Sports - FishbowlDC http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc Where Politics & DC Media Mesh Copyright 2013 Thu, 23 May 2013 21:33:20 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.1 SPOTTED: The Mark Plotkin Edition D.C. had a big college basketball weekend. While Georgetown destroyed Syracuse, George Washington University faced a big game, themselves with their final home game against the Dayton Flyers. After the game went into overtime, GW scored with a thunderous dunk, with less than 2 seconds remaining, that won the game.

As the happy crowd streamed out of the arena, our spy snapped a pic of former WTOP political commentator, Mark Plotkin. You may remember that Plotkin was canned from the station for his repeated angry outbursts.

Upon first viewing, we weren’t sure if it was actually Plotkin, since the subject in the photo seems to have less hair. Then again, the history of Plotkin’s rage issues may explain the balding.

 

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Peter Ogburn http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/spotted-wtop-mark-plotkin-george-washington-university_b98473#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/spotted-wtop-mark-plotkin-george-washington-university_b98473 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=98473 Mon, 11 Mar 2013 14:45:33 +0000 HuffPost’s Ward Has Saditude Sports fans around the country watched in disbelief as the Washington Nationals blew a 6-0 lead on Friday night to end their season with a loss to the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Division Series. It was a sickening collapse to watch if you were a fan of the baseball team, which had the best season in baseball this year.

As mourning fans filed from the ballpark, several people, including Yahoo’s Chris Moody and HuffPost’s Sam Stein caught a sad sight on TV as they watched the game. It was the sight of a pouting Jon Ward, senior political reporter for HuffPost, decked out in a Nationals jersey and hat. The pained look on his face sums up how all Nationals fans felt at that moment.

Tweets of sympathy came in from around the Twitterverse, but Moody captured the moment best by tweeting “Ich bin ein @jonward11.” Moody also changed his Twitter avi to a pic of the saddened Ward.

This lasted for about a day.  On Saturday, Moody tweeted,

And with that, the Nats season came to a crushing close, but Ward stays positive. After the loss, he tweeted, “We’ll get em next year. But wow, that was pretty brutal.”

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Peter Ogburn http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/huffposts-ward-has-saditude_b86192#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/huffposts-ward-has-saditude_b86192 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=86192 Mon, 15 Oct 2012 10:00:25 +0000 Yeah Rigghht, Luke A recent profile of sports super agent Drew Rosenhaus on 60 Minutes elicited the attention of NBC’s Luke Russert. To be sure, Rosenhaus is a divisive figure in sports. He is the real-life agent that inspired Tom Cruise’s character in Jerry Maguire. Some people point to him as the reason why professional athletes make as much money as they do. He is the very definition of a love-him-or-hate-him kind of guy.

Rosenhaus tells interviewer Scott Pelley that he really believes that “the NFL would fall apart without me.” Obviously, social media reacted and had several not-very-nice things to say about Rosenhaus. But in the middle of the fracas, Russert, who likes to sometimes play defense, jumped in. One thing about Russert: He likes to play up and down his famous surname depending on the circumstance. In this case, he’s just a regular, unknown kid from Buffalo. He tweeted:

 

Among the things they make clear in the profile is that Rosenhaus has a client on almost every NFL football team. That means he has a LOT of clients… continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Peter Ogburn http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/yeah-rigghht-luke_b83779#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/yeah-rigghht-luke_b83779 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=83779 Mon, 17 Sep 2012 12:30:38 +0000 Politico Talks Sports Sure, politics and sports go hand in hand. It seems like every week (that they’re actually working), Congress is hauling some baseball player in front of a committee or a football player to talk about head injuries. So, it doesn’t come as much of a surprise that Politico will be hosting the commissioner of the NFL, Roger Goodell for a conversation about “player health and safety, the fantasy-football explosion, and new technology to enhance the in-stadium experience, including the “Under the Hood” feature we saw debut Sunday on the new Diamond Vision screens at Lambeau Field.” Remember, this is POLITICO we are talking about here. They are the first ones to jump up and say that they stick to politics. Remember what executive editor JimVandeHei said in Michael Calderone‘s profile of Politico for Huffington magazine?

