Hot Off The Press: The Latest TV News and Information - Page 505

(And a thanks to bicker1 and foxeng -- that is a far nicer tone.)

TV Sports Notes
DirecTV to offer more back-nine views at The Masters
By Michael Hiestand, USA TODAY, February 20, 2008

The latest in TV's quest to show that enough is never enough: On this year's coverage of The Masters, some holes will star on their own TV channels.

DirecTV, the satellite TV service reaching about 16.8 million households, will formally announce Wednesday that it will debut a Masters Mix Channel for all four rounds of play. It will include one channel devoted to Augusta's so-called Amen Corner — holes 11, 12 and 13 — and one devoted to holes 15 and 16. Each of those two will have their own dedicated cameras and announcers.

DirecTV will offer another channel devoted to tournament highlights, and one carrying ESPN's live coverage of The Masters' first two rounds and then CBS' coverage of the final two rounds. For viewers with the necessary home equipment, all four channels will be viewable simultaneously.

The arrangement shows how complicated TV coverage has become since CBS first showed up at The Masters in 1956 with four cameras to cover the course's last four holes. CBS will produce ESPN's early-round coverage, which ESPN inherits this year from USA Network, and will produce DirecTV's coverage, which will air only when regular TV coverage is also airing. And CBS won't mind if you watch DirecTV when its coverage is on the air. Because DirecTV will air CBS' commercials, you'll count in CBS' TV ratings. Another twist: DirecTV's coverage of the specific holes, says DirecTV executive vice president Eric Shanks, also will be online at masters.org.

This is just the latest DirecTV attempt to complement regular TV coverage with special services that might entice viewers to switch from cable TV to satellite. Some sell for extra fees, like out-of-market NFL games or NASCAR coverage that includes various channels devoted to following specific drivers. Some are free, like coverage of tennis' U.S. Open and golf's U.S. Open includes coverage from those events' world TV feeds that might not otherwise show up on U.S. TV.

DirecTV's Shanks says the Masters Mix will be free this year — and stay that way. "It's a four-day event, and it's a tough value proposition to ask somebody to plunk down money for four days."

Ouch: TNT's coverage of Sunday night's NBA All-Star Game, based on its overnight TV rating, seems ready to set a record-low national rating for the event. TNT drew a 4.3 overnight, which translates to 4.3% of TV households in 56 major TV markets, down 16% from the overnight for last year's game, which was the lowest-rated ever. Ratings for the game have dropped each year since TNT picked it up in 2003.

On the up side, TNT's Saturday night All-Star coverage, including the dunk competition, drew a 3.1 overnight to tie last year's rating, even though last year's Saturday night TNT coverage included a much-ballyhooed race between TNT's Charles Barkley and NBA referee Dick Bavetta.

Finally: Now you can pretend to work in your office cubicle when you're actually watching online fishing.

Starting Friday, the ESPN-owned Bassmaster Classic will deploy its first unmanned on-boat cameras — on boats used by angling stars Boyd Duckett and Skeet Reese — to catch casts that will stream live online on bassmaster.com. BASS general manager Tom Ricks suggests the new BassCasts will help provide online coverage to deal with "the size of our playing field."

Also new online, the NFL Network this week has its first live online video from the NFL combine, focused on potential draftees sprinting, weightlifting, jumping, etc. — for about 60 hours. It's about time.

Dumb luck: In scheduling done before the NBA season started, ESPN has Shaquille O'Neal's debut for the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night — vs. the Los Angeles Lakers — as well as Boston-Suns on Friday and Detroit-Suns on ABC on Sunday.

This will be a good chance for ESPN/ABC analyst Bill Walton to expand on his recent on-air comment that "Shaq's arrogance is an insult to people who think." Walton said he based this on what O'Neal did with his former team, the Miami Heat, where, said Walton, "he said, 'I can't play at all,' (but) now I'm going to win the championship (in Phoenix) — which is ludicrous."

O'Neal responded that the oft-injured Walton's NBA playing "resume isn't quite good enough to speak on what I've done. I look at what Mr. Walton has done and what he's said — and one thing I hate is a hypocrite."

