Pre-Game TV Segment ... Leaning Out

Every sports talk show, every sports talk segment really, is the same -- it's banter and opinion, packaged in some easy-to-understand, black-and-white format.

Sure, news and sports are defined by shades of gray, but the shows inevitably try to make it black and white, this or that, yes or no.

Unfortunately, the segments fail when the participants do not play by the rules, when they do not stick to the contract that's been crafted with viewers.

A segment on ESPN's "Monday Night Football" provided the latest example -- with connected and engaging analysts Chris Mortenson and Adam Schefter discussing whether specific NFL coaches were "safe" or "out" in terms of job security.

It was an appropriate and interesting topic for the next-to-last week of the season, but it failed because not all coaches were classified as either "safe" or "out." Instead, Mortenson and Schefter were able to use "leaning safe" or "leaning out."

For "insiders" such as Mortenson and Schefter, putting them in a position to speculate publicly about a coach's job security can be difficult, so perhaps the "leaning" label provided some necessary wiggle room. At the same time, though, it also defeats the credibility of the segment because viewers expect a firm answer from the talking heads -- even if they know such speculation can fall apart -- and "leaning" only allows them to straddle the fence of opinion.

If such segments are not going to provide what they promise, they just should not be used.

League Set for Three-Night Streak

Although Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, who also moonlights as a radio/TV analyst for the Philadelphia Eagles, believes the postponed "Sunday Night Football" game proves the United States has become a "nation of wusses," the now Tuesday night matchup should prove something else -- the NFL's TV prowess.

After drawing millions of viewers Sunday for a regular slate of games, and then millions more viewers Monday for the Saints-Falcons matchup on "Monday Night Football," the league is set to dominate ratings and viewership for third day in a row Tuesday.

The move of the game to Tuesday night was made by the league (with, no doubt, ample input from NBC) as an effort at fan safety. Make no mistake, though, TV -- as always -- played a role. From the league's perspective, splitting national viewership between the Saints-Falcons and Vikings-Eagles was not the preferred option.

Additionally, NBC's prime time schedule was a bit stronger Monday than Tuesday, so that made moving the game to Tuesday a bit more desirable as well.

With the final result, the NFL gets to further dominate the ratings and public consciousness/discussion at the end of its season.

Kudos to ESPN, Kuselias for Farewell

Lame duck on-air talents rarely work on radio, at any level (locally or nationally), so it's been a surprise that ESPN backup talker Erik Kuselias -- bound for the Golf Channel in January -- has played such a big role on ESPN Radio the past week or so.

He's been working on "Mike and Mike in the Morning" this week, one of his typical roles filling in for Mike Greenberg. As always, Kuselias knows what he's doing, bantering with his partner and generating good onversation. His athletic background and his experience as a lawyer typically prompt some entertaining and interesting perspectives.

Best of all, his opinions rarely sound contrived or created just to evoke a reaction. When he's working, listeners get strong sports-talk radio.

Maybe that's why he's been given the opportunity to work this week, even with his departure a given. Because he's not overly emotional or reactionary, there's little danger he'll do something silly to damage his reputation on the way out the door.

Plus, when discussing his future (which begins Jan. 3 on the Golf Channel), he includes seemingly sincere appreciation for the people in charge at ESPN and the opportunities provided by the all-sports network.

Still, the Kuselias move is interesting on another level because the Sports Business Journal reported that DirecTV might drop the channel, which could cost it some 15 million viewers by the end of 2010. While Kuselias has done decent work, he has not been able to build beyond a niche with ESPN and the Golf Channel can provide a more regular role.

It certainly will not be a more visible role, though, because the network has struggled to attract viewers. Also according to the Sports Business Journal, the Golf Channel ranked 78th out of 90 cable networks in total-day viewership during November, with an average of 55,000 viewers in a 24-hour period. It averaged 88,000 viewers in prime time ... but Kuselias will be working mornings.

One plus for the Golf Channel was that it did draw better numbers in November than the MLB Network, Fox Soccer and NBA TV.

NFL Music ... Another Change for TV

NFL officials have known for years that they're producing TV shows as much as providing games, and the latest testament to that was tests by Fox Sports to incorporate music into the broadcasts.

Not music as the broadcasts go to commercial. We already have that.

Not music when graphics appear on the screen as an extra way to grab viewers' attention, either. We already have that, too.

