Morning Buzz, May 19, 2004

NHL AND NBC TODAY TO ANNOUNCE TWO-YEAR BROADCAST DEAL

The WALL STREET JOURNAL reports that NBC and the NHL todayare expected to announce a two-year broadcast agreement, under which the league“will get no rights fee, or guaranteed cash payment.”  The two sides will share ad revenue after productionexpenses.  NHL Commissioner GaryBettman: “I wanted to make sure I wasn’t getting paid on today’s [ratings]numbers.  I wanted the upside of futuregrowth.”  Additionally, as firstreported in sister publication SportsBusiness Journal, ESPN has “tentativelyagreed to renew its contract with the league for one year at about $60[M], withan option for a second year at roughly $70[M]” (WALLSTREET JOURNAL, 5/19).

The N.Y. TIMES reports that NBC will carry a “regionalizedpackage of regular-season games on six or seven Saturday afternoons, followedby playoff games every Saturday until the Stanley Cup finals, when the networkwill pick up coverage with Game 3 and continue through Game 7, if necessary” (N.Y.TIMES, 5/19).

MLB OWNERS GATHER TODAY FOR FIRST OF TWO DAYS OF MEETINGS

MLB owners gather today for two days of meetings at MLB HQsin N.Y.  MLB Commissioner Bud Seligwill hold a press briefing at the conclusion of the meetings tomorrow.  The WASHINGTON TIMES notes that the MLBRelocation Committee will meet today and subsequently “report to the full groupof team owners tomorrow.  No votes onthe Expos’ situation are expected, but the relocation panel is expected to begin winnowingdown the candidates to a few finalists” (WASHINGTONTIMES, 5/19).

TheWASHINGTON POST reports that people “in and around baseball say Washington hasyet to remove a major obstacle to winning the [Expos]: establishing a legalauthority over its stadium financing plan.” DC City Council Finance Committee Chair Jack Evans: “When theytell me they’re going to put a team here, we’ll get the job done.  Why would I pass a tax through this council,then have baseball say they’re going to Las Vegas?” (WASHINGTONPOST, 5/19).

ACC,RAYCOM SPORTS AND JEFFERSON PILOT TO ANNOUNCE TV DEAL

The ACC will host a 3:00pm ET news conference at GrandoverResort & Conference Center in Greensboro, NC.  ACC Commissioner John Swofford, Raycom Sports President& CEO Ken Haines and Jefferson Pilot Sports President Ed Hull,and the DURHAM HERALD-SUN reports that the trio will announce a “renegotiatedfootball contract that gives viewers two more weeks of games and more regionalbroadcasts splits in the expanded league.” The agreement “raises from nine to 11 the number of weeks JeffersonPilot and broadcast partner Raycom Sports can televise games.” The deal beginsafter the ’05 season and runs through 2010 (DURHAM HERALD-SUN, 5/19).

U.S. ANTI-DOPING AGENCY TO MAKE ’04 OLYMPICS ANNOUNCEMENT

Reports have the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency making a majorannouncement today regarding sending a clean team to Athens, and the SAN JOSEMERCURY NEWS reports that sprinter Kelli White has “accepted a two-yearban from competition that will keep her out” of the ’04 Olympics.  White is the “first of what could be a handful ofAmerican track and field athletes forced to withdraw before the Athens Gamesbecause of their connections” to BALCO (SANJOSE MERCURY NEWS, 5/19).

USTA TODAY TO ANNOUNCE CHARLESTON AS HOST OF DAVIS CUPTIE

The Charleston POST & COURIER reports that the USTA willhold a 2:30pm ET press conference at the Family Circle Tennis Center inCharleston, SC, to announce that the venue will host the September 24-26Belarus-U.S. Davis Cup semifinal tie. The semifinal marks the “first Davis Cup matches in South Carolina inthe 104-year history” of the competition. Family Circle will switch from a clay surface to a hard court for theevent (CharlestonPOST & COURIER, 5/19).

MORNING BRIEFS

The INDIANAPOLIS STAR reports that House subcommittee onCommerce, Trade & Consumer Protection yesterday urged the NCAA “to maketougher [recruiting] rules than the ones initially proposed for passage thissummer.”  Committee Chair CliffStearns (R-FL) “mentioned a possible motivational tool for Congress to getwhat it wants: the tax-exempt status of NCAA programs” (INDIANAPOLISSTAR, 5/19).

The LouisianaSuperdome Commission yesterday called on the Saints to "give up tens ofmillions of dollars" the state owes the team as part oftheir ten-year, $186M deal in exchange for a taxpayer-funded $150MSuperdome renovation (NewOrleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 5/19).

The N.Y. TIMES notes that when CBS announces its fallschedule today, the new comedy based on the life of Tony Kornheiser willprobably be placed on Wednesday at 9:30pm ET (N.Y.TIMES, 5/19).

U.S.Postal team Dir Johan Bruyneel, on whether Lance Armstrong willretire at the end of the year: “I don’t think so.  I think I can tell you we will have a team over the coming years”(AP, 5/19).

TheMemphis COMMERCIAL APPEAL notes that Grizzlies President of Basketball OperationsJerry West won the Sporting News NBA Exec of the Year Award.  West is the second person, following BobBass, to receive the award with two teams. West won the award in ’95 as Lakers GM (MemphisCOMMERCIAL APPEAL, 5/19).