They go back: Walton, who on-air in 1995 said O'Neal "is one of the five biggest people on the planet," tutored O'Neal on his game when O'Neal was at LSU.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/colum...terstitialskip

Last week’s complete network average prime-time results (with demographic and season-to-date averages) are now at the bottom of RATINGS NEWS -- the second post in this thread.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...&#post10367387

RussB -- after last night's ratings I don't think there is much uncertain about Jericho's future with CBS. It doesn't have one.

TV Notes
Jesse L. Martin expected to leave 'Law & Order'
By Nellie Andreeva, The Hollywood Reporter, Feb 20, 2008

"Law & Order" veteran Jesse L. Martin is leaving the long-running NBC drama after nine years.

Anthony Anderson is coming on board to fill the void left by Martin's character, Det. Ed Green. Anderson will play a new detective partnered with Jeremy Sisto's Cyrus Lupo.

Martin will film one more episode of the Wolf Films/Univerasl Media Studios series, in which his character will be written off, sources said.

The actor had signed on to do the first 13 episodes this season, with an option for more.

Martin, who recently wrapped the feature "Peter and Vandy," next is set to portray singer Marvin Gaye in the biopic "Sexual Healing," which is expected to begin production in late April-early May.

"Law & Order" continues Anderson's streak of dramatic roles that includes parts on FX's "The Shield," in the Oscar-winning "The Departed" and, most recently, on Fox's gritty cop drama "K-Ville," for which he landed an Image Award nomination.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/...7ead1cb33c775a

CBS might as well air the episodes, I guess.

That might actually be the reason -- new faces bring new characters and keeps the show at least a little.

Although, to be honest, the mothership has never been quite the same for me since the death of Jerry Ohrbach.

I didn't think anyone was really out of line, but the discussion seemed to be headed in a direction which made me uncomfortable.

As I noted, this thread has a different feel than many, and I work hard to keep that friendlier atmosphere.

TV Notes
NFL Network Sacked By Dish
Pro Football Channel Loses 4 Million Subs In Transfer To America’s Top 200 Package
By Mike Reynolds, Multichannel News, 2/20/2008

The NFL Network has taken another distribution sack.

Dish Network has dropped the pro football league’s in-house channel from its America’s Top 100 Package, moving it to the Americas Top 200 package today. That means NFL Network has lost about 4 million subscribers -- America’s Top 100 reaches an estimated 12 million subscribers, versus some 8 million for America’s Top 200 -- reducing its base to some 31 million.

NFL Network last year absorbed another major carriage hit, when Comcast, backed by a judge’s ruling, migrated the service to a sports tier, resulting in the loss of about 8 million subscribers.

NFL Network is now positioned on channel 154 on Dish Network’s America’s Top 200 package.

“We are aware of Dish’s unfortunate decision, which is not in the best interest of its many subscribers who are football fans, especially this week with NFL Network’s exclusive coverage of the scouting combine featuring incoming college players from all over the country,” said Dan Masonson, the NFL’s director of corporate communications.

Dish Network officials declined to comment.

However in a note, entitled “NFL Network Free Preview Ending” that was posted by Dish Network to its retailers’ Web site, the satellite service informed that: "NFL Network is moving out of Free Preview into America's Top 200 package, effective Wednesday, February 20th, 2008.

In order to prepare customers who currently subscribe to America's Top 100 or Top 100+, DISH Network will be communicating to customers that NFL Network is rolling up and moving from Free Preview to the America's Top 200 package effective February 19, 2008. This communication will begin on February 15th, 2008 at 11:59MST.”

Despite public and often strident remarks in the media and attempts to gain footing for its cause on Capitol Hill, NFL Network could not gain carriage traction with Time Warner Cable, Comcast Corp. and other cable operators during the 2007 football season.

The distribution disconnect -- over the league’s game plan for expanded basic positioning and about a 70 cents monthly subscriber fee, and what distributors believe is a service whose value is largely tied to its eight-game primetime package -- eventually led the league to draft NBC and CBS to simulcast the regular-season finale that pitted the then-undefeated New England Patriots against the New York Giants, in what amounted to a Super Bowl XLII preview.

http://www.multichannel.com/index.as...leID=CA6534071