The publisher of the Rivals.com Auburn website Auburnsports.com was missing from WNSP this morning. The radio station could not get in touch with the “journalist” who made serious allegations of cheating against Alabama fans and by implication the University of Alabama Crimson Tide. Mr. Lee broke the story on Thursday morning’s WNSP broadcast, and was [...]
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Is Auburn’s Jeff Lee reporting pure garbage?
Is AuburnSports.com’s Jeff Lee putting out allegations that are pure garbage? Some people think so, or at least believe the claims are suspicious. Sports by Brooks: “Because the very basis of Lee’s claim is – by design – false, it’s impossible to view the veracity of Lee’s allegations as anything but, at least for now, [...]
No bias in the local media? Right.
What do you headline on your major news website on one of the busier days? A good story about Alabama’s basketball team in the NIT? The scandal rocking Auburn with allegations of student-athletes receiving illegal benefits like cash for sacks in the Iron Bowl? Of course not. If you are al.com, a division of Advance [...]
Pac-10 gets greedy
According to a report, “The Pac-10, deep into its talks with ESPN and Fox, is seeking the richest media contract among all college conferences, according to industry sources.” Is it worth it? The SEC crowns its champion and the BCS game is just a formality; it is the coronation of the SEC with the college [...]
Ron Franklin’s big mouth
Many female sideline reporters are dumbasses. But that doesn’t mean you should treat them badly. Ron Franklin seems to have a problem understanding that. According to Sports By Brooks, Franklin engaged in a blowup with a female sideline reporter during a production meeting. According to the report, “As Gilmore, Cunningham and Franklin discussed the subject, [...]
Pot meet kettle
Auburn’s Izvestia, also known as Phillip Marshall, is outraged that some “fan” posed as a “reporter” and tried to influence the recruiting of a high school student. Welcome to the club! The “recruiting” sites have long been nothing more than fans of the respective schools they cover. The comedy in Marshall’s piece is worth reading. [...]
Some newspaper thoughts
First, congratulations to Lord Black on a small victory before the Supreme Court. Lord Black ran Hollinger and has faced some persecution by the US government over allegations he cheated shareholders. You can read more about the Supreme Court’s decision in a story below. But one important point about Black, he was a successful newspaperman. [...]
Scooped: Birmingham News beaten by NY Times
While the Birmingham News and its sportswriters were obsessing over Justin Knox and his transfer status, the New York Times was hard at work exposing an NCAA probe of alleged cheating in Birmingham. What went wrong? Why was the local paper scooped by a national publication? There are many reasons. However, the key point is [...]
The News doesn’t want to be the news
John Archibald believes “You have a right to know about News buyouts.” The Birmingham News disagrees. The Birmingham News is dying. They just don’t want you to know about it. So, the venerable (and pro-Auburn) newspaper buried the latest revelation about its decline; it suppressed a John Archibald column on the newspaper’s buyouts. The column [...]
Apple’s iPad gets rave reviews
From AFP: “This beautiful new touch-screen device from Apple has the potential to change portable computing profoundly, and to challenge the primacy of the laptop,” said the Wall Street Journal, calling it a ‘game changer’.” And this also from the AFP story you can read below: The New York Times similarly praised the tablet for [...]
UA grad & broadcasting pioneer Simmons dies
AP: Pioneering sports broadcaster Chester R. Simmons, who served as president of ESPN during the company’s launch in 1979, has died. He was 81. …Simmons was born on July 11, 1928, in New York City, and was raised in Ossining, N.Y., and Pawtucket, R.I. He earned a bachelor of arts degree in broadcasting from the [...]
Newspaper ad revenue plummets 44% since 2006
Circulation decline and ad revenue decline are the news for newspapers. Here is the latest from the AP: “Newspaper publishers’ ad revenue totaled $27.6 billion in 2009, down from $37.8 billion in 2008, according to the Newspaper Association of America. It’s the industry’s lowest ad volume since 1986, when sales totaled $27 billion, unadjusted for [...]
Stop reading the Birmingham News
Commentary by Alan Being number 1 is rough. Well maybe not. Sure you have to deal with the slings from rivals trying to catch you, but that is life. Also part of the life of a champion is dealing with a confrontational press. Those pompous pimps of positivism (aka those bums that work for Newhouse [...]
WJOX parent files for bankruptcy protection
AP: “Our business will continue as usual and the company will work to emerge from the restructuring process as quickly as possible,” CEO Farid Suleman said in a statement. Citadel has retained turnaround specialist Alvarez & Marsal North America LLC as its restructuring adviser. (read the entire report embedded in this post) Powered by Mochila
Why I listen to Colin Cowherd and you should too
Colin Cowherd was an acquired taste. When I listened to the show a few times it didn’t seem interesting or useful; however, thanks to ESPNU’s simulcast, I gave the show an extended viewing. Cowherd covers the important issues in the major sports. If you obsess about stats then you probably won’t appreciate Cowherd. But if [...]
