The HOLLYWOOD REPORTER's Marisa Guthrie notes following M.I.A. flipping the bird during halftime of Super Bowl XLVI, the NFL and NBC released dueling statements "seemingly blaming the other for the singer's errant finger." Sources said that after the game, NBC and the NFL "discussed the situation at length after reporters began contacting them for comment." Sources said that NBC execs "felt that the word 'obscene' was over-the-top and, given the specter -- however remote -- of an FCC fine, rather loaded." By Monday, the word "had been stricken from the NFL statement" (HOLLYWOODREPORTER.com, 2/8).
DOUBLE FAULT: The FCC's Enforcement Bureau said that the commission "should deny Comcast's request for a stay of the initial decision by an administrative law judge that its tier placement of the Tennis Channel violated the commission's program carriage rules." The FCC noted that Comcast "had claimed that enforcement would violate its constitutional rights and confuse and frustrate viewers if Comcast had to immediately alter its lineup." But the FCC said that there "was no merit to either claim" (BROADCASTINGCABLE.com, 2/8).
RAYS OF LIGHT: Sun Sports yesterday announced that it will broadcast a 150-game schedule of Rays telecasts, along with the addition of a "full 30-minute pregame show for all road games." Play-by-play announcer Dewayne Staats, analyst Brian Anderson and host Todd Kalas "are all returning" (TAMPABAY.com, 2/8).
NO LAUGHING MATTER: The Spanish tennis federation yesterday said that it "would sue the television channel Canal Plus France for using its logo in a satirical video that suggested Rafael Nadal and other Spanish athletes used doping to improve their performances." The video sketch, which aired Monday, "showed a Nadal-like puppet urinating into his car’s gas tank before speeding off." The video "ends with the message, 'Spanish athletes: they don’t win by chance,' displayed among the logos of several Spanish sports federations, including the one responsible for tennis" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/9).
HISPANIC SUPER BOWL RECORD: Super Bowl XLVI set a Hispanic viewership record, the NFL says, citing Nielsen research. An average of 10.4 million Hispanic fans tuned into the game. Last year's Super Bowl pulled 10.04 million viewers. In 2007, the Super Bowl's Hispanic viewership was at 6.2 million (John Ourand, THE DAILY).
