ESPN Withholds Information in Syracuse Rape Scandal

In one of the more disgusting and hypocritical events in the history of American broadcasting, there we find that the leading hypocrites have metaphorical blood on their hands as well. Disney owned ESPN have been at the forefront rabble-rousing against the Penn State University scandal. But after watching this short video, you can see why they should now be running scared.
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FSN Pittsburgh + 2 other affiliates to Change Name next year!

FOX Sports Network is in some trouble in the PR department after the announcement that 3 of their affiliates in major US markets have decided to re-brand themselves to "Root Sports". This move would be a clear signal to "the sports worldwide leader" that the competition simply cannot hang in the ratings.

I don't know exactly what "Roots" is going to be like, but I am sure it doesn't sell easy. Will it be an all-sports network? Will it incorporate an outdoors nature sports?

Also getting the ax will be Seattle and Denver who will also lose their FSN coverage.

I for one am very disappointed that this decision will affect one of my regional channels, but according to the story, it will not affect the local broadcast rights according to the story which is good because in Pittsburgh they will be keeping the fastest and highest demanding broadcast in the Penguins local coverage.

Czaban Makes Triumphant Return To Morning Radio

As announced on his website's blog, Steve Czaban will be returning to morning radio since his eight month hiatus.

Sporting News Radio, as a subsidiary of Mission Media Group of Scottsdale, Arizona, has hired me to host their morning drive shift from 6-9 a.m. from our Washington D.C. area studios.

Which is fantastic news considering Czabe's NFL football is about to start up on yet another season. It was surely hard for Steve Czaban to walk away from the network he and his crew most certainly

It wasn't just the sheer volume of emails from you listeners, it was their staggering depth. I am talking about 1500-word-plus emails describing just what it was that made the show so meaningful to them.

You guys remembered a billion more details of segments we did, or moments we had, than I ever could.

And that pretty much sums up the kind of show that Czabe has. A loyal cult-like following that entertains with witty banter that includes a slice of life and serves it up to the audience.

You can't keep a show like this down for long. It was only a matter of time before Czabe was broadcasting with another mic flag in tow.

Virginia Beach Morning Show Creates a Crowd

Even if a radio publicity stunt may go horribly wrong, some schools of thought believe that there is no such thing as a bad publicity stunt. However, when the local police get involved, then it is time to rethink the strategy. As an April Fool's Stunt, Z104 (WNVZ-FM), a Top 20 hits station in Norfolk, VA decided that it was a great idea to tell people that hip-hop artist 50 Cent would be shooting a video on a local beach. Then sweetening the pot was the lie that 50 cent would also be listening to demo CDs.

Officer Adam Bernstein with Virginia Beach Police said, "It was a joke and we appreciate that. But, as a police department we have to worry about crowd control and traffic, even if it is a hoax you might have thousands of people show up anyway."

Even though the article didn't quite capture the disappointment that the community listeners had, the way that the large response of gullible people caused a potential safety hazard was well along the out-of-bounds standard of April Fools Pranks.

Upon Further Review FSN Pittsburgh is Scandalized

Even though the result of the game was unaffected of the controversial moment, a severe punishment was handed down after the broadcast networks rights holder to the defending Stanley Cup champions.

FSN-Pittsburgh was blamed for not providing all critical views to the alleged goal that Simon Gagne scored during the last meeting. During the review, the "NHL War Room" in Toronto concluded that there was not enough evidence to overturn the non-goal call on the ice.

In a statement, FSN Pittsburgh -- the local broadcasts rights-holder for the Penguins -- said, "There is nothing more important than the integrity of the game. During last Thursday's game against the Philadelphia Flyers, a definitive replay of a Flyers goal was not aired prior to the conclusion of the official review and, as a result, a Flyers goal was not awarded. Fortunately, this did not change the outcome of the game. Nonetheless, FSN Pittsburgh's failure to provide video to the league officials in a timely fashion was wholly unacceptable. FSN Pittsburgh has addressed this matter and has taken steps to ensure that such a failure does not occur again."

