Tennis Channel

Sports Media Digest- June 19, 2013

NBA Finals Game Six Second-Highest Rated Ever on ABC–  ESPN and ABC Sports reports that the overnight ratings for game six of the NBA Finals was 14.7, making it the second highest-rated NBA Finals Game 6 ever on ABC and the fourth highest rated game ever on the network.  The game had a 47.6 metered market rating in San Antonio and a 35.4 in Miami.  The final national rating for the game was 12.3

Jim Courier to Join Tennis Channel for Wimbledon–  The Tennis Channel has announced that it has extended the contract of former Grand Slam champion Jim Courier.  Courier will join the network as an analyst for its coverage of Wimbledon and the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif.

This Week’s Cover of Sports Illustrated-

SI 6-24-13

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Tennis Channel’s Coverage of the French Open

The Tennis Channel will provide over 200 hours of live coverage to the French Open, 70 of which will be of live matches.

Bill Macatee will anchor the network’s coverage, joined by lead analysts John McEnroe and Martina Navratilova.

Matches will be called by Ian Eagle, Bret Haber and Ted Robinson.  Analysis will be provided by Lindsey Davenport,  Justin Gimelstob, Rennae Stubbs, Leif Shiras and Katrina Adams.  Sports Illustrated’s Jon Wertheim will be on hand for special reports and analysis.

Here is the Tennis Channel’s match schedule:

Sunday, May 26– 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. First-Round Action
Monday, May 27– 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. First-Round Action
Tuesday, May 28– 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. First-Round Action
Wednesday, May 29–  10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Second-Round Action
Thursday, May 30 – 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Second-Round Action
Friday, May 31–  10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Third-Round Action
Saturday, June 1–  5 a.m.-Noon Third-Round Action
Sunday, June 2–  5 a.m.-1 p.m. Round-of-16 Action
Monday, June 3–  10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Round-of-16 Action
Tuesday, June 4–  8 a.m.-1 p.m. Quarterfinals
Friday, June 7–  7 a.m.-11 a.m. Men’s Semifinal

Tennis Channel Has Coverage of the U.S. Fed Cup

The Tennis Channel will be providing exclusive live coverage of the U.S. Fed Cup this weekend ad the United States takes on Sweden from Delray Beach, FL.

Here is the schedule:

Saturday, April 20:

2 p.m. -Live Singles #1-USA vs. Sweden
4 p.m. -Live Singles #2 – USA vs. Sweden
6 p.m. -Singles #1- Italy vs. Czech Republic
8 p.m. -Singles #2 – Italy vs. Czech Republic

Sunday, April 21:

1p.m. -Live Singles #3-USA vs. Sweden
3 p.m. -Live Singles #4 -USA vs. Sweden
5 p.m. -Live Doubles -USA vs. Sweden
7p.m. -Singles #3- Italy vs. Czech Republic
9 p.m. -Singles #4 – Italy vs. Czech Republic
11 p.m. -Doubles – Italy vs. Czech Republic

Sports Media Digest- April 4, 2013

Dial Global Radio at the Final Four–  Dial Global Radio is the official radio carrier for this weekend’s NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four from Atlanta.  The broadcast for Saturday’s semi-finals begins at 3:30pm ET with The Final Four Show.  Game coverage begins at 4:30pm ET with Kevin Kugler calling the game with analysis from John Thompson and and Bill Raftery.  Jim Gray will be the courtside reporter.  John Tautges will host the pre-and post game shows along with Bill Walton.  Sunday at 3:45p.m. ET Dial Global will broadcast the Men’s Division II Basketball Championship game between Drury and Metro State.

Sunday MLB on TBS Debuts with Yankees/Tigers–  The 2013 debut of Turner’s Sunday MLB on TBS telecast will feature the New York Yankees at Detroit Tigers.  First pitch is 1:00p.m. with Ernie Johnson and John Smoltz on the call.

U.S. Davis Cup Matches this Weekend on Tennis Channel-  The Tennis Channel will televise this weekend’s Davis Cup matches between the United States and Serbia. Singles matches from Boise, ID begin tomorrow at 3:30p.m. ET.  The doubles match will take place Saturday at 3:00p.m. ET with the final single matches Sundat at 2:00p.m. ET.

HBO2 To Televise Fists of Gold Boxing Saturday Afternoon–  HBO Sports will produce the first professional fight of Olympic Heavyweight Gold Medalist Zou Shiming as part the three bout Fists of Gold event from China.  The bouts will air on HBO2 at 2:00p.m. ET with Tim Ryan, Larry Merchant and George Forman on the call.  Zou will take on Eleazar Valenzuela.  They will also televise two championship fights featuring  the WBO Jr. Lightweight Championship between Rocky Martinez and Diego Magdaleno as well as the WBO/WBA Flyweight Championship with Brian0 Viloria taking on Juan Estrada.