“Right, you guys have about forty sub-channels, you’re in different countries, you’re covering sports, you have pictures and girls and all this stuff that generates a lot of traffic. We do politics. That’s what we do. We do policy. That’s what we do.”

What struck us as even more bizarre is that chief White House correspondent Mike Allen will be leading the conversation. Allen is great at what he does, but we don’t exactly equate him with possessing sheer athleticism or a knowledge of sports. Anyone who knows him will tell you that he eats, sleeps and breathes politics.

Details are listed on the invitation above. It’s worth noting that Goodell’s wife is Jane Skinner, formerly of Fox News.

 

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Peter Ogburn http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/politico-talks-sports_b83376#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/politico-talks-sports_b83376 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=83376 Tue, 11 Sep 2012 15:30:37 +0000 Washingtonian: ‘Your Hands Are On His Genitals’ If you haven’t read the lengthy Washingtonian piece on Redskins tight end, Fred Davis, you’re missing quite the read. Washingtonian’s Luke Mullins walks us through the absurd legal defense of Davis as he represents himself in court against a woman who has filed charges against him after he “allegedly dumped juice on her head and busted her lip at a Washington, DC, nightclub.” The suit has gone on quietly for 18 months and no one in the national sports media noticed this until Mullins’ piece. ESPN picked it up, among other outlets. Now, it could majorly impact sports in the Washington area.

The details of this case are beyond crazy, but, they include pimp cups, pimpettes, and “flagellant accusations.” The accuser, Makini Chaka, a  self-described “celebrity broker”, is being accused by Davis of procuring prostitutes for NFL players and they even had an exchange over whether or not the woman had her hand on a man’s genitals in a photograph. That led to this insane testimony in court.

Davis: “As it shows, you also have your hand on his genitals. I mean why would you take a picture like that?”

Chaka: “I do not. Let’s look closely at the exhibit right here, Judge. Where is my hand placed in this exhibit?”

Judge: “I do not answer questions. . . . The witness does.”

Chaka: “Can you tell me where my hand is actually at in this photo?”

Davis: “It looks like it’s in the genitals to me. I mean your hands are on his genitals. Your hand is on his—”

Chaka: “Objection.”

It’s not entirely clear WHY Davis didn’t hire a lawyer to do this for him, but those of us that live for tacky celebs making public asses of themselves are all better off for it.

Mullins’ piece has set fire to the sports world and could change the face of the Washington Redskins football team. Davis was having a strong 2011 season before he was busted for substance abuse. Hint hint – It wasn’t steroids. He currently has a one year contract with the Skins, with the hope being that he gets a multi-year extension. That all looks to be in jeopardy, as CSN blogger Rich Tanden writes, “It is, however, extremely unlikely that Davis will be getting a new, multi-year contract. He is going to have to demonstrate that he can stay out of trouble before the Redskins are going to write him a big signing bonus check.”

Mullins reports that the trial is set for March of 2013 and we cannot wait.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Peter Ogburn http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/washingtonian-makes-waves-in-sports-world_b77794#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/washingtonian-makes-waves-in-sports-world_b77794 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=77794 Tue, 03 Jul 2012 15:30:06 +0000 Congress Plays Hardball The annual CQ Roll Call Congressional Baseball Game was held Thursday night in a tradition that pits Democratic members of Congress against their Republican colleagues. Everyone is committed to raising money for charity in a show of bipartisanship. The touchy-feely event was held at Nationals Park, where we usually see athletes in peak form showcasing years of conditioning so that we can see what greatness can be achieved with hard work and dedication. The Congressional game is filled with bloated, elderly men hobbling around the bases like turtles on quaaludes. So, it’s a little different.

Before the game got underway, we got to mingle with these “athletes.” They were all wearing detailed uniforms from their home state or district, which added a touch of surreality to the whole event. Sort of like “Field of Dreams” on acid. The member with the most fanfare was Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas). He was being inducted into the game’s Hall of Fame that evening. Paul tells FBDC that he wished he could be out there playing, but guaranteed that the Republicans “will be a LOT better than they were last time.” Last year, Democrats demolished the GOP by a score of 8-2, so it couldn’t get much worse than that. Or could it?

