Lets Get Ready To Rumble...Maybe..

In a world of social media and constant media coverage, it shouldn’t seem unheard of to have a professional athlete call out another athlete in the way that Floyd Mayweather did Manny Pacquiao, but in this case, it caused a stir. Fans from all over the world have been waiting for some progress to a potential fight between the two superstars but for years, nothing has come of the so-called talks between the two sides. But now with Mayweather calling out Pacquiao personally, maybe things are turning for the best. Mayweather stated in a tweet, "Manny Pacquiao I'm calling you out let's fight May 5th and give the world what they want to see" (Rafael, 2012). This sounds like something that should have been done a long time ago but as we all sit in anticipation for this fight, we’ll take what we can get.

This potential fight does have some uncharacteristic built-ups that are not similar to main events of the past. For example, Pacquiao is a political representative for his country, well-liked athlete by nearly everyone because of his humbling personality and he is considered professional singer, depending on whom you ask. Now looking at Mayweather, he is bound for a jail sentence right after the potential fight due to a domestic violence charge, he has never lost a professional fight, to which his cocky persona shows that, and he is flashy and arrogant with his money, i.e. Money Mayweather. The two fighters are so different but that is what will draw the big ticket. “Mayweather has to make a fight happen by the end of May, as he’s going to prison on June 1. The judge actually postponed his jail time so Mayweather can go ahead and fight on May 5, a date he has saved up at the MGM grand for quite sometime now” (Gerakis, 2012).

The sports world wants this fight, but the boxing industry needs this fight because of its dying ratings and sponsorships. This fight would be the fight of many people’s lifetimes and would hopefully rejuvenate the boxing world one punch at a time. 

 

(Courtesy of Youtube.com)

Sources: 

Gerakis. (2012, January 21). Mayweather vs pacquiao – the phone call. Retrieved from http://sportige.com/mayweather-vs-pacquiao-the-phone-call/

Rafael, D. (2012, January 11). Mayweather calls out pacquiao for may. Retrieved from http://espn.go.com/boxing/story/_/id/7447532/floyd-mayweather-jr-calls-manny-pacquiao-5-fight 

Youtube/ESPN. (Editor) (2012). Mayweather wants pacquiao on may 5, 2012 [Theater]. Available from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zBefj_yYIw&feature=related

Check out these other sources for more information about this potential fight:

http://www.opposingviews.com/i/sports/scratch-guerrero-mayweathers-list-plus-koncz-says-no-may-5-pac-floyd


http://sportige.com/mayweather-vs-pacquiao-the-phone-call/

http://www.badlefthook.com/2012/1/19/2719167/mayweather-vs-pacquiao-phone-conversation

Tough Coverage

Today’s media coverage in sports has become as powerful as the Supreme Court in regards to how players are judged, perceived, and liked. This in turn with the magnified social media practices can present numerous problems and/or benefits for teams, players, and executives. For example, take Tim Tebow and the massive coverage he gets in the media and how it alters peoples perception of him and his lifestyle. Too much media coverage has turned many fans sour and tired of hearing about him, outside of Denver and Florida of course. It is not like Tim wants this attention or needs it in order to be relevant, but whether wanted or not, media coverage holds the gavel to his perception on and off of the field.

Media coverage has become a scary truth to the power the media has on today’s athletes. Sure, some more than others only contribute to the perceptions they are casted under, but to a huge degree, anyone can turn into a bad guy as the microscope gets closer. Take a look at LeBron James and his “The Decision” announcement in leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Miami Heat. It was a media coverage gold mine for the sports industry, but a disaster for LeBron James and his brand. The coverage lead many fans to grow very angry with LeBron even though it was his decisions that lead to many fans turning sour.

This doesn’t just hold true to individual players , take a look at the sad events that have taken place at both Penn State University and Syracuse University. If not for the media coverage in the discovery of the child abuse charges at Penn State, there is a good chance that the scandals at Syracuse would not of presented themselves. This is never a happy or proud moment for our society as a whole, or a media coverage team, but it served useful nonetheless.

Sports in itself can build regular people into heros or villains. In accordance to sports, the media’s role in the development of either a hero or a zero is undoubtedly affective. This reason alone is why teams are now monitoring their players in a whole new light in order to secure their brand, players, and organizations. There is nowhere to hide in the media world, especially while players are still playing.

