker than expected (Q4) profit because of soft demand in its key U.S. market, triggering the biggest one-day drop in the stock in more than two years.” Banc of America Securities Analyst Bryan Spillane: “The volume (of sales) was a little lighter than people expected” (REUTERS, 2/7).
MLB Commissioner Bud Selig responded to former Reds Owner Marge Schott’s lawsuit against Great American Insurance Co., asking for better seats at the team’s new ballpark: “I have to admit that I am very disappointed in your conduct and I urge you to promptly dismiss the litigation” (CINCINNATI ENQUIRER, 2/7). Read the entire letter.
Speaking before the Rapids’ third annual corporate reception yesterday, MLS Commissioner Don Garber said, “We still have a long way to go before we can step back and stop pressing hard in all areas of our business. Player development, ticket sales, stadium development, these are areas that we are so hungry and driven to continue to push forward” (DENVER POST, 2/7).
The ATLANTA CONSTITUTION reports that Augusta National Golf Club says “it will continue to match or surpass the $3.3[M] in charitable donations it made last year, despite not having any sponsors” for The Masters this year (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 2/7).
Billie Jean King, on the membership practices at Augusta National Golf Club: “I’ve talked with Tiger (Woods) and he says he’s going to work toward gender equity” (L.A. TIMES, 2/7). Meanwhile, King “denied rumors she has applied for the vacant” WTA Tour CEO position. King: “No one has asked me about the job.” However, King “wouldn’t necessarily turn down the chance to head the tour she founded” in ’70 (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 2/7).
A LIGHTER BUZZ
Mets Media Relations Dir Jay Horowitz took umbrage to comments made by Mo Rocca of Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” this week at the N.Y. Sportswriters Dinner. After sitting through Rocca’s several potshots against the Mets’ on-field performance last year, Horowitz later said, “I told him I didn’t find him funny. I know we didn’t have a good year last year, but I thought the dinner should be balanced. He was crude and mean-spirited” (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 2/7).
During last night’s edition of TNT's NBA postgame show, the camera showed a close-up of Charles Barkley’s Nike sneakers. Barkley: “I am so mad at Phil Mickelson talking about Nike products now, and I'm a Nike guy. He has crossed the line talking bad about Nike and me and Tiger – we’re a team – and we are going to start stomping on his neck even harder now” (TNT, 2/6).
Ravens LB Ray Lewis said that actor Wesley Snipes has called him about an appearance in his next film (Baltimore SUN, 2/7).
THE BACK PAGES
The Morning Buzz offers today’s back page sports covers from some of the nation’s major metropolitan tabloids:
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| N.Y. Post | N.Y. Daily News |
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| Philadelphia Daily News | Boston Herald |
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…..
Every Friday, the Morning Buzz highlights a video clip, chart or piece of information that might have fallen through the cracks. This week, Jon Stewart from “The Daily Show” puts the whole LeBron James story in perspective: It’s all about the love (THE DAILY).
IN OTHER NEWS….
After Coca-Cola yesterday dropped McCann-Erickson as its ad agency following a 60-year relationship in favor of Berlin Cameron/Red Cell, a source close to Coca-Cola said the company “had been frustrated with McCann’s ‘old school’ approach, that it was trying too much ‘to do Mean Joe Greene over again’” (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 2/7).
MSNBC formally announced that Jesse Venutura will host a network talk show, and while terms were not disclosed, execs at the network “said his annual salary would be in the neighborhood” of $2M (N.Y. TIMES, 2/7).
FINAL JEOPARDY QUESTION
Last night's "Final Jeopardy!" category was “Historic American Places.”
“Over 260,000 people have been buried here, starting in 1864.”
LAUGH TRACK
THE MONOLOGUES:
CBS’ David Letterman: “I’m so glad to see you people here tonight. What a nice looking group of folks you seem to be, and I’ll tell you what I’m talking about. Last night, oh man! What a rough audience we had last night. ... It’s the first time I've ever seen an audience call for a preemptive strike. ... We’re celebrating the Chinese New Year. It’s the Year of the Ram, and I was thinking about this. It’s hard to believe when we first started doing this show way back when, it was the Year of the Monkey. ... There’s a new problem here in (N.Y.). You know what it is? Construction workers are drinking on the job. ... They’re apparently taking their lunch hour and really getting drunk, and I think there may be something to it. I’m walking down Madison Avenue today, and I was hit by a falling line. ... I had some trouble. I was worried about my cab driver this morning. I think I spotted him in a Colin Powell reconnaissance photo. ... Yesterday, Colin Powell was at the U.N. talking to the Security Council, and he was very effective. He presented a pretty strong case. However, he still could not convince France, Russia or Sean Penn. ... Colin Powell gave a thorough presentation. He even had proof that Saddam Hussein bet on baseball" ("Late Show," CBS, 2/6).
NBC’s Jay Leno: “In a documentary, Michael Jackson talks about his first sexual encounter. It happened at an elementary school. He was 25 at the time. ... Michael admits he still lets young boys sleep in his bed, but never on a school night! ... Michael also said earlier this evening that when kids stay overnight at his house, he reads them bedtime stories and sometimes he reads them lengthy legal documents that declare they can never sue him or talk to the press about what happened earlier this evening. ... I'm not going to believe Phil Spector is guilty until an L.A. jury finds him innocent. ... Nokia announced today they’ve come out with a new cell phone with ultra-high resolution display for games. You can now play games on your cell phone. Apparently, just talking on your cell phone while driving wasn’t distracting enough. ... According to a new study at Lehigh University, moms are better at baby talk than dads. Well duh. You know what dads consider baby talk? ‘Here, you take him’” ("Tonight Show," NBC, 2/6).
LATE NIGHT LAUGHS:
Last night's Top Ten list was “Top Ten Messages Left On Colin Powell's Answering Machine” ("Late Show," CBS, 2/6).
| 10) "Hi, it's the President – didn't see the speech – Regis was on ‘The View.’” |
| 9) "Hey – great answering machine message! Is that really Jack Nicholson?" |
| 8) "Jacques Chirac calling about the attack on Iraq.” |
| 7) “I’m sorry. I have the wrong number. I was looking for former Baltimore Oriole Boog Powell.” |
| 6) "It’s Osama. I surrender ... just kidding. It’s the President ... give me a buzz." |
| 5) "Dude, turn on CNN. There’s someone who looks just like you." |
| 4) "Bob Barker calling. Pre-empt ‘The Price Is Right’ one more time and I'll stab you.” |
| 3) "Hi, it's the bakery. Can you tell us again how to spell 'Condoleezza?'" |
| 2) "Mr. Smith – this is Golden Touch Outcall Message – your credit card has been rejected." |
| 1) "This is Saddam. How much for that anthrax you held up yesterday?" |
THURSDAY NIGHT’S TV MONITOR
ESPN’s 11:00pm ET “SportsCenter” led with Lakers-Knicks.
FINAL JEOPARDY ANSWER
“What is Arlington National Cemetery?”
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