* In opening his show on Fox 1370 Sports on Wednesday, talk host Jerry Coleman mentioned as his first news item the surgery on Gilbert Arenas' knee. Certainly, that was one of the day's biggest sports stories. However, would he have led off his show with something about a member of the Washington Wizards if the station hadn't just joined the Wizards' radio network?
When WVIE became a sports talk station, we heard about how its "freedom" derived from not carrying the Orioles or Ravens. It's really about freedom of choice, isn't it?
* A high-five to MASN for increasing next season's high-definition telecasts of baseball. The network will have up to 200 HD games of the Orioles and Washington Nationals, with one every night in 2009. (Maybe the Frager household will have an HD TV by then.) Not that the MASN folks pay much attention to me, but while they are upgrading, I also suggest they launch a nightly sports news show.
* If you were watching Monday night's Dallas Cowboys-Philadelphia Eagles game - and chances are good you were, as it set a cable television viewing record - you might have heard ESPN's Tony Kornheiser apologize for something he said. In case you were wondering what for, it was this: After ESPN played a bit of the Spanish game broadcast, Kornheiser, making fun of his lack of knowledge of the language, said, "I took high school Spanish, and that either means 'Nobody is going to touch him' or 'Could you pick up my dry cleaning in the morning?' "
If you want, you could construe that as indulging in the stereotype of Latinos having subservient jobs. However, ESPN said Kornheiser's apology was sufficient and it planned no action. As was pointed out at Salon.com, Fox fired baseball commentator Steve Lyons for something similar - just a small joke that should have passed into the ether. And so should this.
* Navy and CBS Sports have extended their broadcasting deal through the 2017 football season. Starting in 2010, CBS has the rights to the Midshipmen's home games in the Notre Dame series. CBS College Sports Network (the former CSTV) carries some Navy home football games as well as men's basketball, lacrosse and other sports.
* Comcast SportsNet has added former Washington Redskins linebacker LaVar Arrington as a commentator. He will appear on some of the network's Redskins programming and on Friday's Washington Post Live.