This year was a bloodbath. After a slow first inning, the Dems unleashed a brutalizing second inning and scored 11 runs. IN A SINGLE INNING. One ballpark attendant remarked that they should implement a slaughter rule. Democratic fans added insult to injury by chanting “Ju-stice Ro-berts” at Republican batters. I’m guessing that the GOP’s wounds of Chief Justice John Roberts‘ vote that saved Health Care legislation hadn’t fully healed from earlier in the day.

Highlights included Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-LA) nearly jacking a home run, Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO) doing a great Chris Sabo impression with his sport glasses, and Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-CA), the lone female, wearing her jersey with Roman numeral IX to commemorate Title IX. It was touching to see Ron Paul throw the first pitch to his son, Sen. Rand Paul (R-TX).

Spectators donned blue foam fingers to cheer on the Democrats and red foam fingers to cheer for the Republicans and then sat behind their teams dugout, so it wasn’t entirely bipartisan. We noticed that the lines for food on the Republican side were much longer than the ones on the Dem side. We spotted more chili cheese fries from Ben’s Chili Bowl than any other food item in the ballpark. We watched as one Congressional staffer attempted to buy “8 Coors Lights” for his group of friends. He was denied the booze purchase.

While Republicans eventually scored a few runs, it would have been nearly impossible to overcome the dramatic 2nd inning and the Democrats cruised to an easy victory, 18-5.

Of course, this is Washington. So there was very little celebrating the win of the actual baseball game. The only joy we heard emanated from Democrats still basking in the SCOTUS ruling on healthcare hours earlier.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Peter Ogburn http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/congress-plays-hardball_b77515#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/congress-plays-hardball_b77515 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=77515 Fri, 29 Jun 2012 15:30:30 +0000 Take Me Out To The (Soft)Ball Game Wednesday night was the 4th annual Congressional Women’s Softball game. It’s one of the official kickoffs of summer for D.C. and it pits a gathering of female journos against a bi-partisan collection of female politicians. The journos were led by team captains Amy Walter from ABC News, Abby Livingston from Roll Call and Brianna Keilar from CNN. The captains for the Congressional team were Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO) and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL).

The announcers for the game were Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell. Klobuchar acknowledged early in the game that she might have problems with all the baseball terms since she had spent “all day debating catfish and the farm bill.”

The journos, who call themselves “The Bad News Babes,” got off to an early start with AP’s Kasie Hunt getting a base hit to start the game. The cheering section for the members of Congress was mostly made up of staffers, although Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Eric Cantor made appearances.

It wasn’t long before relentless attention whore Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) took over the microphone to help call the game. He said that Gillibrand, who was pitching the the Congressional team, reminded him of “a young Whitey Ford.” This prompted Mitchell to tell the senator it was time for him to “go back to the stands.” Other notables in the crowd included the recently-announced D.C. Bureau Chief for Buzzfeed, John Stanton, Sec. of Labor, Hilda Solis and Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) with his wife, Elizabeth. It’s worth noting that the congressman was on the Bad News Babes side of the field to cheer on his daughter, Jackie Kucinich of USA Today.

Wednesday was the official start of summer and, right on cue, it was hot as hell. So, we can hardly fault John Harwood for guzzling one of the free purple Gatorades being handed out at the game. Also spotted was MSNBC’s Luke Russert sporting this loud pink T-shirt and a backwards Buffalo Bills hat. His buddy, Politico’s Jake Sherman, dressed himself with a little more sanity.

The Bad News Babes poured on the offense for most of the game until House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi arrived late in the game. That’s about the time that the Congressional bats opened up and made the game competitive again. In the end, the press was too much for Congress and they won 13-10. We asked Roll Call’s Meredith Shiner, who went 3-3 in the game what the key to the win was. She says, “Other than the innate killer instincts of reporting applied gracefully to a baseball diamond? My biased analysis is that we out-classed and out-sassed the other side, led by our three tireless captains, Abby, Amy and Bri. My former sports reporting analysis says the key to our win was what I like to call sports amnesia–forgetting the last play or inning and coming back stronger. I was especially impressed by Abby and our third baseman/relief pitcher Gregory Simmons, who even in times of softball duress both showed the mental grit we needed to win.”

