NBA Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver, fresh off an appearance on this morning’s opening panel, stopped by the interview room to talk about how the economy might affect sports and the NBA, as well as what the league is doing to capitalize on the Beijing Olympics.

Silver On The Economy (1:28)	Silver On Beijing Olympics (:49)

Day two of the World Congress of Sports opened with a look into the immediate future of the media market, which by all accounts will be an interesting ride. Fox’s Ed Goren, HBO’s Ross Greenburg, NBA Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver, ESPN’s John Skipper and Turner Sports’ David Levy formed the panel that took center stage for the discussion at the main ballroom at The St. Regis Resort in a discussion of various topics confronting the industry.

The issue: Should league officials openly criticize their partner networks?

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At one point during the opening panel session on Thursday, Fox Sports President Ed Goren sang the praises of “Gopher Cam,” mentioning that the network was preparing to sell merchandise around it.

The broadcasters will sell T-shirts featuring the cartoon gopher known as Digger at trackside merchandise rigs all season, starting with this weekend’s race in Bristol. The shirts also will be sold on FoxSports.com, and various other Web sites. Fox is pricing the shirts from $15 to $21.50. Digger eventually will be featured on baseball caps and plush toys.

Actor Billy Crystal Makes His Yankees Debut

Standing in the hallway after appearing on the first panel of the day, HBO Sports President Ross Greenburg recounted an e-mail he received earlier in the morning from Yankees catcher Jorge Posada.

“He wrote that they just picked up a new second baseman,” said Greenburg, “and he’s already in the training room hours before the game.”

Posada was referring to the actor who played for the Yankees in a Spring Training game today. Crystal actually was the team’s designated hitter and struck out in his only at-bat.

After a long day of panel discussions and one-on-one interviews, attendees at the World Congress of Sports gathered for a long and leisurely cocktail hour (well, really 2 1/2 hours) on the grounds of the beautiful St. Regis Resort. Having the event on the West Coast seems to have helped everyone relax. There was no rushing out to meetings and dinners and offices. Everyone in the large crowd seemed content to stay and visit and watch the sun set behind Catalina Island. Here are some of the sights from the gathering.

View A Slide Show From The Reception

Peter Land, the new chief marketing officer of the Breeders' Cup, talked about the event's 25th anniversary and how organizers are making changes aimed at bringing new fans to horse racing's annual championship weekend.

Land On The 25th Anniversary Of The Breeders' Cup (:46)

And The Nominees Are

The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences today announced the nominees for the 29th annual Sports Emmy Awards at the IMG World Congress of Sports. Peter Price, CEO of the academy, was joined by Ross Greenburg, president of HBO Sports; Ed Goren, president of Fox Sports; and David Levy, president of Turner Sports in making the announcement.

HBO led the nominations race, scoring five nods each for Inside the NFL and Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel. HBO had 31 total nominations, followed by ESPN with 27 and NBC with 23.

For the complete list of nominated shows and networks, see the official press release.

BDA Sports chief marketing officer Bill Sanders stopped by the interview room and talked about Yao Ming’s Olympic marketing prospects, as well as which of BDA’s other clients may find opportunities at the Games.

Sanders On Clients Going To Beijing (1:06)	Sanders On Yao Ming's Injury (1:06)