On the Air
by Laura Nachman
Bucks County Courier Times
March 28, 2004


It’s “Final Four” time - not the NCAA tournament, but for ESPN’s “Dream Job.”  A winner will be crowned during the two-hour finale Sunday at 9 p.m. (I like this show so much, I’ll give up “The Sopranos” that night.) College students Mike Hall, Aaron Levine and Maggie Haskins and 28-year-old Zachariah Selwyn will compete for the one-year ESPN contract. 

Though only one person will win, in a conference call “Dream Job” judge and network vice president Al Jaffe said the other three finalists should be able to get television jobs from the exposure on the series.

My choice to win would be Levine, who seems to best fit the ESPN profile.  However, funny Selwyn would be a good pick too, even though he doesn’t “look” like an anchor. 

Viewers will select the winner, who will be put to work right away on the following day’s 6 p.m., 11 p.m. and 1 a.m. “SportsCenters.”  I hope ESPN does this show again next year. 

Here are some more readers’ comments on what Philadelphia sportscasters should be cut:

"1. Chris Wheeler, his condescending manner makes Phillies games unlistenable. His whining and complaining about umpire calls that go against the Phillies is also annoying. How much longer will we have to listen to him talk like every player is his friend and every player confides in him. He tries to sound like he knows it all and this from a man who looks like he never threw a ball in his life.

2. Scott Graham. He should take his fake radio voice back to small market radio where he came from. His quips with his partners don't come across as funny.

3. Tom McCarthy. I cannot believe he will be doing innings on Phillies games this year. He is annoying on the pre and post game shows. I am dreading thinking what his baseball calls will be  like. He like Graham should be back in small market radio. His pompous sounding broadcast style was annoying in Trenton, it will be the same in Philly."

Another wrote:
"Harry Kalas, while once good, has been mailing it in for a few years now.  His spat about Chris Wheeler shows him, if not petty, at least a little silly.  Who among us hasn't had to work with people we aren't crazy about?

But, you know, I just don't like Scott Graham.  I don't know exactly what it is.  He seems like a good guy--I don't know him.  One thing is that he rarely gives the score of a game, but that isn't really it.  I guess I don't like his inflections all that much.  I love Tom McGinnis, though, and wish the Sixers were good again.  I like Merrill Reese, too.  I don't mind homers on home-team stations, as long as they are not complete apologists, so I think Reese and McGinnis are good that way."


Sixers announcer Marc Zumoff’s third annual basketball tournament “Points for the Promised Land” tips-off Sunday at 9 a.m. at the Palestra.  Basketball legend Dolph Schayes will be the guest of honor. 

St. Joseph’s head coach Phil Martelli isn’t the only person at the school who is angry with CBS announcer Billy Packer.  St. Joe’s radio analyst and ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi is unhappy with remarks Packer made in “USA Today” last week.  In Rudy Martzke’s column, Packer was quoted as saying, “We have bracketologists promoted by other networks,” declining to name ESPN.  “They say this guy is an expert who picked 64 of 65 teams.  Well, that can only be 34 of 35 because 31 are conference champions.”  Lunardi replied, “I’ll challenge Packer to a bracket forecasting contest any day.”  Lunardi said he was planning to “introduce” himself to Packer before Thursday night’s St. Joe’s/Wake Forest game.

Boxer Roy Jones Jr. will replace George Foreman as the expert boxing commentator on HBO’s Saturday night fights.  Foreman, who left the network after 12 years last month, will be part of the upcoming boxing reality series “The Contender” with Sylvester Stallone.

John Kruk debuts on ESPN’s “Baseball Tonight” Monday at 12:30 a.m.  Kruk will work Sunday through Wednesday with Karl Ravech, Peter Gammons, and Harold Reynolds in the Bristol, CT studios.

Kruk spent last season as part of the Phillies broadcasting team.  Before that he spent two years on “The Best Damn Sports Show Period” on Fox Sports Net.

Now that the forgettable Geraud Moncure era is over at WPHL, the question becomes who will be the next sports director?  According to a source close to the situation, it is unlikely that weekend sports anchor Matt Biondi will get the job. 

Maybe Channel 17 could bring back Bristol native and current WMMR 93.3-FM disc jockey Mike Missanelli, who was the sports director at WPHL from 2000-2002. 

If Missanelli returned to Channel 17, it would be beneficial for both parties.  The former WIP 610-AM host was good on TV, and WPHL could use a strong local personality to help the station at 10 p.m. 

Has anybody noticed that KYW’s “Eagles Total Access” has been off the air since the end of football season?  According to a KYW spokesperson, the Sunday night show is being retooled and will return on May 2nd with a new set and the new name “Sports Access.”