All around good dude Larry Brown has details on a drama that recently played out involving the student broadcasters at UCLA. We all know that since the beginning of time, there have been student broadcasters announcing games to no one in particular at high profile college sports events. Like what Title IX hath wrought, it’s a tradition that only benefits a handful of (albeit hardworking) folks. But it is a tradition nonetheless. And in some select cases, has provided us with hours upon hours of high quality entertainment.

(Sad: UCLA student announcer to miss this upskirt courtside view)

So it is with a slight measure of remorse that we report that the NCAA and the Westwood One radio network have affixed its broadcasting boot firmly onto the throat of UCLA student broadcasters going into the NCAA tournament.

Kyle Hyman, who many of you know on this site as “The Driver,” is the director of the sports department at UCLA Radio. After fighting through red tape the past several weeks, he finally received an answer to his request to broadcast games (only three days prior to UCLA’s first game), from the NCAA. Their answer was no. Apparently Westwood One Radio wants to enforce their exclusivity as the sole radio provider of the NCAA tournament.

No matter that UCLA Radio has never had an online audience of greater than 500 listeners. No matter that there is no advertising on the broadcasts. No matter that other student radio stations have been approved to call games and had their rights fees waived, such as USC, which broadcasts for a school that has a small student radio station. Nope.

This details of the story make you wonder why UCLA was apparently singled out to be blocked by NCAA broadcast rights holder Westwood One. Why are other schools, like USC, allowed to broadcast the games with student announcers - but UCLA is not?

The reason: UCLA student broadcasts are internet-only. Over-the-air broadcasts from schools are still being allowed.

Westwood One executive producer Howard Deneroff: “Once you’re streaming on the Internet, everyone in the world can access your broadcast. We have to protect our rights.”

Yeah, we know, WW1’s decision is embarrassing and unfair to UCLA (unless you are a USC fan). Hopefully, as this story gets out (our friend Tom Hoffarth of the L.A. DAILY NEWS also covered it), WW1 will relent and allow the UCLA internet broadcasts. But we’re guessing they won’t.