HBO Championship Boxing in Late April from South America and California–  HBO Sports will be producing its next round of championship boxing matches at the end pf the month from California and South America.  World Champiuonship Boxing: Sergio Martinez vs. Martin Murray, Luis Carloe Abregu vs. Antonin Decarie and Chris Arreola vs. Bermane Stiverne will be seen Saturday,  April 27 at 8:30 p.m. ET from Buenos Aries, Argentina and Ontario, Cal. Jim Lampley. Max Kellerman and Roy Jones, Jr. will be in Buenos Aries while Bob Papa, Andre Ward and Steve Weisfeld will be in Ontario.

Sports Media Digest- March 18, 2013

2012-2013 College Hoops Season Most-Viewed Ever on ESPN– ESPN reports that the recently completed 2012-2013 college basketball season was the most-viewed ever for the network.  Over 13 games on the network, ESPN averaged 1.37 million viewers, surpassing last season’s 1.35 million viewers.  Louisville was the top-rated local market for the 11th year in a row, posting an average college basketball rating of 4.5.

Spring Training Baseball on ESPN- ESPN will televise two Spring Training Baseball games this week.  Action begins tomorrow at 1:00p.m. ET as the Yankees take on the Phillies.  Wednesday at 1:00p.m. ET the Red Sox and Yankees take the field.  Dan Shulman, John Kruk, Orel Hershiser and Buster Olney will call the action.

NASCAR Nationwide Series this Weekend from Fontana on ESPN– The next stop in the NASCAR Nationwide Series will take place this Saturday from the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA.  Alan Bestwick will be joined by Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree for the call of the race while Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Dr. Jerry Punch and Vince Welch report from the pits.  Action begins at 4:30p.m. ET with NASCAR Countdown with Nicole Briscoe, Ricky Craven and Brad Daugherty.

Virginia Hunt Joins Tennis Channel–  The Tennis Channel announced the appointment of Virginia Hunt as executive director, programming. She will be based in the network’s headquarters in Santa Monica, Calif., and report to David Scott, vice president of programming.  Hunt’s previous work includes a stint in Los Angeles at the CBS and WB affiliates, where she worked with major sports properties, such as the Lakers, Dodgers, Angels, Kings, Clippers and Galaxy.

Tennis Channel Coverage of BNP Paribas and Sony Open Tournaments

The Tennis Channel is planning to devote over 340 hours of coverage to the BNP Paribus and Sony Open tennis tournaments.

Brett Haber and Tracy Austin will lead the coverage as part of the Tennis Channel’s coverage of the BNP Paribus tournament with Lindsay Davenport,  Mark Knowles, Justin Gimelstob and Leif Shiras.

Davenport, Knowles, Gimelstob and Haber will also provide coverage of the Sony Open in Miami along with Rennae Stubbs  and Andrew Catalon.

Here is the complete Tennis Channel’s coverage of the BNP Paribus and Sony Open tennis tournaments:

Tennis Channel’s Live BNP Paribas Open Match Schedule
(Men’s/Women’s Singles Unless Otherwise Specified)

Friday, March 8 1:30 p.m.-2 a.m. First Round, Second Round
Saturday, March 9 1:30 p.m.-12 a.m. Second Round
Sunday, March 10 1:30 p.m.-2 a.m. Second Round, Third Round
Monday, March 11 1:30 p.m.-2 a.m. Third Round
Tuesday, March 12 1:30 p.m.-2 a.m. Third Round, Round of 16
Wednesday, March 13 1:30 p.m.-2 a.m. Round of 16, Quarterfinals
Thursday, March 14 2 p.m.-8 p.m.;
10 p.m.-midnight Quarterfinals
Friday, March 15 6:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m.;
9:30 p.m.-11:30 p.m. Quarterfinal, Semifinal
Saturday, March 16 8:30 p.m.-10 p.m. Men’s Doubles Final

Tennis Channel also will offer encore replays of the men’s and women’s singles semifinals and finals (ET):
Saturday, March 16 – Women’s Semifinals: 7 a.m.-11 a.m.; Men’s Semifinals: 10 p.m.-2 a.m.
Sunday, March 17 – Men’s Semifinals: 7 a.m.-11 p.m.; Women’s Semifinals: 11 a.m.-3 p.m.;
Women’s Final: 8:30 p.m.-10:30 p.m.; Men’s Final: 10:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m.
Monday, March 18 – Women’s Final: 12:30 a.m.-2:30 a.m., 6 p.m.-8 p.m., 10 p.m.-midnight;
Men’s Semifinals: 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; Women’s Semifinals: 2 p.m.-6 p.m.;
Men’s Final 8 p.m.-10 p.m.
Tuesday, March 19 – Men’s Final: 12 a.m.-2 a.m.

