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ESPN Radio's Dan Le Batard Prices Out Ad Trolling LeBron James, Cleveland Papers Won't Bite
July 30, 2014 at 3:28 PM (PT)
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There was no actual ad and no money to buy one, either, but that didn't prevent ESPN RADIO and LINCOLN FINANCIAL MEDIA Sports WAXY-A-F (104.3 FM/790 AM THE TICKET)/MIAMI host DAN LE BATARD from getting national attention for proposing the purchase of a full-page ad in CLEVELAND-area newspapers reading "You're Welcome, LEBRON," in response to LEBRON JAMES failing thus far to take out the obligatory "Thank You" ad for fans in the city he spurned.
During TUESDAY's show, LE BATARD and JON "STUGOTZ" WEINER had a producer call the CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER to get a price for a proposed ad, which LE BATARD suggested might be paid for through a Kickstarter campaign among MIAMI HEAT fans. After the PLAIN DEALER refused to even set a price, the AKRON BEACON JOURNAL initially set a price, then decided not to follow through; the BEACON JOURNAL's story on the incident began, "Get that weak stuff out of here." A mockup of an ad circulating around the Internet showing two HEAT championship rings was a fan production and not created by LE BATARD or the station. A skywriting company offered to write the message over a public homecoming celebration scheduled for AUGUST 8th at the UNIVERSITY OF AKRON's INFOCISION STADIUM, but the price, which escalated to about $75,000 over the course of WEDNESDAY's show, was too steep.
The PLAIN DEALER quoted NORTHEAST OHIO MEDIA GROUP VP/Sales and Marketing MIKE MALESKI as saying his paper "politely declined" the ad; the BEACON JOURNAL's Publisher MARK COHEN said, "I just don’t think it was appropriate for our community. We’re proud that LEBRON is back, this is his hometown, and that is not something we want to be a part of or want to take money for.”
The Most Valuable Prodigy is returning to the NBA's CLEVELAND CAVALIERS this season after four seasons in MIAMI, where he won two titles with the HEAT.

