Non-Kobe related media notes
In reverence to Nomar Garciaparra, did you ever stop to think that Kobe spelled backwards is Ebok?
Not that it means anything. It actually means nothing. But it's about as new a spin we can put on everything, something you can even use while you're waiting on hold to get onto a local sports-talk show that'll allow you to give your three cents about his future with the Lakers, as well as the future of the free world.
T.J. Simers, the L.A. Times' columnist and morning co-host of "Roggin and Simers Squared" on KLAC-AM (570), seemed to be trying to advance the Bryant-wants-out story by sifting through possible candidates who qualify to be this "Laker Insider" source that started Kobe on this rant a couple of days ago.
An insider, of course, doesn't have to be someone in management, although that's what Bryant seems to want to believe, Simers points out. It could be another player. A broadcaster. Someone who's written a book (Charlie Rosen) ...
"Let's start a rumor -- it's Joe Safety of the Clippers," Simers said of the rival team's public relations man.
Sounds like a safe pick to us.
Y'know, we could yammer on all day about the Kobemeister, but we'll leave it to the professionals who have hours to fill on the radio and get paid much more to do so than us. All we can do is document it, as we did in today's Daily News media column, noting how the the flames were fanned and the fans enflamed in this Kobe non-kabuki theatre.
We now offer up some other media notes that may not make your palms sweat, but perhaps bring a little more handwringing:
==SportsByBrooks.com makes note of a story on the Orange County Register relating to attractive Newport Harbor High pole vaulter Allison Stokke, who has stoked many internet sites into running her photo. Going by this story on KCBS Channel 2, she's apparently not happy (although her father may dispute it) about all the attention she's been receiving, which includes this story in the Washington Post, despite the fact she's an accomplished high school athlete heading into the CIF state track and field championships this weekend in Sacramento. What Brooks' story goes further to point out is how the Register is offering copies of its own photographs to readers -- one can even be had in a mahogany frame for $215, or on a coffee mug, Christmas ornament or mouse pad. A little hypocritical with that Register story premise? The editoral department and the marketing department outta get together and figure this one out before the orders start pouring in.
Read on ...
==HBO's documentary version of the Barbaro story debuts Wednesday (10 p.m.), with plenty of replays. Compared to what NBC did with its documentary on the same subject matter (which aired a couple of weeks ago), HBO seems to show much more of the hospital drama. The documentary uses archive footage and interviews owners Roy and Gretchen Jackson , trainer Michael Matz and assistant trainer Peter Brette, jockey Edgar Prado, Dr. Dean Richardson, journalists William Nack, Dick Jerardi and Andrew Beyer, and the Pimlico track emergency medical team. Liev Schreiber narrates the story written by Frank Deford. A telling quote from Nack: "These animals become like national pets…we human beings reach out emotionally to these horses…these horses become like the center of Greek tragedy. And when we see them injured like this, we’re all part of the chorus, trying to bring them back.”
==Maybe there was some confusion as to why it seemed former NHL star and current NBC hockey studio analyst Brett Hull was favoring the Detroit Red Wings over the Anaheim Ducks in the recently completed Western Conference finals. Forgive Hull if his loyalties to the Red Wings, the team he made his next-to-last stop during his career that spanned from 1986 to 2005, was still fresh in his mind. But so, too, should the fact that Hull's likeness as a rubber duck in a Red Wings sweater is still available to those on eBay.com for $7.99.
==For the first time, the Stanley Cup Final are available to mobile viewers on NBC Universal's mobile channel NBC2Go, through a live simulcast offered by Verizon Wireless V Cast Mobile TV in select markets (Los Angeles not included). Also, NBCSports.com will allow viewers to interact with the broadcast through a system called "Screen Shot," where there are fan polls, NHL trivia, playing hockey mini-games or chatting with other Senators or Ducks fans.
==For those fantasy baseball league owners who need to know who'll they'll be drafting in 2011, ESPN2 has decided it's time to televise the Major League Baseball first-year player draft (June 7, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.), using Karl Ravech as the host with Peter Gammons and Steve Phillips chiming in. Could it be in response to the success of the NFL Draft, rumored to be headed for prime-time in the coming years? At least ESPN acknowledges there's a "geek" factor to this, having fantasy league expert Matthew Berry as a show contributor. ESPN will have all 30 first-round picks.
