Sports TV News

Chris Russo: Never Thought I’d Have Much Impact on First Take

“I really haven’t had any adjustment getting used to the medium and the camera. Got to be a little more careful of what you say.”

Published

10 months ago

February 17, 2023

Ricky Keeler

With Christopher “Mad Dog” Russo being on First Take with Stephen A Smith every Wednesday morning, it allows a new audience to get to watch him that may not have had the chance to listen to him when he co-hosted Mike and the Mad Dog on WFAN with Mike Francesa and he has enjoyed the chance to have other people get to know him.

Russo was a guest on the latest episode of the New York, New York with John Jastremski podcast and he said that even he has been surprised about the attention he has received from being on First Take.

“They are getting to know me. I am appealing to a different audience, which I hadn’t had in the past….I knew I could do well with it, but I never thought that I would have the impact with the one day a week with Stephen A. so that’s been a big plus for me.”

While Russo doesn’t get the chance to go on many 15-minute monologues anymore, he mentioned to Jastremski that he does not feel rushed on the show and that Smith allows him the opportunity to do whatever he wants to do.

”No, you are talking soundbites moreso than expound. You’ve got 2-3 other guys on set with you so you want to make sure they get a chance to talk, too. It’s not an adjustment. I can talk in that 15 seconds and give you an answer there or I can do 5-6 minutes, god given the way my mind clicks.

“One thing about Stephen A, he does give you the chance to do what you want to do. When I do that segment called ‘What Are You Mad About?’, it’s just me, so I’ve got 7-8 minutes to do anything I want, 3-4 different topics.

“I really haven’t had any adjustment getting used to the medium and the camera. Got to be a little more careful of what you say. If you make an error there, your career is over. Not as much on the radio, you can get around it…If you make a mistake on the radio, people might not pick up on it, it doesn’t go viral. If you do it on TV, you are dead. So for the most part, I’ve been able to stay out of trouble. That’s the one thing I concern myself with. I kind of edit myself as we go along.”

Right before Francesa was supposed to be on First Take with Russo and Smith back on February 1, Tom Brady announced that he was retiring. Russo said that the show did have to change a little bit from its original format, but it did give the show a main topic to talk about.

“We obviously already had a show formatted properly for a little more Mike and the Mad Dog. Once Brady happens at 8, we are on at 10, you’ve got to spend a lot of time on Brady. Partly it was good because it gave us something to talk about, break down the quarterbacks Montana/Brady, but it took away a little from the Mike and the Mad Dog thing. You also had to do it twice. You had to do it at 10 and then you had to do it again at 11.”

Ricky Keeler

Ricky Keeler is a reporter for BSM with a primary focus on sports media podcasts and national personalities. He is also an active podcaster with an interest in pursuing a career in sports media. You can find him on Twitter @Rickinator555 or reach him by email at [email protected].

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Sports TV News

Scripps Sports Exec: Teams Are Making Contingency Deals For After Bally Sports Bankruptcy

Lawlor said that Scripps Sports “already has deals in place with at least a couple of teams as a contingency in case Bally halts broadcasts before the end of the 2024 season.”

Published

2 hours ago

November 30, 2023

Jordan Bondurant

With the writing on the wall that Diamond Sports Group will drop its regional sports contracts after next year, entities like Scripps Sports are bracing for additional opportunities to work with various teams.

Scripps Sports president Brian Lawlor recently said teams and leagues are already thinking ahead.

“There’s a lot of contingency planning by teams and leagues to have distribution options if the creditors pull the rug out early,” Lawlor told Cincinnati Business Courier. “It’s really messy right now.”

Lawlor added that Scripps has already been involved in contingency planning with those leagues and teams, with talks having gone on for months in some instances.

“(Scripps) already has deals in place with at least a couple of teams as a contingency in case Bally halts broadcasts before the end of the 2024 season.

Scripps Sports already stepped in to help provide a new TV home for both the Vegas Golden Knights and the Arizona Coyotes. Lawlor said returns with those teams, particularly in Vegas, have been great.

“We’ve been blown away by the Golden Knights over-the-air ratings and the number of people who have subscribed to direct-to-consumer,” he said.

Jordan Bondurant

Jordan Bondurant is a features reporter for Barrett Sports Media. He’s a multimedia journalist and communicator who works at the Virginia State Corporation Commission in Richmond. Jordan also contributes occasional coverage of the Washington Capitals for the blog NoVa Caps. His prior media experiences include working for the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the Danville Register & Bee, Virginia Lawyers Weekly, WRIC-TV 8News and Audacy Richmond. He can be reached by email at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @J__Bondurant.

Sports TV News

Bob Iger: ESPN Could ‘Go It Alone’ and Not Take Financial Partners

“We are fully prepared to do that. It would be a little more challenging if we did.”

Published

2 hours ago

November 30, 2023

Jordan Bondurant

Courtesy: CNBC

As Disney continues to consider selling an ownership stake in ESPN, Disney CEO Bob Iger told employees he’s not ruling out the possibility of not bringing in new financial partners.

Front Office Sports reported Wednesday that Iger spoke at a Disney town hall on Tuesday and there’s no requirement in place that says Disney must seek out new investors to maintain ESPN’s financial future.

“We could go it alone,” he said. “We are fully prepared to do that. It would be a little more challenging if we did.”

Disney has already had some level of conversations with potential partners including pro sports leagues and big tech companies.

Jordan Bondurant

Sports TV News

NASCAR to Announce $1.1B Rights Deal with FOX, NBC, Prime Video, TNT

The $1.1 billion figure represents a nearly 40% increase in what the organization receives from its current deals.

Published

10 hours ago

November 29, 2023

BSM Staff

A photo of the NASCAR Cup Series, FOX, Prime Video, TNT, and NBC Sports logos

NASCAR is on the verge of announcing a new TV rights deal that will see the racing organization bring in $1.1 billion annually from five TV partners.

The $1.1 billion figure represents a nearly 40% increase in what the organization receives from its current deals.

Beginning in 2025 and running through the 2031 season, NASCAR will air its first 14 Cup Series events with FOX and FS1. The next five events will air on Amazon Prime Video, making the first time a NASCAR event will be shown exclusively on a streaming service.

Following Amazon’s portion of the schedule, another five events will be broadcast on both TNT and the B/R Sports tier of the Max streaming service. The final 14 races of the year will be broadcast with NBC, USA Network, and Peacock, according to reporting from Sports Business Journal’s Adam Stern.

Previously, FOX Sports aired 18 races, while NBC aired 20, which includes two exhibition events.

In addition to its new deals with Amazon Prime Video and TNT for the Cup Series, NASCAR also has a previously announced new broadcast agreement with The CW to air each race of the Xfinity Series.

The upcoming announcement, which is expected either Wednesday or Thursday, comes on the heels of NASCAR President Steve Phelps admitting new TV partners would be entering the fray in the next contract.

“We are going to have an additional partner and we may have two additional partners,” Phelps told NBC Sports. “That’s kind of where we’re trying to figure out in these last few weeks — what that’s going to look like, but we already know we’re going to have more partners.”