Tennis Channel’s Live Sony Open Match Schedule
(Men’s/Women’s Singles Unless Otherwise Specified)

Date Time (ET) Event
Friday, March 22 3 p.m.-5 p.m.; 8 p.m.-10 p.m. Second Round
Saturday, March 23 11 a.m.-11:30 p.m. Second Round, Third Round
Sunday, March 24 11 a.m.-11:30 p.m. Second Round, Third Round
Monday, March 25 11 a.m.-11:30 p.m. Third Round, Round of 16
Tuesday, March 26 11 a.m.-11:30 p.m. Round of 16, Quarterfinals
Wednesday, March 27 7 p.m.-9 p.m. Quarterfinal

Encore coverage includes men’s and women’s singles semifinals (ET):
Friday, March 29 – Women’s Semifinals: 12 a.m.-4 a.m., 7 a.m.-9 a.m.;
Men’s Semifinals: 10 p.m.-4 a.m.
Saturday, March 30 – Women’s Semifinals: 8 a.m.-noon; Men’s Semifinals: 8 p.m.-midnight
Sunday, March 31 – Men’s Semifinals: 7:30 a.m.-11:30 a.m.

Sports Media Weekly No. 139- John Daly, The Daly Planet and Rennae Stubbs, Tennis Channel/ESPN

After missing last week it’s good to be back with another Sports Media Weekly program.

Ken Fang of Fang’s Bites and I start the show talking about Ken’s news that he will be writing for the Awful Announcing site.  Congratulations Ken!

We then move into the news this weekend that ESPN has retained the rights to the Big East Conference, but at a much reduced price.

We begin our coverage of the Daytona 500 with Ken’s piece about how Fox may still be trying to find a comfortable role for Erin Andrews.

Our first guest is John Daly of The Daly Planet.  Ken talks with John about all things Daytona 500…including how Fox covered the event and how the Fox networks and ESPN responded to the horrific crash at the Nationwide Series race Saturday that injured at least 28 people.

We shift our talk to tennis and Rennae Stubbs, analyst for the Tennis Channel and ESPN, among others.  Rennae was a six-time Grand Slam doubles and mixed doubles champion and one of the most successful women tennis players from Australia. We talk to Rennae about making the transition from the court to the booth, working for many different networks covering the sport, and whether the networks should provide more coverage of doubles and mixed doubles matches.

Sports Media Digest- February 11, 2013

Stringer Aims for 900th Win on CBS Sports Network–  The CBS Sports Network (CBSSN) will be on site as Rutgers women’s basketball head coach C. Vivian Stringer attempts to win her 900th game tomorrow night.  Brent Stover and Debbie Antonelli call the action at 9:00p.m. ET as Rutgers takes on DePaul.  CBSSN will also have coverage of women’s action Wednesday at St. John’s takes on South Florida at 4:00p.m. ET with James Bates and Julianne Viani at the mic.

Tennis Channel Hires Three New Anchors for Court Report–  The Tennis Channel has announced that three new anchors have been hired to host its its nightly news segment, Court Report. Jo Ankier, Jonathan Novack and Jessica Vilchis will take turns anchoring the one-minute reports, which appear at the top of the hour just before 7:00 p.m., 8:00 p.m., 9:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. ET.

NHRA Season Begins this Week on ESPN– The 2013 season of the NHRA begins this weekend on ESPN2 and ESPN3 from Ponoma, CA.  Here is the schedule, with Dave Rieff and analyst Mike Dunn calling the action:

Date Time Event Network
Fri, Feb 15 5 p.m. Qualifying (live) ESPN3, WatchESPN
Sat, Feb 16 10 p.m. Qualifying ESPN2, WatchESPN
Sun, Feb 17 2 p.m. Eliminations (live) ESPN3, WatchESPN
8 p.m. Eliminations ESPN2, WatchESPN

Sports Media Digest- February 8, 2013

Tennis Channel has Coverage of the Fed Cup-  The Tennis Channel will provide live coverage of the U.S. Fed Cup team as it competes in its first round match against Italy.  The Tennis Channel will have sigles action Saturday beginning at 9:00a.m. ET with the second round of singles and the doubles match Sunday at 7:30a.m. ET.