Stern's Affect Already Felt

 

I am not one to brag, but I must say, I told you so! In my last blog post “The Stern Affect”, I addressed the end of the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) current end to their lockout and how it may or may not affect the NBA moving forward. All of the rave in the past week in sports industry was that of excitement, fun, and finally, but as I mentioned in my previous post, there are more unknowns than known which brings more issues to question.  So after only one week of coming to an agreement, there is already a problem that has many fans, players, and officials confused, angry, and searching for answers. But in my opinion, this is the tip of the iceberg and the real problems may be in the near future. 

            If you have recently watched any sports newscast, seen any sports related tweet, or visited a sports website, you have seen the new problem I am referring to with the new NBA agreement. For those who may not be aware, the NBA, or shall I say the Stern Affect, has recently vetoed the trade proposal of All-Star Point Guard Chris Paul to the Lakers because it was conflicting with the new CBA’s agreement of superstar players all heading to big markets. The proposed trade was approved by all teams involved but not by the rest of the league so Commissioner David Stern acted swiftly and denied the approval of the trade. This has become a huge problem not only for the players but more importantly for the NBA and its already shaken reputation.

            So after all the excitement has calmed down, we see the Stern affect take place and damage what would have been considered one of the best backcourt tandems in the NBA. The players are now wondering what did they agree to because the last thing they wanted was more control in the hands of the Commissioner. The NBA now has to focus more attention on getting their public relations team on board with correcting the daunting image the NBA has now casted on its fans and players.

            Now the next big question is what are the other changes that can take place since this agreement has been signed. From this standpoint thus far, the only good news is that there will be games played on Christmas day, but in hindsight, was it worth the balance of control? Either way, the ink has dried and the trade has been denied so let the games begin. 

Check out these links below for more on the vetoed trade and other NBA news:

http://www.hoopsworld.com/chris-paul-veto-commisioner-power-or-collusion/

http://espn.go.com/espn/commentary/story/_/page/wilbon-111209/david-stern-nba-owners-look-vindictive-petty-veto-chris-paul-trade

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/09/sports/basketball/paul-set-to-join-lakers-as-part-of-3-team-deal.html

The Stern Affect

The state of the National Basketball Association (NBA) is still up in the air when looking at the potential affects of a potential collective bargaining agreement. The news broke out that an agreement has been reached among the Players Association and the NBA owners and yet, there has not been any ink used to solidify the deal in order to get the NBA season underway. Many fans, reporters, and even players have gotten ahead of themselves during this time of the agreement because there is still a lot to be addressed amongst the potential deal. For example, the exact terms of player development, the financial dollar affect on each team and market, and the lasting affect of a shortened season are all possible issues that will need to be addressed in order to feel a sense of relief.

The NBA and its players is historically a sensitive league with more egos than a fashionista slumber party. Commissioner David Stern arguably has the biggest ego within the sports industry but for good reason. During Sterns tenure as commissioner of the NBA, he has increased ticket sales, broadcasting deals, and even brought a professional standard to the players and team executives. However, during the lockout, David Stern has taken many punches on the chin for his ego and his hard nose bargaining tactics. But with that said, the numbers do not lie for Sterns affect on the NBA which brings into question, how will the new agreement differ from Sterns previous affect compared to now? I will be interesting to see if the new agreement will lift the bad images from Sterns shadow and worsen the overall product of the NBA, or in turn, better the product and worsen the image of David Stern?

Like the previous lockout from the National Football League, the real questions of the agreement and the affects have yet to be addressed even when the celebration has already started. All of these questions will be addressed when fans realize the changes as the season goes on but in some cases, the answers may come when its too late.  

Who's Rights?

Financial problems have not hid from many people, businesses, or even sports organizations during this tough economic time. But for the Los Angeles Dodgers, their problems only seem to manifest into bigger problems that will ultimately change their future for a long time. Throw in the world of media coverage and the positive and negative dimensions around it and you can have a disaster waiting to happen, or a disaster inside of another disaster. For example, team owner Frank McCourt filed for bankruptcy after not being able to pay the team’s players after losing half of his finances due to his recent divorce. So now, McCourt is ordered by the Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig to sell the team in order to uphold the leagues agreement with its players and other owners for the betterment of the league as a whole. And to make things worse, or for our entertainment, more interesting, in recent news, the Dodgers are in the process of suing FOX over the sale of the team’s media rights.