The Penguins followed with a statment: "We fully support FSN Pittsburgh in its reaction to this issue. The integrity of the game is paramount."

Steve Czaban Show Ends It's Run on FSR

FOX Sports radio, in my opinion, presents an alternative to the broadcast that other sports radio networks provide. And none such sports talk show in the 6-9am EST time slot had been more unique than "The Steve Czaban Show" which was previously "The First Team on FOX". Steve Czaban, who spit time nationally, was also posting double duty with local radio for the Washington D.C. area as well as featured in the Milwaukee market. But like the trueism states, all good things must come to an end - leaving Czabe's contract with FOX radio not renewed for the 2010 year.

Just like on the show, the "Monday morning quarterbacking" about the controversial ouster from FOX national broadcasts, saw fans criticize FOX for not promoting the radio network on their television stations, nor developing a similar synergistic plan like their competitors at the "world wide leader".

Speaking as a devoted listener, I enjoyed the FOX morning show in it's run with Czaban because it was able to capture many of the critical elements to an entertaining radio show. I was first hooked to Czabe when I realized that his social world-view was shaded towards a conservative outlook. When a sports story hit national attention, it was a nice change of pace that Steve Czaban would formulate a commentary that was contrary to his liberal colleagues. Secondly, he bravely intertwined his own personal life as he recounted anecdotes of his career, family, hobbies, and beer consumption. Thirdly, he was a maestro at intertwining the voices of his other broadcast teammates (Scott, Al, Lo-Def, etc.) appreciating their input to the topic. Czabe's show was hosted by the quintessential man's man.

Even though Czabe is "old skool" when it comes to broadcasting, he does have his own stamp on the information superhighway. Czabe.com presents the world according to him as "The Daily Czabe", a depository of beautiful buxom women with written commentary of sports special interests. For now, this is what the fans of the show have to hold on to until his fans get that fix of sports punditry like the jock junkies we all are.

Vocally, "Czabe", along with his broadcast cohorts, had the smooth delivery that was both comforting and familiar. He didn't clown up the show with a phony delivery. Sure he got exited and yelled, but it wasn't the over-saccharine and caffeine-addled approach like his comedic competitors use. Instead, Czabe took to the airwaves as a regular guy who presented a show that was just - real.

FOX's decision to chose another direction leaves a sour taste of the "what if"s, when the misappropriated genius of Steve Czaban and his crew would have us scratching just how successful the show could have been had the right support structure been offered.

Honsberger Dead

Pittsburgh radio and television broadcasting legend Fred Honsberger passed away due to complications of various ailments. He was 58 years old.

Honsberger was the established conservative voice in the city of Pittsburgh broadcasting on KDKA during late afternoons. He would also be the first local radio broadcaster celebrity to venture out into television suplimenting his radio broadcasts with a TV show on PCNC called "Fred Honsberger Live!"

He also got his start in State College, PA broadcasting at WRSC-AM as well as being in Harrisburg's WKBO-AM.

Pennsylvania Legislators Continue Push for LPFM Signals

Progress in the Pennsylvania State House of Representatives regarding the short wave or low power FM signals have crept a little further suggesting more control to communities that wish to broadcast small radio stations.

“This is a long time coming for the many organizations who want to set up low power radio stations across the United States,” said Congressman Terry. “Our legislation will give a voice to groups who want to provide greater awareness and involvement in their community.”

This would be most beneficial to Community Colleges and High Schools who want to further improve the curriculum. Rep. Mike Doyle, who's son attended Penn State Greater Allegheny, mentioned the University's WPSM station that is currently broadcasting through the Internet but has better designs of an over the air frequency.

The Local Community Radio Act would repeal the Radio Broadcast Preservation Act’s requirement that radio stations in a given market be 4 intervals apart.

The rough part of pursuing this type of endeavor is the opposition that the FCC would possibly make on behalf of already established FM signals in fear of interference.