Instead, Fox Sports tested an approach for last week's Arizona Cardinals-Carolina Panthers game during which music cuts that were determined to match the shots on the screen were part of the broadcast. According to USA Today, the network had 15 audio clips from the composer of the music for "CSI" ready for the game. Also, clips from popular artists could be a possibility as they network continues to test the approach.

Unfortunately, the trial balloon that lifted off last week might even pop up on Super Bowl coverage.

If so, that would be a shame. But Eric Shanks, the 38-year-old who was put in charge of Fox Sports seven month ago, seems set on the approach. When talking to USA Today, he compared the musical options on sports broadcasts to providing the musical score for a movie as it happens.

Again, that's the problem. It's a sports broadcast -- not a movie, and not a video game. The folks working the game are directors and producers, not composers.

More and more, though, broadcasters seek to reach a younger demographic that's familiar with video games by making the games themselves look and feel like video games. Earlier examples of that have been different camera angles during live action that often seem ill-conceived or unusual to viewers. And the music represents the next step in that approach.

It's also a step toward how broadcasts will change -- for those watching and even for those behind the scenes.

A 50-Year-Old Game Worth Watching

Sure, it's been 50 years, and what will appear on TV tonight might only slightly resemble what people know as a baseball broadcast anymore (not that that's a bad thing), but Game 7 of the 1960 World Series on the MLB Network (8 p.m.) deserves a look -- and maybe more.

According to the MLB Network, an archivist working in Bing Crosby's estate found the broadcast of the concluding game of the Pirates-Yankees series earlier this year. Crosby, the legendary actor (he won an Academy Award)/crooner (his "White Christmas" still ranks as one of the best-selling songs of all time)/entertainer/TV personality, was part owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates for a period after World War II until his death.

He was in France during the 1960 World Series, though, and had the game taped.

"He apparently came back from France, watched the game a couple of times and tossed it on a shelf," MLB Network's Bob Costas said this morning on ESPN Radio. The game was shown in Pittsburgh earlier this fall, and Costas said the audience of former players, fans and VIPs responded with a combination of excitement and nostalgia.

For MLB Network, it's the kind of presentation the baseball-specific network should be able to share -- and thanks to the archivist and the work of many others -- will. For fans, it's a glimpse at one of the more historic games in a sport that values its history more than any other.

Those things certainly make it more valuable than whatever reruns the broadcast or cable networks have tonight. And for a sports fans, viewing such a game, even all these years later, only enhances one's credentials as a true fan.

Prepared Fox Team Gets Great Images

Kudos to the Fox Sports production team that decided to leave its cameras and microphones behind in Minneapolis -- and running inside the Metrodome -- because they captured some of the most compelling sports-related images of the year as a result.

Producer Richie Zyontz told USA Today they knew what they were looking for, and the roof collapse they anticipated happened as expected. It was great TV.

MIx of Heisman, 'Exce$$' on ESPN Interesting

In a bit of appropriately ironic and unplanned scheduling, ESPN's college football programming Saturday night includes the Heisman Trophy presentation at 8 p.m. and the debut of the "Pony Exce$$" as part of its acclaimed documentary series at 9 p.m.

With Heisman favorite Cam Newton of Auburn distancing himself from his father's admitted pay-for-play approach (the elder Newton apparently shopped his son's skills to the highest bidder when he was leaving junior college), and professing that he knew nothing about the attempted deals, that story clearly takes some luster off the presentation of college football's biggest award.

But, after viewers get an hour of hype and promotion, no doubt pretending that the other finalists have a chance at winning the award while avoiding any sincere mention of Newton's situation, ESPN then moves to a film all about paying college football players.

"Pony Exce$$" examines Southern Methodist University in the early 1980s, when SMU shot to national prominence thanks in large part to its willingness to pay players to play college football. When the NCAA finally stepped in and served up the "death penalty" for the first and only time, effectively shutting down the program and pushing it to depths with which it has not recovered 25 years later, it reshaped college football for years.

Promos for the film hint at an entertaining, maybe even enlightening, film, and the topic obviously remains timely.

Still, the tone of film might be most interesting -- especially because one of those who was a key member on the SMU team's of the early 1980s was running back Craig James, the same Craig James who went on to a career in the NFL and works for ESPN as a college football analyst. How the film treats the topic clearly reflects, at least on some level, how seriously the all-sports network itself considers such cheating.