The Cecil Hurt Show improves
Cecil Hurt knows his football, but no offense, the show is far more watchable now with the addition of Rachel Baribeau—even if she did graduate from Auburn. You can see some nice photographs of Baribeau at SEC Media Days on her website.
SI goes after coaches’ ballots
Sports Illustrated will file open records requests with 51 schools in a quest to see every single ballot submitted in the USA Today Coaches’ Poll, Sports Illustrated’s Andy Staples writes. (via Get the Picture). According to Staples, “We’re expecting to hear excuses as to why the ballots can’t be released. Some coaches may claim they [...]
Get your SEC news from Gannett or the AP?
Editor & Publisher reports the Associated Press and Gannett, owner of the Montgomery Advertiser and other papers in the SEC footprint including the Nashville paper and the Louisville Courier-Journal, have ordered their reporters not to sign the new SEC credential policy. One of the arguments against the SEC’s credential policy is prior restraint. According to [...]
Why Saban hates the media
Editor’s note: ITK beat me to this subject, but as I was driving this afternoon these thoughts flooded my head, and I had to post them. There are good reasons why Alabama Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban treats the media poorly. The members of the press aren’t the brightest people in the world. Seriously, they [...]
Nick Saban is shy
In a conversation with ESPN’s Chris Low, Alabama Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban explains why the coach had a rocky relationship with the media. He was shy. According to Low’s Q&A: “I had problems getting up in front of people and giving speeches when I was young. My wife is just the opposite. She probably [...]
Can ad sales save ESPN?
This is why you can’t let “content†people run a media business. From one of my favorite sites,Sports By Brooks: “If you’ve ever worked in media, you know of the eternal battle between sales and programming. Sales wants to dumb down content to make it a more palatable commodity for advertisers, while programming wants to [...]
Erin Andrews: I’m being treated like Britney Spears
The Erin Andrews story has entered a new phase. The media has decided to follow her. Here is audio and a story on a 911 call from the ESPN sideline reporter. One of the most interesting lines of the 911 audio: “I did nothing wrong, and I am being treated like (expletive) Britney Spears, and [...]
More on the Travis incident
Dennis Dodd and Tony Barnhart provide some powerful commentary on the Clay Travis question. First Dodd writes, “Nice day at work. Rest up and come back fresh tomorrow, Clay. There will be plenty of chances on Friday to ask a player if he has herpes. I’m sure the public is dying to know if Lane [...]
The press is now a joke
Stewart Mandel said it best via twitter, “SEC Media Days hits a new low — a writer asked Tim Tebow whether he’s a virgin. Unreal.†The SEC has itself to blame for allowing its premiere event to sink to that level. Maybe some of those 900 or so credentialed “media†members at the event should [...]
PROBLEMS AT RIVALS.COM
Official admits it can’t police its publishers Rivals.com has been embroiled in controversy over how its publishers have behaved. The Auburn Rivals.com site edited a video it posted once complaints of recruiting violations surfaced; conveniently, the Auburn website removed the most damning portions of its video. In other words, the publisher of the Auburn website [...]
Capstone Report launches new recruiting service
Want to get the latest information on recruiting? We don’t either. Want to help smear your rival and hurt their recruiting? We sure do! And you can help us since this all looks fine if we cloak ourselves in the First Amendment and call ourselves “journalists†like those guys at Rivals, Scout, ESPN, etc. For [...]
Told you so; Recruiting sites have no ethics
Websites are recruiting against Alabama. It isn’t shocking because websites have served as cheerleaders and surrogate recruiters for some time, but maybe a new round of attention will reform the corrupt way outsiders are interfering in the recruiting process. “That should be addressed by somebody and should be brought to bear,” Saban told the Birmingham [...]
Anti-Saban opinions bad for career?
Chadd Scott was on the Paul Finebaum Radio Network Wednesday. Don’t know him? Don’t worry about it. I’m sure 99.9 percent of the public doesn’t either. And those are the lucky ones. Scott is famous because he hates Nick Saban. His latest anti-Saban diatribe unfolded on the Finebaum Show; it made Charles from Reeltown look [...]
Why the Internet sucks & always will
The Internet in general and blogs in particular have a tough time with credibility when Rivals’ Auburn site edits incriminating video showing Auburn recruiting violations, or when blogs repeat incorrect material. Everyone already knows how Rivals.com apparently doesn’t care about editorial integrity. When asked via email for information on editorial standards, a corporate ombudsman or [...]
Alabama’s useless press
CBS Sports confirmed what everyone already knows—Auburn is under investigation for NCAA violations. According to CBS’ Dennis Dodd, “this is arguably the dirtiest era in NCAA history.” He explains there are many programs under scrutiny. And this includes Auburn. Dodd writes, “Auburn is being investigated on two fronts.” For those who closely follow NCAA sports, [...]