PWINSIDER.com’s Dave Scherer cited sources as saying that the “current plan for the WWE Network is to debut in the first quarter of next year.” A source said that the “date right now is February 24 … and would have it in place leading up to WrestleMania” (PWINSIDER.com, 10/19). The WWE in a statement said, “As discussed on WWE’s latest earnings call, we continue to aggressively pursue the launch of a WWE Network in 2014 via traditional and non-traditional distribution models; however no launch date has been confirmed” (PHILLY.com, 10/20).
LESS IS NOT MORE: Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott on Saturday said that “there is no way” the conference will “settle for a lesser agreement just to have a deal done” with DirecTV. Scott: “We won’t do that. First of all, we have an obligation to over 50 distributors we already have deals with on the same basis. And in fairness and legally, we can’t do a different deal that we wouldn’t have done for someone else.” He added, “Eventually I believe (DirecTV) will take the network” (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 10/20).
MIXED BAG: In Oklahoma City, Mel Bracht wrote Fox' top college broadcast team of Gus Johnson and Charles Davis “turned in their usual colorful commentary” in Saturday's TCU-Oklahoma State game. However, sideline reporter Kristina Pink “has yet to prove she's worthy to be on the No. 1 team and at one point she couldn't remember OSU quarterback Clint Chelf's name, pausing for several seconds while trying to remember it” (OKLAHOMAN, 10/20).
NUMBERS MAN: The HOLLYWOOD REPORTER’s Erik Hayden noted ESPN's Nate Silver “outlined the three primary coverage areas for the new FiveThirtyEight -- politics, sports and economics -- which will debut ‘very early’ next year.” Silver was asked during a Q&A session at the Online News Association conference last week in Atlanta “about the editorial independence of the site at ESPN” following the “League of Denial” controversy. He said of ESPN, “They take their journalism very seriously. They make marketing decisions that tries to balance different things, but I expect to have a lot of editorial freedom there" (HOLLYWOODREPORTER.com, 10/19). The site is "currently hiring politics, sports and economics writers" (POLITICO.com, 10/18).