The Dodgers feel that FOX is interfering with the teams bidding process of the broadcasting rights. This in turn means that the Dodgers are under the impression that FOX is using the Dodgers brand in order to make profit before the team’s status and ownership is determined. The lawsuit filed against FOX states: “Fox's efforts to take possession of property of the [Dodgers] estate and to exercise control over such property violate the automatic stay...are affecting and will continue to affect the estate adversely, including the efforts of the [Dodgers] estate to evaluate, market and potentially dispose of its existing and future media rights,” However, FOX feels as though their right to move forward is listed in the initial contract agreement between the Dodgers and FOX. “This is just the latest chapter in the current owner's ongoing scheme to avoid honoring his contractual obligations” stated FOX Vice President of Communications Chris Bellitti. This lawsuit calls for an interesting conclusion after everything is said and done because the state of the franchise is literally up in the air. Media rights are especially important in this case because it has an affect on the team’s future, selling price of the team, and the future potential profits that can be generated through media and broadcasting agreements. The next owner will want to have a huge say on the media rights in order to set their own revenue streams which is why potentially intervening with the current deal can cause many problems in both the short and long term.

            The lawsuit still has a lot of aspects that will be addressed as the case continues. Either way, it is a sad chapter in a historic franchise and its fans. In a sporting industry full of lockouts, holdouts, and scandals, this media rights and broadcasting issue stands in the way of a new future for the Los Angeles Dodgers. It is now more than just selling the franchise to the highest bidder because this issue will have to be resolved in order to efficiently get the right owner/owners the right deals for the buck. This just goes to show that media plays an important part of every franchise and their income statements.

Check out more articles below to get more information about this media rights issue:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203699404577042220194179562.html

http://www.myfoxla.com/dpp/sports/dodgers-sue-fox-over-sale-of-media-rights-20111116

http://articles.latimes.com/2011/nov/16/sports/la-sp-1117-mccourt-dodgers-fox-20111117

References:

Fox News. (2011, November 16). Dodgers sue fox over sale of media rights read more: http://www.myfoxla.com/dpp/sports/dodgers-sue-fox-over-sale-of-media-rights-20111116

Palank, J. (2011, November 16). Dodgers sue fox over sale of media rights . Retrieved from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203699404577042220194179562.html

A Real Lose For the Sports Industy

In recent years, there has been much conflict, controversy, and debate in the world of sports. From sex, money, and drugs, to contract breaching, player lockouts, and morals/ethics practices. The sports industry has had its share of headliners in the past five years. There are many stories that stand out, but for the most part, many share similar characteristics to one another. However, the recent controversy surrounding Penn State University and now former Head Football Coach Joe Paterno has its own unique source of controversy, debate, and moral wrongdoings that will affect the sports industry as a whole legally, morally, and lawfully in both the college and professional level.     

            After a harsh week of questions and debate about the future of Penn State University, and its football program, the week ended with the end of a coaching legend that will now forever be tarnished. Two top-level university officials were also fired and the university was left seeking answers for all that has transpired from a series crimes taken place on its campus for decades. The story broke out after allegations started swirling about former assistant head coach Jerry Sandusky sexually abusing young boys while employed at Penn State University. A state grand jury report alleged that Sandusky has over forty charges of sexually abusing young men while at the University. On one account, then graduate assistant Michael McQueary witnessed Sandusky in the football showers fondling a young male. McQueary informed then Head Coach Joe Paterno about what he had seen. Coach Paterno went to the University’s Athletic Director Tim Curly who along with the University’s Senior Vice President Gary Schultz pretty much buried this information in order to save the University’s image, brand, and reputation.  By not doing enough to save or prevent more incidents like this from occurring, Paterno, Schultz, and Curly all lost their jobs. Coach Paterno’s firing caused much debate and controversy. Following his firing, there were riots, vandalism crimes, and even a bomb threat for the team’s football game against Nebraska. Seems like these consequences can be attributed to a tort within the moral responsibilities of the University and its officials.

Unlike most sports controversies, this story turns your stomach and hits an emotional button of sympathy for the victims and another button disgust for the precautions and prevention methods not used by the adults in this story. There is no money scandal, illegal benefits, contract disputes, or banned drug use in this particular story, but it hits something harder than those controversial topics, the human rights of our youth and the affects they have within our sports world. Penn State has always been known as a prestigious university and with these shocking events now taking place, this university will now forever be tarnished by an ugly past that was never handled properly. As sports fans, it is easy to forget about the important things besides wins and losses, but in this case, no one wins, there is only loses to share for the University, its officials, and most importantly, the victims.

Check out these related articles to learn more about this sad story and its recent and long term affects:

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/football/bigten/story/2011-11-10/jerry-sandusky-investigation-victim-1-cover/51160950/1

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204190504577036924115215192.html