Media Savvy: Crandell is dean of Sacramento sports market

Many contenders wailed for attention, but the recent winner of sportscaster Jim Crandell's snarky "Crybaby of the Week" segment on Fox40's news was race car driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.

The reason: Earnhardt was peeved that his ex-sponsor had removed his trophies from its offices. And that got Crandell himself all revved up with his signature rant, one that's equal measures humor and bile, with just enough facts to make the report edifying.

"Hey, if I got in a fight with my boss here at Fox and quit, I wouldn't expect them to leave my trophies up," he said during the segment, pausing a beat and flashing anchors Donna Cordova and Thomas Drayton a look of feigned hurt.

"If. I. Had. Any. Trophies. …" he then deadpanned into the camera. "I actually had a trophy once – my son got it, but I kind of took it."

Sure, awards, such as regional news Emmys, may have eluded Crandell, 59, over the years. But looked at another way, Crandell may have bagged the biggest prize of all for a local TV reporter – longevity.

Toiling in a profession in which "talent" often is swept away based on fluctuating ratings and fickle audience research, Crandell has lasted more than 23 years as Fox40's sports director.

He arrived when the Kings were still playing in Kansas City, and he's seen rival sportscasters come and go, some barely staying long enough to keep an anchor seat warm. He's seen the length of sports reports erode to the point of oblivion.

And yet, Crandell endures.

There's really no secret to his success. Unless you count hard work; a crisp, mostly cliché-free writing style; a cultivation of sources; a penchant for criticism when warranted; and a wry sense of humor.

To Tom Ziller, avid Kings fan and caretaker of the popular Sactownroyalty.com blog, Crandell is the sportscaster of choice for what essentially is the only game in town.

"I think a lot of fans prefer him to the other options," Ziller says. "... It seems like he pays attention to the team all the time, not just during the hyped-up playoff series.

"KCRA's (sports) team, for instance, only seems interested in the Kings when it comes to off-court stuff, like sending a (reporter) to New Mexico to get a statement from (coach) Reggie Theus on the rape investigation of the team's 12th man," Ziller says.

"News10's coverage is icky in that cross- promotion way, and KOVR's seems nonexistent. You don't want to give Crandell the win by default – because he clearly puts in the effort and has the knowledge – but there really isn't much competition among the broadcast set."

Most nights, in fact, the six minutes Fox40 gives Crandell for a sportscast is more than twice what competing stations offer. Sportscasters on Channels 3 and 10 are lucky to get three minutes a night, and Channel 13 barely covers sports during the week.

Crandell's delivery doesn't mince words, either.

After the 49ers lost a Monday night game last fall, Crandell sneered, "The 49ers were so bad tonight in Seattle, we're going to hold off on the highlights as long as possible. So if you can tune in shortly after 1 o'clock (during) 'Will & Grace,' that's when we'll run the 49er highlights."

Fox40 executives, not always sure what Crandell will ad-lib on the air, nevertheless say his antic style works.

"Sports is an important part of our branding," says Audrey Farrington, the station's general manager. "He has an incomparable knowledge. People look for his strong opinions. Take a look through our public (FCC) file at letters. (Viewers) love to write in to agree or disagree with him."

But Farrington, as well as Fox40 news director Tom Burke, says that what separates Crandell from bloviators on talk radio or boorish cads on cable TV is his genuine enthusiasm for sports.

"It's as if you're sitting next to him in a bar and talking real about what's going on in sports," Burke says. "He doesn't overcomplicate things. He nicely intermingles his opinion into the story.

"I've worked in Pittsburgh, Detroit, Fresno and Columbus (Ohio), and I grew up in Boston. So I've been in a few big sports towns and watched good sportscasters. He clearly is the best I've seen."

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• Call The Bee's Sam McManis, (916) 321-1145