==ESPN has tweeked its schedule to carry Monday's New York Yankees-Chicago White Sox game (4 p.m.) with Dave O'Brien, Rick Sutcliffe and Erin Andrews. Oh, hey, check it out -- Roger Clemens is scheduled to make his first start of the season as well on that day. What a coincidence. Meanwhile, ESPN Classic will get everyone up to speed with a 12-hour Clemens marathon starting at 4 a.m., leading up to the first pitch of Monday's game. The games have been edited to show only Clemens while he's pitching -- the runs his teams scored for him are apparent incidental. The Clemens games included in the retrospective include his 20 strikeout games against Seattle ('86) and Detroit ('96), his 200th career win ('97 vs. Toronto), his first World Series win (Game 4 of '99) and Game 4 of the 2005 NL Division Series when he came out of the bullpen to help Houston win.
==Fox delivers Saturday's New York Yankees at Boston game (with Joe Buck and Tim McCarver) to 86 percent of the country, including L.A. The others get St. Louis at Houston.
==Although its coverage doesn't begin until July 10, ESPN has announced ways it has enhanced coverage of the 2007 World Series of Poker. The 32 one-hour telecasts include four more hours from the main event and will all be in that oh-so-important high definition. The final table will again be a pay-per-view event ($19.95, July 17, noon). ESPN also increased the number of cameras from 26 to 40. Coverage will be set for every Tuesday at 5 and 6 p.m. through Oct. 30. There are 16 shows from the main event. Norman Chad and Lon McEachern will return to do the broadcasts. In an Associated Press story out of Las Vegas on Thursday, World Series of Poker organizers said they're also adding 10 final table showdowns among the earlier events on the Internet on an hour delay, completed with the hole-card cameras. This is in addition to the ESPN coverage, said commissioner Jeffrey Pollack. “We’ve dialed it up a notch in terms of all of our broadcasting and media initiatives,” he said. “This year, the World Series of Poker is being carried around the world and across every medium that matters with the same level of cutting-edge thought that drives NASCAR and the NBA.” The Internet broadcasts, to be shown on an upgraded Web site, will charge a pay-per-view subscription fee, he said. Players in those finals will be sequestered and prevented from gaining information on their opponents’ cards in previous hands.
==By now, Vootage.com should have Thursday’s Division II and III Southern Section baseball title games from Dodger Stadium up on its site, and it will today’s Division I and IV finals up by midnight. Tom Kelly and Frank Burlison called Thursday’s games, and Kelly will do today’s games with former major leaguer and Harvard-Westlake grad Bob Scanlan. Site founder Jeff Proctor said cost restrictions prevented the company from airing these games live. Vootage will also have LA36’s coverage of the City Section champion bracket and invitational finals this weekend, with Randy Rosenbloom on the call.
==Ever wonder where former ESPN "Dream Job" contestants go to find work (or come up with an idea for drinking on the job)? Zach Selwyn has been apparently helping his younger brother, Jesse, with some Internet video production, as well as trying to launch his music career. Check out their video on MySpace, as well as Zach's current page:
Vodka in a Stapler
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==ABC's coverage of the NBA Finals starting Thursday, June 7, with Mike Breen, Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy on the call, includes an updated version of the Emmy-Award-winning "Hall of Fame" opening segment, which features some of the most moments in finals history and "The Finals in Harmony," a performance of Steve Sidwell and the Hollywood Film Chorale.
==NBC starts its coverage of the French Open on Saturday and Sunday with taped coverage at 10 a.m. each day. It concludes with the live women's and men's finals next Saturday and Sunday. Ted Robinson does play-by-play with John McEnroe, Mary Carillo and Bud Collins.
==ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU have up to 55 games at the NCAA baseball championship playoffs starting today. Robin Ventura, Barry Larkin, Phil Nevin, Fernando Vina, Eduardo Perez and Buck Martinez are included this year as analysts for the first time. ESPNU has games today from the San Diego regional (Minnesota vs. Cal State Fullerton and Fresno State vs. San Diego, with Dave Cohen and Ventura on the first and Cohen and Larkin on the second). The College World Series starts Friday, June 15 on ESPN2 with two games. The best-of-three finals starts Saturday, June 23 on ESPN.
==Dave Revsine, a Northwestern graduate and Chicago native, has left ESPN to become the first on-air hire of the new Big Ten Network as its lead studio host. The network launches in August.
==And finally, quote of the day Thursday comes from ESPN Radio's Dan Patrick: "We are covering Spelling Bee like it’s NFL playoff game." He noted that not only was Chris McKendry doing the "letter-by-letter" call for ESPN Thursday, but Stuart Scott was a "sideline reporter" and Mike Goldberg and Mike Golic were there as the hosts. I'd love it if one of the contestants was asked to spell 'Boo-yah.' Let's see someone ask for the origin of that," said Patrick.