SUNRISE, FL- FOX Sports Net Florida today announced that it will debut REGIONAL SPORTS REPORT on July 17th. The show represents a bold new format in regional sports programming that will deliver 30-minutes of live regional sports news nightly at 11:00 PM. Rod Mickler, Senior Vice President and General Manager, FOX Sports Net Florida, made the announcement.
The REGIONAL SPORTS REPORT will provide a comprehensive look at the world of sports from a Florida perspective. The format provides for heavy emphasis on key local stories, and also includes important national stories and how they impact Florida sports fans. REGIONAL SPORTS REPORT will follow FOX Sports Net’s NATIONAL SPORTS REPORT, which airs at 10:00 PM.
The new initiative strengthens FOX Sports Net’s commitment to being the ultimate source for regional sports. REGIONAL SPORTS REPORT will be immediately followed at 11:30 PM by “The Last Word with Jim Rome.”
“This should be a very exciting time for Florida sports fans. We have just debuted the NATIONAL SPORTS REPORT, which does a great job keeping sports fans up to date on the national sports scene. Now, we’re taking it to the next, logical step with the REGIONAL SPORTS REPORT, which will offer in-depth, late-breaking coverage of the teams, stories, and issues our viewers care about the most,” stated Mickler. “We feel confident that we will bring Florida sports fans the highest quality, live nightly sports show ever available in the state.”
All the reporting and newsgathering for REGIONAL SPORTS REPORT will be done locally, with teams of full-time reporters, correspondents and videographers located throughout the state, dedicated 24-hours a day, 7-days a week to covering Florida sports news. The show will be broadcast live from FOX Sports Net’s REGIONAL SPORTS REPORT broadcast center in Dallas, Texas, where FOX Sports Net Florida’s REGIONAL SPORTS REPORT anchor will interact daily with the local sports news teams located throughout Florida. The vast resources within the state-of-the-art FOX Sports Net broadcast center in Dallas will allow FOX Sports Net Florida to bring Florida sports fans the most comprehensive coverage of national stories and highlights from around the country, in addition to the in-depth local coverage every night.
Mickler also announced the hiring of Andy Ritter as producer of the REGIONAL SPORTS REPORT. Ritter has worked for with FOX Sports Net Florida since August 1998 as producer of Sunday Morning nFL, Dolphins Magazine, University of Miami Hurricanes football and baseball specials including last season’s FOX Sports Net tribute to the 1999 Hurricanes baseball team, “Storming through Omaha-A Championship Season.” In August 1999, Ritter also began producing Saturday Morning College Kickoff. Before joining FOX Sports Net Florida, Ritter’s extensive local sports news background included three years as Senior Sports Producer at WFOR (CBS) in Miami, FL., nearly three years as Sports Producer and Reporter at WPBF (ABC) in West Palm Beach, FL., and several freelance producer positions with ESPN, Canadian Broadcasting Company, MSG Network and WFNS-910am in Tampa, FL. Ritter is a 1991 graduate of Hope College in Holland, Michigan and has lived in Florida since 1992.
“Andy brings the perfect complement of experience and Florida sports knowledge to the REGIONAL SPORTS REPORT. We feel his extensive background in local sports news and the relationships he has built over the years throughout the state with pro, college and high school teams, will enhance our commitment to providing viewers with the most in-depth nightly coverage of their favorite Florida sports teams,” noted Mickler.
More news and information regarding FOX Sports Net Florida’s REGIONAL SPORTS REPORT July 17th launch will be released in the coming weeks.
FOX Sports Net Florida reaches nearly 3.8 million homes throughout Florida, including the home satellite dish market. FOX Sports Net Florida programming includes Major League Baseball’s Florida Marlins and Tampa Bay Devil Rays; the NHL’s Florida Panthers; The University of Miami, The University of South Florida and The University of North Florida. FOX Sports Net Florida — formerly SportsChannel Florida — is a service of Rainbow Sports, a division of Cablevision’s Rainbow Media Holdings, Inc.
FOX Sports Net is a service of National Sports Partners, equally owned by Cablevision’s Rainbow Media Holdings, Inc., and the FOX Entertainment Group. FOX Sports Net now reaches more than 70 million homes nationwide. Rainbow Sports, a division of Cablevision’s Rainbow Media Holdings, Inc., has dedicated itself to “Home Team” fans for more than 20 years. Rainbow Sports incorporates all of Rainbow Media’s sports assets, including its 50 percent ownership of FOX Sports Net and FOX Sports National Advertising, majority ownership of the Madison Square Garden Properties, and the ownership and management of FOX Sports Net regional networks in six of the nation’s largest markets — Chicago, Florida, New England, New York, Ohio and San Francisco.
Contact:
Michelle Stevens
954-845-9994
mfstevens@rainbow-media.com
Gregory Trieste, Bratskeir & Co.
212-679-2233