Another Stern Session Sounds So-So

There he was, back on my radio Tuesday, dodging questions with attitude, pestering the host when he could and sounding at times self-righteous, at times sensible and at times silly.

Yes, it was David Stern as a guest on sports-talk radio -- this time with Jim Rome, the self-anointed king of sports interviews.

The two banter on a somewhat regular basis (with one visit good enough to last six months because Rome and his staff can mine the outtakes for all kinds of gems or all kinds of annoying repetitions), and the latest visit was more of the same.

When Rome prodded where Stern did not want to go, the conversation did not go there. Sometimes Stern interrupted Rome and sometimes Rome questioned back (but never too harshly) to keep the repartee moving. To his credit, Rome hit all the necessary topics -- including officiating in the NBA Finals and the future of LeBron James.

One one level it was good radio, a major professional league commissioner with a host of one of the nation's top sports-talk shows. On another level, it sometimes sounded like shtick or a show to make a show.

It's always hard to tell with both Rome and Stern, each of whom had a message to send and wanted to sound competent and strong without sounding either mean-spirited (in Stern's case, there's no need for him to be a bully) or overly aggressive (in Rome's case, there's no need for him to burn a bridge with topics that will not get answered but could make it difficult to get an on-air visit again).

Both sounded like they enjoyed the visit, and that's OK. At times listeners probably felt they were eavesdropping on two people having fun disagreeing with each other. Rome and Stern just might have enjoyed it a bit more than the listeners, though -- and that should not be something that a host lets happen on a regular basis because the shows should be for listeners.

A Hall of Famer's Bobbled Pitch, Insights

OK, as much as the cattle call of athletes, celebrities and publicists (and the usual abundance of self-promotion) makes the nationally syndicated Jim Rome Show from Radio Row during Super Bowl week tiresome, it also produces some good radio.

Among the highlights Wednesday was the final guest during the show's second hour, the NFL's leading rusher and certain Hall of Fame selection this year, Emmitt Smith.

Smith was one site in Miami for several reasons this week, among them his upcoming election to the Hall and, as usual with many recognizable former athletes, his work as a pitchman.

Talking football and his Hall of Fame chances, Smith was solid when addressing what-if questions.

"Since I was 6 years old I've been thinking about playing football," he told Rome. "This is the final chapter. This is the ice cream and the cake."

Even better, he looked ahead, and talked about what he would do once elected -- the type of speculation athletes rarely entertain.

"Right now all I’m doing is putting down all of my thoughts and ideas, all the people I want to thank. Once I get the all out, I’ll organize them and put them in a format so I can communicate them in a way that's powerful, meaningful and effective."

When Rome moved discussion to Smith's necessary pitch, though, the former All-Pro selection fumbled.

After making the rounds on Radio Row most of the day, Smith needed a long pause to come up wih the name of the cause he was supporting. In fact, he never really named the cause.

But, he did specify he was working the the American Association of Orthodontists to encourage young athletes to wear protective mouth guards -- and to protect their mouth, jaw and teeth from serious injury. Plus, he knew the correct Web site, http://www.braces.org/, where people could find additional information.

All in all, it was the best of Radio Row, a good session for listeners who got some decent information and insights from a former Super Bowl MVP, and a productive visit for the AAO, who benefited from a pitchman who recovered from an early fumble and did his job well.