In 1991, Eugene-based television station KEZI-TV lost its telecast rights of Oregon athletic events to local rival KVAL-TV.
KEZI, the ABC affiliate, protested the decision, but lost.
Then on June 7, the University awarded the rights back to KEZI after nine years at KVAL, the CBS affiliate.
And now, it is KVAL who is protesting the arrangement.
The reason for the protest, says KVAL general manager David Weinkauf, is that he feels that the bidding process “unfairly placed our company at a competitive disadvantage.” Weinkauf asserts that his station was “misled” by the athletic department during the bidding process.
KEZI, on the other hand, feels that the process was fair and is thrilled to get back the rights to televise Duck sports.
“I feel for Weinkauf because I know this puts his job in jeopardy,” said Bill Nagy, who was hired onto KEZI in December of 1998 to oversee the company’s broadcast, production and cable divisions. “Yet I’m also thrilled. It’s a good feeling and we’re locally owned and we feel the local news team should be the ones covering the Ducks.”
The deal between the University and Chambers Communications, who owns KEZI, is believed to be worth $1.4 million dollars over three years.
A key for the controversy between the two stations and the University is the role that ESPN Regional played in the decision. Unlike nine years ago, when the University did not have a partnership with ESPN, the deal was negotiated on behalf of the University through ESPN.
According to Dave Williford, director of the athletic department’s Media Services, ESPN had the final say.
“ESPN talked to both of them and they got separate bids,” Williford said. “KVAL’s protest is being looked at closely by Melinda Grier [general counsel to the University].”
Weinkauf strongly believes that the agreement is not one that should be made by people outside of the University.
“I think that ESPN has been brought into this to turn things around,” Weinkauf said. “But it’s not an ESPN decision. It’s a U of O decision.”
What also has Weinkauf upset is the role that the television stations in Medford played. He says that when University representatives visited his station on May 12, he “specifically asked if exposure in the Medford market would be a consideration in the award process.”
In his protest letter to University President Dave Frohnmayer, Weinkauf wrote, “We were assured at the time that this bid would be for Eugene only, and that Medford would follow.”
He said he was “shocked at the revelation … that exposure in Medford was a significant contributor in the award decision.” He noted in his letter that if he had known the importance of the market he would have formed a partnership with the Medford station and bid accordingly.
“I believe we won the monetary bid,” Weinkauf said. “This is an honest dispute. I think the bidding should be reopened as it has in the past.”
Another interesting side note in all of this is the status of KVAL sports director Todd McKim, who is the television voice of the Ducks. He actually began working at KEZI in 1980 as sports director before moving over to KVAL in 1991 to continue broadcasting Oregon athletics.
The year 2000 marked McKim’s 20th season hosting the weekly football and basketball coaches show, but as Nagy was quick to point out, it doesn’t mean that he will automatically be the first choice to host them on KEZI.
“Todd and I have talked initially, but we haven’t talked since Weinkauf’s letter,” Nagy said. “Todd will be given a chance to announce and host the shows, but so will everybody else.”
That news might surprise some, but Nagy said that new faces can sometimes be a change for the better.
“We want to enhance the product,” Nagy said. “We kind of feel that the coaches shows have been a little dull and have looked into making some changes. It’s a lot like a football program that hasn’t been bad, but has just stayed the same. Sometimes a new coach is what you need.”
Some preliminary improvement ideas for the coaches shows that Nagy and his staff have come up with include making it more fast paced, having a live audience, taking phone calls from viewers and making the show interactive via the Internet.
In all, the bid grants Chambers Communications exclusive rights to televise Oregon football and men’s and women’s basketball, as well as the 21 weekly coaches shows. On top of that, the agreement includes that KEZI produce preseason and postseason recaps of the three varsity programs and extensive highlight videos of their seasons. They also have agreed to produce three half-hour reviews that recap the achievements of Oregon’s 13 other varsity programs.
Of course, this is all pending on the status of KVAL’s protest, which is still being reviewed by Grier.