Daily News Live (Comcast SportsNet)

Daily News Live
Genre	Sports, Talk
Presented by	AT&T
Country of origin	United States
Language(s)	English
No. of seasons	14
Production
Executive producer(s)	Brad Nau
Producer(s)	Dan Roche
Editor(s)	James Convey
Location(s)	CSN Wachovia Center studios in Philadelphia, PA
Camera setup	3 cameras, including one crane
Running time	60 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel	CSN Philadelphia
Picture format	In HD where available
Original run	October 1, 1997 – Present
Chronology
Related shows	Chicago Tribune Live Comcast SportsNet Insider Daily News Live Washington Post Live
External links
Website

Daily News Live, presented by AT&T, is a live, sports oriented talk show airing weeknights from 5:00PM to 6:00PM ET on Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia. The show features seven-time Pennsylvania Sportscaster of the year Michael Barkann joined by a rotating panel of writers from the Philadelphia Daily News and athletes and sports experts from around the country for a roundtable discussion about the top sports stories from both the city and the nation.

On game days, guest interviewers are also brought into the fold, shedding light on the night's big game. The show, though, is not limited to input from the day's panelists, as viewers are free to e-mail the show using the form at the homepage with the possibility of having their e-mail being mentioned or even discussed on the show. Originally, viewers could call in, but that portion of the program was cut by producers.

The show debuted on October 1, 1997 with Michael Barkann, Bill Conlin, Les Bowen, and Jack L. Williams, chairman of Comcast SportsNet.^[1]

The incredible success of Daily News Live resulted in the development of similar shows in other Comcast SportsNet sister stations. These include Chicago Tribune Live on Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Chronicle Live on CSN Bay Area, Daily News Live on SportsNet New York, and Washington Post Live on Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic.

Set

The original set was simplistic in nature with the panel sitting around a small coffee table. The current set includes a long table that the panel sit at, including many large plasma TVs, displaying topics and videos centered around the discussion. On December 23, 2010, the show was temporarily moved to a different studio while the DNL set was gutted. The show is scheduled to return to its regular studio on January 10, when it will debut a brand new set.

On the night of a big game, the show will air live on remote from the spot of the night's event. For the Flyers, the show will air from the AT&T Pavilion located inside the Wells Fargo Center, for Phillies the show airs from the Diamond Club at Citizens Bank Park, for Sixers the show airs courtside, on the baseline of the Wells Fargo Center floor and on the rare occasion that the Eagles play a weeknight game, DNL will often air from a platform in the parking lot or from the Headhouse Plaza inside Lincoln Financial Field.

Controversy

In June 2008, long time fan-favorite and newly inducted Baseball Hall of Fame sportswriter Bill Conlin drew the ire of many viewers when he made questionable comments with racial implications after an e-mail regarding a question posed to coach Andy Reid about then Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb's shoulder injury was read aloud by host Michael Barkann. The question from Raul was: "Are you serious? It was a stupid question. It's tendinitis. Way to go Philly media. You guys do a great job over-analyzing everything." Conlin turned to Barkann and said, "surprising that guy would leave the blueberry harvest to send that off." Barkann laughed and then said "don't insult the blueberry harvest, mister."

Stephanie Smith, then president of SportsNet, suspended Conlin "pending further review" and neither he nor Barkann appeared on the next day's broadcast. Fill-in host Neil Hartman read a statement from Conlin who claimed there were no racial connotations connected with his comment. Smith has since been moved to a different department and Conlin has yet to return to the show, though Barkann has made it clear that he is welcome any time.

There was an incident between famously controversial DN columnist Marcus Hayes and Barkann on November 18, 2005 when Hayes hounded NFL Films producer Greg Cossell, who was in studio to break down film. Eventually, Barkann intervened, essentially accusing Hayes of being a know-it-all and asking why he always wanted to control the whole show. Barkann accused Hayes of making the show “no fun.” He later said that they were not debating “Afghanistan and Iraq”. Hayes kept saying things like “Okay, dad, tell me what I need to know. Teach me.” He also said this would be "the last time [Barkann] will have to worry about it." Hayes is still a regular guest of the show, though for a time he was mysteriously matched up with days Barkann did not host. In more recent years Barkann and Hayes have been back on together and exhibited no ill-will publicly.