Congratulations to the Babes on their win. The event raised awareness for breast cancer and benefited the Young Survivors Network, a group that assists women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Peter Ogburn http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/take-me-out-to-the-softball-game_b76756#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/take-me-out-to-the-softball-game_b76756 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=76756 Thu, 21 Jun 2012 11:07:10 +0000 Arne-sanity Comes to the NBA While most fans tuned in for the Slam Dunk Contest and the actual game over the NBA All-Star Weekend, we settled in to watch mediocre basketball.

Two teams, each having a mix of musicians, actors, Jersey Shore cast mates and retired NBA legends, battled it out in Orlando on Friday night for a Celebrity basketball game. While expertise in this annual game can usually be described as sloppy, one star came to play. Arne Duncan, the U.S. Sec. of Education, put on a clinic to would-be-ballers trying to keep up with him. As many know, Duncan regularly plays basketball with POTUS on the weekends. He also played professional basketball in Europe after a successful run at Harvard. Duncan racked up 17 points, 8 points and 5 steals in a performance that led his team to a convincing 86-54 victory. There is absolutely zero exaggeration when we say that he could EASILY play for the Washington Wizards and be a starter. Just sayin’.

Here’s just one example of the Secretary of Education schooling the opposing team.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Peter Ogburn http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/arne-sanity-comes-to-the-nba_b66059#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/arne-sanity-comes-to-the-nba_b66059 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=66059 Mon, 27 Feb 2012 11:50:36 +0000 Rev. Al Gets Swept Up in Linsanity Since Jeremy Lin entered the New York Knick roster as starting point guard, the team has won seven straight games and his heroics have brought the team back to a .500 record. As the Legend of Lin grows, more and more people are jumping on the bandwagon. The latest is Al Sharpton, who has this new promo for MSNBC.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

While, it’s no “Bluebery Pie” ad, it’s still pretty good and shows that everyone is wrapped up in Jeremy Lin hysteria. Anyone want to take bets on how long it takes for a Presidential candidate to start bringing his name up?

 

 

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Peter Ogburn http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/rev-al-gets-swept-up-in-linsanity_b65475#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/rev-al-gets-swept-up-in-linsanity_b65475 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=65475 Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:28:34 +0000 NBC’s Russert Goes Nuts in Radio Rant Don’t even get NBC Capitol Hill correspondent Luke Russert started on the Washington Wizards. Because he’s not happy with their performance this season. Not happy at all.

On Tuesday, Russert phoned into the Mike Wise and Holden Kushner sports radio show on 106.7FM to unleash his fury over the “abomination” that has become the Washington Wizards. In the style of Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich, Russert called this season’s Wizards roster “fundamentally awful.”

WaPo‘s sports blog transcribed Russert’s radio rant:

“My family has [had seats] since 1994. There have been a lot of bad Wizards teams since 1994. This one is so fundamentally awful, I can’t give the tickets away. I couldn’t give my tickets away for [Monday]’s game. That’s the first time that’s ever happened to me as a Washington Wizards fan.”

It looks like the Wizards may have lost their last two fans: Russert and his mom, VF‘s Maureen Orth (whom he said also has season tickets).

FBDC emailed Russert to ask if he tried selling his tickets on Craigslist or if he plans on buying season tickets next year if the team’s roster doesn’t change. Stay tuned. We’ll update if he responds.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Eddie Scarry http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/nbcs-luke-russert-goes-nuts-in-radio-rant-against-wizards_b62403#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/nbcs-luke-russert-goes-nuts-in-radio-rant-against-wizards_b62403 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=62403 Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:00:26 +0000 Power Players Flock to Kastles Opener

The Kastles flaunted their A-game for an A-list crowd last night, beating Kansas City 21-18, at the team’s season opener.  VIPs such as ABC News’ Jonathan Karl, Bloomberg’s Margaret Carlson, Obama aide Valerie Jarrett, DC Mayor Vince Gray, DC City Council Chairman Kwame Brown, basketball legend Kareem Abdul Jabar, AOL founder Steve Case, AOL-HuffPost VP Peter Cherukuri, and Indonesian Ambassador Dino Djalal all hit the new Southwest Waterfront stadium to help Mark Ein cheer on Venus Williams and Washington’s winning tennis team.

The Kastles’ next match is tomorrow night against the Boston Lobsters.  Only five home games remain after this week so snatch up some tix before July 21st.