WBC Light Heavyweight Champion Antonio Tarver, onmoving up to the heavyweight division: “There’s a lot of guys out there withheavyweight titles, but they’re not really recognizable, they’re not householdnames and with my self-promotion, I can get out there and make a big name formyself” ("Dennis Miller," CNBC, 5/18).

USA TODAYnotes that former KABC sports anchor Bill Weir has been named co-host ofa weekend version of ABC’s “Good Morning America” (USA TODAY, 5/19).

ATTENDANCEWATCH:

• The ST. PETERSBURG TIMES reports that a “delirious sellout crowd of 21,517, the largest ever at the St. Pete Times Forum,” attended last night’s Flyers-Lightning Game Five (ST. PETERSBURG TIMES, 5/19).

• The ATLANTA CONSTITUTION reports that a crowd of 23,381 gave D’Backs P Randy Johnson a standing ovation following his perfect game against the Braves at Turner Field.  It was the 17^th perfect game in MLB history (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 5/19).

• The MONTREAL GAZETTE reports that last night’s Brewers-Expos game was played “before the smallest Hiram Bithorn Stadium crowd so far. The crowd was announced at 8,387, although the atmosphere was bolstered by the hundreds of free tickets distributed by the city of San Juan to kids” (MONTREAL GAZETTE, 5/19).

A LIGHTER BUZZ

Chicago Sun-Times columnist Jay Mariotti, on the St.Paul Pioneer Press running a writing contest for amateurs, called “Average JoeColumnist,” where the winner will pen a live column from a Twins game: “As longas it’s differentiated between promotion and editorial content, I don’t have aproblem.”  Denver Post columnist WoodyPaige: “I hope that this proves that anybody can do this job.  It’s not making a mockery, because our jobis a mockery” ("Around The Horn," ESPN, 5/18).

THE BACK PAGES

The Morning Buzz offers today’s back page sportscovers from some of the nation’s major metropolitan tabloids:

N.Y. Post	N.Y. Daily News

Philadelphia Daily News

TODAY’S EVENTS

Greek Prime Minister CostasKaramanlis will visit President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, the House Int’l RelationsCommittee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to discuss finalpreparations for the Athens Olympics. This is Karamanlis’ first visit to DC since taking office two monthsago.

ESPN will host a noon ET conference call to discuss theFrench Open with Dick Enberg,analyst Mary Joe Fernandez and ExecVP/Programming & Production MarkShapiro.

A two-disc DVD and video of Disney’s “Miracle,” includinginterviews with Herb Brooks for the making of the movie, hits retail.

ECHL Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies VP & GM DanBelisle will host a 2:00pm ET news conference at Boardwalk Hall in AtlanticCity, and is expected to announce that it will return to Atlantic City for nextseason.

IN OTHER NEWS….

TheHOLLYWOOD REPORTER notes that British game developers Tim Langdell and GeoffBrown are “taking on the United States with the launch of Langdell BrownAssociates, the first agency focused on the convergence of the movie and videogame industries.  Based in BeverlyHills, LBA will bring movie and television properties to the games market while‘enabling filmed and television entertainment based on well-known video gameproperties’” (HOLLYWOODREPORTER, 5/19).

FINAL JEOPARDY!

Last night's "Final Jeopardy!" category was"The Animal Kingdom." 

"A part of this marine mammal was prized by medievalfolk, who thought it belonged to a unicorn." 

LAUGH TRACK

THEMONOLOGUES:

CBS' DavidLetterman: "You're here on a great night.  It's very exciting here in the theater and I'll tell youwhy.  The entire balcony tonight isfilled with gay newlyweds. ... There's a restaurant here in New York City, in ahotel called the Parker Meridien, which was my name in college, and they'reselling a $1,000 omelet.  It's justunbelievable because normally an omelet is like $4, $5, something like that,and I'm thinking, well hell, if I want to spend $1,000 on a meal, I'll go toYankee Stadium. ... Geena Davis is 48-years-old, and had twinsyesterday, and maybe it's just me, but I'm thinking that's too young to starthaving children. ... New York City is one of the finalists to get the 2012Olympics.  That's great.  This city can't handle the extra trafficfrom a street fair" ("Late Show," CBS, 5/18).

NBC'sJay Leno: "Apparently, we're handing over power to the Iraqis onJune 30.  Actually, we're just handingthem the leash. ... President Bush's approval rating is now at anall-time low.  In fact, it is now lowerthan Dick Cheney's pulse rate. ... According to USA Today, PresidentBush once worked as a sales clerk at Sears, and you thought you couldn't findhim when he was in the National Guard. ... The Mexican air force reported lastweek seeing UFOs while on a routine surveillance mission looking fordrugs.  In fact, when the UFOs said,'Take us to your people,' they brought them to L.A. ... The porno industry isback in production here in Los Angeles. Thank God our economy is bouncing back. It was shutdown because of a health scare.  The shutdown was scheduled to last 60 days, but only lasted 30days, which is typical.  Justfast-forward through the boring parts" ("The Tonight Show,"NBC, 5/18).

LATENIGHT LAUGHS:

Last night's Top Ten list was "Top Ten Signs YourTelevision Show Won't Be On The Fall Schedule” ("Late Show," CBS,5/18).

TUESDAY NIGHT’S TV MONITOR

FINAL JEOPARDY ANSWER

"What is a narwhal whale?"

If you haveany questions, comments or suggestions, please let us know at:
dailyinsider@sportsbusinessdaily.com

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