Christmas Eve Episode

DNL is famous for its annual Christmas Eve episode, hosted by Neil Hartman featuring highly controversial, but beloved former Temple Mens Basketball coach John Chaney, and Daily News columnists Dick Jerardi and Mike Kern. The show usually begins with some terribly lame intro featuring Hartman's children doing some sort of Christmas activity with Kern and Jerardi.

Personalities

Host

Michael Barkann -- Barkann is renowned for his fun, off-beat interview style and is one of the major reasons both Comcast Sportsnet and Daily News Live are a success. He is a favorite of players, panelists and fans alike.

(When Barkann is committed to doing a national broadcast or on vacation Gregg Murphy or Neil Hartman, the station's #2 and 2a will fill in.)

Daily News columnists

2-3 columnists from the Philadelphia Daily News appear on the show per day. The ones appearing on a particular day might sit out a segment in order to accommodate a guest.

• Ed Barkowitz
• Les Bowen
• Bill Conlin
• Bob Cooney
• Paul Domowitch
• Sam Donnellon
• Paul Hagen
• David Murphy
• Marcus Hayes
• Stan Hochman
• Rich Hofmann
• Phil Jasner (Jasner died in Dec. 2010 after a long battle with cancer. The show designated a segment for his remembrance and host Michael Barkann spoke at his funeral.)
• Dick Jerardi
• Mike Kern
• Mark Kram
• Frank Seravalli
• John Smallwood
• Elmer Smith

Regular Guests

• Desean Jackson (Eagles wide receiver)
• Leonard Weaver (Eagles fullback)
• Brent Celek (Eagles tight end)
• Brian Baldinger (FOX Sports, NFL Network)
• Chase Utley (Phillies second baseman)
• Cole Hamels (Phillies starting pitcher)
• Greg Cosell (producer with NFL Films)
• Ray Didinger (Hall of Fame journalist, CSN NFL Insider, former NFL Films senior producer,)
• Vaughn Hebron (former Philadelphia Eagles running back, current Eagles Post-Game Live analyst)
• Charlie Manuel (Phillies manager)
• Ruben Amaro, Jr. (Phillies general manager)
• Keith Jones (former Philadelphia Flyers forward, Versus studio analyst, Flyers game analyst, co-host on WIP (AM)'s The Morning Show)
• Al Morganti (610 WIP-AM co-host and CSN Hockey insider)
• Seth Everett (baseball analyst)
• Big Daddy Graham (comedian, overnight host 610 WIP-AM)
• Sal Paolantonio (ESPN, ESPN.com)
• Mike Quick (Philadelphia Eagles color commentator)
• Merrill Reese (Philadelphia Eagles play-by-play broadcaster)
• Ken Rosenthal (Senior Baseball Writer for FOX Sports, FoxSports.com)
• Jon Runyan (Former Philadelphia Eagles offensive tackle)
• Chris Wheeler (Philadelphia Phillies color commentator)
• Mitch Williams (former Philadelphia Phillies closer, MLB Network analyst)

Awards

• 2002 Mid-Atlantic Emmy Nominee, Outstanding Talk Program/Series
• 2003 Mid-Atlantic Emmy Nominee, Outstanding Talk Program/Series
• 2004 Mid-Atlantic Emmy Nominee, OUTSTANDING TALK PROGRAM/SERIES
• 2006 Mid-Atlantic Emmy Recipient, Interview/Discussion - Series

References

1. ^ Santoliquito, Joseph (2007-09-28). "A team of stars, and not just on paper". Philadelphia Daily News. http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/sports/10100602.html. Retrieved 2007-10-04. ^{[dead link]}

External links

• Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia
• Daily News Live homepage