*This post is dedicated to the anonym-ass who complained about my Kastles love earlier today.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Matt Dornic http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/kastles-opener-pulls-power-players_b44017#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/kastles-opener-pulls-power-players_b44017 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=44017 Wed, 06 Jul 2011 18:37:06 +0000 Kastles Kick Off Waterfront Season

D.C. journos and other VIPs got a sneak preview of the Kastles’ new stadium last night at an event dubbed “Wimbledon on the Water.”  Owner Mark Ein and Washington’s winning tennis team treated guests like WUSA’s Brett Haber, HuffPo’s Stephanie Green, WTOP’s Mark Plotkin, Revamp’s Daniel Swartz, K Street Kate Michael, FreeInDC’s Amy Melrose, DistrictTicket’s Steve Fox and CSN’s Joe Beninati to court-side cocktails and hors d’œuvres to kick off the upcoming season and celebrate their move from City Center to swanky new digs on the Southwest Waterfront.

The season starts next week with Venus Williams on Tuesday, July 5th and Serena Williams on Thursday, July 7th and ends July 21st.  For more info or to snag some tickets, click here.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Matt Dornic http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/kastles-kick-off-waterfront-season_b43604#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/kastles-kick-off-waterfront-season_b43604 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=43604 Thu, 30 Jun 2011 16:24:39 +0000 Malveaux, Horton to Host Press Club 5K The National Press Club’s 14th annual Beat the Deadline 5K Race is right around the corner.  Join race marshals Suzanne Malveaux of CNN and P90X creator Tony Horton to support the Eric Friedheim National Journalism Library and its training, education, and diversity programs on Saturday, June 11, 2011. The 5K is slated to begin at 7.30 am with a special pre-race, P90X warm-up led by Horton at 7:15 a.m.  For more info or to register, visit www.press.org/5K.


New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Matt Dornic http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/malveaux-horton-to-host-press-club-5k_b39671#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/malveaux-horton-to-host-press-club-5k_b39671 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=39671 Fri, 20 May 2011 14:34:39 +0000 Deadspin Takes on Dan Snyder Deadspin‘s Tommy Craggs weighed in today on the Dan Snyder-WCP lawsuit, just re-filed by the Redskins owner. He specifically responds to Snyder’s editorial on WaPo‘s op-ed page, which Craggs calls “Fred Hiatt‘s bullshit emporium.” Hiatt is WaPo‘s editorial page editor. The editorial, Craggs writes, is “probably the most ridiculous assertion on that op-ed page sincee whatever George Will wrote last week.”

Craggs thinks that Snyder is a “prick” and that his explanation of the lawsuit is mainly bogus, but points out one area where he may have a case. WCP‘s Dave McKenna accused Snyder of forgery, but employees of Snyder’s company were the ones who actually carried out the forgery. But even that argument is probably a stretch.

Check out Craggs’ profanity-laced rant after the jump.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Alec Jacobs http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/deadspin-takes-on-dan-snyder_b37374#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/deadspin-takes-on-dan-snyder_b37374 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=37374 Tue, 26 Apr 2011 16:41:36 +0000 Haddad Brunch On the Move

Kastles Tennis mascot: Topspin

The famed White House Correspondents’ Brunch, held annually at the home Tammy Haddad and Ted Greenberg, is moving to a new locale on April 30, 2011.  Rather than torturing the fine folks of the Palisades with parking valets and  paparazzi, swarms of pastel-clad brunch-goers will migrate to Mark Ein‘s Georgetown manse for the garden gala. In addition to the revised location, the host committee has added Wendi Murdoch and Susan Axelrod as honorary event chairs.

As for the new venue, we don’t know much but we hear “Topspin” will be bouncing (ha! get it?) would-be crashers in the driveway and guests will be forced to enter and exit Ein’s home using Kastle Systems key fobs.  Okay, I made that up but a boy can dream…  Check out the video invite to this year’s event below.

2011 WHC Garden Brunch Preview from whcinsider on Vimeo.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

]]> Matt Dornic http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/haddad-brunch-on-the-move_b36747#disqus_thread http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/haddad-brunch-on-the-move_b36747 http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/?p=36747 Wed, 20 Apr 2011 14:07:50 +0000