T Dog’s Grab Bag: Sun-Times fires entire photography staff

– In a stunning move, the Chicago Sun-Times fired almost all of its photography staff on Thursday, which left 28 people out of work. The Wrapports -owned paper instead plans to train reports to take pictures with smartphones. Yes, smartphones. Among those who were laid off include 35-year veteran Pulitzer-prize winning photographer John H. White, one of the first African-American […]

The Grab Bag: “Brandmeier” renewed; Antenna TV a hit – in Cleveland

This week’s Grab Bag include plenty of local TV items – and some not so local: – In an item first reported Saturday at Chicagoland Radio and Media, Brandmeier has been picked up for a second cycle by NBC-owned WMAQ-TV. The series stars WGN-AM morning host Johnathan Brandmeier where takes on the week’s headlines and interviews special guests. Brandmeier had […]

CSN Chicago, Philadelphia set records

Despite tougher competition from the broadcast networks Tuesday night, Comcast SportsNet dominated the ratings in prime-time thanks to Game 5 of the Chicago Bulls-Indiana Pacers series and a deciding Game 7 of the Chicago Blackhawks-Vancouver Canucks tilt. Comcast SportsNet scored a 8.4 household household rating and a 6.8 ratings in the 25-54 demo from 5:30 P.m. to 1:30 a.m., topping […]

NBC Sports Group, NHL agree to blockbuster deal

Courtesy: Vancouver Sun In what is to believed to be the biggest U.S. television deal in its history, the National Hockey League announced it would continue its relationship with NBC Sports and Versus with a whopping ten-year, $2 billion deal. The pact reflects the increased popularity of the sport, with the Winter Classic and the resurgence of teams like the […]

T Dog’s Six Pack: The Pyramid of Fun

            Welcome to The Six Pack Pyramid and here’s your host… Terence! All right, we have three contestants in the Winner’s Circle this week and let’s see who’s in the Loser’s Circle … Wow! Another waiting line? Why is it that there are always more eligible losers than winners in these six packs? Does the […]

T Dog’s Four Pack: The Stanley Cup Edition

What a ride it was. The 2010 Stanley Cup Final goes down as one Chicago fans will never forget as the Blackhawks win their first championship since 1961.  Here are the winners – and losers – of the Stanley Cup Final, noting the biggest winner of them all are of course, the Chicago Blackhawks. WinnersPatrick Kane and Jonathan Toews. They […]

Blackhawks continue to roll in the ratings

The ultimate showdown in marquee events took place Sunday when the Game 2 of the NBA Finals took on ABC and Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Philadelphia Flyers took place on NBC. While it was no surprise the NBA finals rolled over the Stanley Cup by the wide margin, in Chicago the […]

Blackhawks rock the Stanley Cup house

Who would’ve thought the Chicago Blackhawks would be this hot? They’re so hot, they’re melting the ice! Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Philadelphia Flyers, set an all-time ratings record for a Blackhawks game, with local ratings reaching a zenith not seen since at least the Bears’ 2006 Super Bowl run. Locally, the […]

Playoff season: That’s a wrap!

Finally tallies of the NBA Finals and the Stanley Cup Finals: – The five game series between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Orlando Magic drew 14.3 million viewers for ABC, down 4 percent from last year’s Lakers-Celtics series. Game 5 drew fewer viewers than Game 4 did, with only 14.2 million viewers tuning in. – Among ratings, it is […]

Versus shoots and scores with NHL playoffs

– The Chicago Blackhawks may have lost its Western Conference Finals series with the arch rival Detroit Red Wings, but they were big winners locally in the ratings. Despite the fact Versus isn’t carried on a few systems (WOW to name a few), Game 5 still earned a 7.1 household rating Wednesday night where the Wings beat the Hawks to […]

Hockeytown rules

The Detroit Red Wings beat the Pittsburgh Penguins last night to win their fourth Stanley Cup in eleven years. But the biggest winner was the NHL. Ratings for last night’s Game 6 were up 17 percent from Game 5, and it was the most watched Game 6 in eight years (between the New Jersey Devils and Dallas Stars in 2000 […]

The NHL is back on track

Ratings for the NHL Conference Finals airing on NBC over the weekend scored ratings increases from year-ago matchups in 2007.Last Saturday’s game between the Detroit Red Wings and Dallas Stars earned a 1.5 household rating and 4 share. While that may not seem like much, it is up 25 percent from 2007’s Buffalo Sabres-Ottawa Senators matchup from a year ago. […]

OLN changes name to Versus — Nation yawns

I’m Back! Sports-themed network OLN changes its name today to Versus. The network will feature lacrosse, Mountain West college football, The Tour De France, and NHL hockey games. You remember the NHL, don’t you? That’s the league that should’ve folded with fellow low-rated entities UPN and The WB. L.O.L! Sorry. I couldn’t help myself. Here’s the link: http://www.latimes.com/sports/printedition/la-sp-versus25sep25,1,4282072.story?coll=la-headlines-pe-sports