ShareThisThe folks producing the All-Star Game for Fox on Tuesday night will have an interesting balancing act to perform.On one hand, there will be the focus on Yankee Stadium and the possibility that this could be the last big event in the historic ballpark's final season. On the other, Fox officials know some viewers will be tuning in simply to watch the game.Ed Goren, president of Fox Sports, said the network's coverage of the "Red Carpet Parade" in the pre-game show -- an event that will include numerous Hall of Famers -- will help address part of the equation."During the parade, viewers will get a feel of the history of Yankee Stadium within the very first seconds of the broadcast," Goren said. "The history will carry through the pre-game ceremonies and then you get into a balancing act. This is a tough broadcast because at times you're chasing to come out of commercial and there's a new pitcher, there's a pinch hitter and there are two or three position changes in the field. It has to be balanced."The parade, which will feature the All-Stars and Hall of Famers riding up Sixth Avenue on Tuesday afternoon, will air on tape an hour before the game begins. But no matter how things turn out, Fox will record a financial victory.According to The Sports Business Daily, Tuesday's game is bringing in record-high advertising rates with a 30-second spot running at an average of $425,000 to $450,000. Although that is a double-digit increase from 2007, Fox is expected to sell out all of its spots.BIG TEN TALKS: While the Big Ten Network will be available on Comcast cable systems beginning Aug. 15, the network still doesn't have a deal with Charter or Mediacom. Talks between the BTN and those two cable systems are ongoing.NEW DAWNING: ESPN's new morning "SportsCenters," which will debut Aug. 11, will be aired for six hours instead of nine as originally announced. The live programming will go from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.(Eastern). "SportsCenter" from the previous night will re-air from 6-9 a.m.(Contact Judd Zulgad at jzulgad@startribune.com.)(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
All-Star challenge for Fox: Other TV sports notes
Submitted by SHNS on Fri, 07/11/2008 - 16:37
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