The NFL, ESPNU and Time Warner

Time Warner Cable folks are bracing for a NFL Network publicity campaign, now that Time Warner has taken over the 55,000 Adelphia customers in Butler, Brown, Hamilton and Clermont counties. The NFL Network wants carriage on TWC, says TWC spokeswoman Karen Baxter. Some Adelphia systems – but none in Greater Cincinnati – carried the NFL Network channel, which does 8 games a year and other NFL programming. Baxter says the company anticipates a big publicity push from the NFL. According to TWC, the NFL Network wants to be a basic channel, while the cable company prefers it in a sports tier for an additional fee. Baxter also says the NFL Network costs “more than the highest-rated cable networks,” so I'm guessing she means ESPN and other channels. She doesn’t expect TWC to carry it any time soon.

It appears to be a different situation for ESPNU, the college sports channel. When the Adelphia systems were absorbed Tuesday, TWC dropped ESPNU in those areas because TWC didn't have a contract for the service. Baxter says TWC hopes “to reach an agreement soon” to restore ESPNU, likely on a sports tier. But she wasn’t certain if ESPNU would be added systemwide here, or just returned to the old Adelphia communities. (It would seen odd that TWC would pick up ESPNU, and not make it available systemwidce here, right?) I’ll post more as I learn it. But I'm guessing that ESPNU will be widely available here soon.

"Queer Eye" not canceled
Spent most of my morning chasing down a web report saying that Bravo had canceled "Queer Eye." The International Movie Data Base said the show was done after three seasons, quoting Fab Five guy Jai Rodriguez as saying, "We haven't been asked back for 2007."
Here's the link: http://www.imdb.com/news/wenn/2006-08-02/#3
But I knew from talking in June to creator/executive producer David Collins -- a West Chester native and '85 Lakota grad -- that "Queer Eye" was shooting its '07 season this summer, including the 100th episode. Anyway, long story short: Bravo contract runs out after fifth season airs in '07... Bravo publicists says Bravo wants to renew... and Collins is not worried, saying Bravo usually orders next season in September or early October. So all signs point to more years of the Fab Five on Bravo....

DJ Dick Wagner dies
Dick Wagner, one of the original 1960s WSAI-AM "Good Guys," died in Louisville on July 28. He was 77. After WSAI, he worked at WKLO-AM (1080) in Lousiville, under his real name, Dick Braun.
Says Joe London of oldies WDJO-AM (1160): "It is at WKLO where I had the privilege of working with "Dickie" Braun. A very talented announcer, he excelled in the radio production techniques of the day. He required crutches to get around, yet he never let it interfere with his ability to be witty and clever and full of energy. Dick eventually joined WAMZ, the top rated county station in Louisville, creatively handling those duties for many years. Some of Dick’s WSAI radio commercials can currently be heard on the weekends on WDJO -- when we air vintage commercials from the 60’s."
More info is available on the tribute to WKLO website: http://www.1080wklo.com/
Here is the obit from the Lousiville Courier-Journal last week:

http://php.courier-journal.com/obits/obitdetail_drill.php?id=29913