Sports Illustrated reporter Richard Deitsch obtained a statement Friday from ESPN executive editor John Walsh regarding the report:

“In advance of the interviews, we identified areas for questions that would be interesting to our audience, consistent with the main themes of the book and not disparaging to our colleagues. Any live interview can go in any number of directions.”‬

Miller was interviewed on Mike and Mike In The Morning, The Scott Van Pelt Show and The Doug Gottlieb Show and is scheduled next week for The B.S. Report with Bill Simmons.

Why bother speaking to Miller if you’re scared about the direction of the interview?

SportsNewser is also scheduled to chat with Miller next week.

I promise you management won’t script our questions ahead of time.

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For one night only, Smackdown will air live on the USA Network on Tuesday, Dec. 21 at 9:00 p.m. ET.

Normally Smackdown tapes on Tuesday and airs Friday evenings on the Syfy Network.

In addition to Smackdown, the USA Network will air a special two-hour version of the WWE’s Tribute to the Troops special on Wednesday, Dec. 22 at 8:00 p.m. ET.

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Meanwhile, affiliates across the midwest from Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois and Wisconsin are assisting the cable networks this morning with their coverage of the storm.

Video of the collapse from FOX Sports is after the jump…

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The Bills-Browns game on Sunday will be blacked out and won’t be shown within a 75-mile radius around Buffalo.

Considering the Bills defense are last in rushing, it’s probably for the best that they don’t get to watch Peyton Hillis and the vaunted Browns offense.

(Sarcasm. Sorta.)

Below are the broadcast teams for Week 14 of “Where in the World is Gus Johnson?” continued…

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When I signed up for this, I never imagined it would devolve into 33 Ways of Saying That an NBA Team Is Boring. Maybe that’s not such a bad thing. Boredom is rich; it’s at least as interesting as love or sadness. In fact, that 2005 Finals between the Pistons and the Spurs was a key moment in the explication of man’s oldest companion. Detroit was manual labor, with bleeding and fatigue that never quite registered. San Antonio was that oh-so memorable experience of spending a long time in a hospital. (Or, more accurately, what it must be like to perform one of those 24-hour surgeries.) Boring is not the same as blank. We come to sports for something exalted, but sometimes, we wind up learning more about the excruciating commonplace.

Would it help if we gave you some money from our wallet? Or bought your book?

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From the AP:

Barcelona will receive 30 million euro ($40 million) per season from 2011-12 from the nonprofit organization, located in the tiny gulf state where the 2022 World Cup will be played. Unlike other top soccer clubs, Barcelona has previously refused to sell advertising space to a shirt sponsor, but has been putting children’s charity UNICEF on its front for free since 2006. Barcelona said the UNICEF name will remain on the shirts and that it would seek a way to combine the two logos, but the Qatar Foundation would be the prevalent one if a solution cannot be found.

Charity gets the shaft again.

In other news jersey sponsorship-related news, the Portland Timbers revealed their new uniforms. Alaska Airlines is the corporate partner. They are not paying $200 million.

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Based on the HBO release, this might be one of their best documentaries yet:

Runnin’ Rebels Of UNLV examines the larger-than-life personalities of future NBA stars such as Larry Johnson, Greg Anthony and Stacey Augmon, as well as the eccentricities of their head coach, who was a lightning rod for controversy. Jerry Tarkanian put UNLV – once dismissed as “Tumbleweed Tech” – on the map in his first full season as head coach, leading the team to a 20-6 record in 1973. Implementing an up-tempo offense and preaching defensive intensity, he guided the Rebels to the Final Four four times and won the 1990 NCAA Championship with a 30-point drubbing of the Duke Blue Devils. continued…

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Have revelations about the world’s best golfer tainted the prestige of his tournament?

Not if the field of participants says anything. Eleven men who played in the Ryder Cup will join Woods – playing for the first time since 2007 – in the 18-man field.

Jim Furyk, Steve Stricker, Matt Kuchar, Hunter Mahan, Zach Johnson, Dustin Johnson, and Bubba Watson played for the Americans, while Graeme McDowell, Martin Kaymer, Luke Donald, Ian Poulter, and Rory McIlroy represented the victorious European side.

Furyk won last year’s tournament, beating an equally impressive field. That tournament was held from December 13-16, just days after Woods had a certain accident and his world spun off its axis.

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“I would have liked to see the new owner get with the guy who built the arena and keep the Nets there,” he said earlier this week. “I don’t want to see the team go to Brooklyn. Maybe the two heads can get together, they can do that and I can come down there and become general manager.”

His current team – the Boston Celtics – probably wouldn’t be too happy if he left to GM their Eastern Conference rivals, but the Big Aristotle isn’t ready to depart yet. (He might be soon, however, if Nate Robinson keeps dunking on him.)

Shaq might not be the best judge of talent but he has one part of the GM job down already: He certainly knows how to handle the media.

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Viewership for the first four weeks of the season is up 10 percent from last season and 29 percent from 2008. Ratings should continue to be high. Next week’s Philadelphia Eagles versus the San Francisco 49ers features two large markets and one excellent storyline (the return of Michael Vick), while the three following matches are marquee ones (Indianapolis Colts v. Washington Redskins; Vikings v. Green Bay Packers; Pittsburgh Steelers v. New Orleans Saints). Dick Ebersol will continue printing money.

Facts and figures after the jump. continued…

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NBC’s “Today” and “NBC Nightly News will be live on-site in the city, with “Access Hollywood,” Weather Channel’s “Wake up With Al,” MSNBC and CNBC all delivering live reports from around New Orleans.

Other programs will have football content as well, including “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” and “Minute to Win It,” which will have an episode where the contestants are all former players.

There will also be a “back to football” parade through the French Quarter, which will feature performances from Dave Matthews Band and Taylor Swift.

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