Sports TV News
Bleacher Report Embraces Delivering Content Everywhere

Published
6 years agoon

When word first leaked that Facebook was approaching publishers to put content directly on the platform, many were skeptical. There were the usual fears of loss of control and uncertain prospects for monetization.
And, to be fair, many of those questions remain unanswered. But as Facebook, Google and Snapchat have moved content directly on their platforms, publishers like BuzzFeed and Bleacher Report have eagerly jumped at the chance of reaching audiences directly on the platforms where they’re spending the most time.
“2016 is the year that, as a publisher, if you’re not embracing the content-everywhere approach and you’re not coming up with a way to have conversations with advertisers about how you’re going to bake their brands in content on these platforms, 2017 is going to roll around and you’ll be in trouble,” said Rory Brown, President of Bleacher Report. Brown was employee #12 and has witnessed the company’s growth to more than 300 people, becoming a cornerstone piece of Turner’s digital media strategy in the process.
Bleacher Report did not grow without its share of critics. Some bemoaned the site’s reliance on aggregation and mastery of the dark arts of search-engine optimization. What they missed, Brown said, is that Bleacher Report was focused not just on producing content but on getting it to audiences, a basic strategy that many publishers were late to adopt.
The knock on distributed strategy is publishers can become over-reliant on a platform. That’s why Bleacher Report has a “hedging” strategy of not over-emphasizing one platform too much. That can mean bringing in traffic through search, social and apps but also going out to platforms.
Compared to many publishers, Bleacher Report made an early bet on mobile, seeing its audience shift in that direction. That has allowed it to amass 15 million downloads of its Team Streams app. Its strategy relied on converting search traffic to email newsletters and then to the app, Brown said.
“The current media wars are not going to be won on direct audience numbers,” he said. “Brand is the big winner. We’ve got to reach as many people as we possibly can, and the best way to do that is creating content that might live on Bleacher Report but lives in a number of places as well.”
To read the full article and hear the podcast with Rory Brown visit Digiday where it was originally published
Jason Barrett
Jason Barrett is the owner and operator of Barrett Sports Media. Prior to launching BSM he served as a sports radio programmer, launching brands such as 95.7 The Game in San Francisco and 101 ESPN in St. Louis. He has also produced national shows for ESPN Radio including GameNight and the Dan Patrick Show. You can find him on Twitter @SportsRadioPD or reach him by email at JBarrett@sportsradiopd.com.
Sports TV News
Mike Tirico, Tom Brady, Manningcast Win Sports Emmys

Published
3 hours agoon
May 25, 2022
The annual Sports Emmys were handed out on Tuesday night, and some usual names and new names ended up taking home hardware.
Among the usual names were NBC’s Mike Tirico, who won for Outstanding Personality/Studio Host, and soon-to-be Sunday Night Football broadcast colleague Cris Collinsworth, who was named Outstanding Personality/Sports Event Analyst.
The #SportsEmmys Award for Outstanding Personality/Sports Event Analyst goes to @CollinsworthPFF (@nbcsports). pic.twitter.com/C5yWxrAIi8
— Sports Emmys (@sportsemmys) May 25, 2022
The #SportsEmmys Award for Outstanding Personality/Studio Host goes to @miketirico (@nbcsports). pic.twitter.com/Cb0cE9gGfu
— Sports Emmys (@sportsemmys) May 25, 2022
But among the new names as Sports Emmy winners include Tom Brady and both Eli and Peyton Manning.
Brady’s Man in the Arena saga won Outstanding Documentary Series, while the Mannings were rewarded for their work on the Monday Night Football Manningcast, which won Outstanding Live Series.
Here’s a rundown of some of the key Sports Emmy winners:
The #SportsEmmys Award for Outstanding Personality/Play-by-Play goes to Mike Breen (ABC). pic.twitter.com/EjZt9jKfhI
— Sports Emmys (@sportsemmys) May 24, 2022
The #SportsEmmys Award for Outstanding Personality/Reporter goes to @sportsiren (@espn). pic.twitter.com/DqwBkp9vqJ
— Sports Emmys (@sportsemmys) May 25, 2022
The #SportsEmmys Award for Outstanding Personality/Studio Analyst goes to @nateburleson (@nflnetwork @cbssports @Nickelodeon). pic.twitter.com/aLp05Hj0CJ
— Sports Emmys (@sportsemmys) May 25, 2022
The #SportsEmmys Award for Outstanding Personality/Emerging On-Air Talent goes to @malika_andrews (@espn). pic.twitter.com/A6h4FCz295
— Sports Emmys (@sportsemmys) May 25, 2022
The #SportsEmmys Award for Outstanding Studio Show – Daily goes to Good Morning Football (@nflnetwork) [Embassy Row | NFL Films]. @gmfb pic.twitter.com/nSbrQm8Dtm
— Sports Emmys (@sportsemmys) May 25, 2022
The #SportsEmmys Award for Outstanding Studio Show – Limited Run goes to Inside The NBA on TNT: Playoffs @NBAonTNT. pic.twitter.com/nO5ifzhf2g
— Sports Emmys (@sportsemmys) May 24, 2022
The #SportsEmmys Award for Outstanding Studio Show – Weekly goes to Inside the NBA on TNT (@turnersportspr). @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/cO4d0XFe9F
— Sports Emmys (@sportsemmys) May 25, 2022
The #SportsEmmys Award for Outstanding Documentary Series – Serialized goes to Formula 1: Drive to Survive (@netflix) [Box to Box Films]. @BoxToBoxFilms #drivetosurvive pic.twitter.com/hTiEynSzpU
— Sports Emmys (@sportsemmys) May 25, 2022
Here is a full list of winners and nominees for the 2022 ceremony.
Jordan Bondurant
Jordan Bondurant is a features reporter for Barrett News Media. He also works for ABC8 News and Newsradio WRVA and 910 The Fan in Richmond, Virginia. His prior experiences include working for the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the Danville Register & Bee, Virginia Lawyers Weekly and iHeartradio Richmond. He can be reached by email at Jordan.E.Bondurant@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @J__Bondurant.
Sports TV News
Joe Buck Says He Won’t Miss World Series
“This is the first time since I was 18-years-old, and I’m 53, that I’m not doing a baseball game.”