NBC Sports Covers Sevens Rugby-  NBC Sports will be providing over 16 hours of coverage to the 2013 USA Sevens Vegas Rugby Tournament this weekend from Las Vegas.  The event will be shared across NBC, the NBC Sports Network, and Universal Sports.  Todd Harris will call the action with analyst Brian Hightower.  Marty Snider will report from the sideline.  Here is the schedule of the tournament:

Date Time Network Location
Fri., Feb 8 8 PM-1 AM ET Universal Sports Las Vegas
Sat., Feb 9 2-4 PM ET NBC Sports Network Las Vegas
Sat., Feb 9 4-6 PM ET NBC Las Vegas
Sat. Feb 9 7-9 PM ET NBC Sports Network Las Vegas
Sun. Feb 10 12:30-2 PM ET Universal Sports Las Vegas
Sun. Feb 10 2-4 PM ET NBC Sports Network Las Vegas
Sun. Feb 10 4-6 PM ET NBC Las Vegas

Sports Media Digest- January 30, 2013

Favre to Join NFL Network Crew Super Bowl Sunday–  Former quarterback Brett Favre will join the crew of NFL GameDay Morning this Sunday from New Orleans as the network previews Super Bowl XLVII. Favre will join host Rich Eisen , Steve Mariucci, Marshall Faulk, Kurt Warner, Warren Sapp, Michael Irvin, Deion Sanders and Brian Billick beginning at 9:00a.m. ET

Costas Tonight Looks at State of NFL–  Bob Costas will hold a special edition of Costas Tonight and will explore the State of the NFL.  Costas Tonight: State of the NFL will examine major topics including: player health and safety; the Rooney Rule; and a preview of Super Bowl XLVII.  The program debuts tomorrow at 9:00p.m. ET on the NBC Sports Network.

Jimmy V Week Raises $1.6 Million–  ESPN reported today that nearly $1.6 million was raised during the network’s Jimmy V Week for Cancer Research.  In six years, Jimmy V Week has generated $6,761,437 in total contributions for The V Foundation for Cancer Research.

Turner Sports to Use Bleacher Report Programming on CNN  Beginning This Weekend–  Turner Sports, which acquired The Bleacher Report last year, will integrate content from the website onto CNN and Headline News (HLN).  Kickoff in New Orleans: A CNN-Bleacher Report Special, a live one-hour show on CNN will air this Saturday at 4:00 p.m. ET The show will be co-hosted by Ernie Johnson and the newly-hired Rachel NIchols.  Beginning Tuesday, Feb. 5, CNN will air Bleacher Report sports updates daily as cut-in segments throughout morning broadcasts on CNN, as well as throughout the day on HLN.

New Jersey Senators Sponsor resolution Honoring Steve Sabol-  New Jersey State Senators Diane Allen and Dawn Marie Addiego  announced that they are introducing on Monday a resolution honoring NFL Films pioneer Steve Sabol.  “Steve Sabol inspired the finest cinematic reflection of any sport and left nothing on the field,” Allen said. “His innovative filmmaking documented the intellect, emotion and humanity in America’s most aggressive and popular sport.”

Univision Deportes and ESPN to Expand Reach of Mexican Soccer to the U.S.– ESPN and Univision Deportes have reached an agreement to increase the reach of the Mexican National Soccer Team (nicknamed “El Tri”) in the U.S. Univision Deportes and ESPN have secured the U.S. media rights to all of Mexico’s home matches (20 matches), both qualifiers for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil and international friendlies, in Spanish and English respectively.  The first match will air on ESPN tonight at 9:30p.m. ET.

UFC Gets Solid Audience For Fox–  This past Saturday’s Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) telecast on Fox generated a rating of 2.4 with an average audience of 4.2 million viewers, out-rating the combined averages of ABC, CBS, and NBC among Men 18-34, Men 18-49, Adults 18-34 and Adults 18-49.  The next UFC event on Fox will take place April 20th at 8:00p.m. ET.

James Blake Joins Tennis Channel’s Coverage of the Davis Cup–  American tennis star James Blake will serve as a guest analyst as the Tennis Channel provides coverage of the Davis Cup this weekend.  Blake will work with play-by-play announcer Brett Haber as the U.S. team takes son Brazil beginning Friday at 2:00p.m. ET.

PBA League Coneinues This Weekend on ESPN–  The Pro Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour will continue its PBA League of competitions this weekend.  The Lucky Strike LA LIVE in Los Angeles – features a doubles-style competition format and a best-ball competition will air Sunday at 4:00p.m.  Lon McEachern and Randy Pedersen will call the action.