December 12, 2007

Regional Sportsmen

Name: Randy Freer
Title: President, Fox Regional Cable Sports Networks
Age: 47
Years in Industry: 24

Name: Jon D. Litner
Title: President, Comcast SportsNet

Why Them? At FSN, Freer doggedly pursues and negotiates for the programming rights to myriad sports franchises, pushing companywide distribution to some 81mln households. And then there’s Big Ten Net, which despite the controversy has achieved solid carriage. Litner, meanwhile, assumed earlier this year the skipper job at Comcast, which added RSNs in New England and San Francisco to its repertoire in ’07. Litner has been busy integrating those properties into the fold, and he also oversaw the recent launch of CSN NW, a franchise freshly built around the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers.  CH

Jon Litner
Top personal achievement in 2007: “Being named to lead Comcast's regional sports business in May and immediately building the Comcast SportsNet brand with our three new networks in Boston, San Francisco, and Portland.”
Favorite restaurant: “Tour D'Argent, Paris France”
Favorite movie line: “Leave the gun, take the canoli.”  - The Godfather
Three things to take to a desert island: “My blackberry, my cell phone and good sunscreen.”
Favorite TV show: “Curb Your Enthusiasm”
Favorite Movie: Good Will Hunting
My perfect vacation goes like this: “Anyplace where I can wake up and have breakfast with my children, and watching the Boston Red Sox when they're in the World Series.”

Randy Freer
What is your favorite word? “Thank you”
What is your least favorite word? “Can't”
What turns you on? “Waking up in the morning to a new day.”
What turns you off? “Whining”
What sound do you love? “My daughters’ laughter”
What sound do you hate? “Screeching brakes”
What profession other than yours would like to attempt? “Politics”
What profession would you not like to participate in? “Medical”
If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? “Welcome, Pam and you did great job preparing Paige and Rachel [Randy’s daughters] for their world.”


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