Published
3 hours agoon
May 25, 2022
Among the bigger chain reactions set off by Joe Buck leaving FOX for ESPN was the sudden vacancy in FOX’s main MLB broadcast booth.
The 2022 World Series will mark the first time since 1995 that Buck will not be on the microphone.
Speaking to Chris Long on his podcast Green Light, Buck hopes to be in a more exotic location watching World Series games this fall.
“I would like to be in Cabo San Lucas with a margarita in my hand and a half-smoked cigar watching Game 7 of the World Series,” Buck said. “Cheering on Joe Davis and John Smoltz, and Ken Rosenthal, and Tom Verducci, and Pete Macheska and Matt Gangl and right on down the line.”
Buck added he’ll take pleasure in turning the broadcast off if it’s Game 7 and there’s an insurmountable lead. But the broadcasting legend said even on a bigger scale, not calling any baseball games at all this season, let alone the World Series, is a bit surreal after covering the sport for so long.
“This is the first time since I was 18-years-old, and I’m 53, that I’m not doing a baseball game,” he said. “And that’s really weird to me, but I walk away really proud of what I and we did.”
He added that he will not miss the opportunity, because he does not feel like he will “leave any unfinished business” in FOX’s MLB booth.
Buck further praised his FOX colleagues and said it was time for a change. He knows Joe Davis will thrive in the opportunity.
Jordan Bondurant
Jordan Bondurant is a features reporter for Barrett News Media. He also works for ABC8 News and Newsradio WRVA and 910 The Fan in Richmond, Virginia. His prior experiences include working for the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the Danville Register & Bee, Virginia Lawyers Weekly and iHeartradio Richmond. He can be reached by email at Jordan.E.Bondurant@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @J__Bondurant.
Sports TV News
NFL Likely To Launch NFL+ Streaming Service This Summer
“A source tells Fischer that a $5 per month price has been discussed for NFL+.”
Published
3 hours agoon
May 25, 2022By
BSM Staff
According to the Sports Business Journal, consumers could be downloading NFL+ by July. Now, just what NFL+ will be is still yet to be finalized.
Ben Fischer of Sports Business Journal reported in the site’s newsletter that live games will certainly be at the center of the league-owned streaming service. It is likely to only be available on phones and tablets with no option to stream to a larger monitor.
The viewing options would be limited. No out of market games would be available on the app. It is meant to replace the deals that recently expired with Yahoo and mobile phone carriers that recently expired.
The app could also include other content. Radio calls, team-created digital content, and league-owned podcasts are all options.
NFL+ would make NFL Media more valuable. The league is trying to sell an equity stake in its linear TV and digital media properties. Amazon and Apple are considered the most likely to make a deal.
A source tells Fischer that a $5 per month price has been discussed for NFL+. The pricing structure can and likely will change before the app hits the market.