Major League Baseball is reportedly planning to resume media rights talks with ESPN and Turner this week. Also: ESPN is apologizing for a controversial graphic about Tee Higgins’ mother during its NFL Draft coverage; Fox Sports talent is taking pay cuts.
MLB looking to resume talks with ESPN, Turner, this week
Major League Baseball plans to resume media rights talks with partners ESPN and Turner Sports as soon as this week, according to Sports Business Journal. The sides had begun talks earlier this year, but those have been on a pandemic-related pause.
Per the report, both ESPN and Turner want to renew their deals and MLB seems willing. Notably, ESPN is said to be happy with Sunday Night Baseball and interested in rights for ESPN+, but less so with its package of midweek games.
MLB last year renewed its deal with Fox Sports through 2028. [SBJ 4.27]
ESPN sorry for noting draftee’s mother’s drug battle on graphic
ESPN VP/production Seth Markman has apologized for the network including information about a draftee’s mother’s drug addiction on a graphic during Friday’s NFL Draft coverage. In a conversation with The Athletic on Monday, he said the story “shouldn’t have been used in the graphic. In hindsight, that was a mistake. … You can’t give it the proper context, even though our announcers tried to.”
The draftee in question, Clemson and incoming Bengals WR Tee Higgins, said on social media Saturday that he had “no problem showing the world that my mom is a true fighter.” [The Athletic 4.27, Higgins/Twitter 4.25]
Fox talent taking pay cuts
Fox Sports on-air talent have agreed to temporary 15 percent pay cuts, The Wall Street Journal reported last Thursday. ESPN’s highest-paid talent agreed to similar cuts earlier this month. In addition to talent, executives at Fox Corporation are taking 50 percent pay cuts, including Fox Sports CEO Erik Shanks. [WSJ 4.23, Variety 4.23]
