By Steve Kabelowsky Contributing Columnist Published Feb 27, 2013 at 3:03 PM

WISN-TV Ch. 12 anchor Kathy Mykleby put the count at five. That’s how many times sportscaster Bob Brainerd worked at the TV station.

"Yes, I’m back again," Brainerd said. "This is the second time I’m filling in for Stephanie Sutton while she’s away on maternity leave. Kathy and I were talking and had to think back to the number of times I've worked there."

Brainerd may be familiar if you follow local sports. He’s appeared on different channels and radio stations in the market covering everything from high school basketball games to Packers playoffs and everything in between. Lately most of his work has been calling play-by-play for high school football and basketball games on Time Warner Cable’s Sports 32.

WISN’s Dan Needles is the latest to tap his shoulder to call him onto the field from the proverbial bull pen.

"Sutton went on leave with her third child, and then Dario left a few days later leaving Dan alone there," Brainerd said. Dario Melendez left the station last week to head to Bristol, Conn., and start work for ESPN.

Eventually Brainerd will be working weekends, but the well-used freelancer still has obligations with TWC.

"It will all work out. I went back to 12, but we’re still closing out the high school basketball season," Brainerd said of his work arrangement. Luckily the calendar at home tells him where he is going each day. He’ll have a lull until the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers season picks up in April when Brainered will call a number of the Brewers’ minor league affiliate’s games for Time Warner.

But that doesn’t mean there’s a lull in the sports world.

"I’ll be scrambling around … but it is good to be busy," Brainerd said. "I’m looking forward to what’s around the corner."

Brainerd said he’s looking forward to baseball starting up along with Marquette and UW-Madison competing to make the NCAA postseason, and there’s always the chance the Bucks make the playoffs.

OSCARS BUZZ: All the world was abuzz with the Oscars and who won the golden statutes on Monday following Sunday’s broadcast on ABC. However, one news outlet was not happy with the pick for film of the year. Fars News, an Iranian media service took special notice that First Lady Michelle Obama announced the winner for the Best Picture, the anti-Iran film "Argo," while pointing out it was produced by Zionist Warner Brothers.

MORE OSCARS: The numbers are in, and even though groups of people were offended and critics panned the performance, Oscars host Seth MacFarlane brought in more viewers. Nielsen reported that around 40.3 million people tuned in for the event, a million more than last year.

The broadcast also was a hit among younger viewers, growing 20 percent to an 11.3 rating among adults 18-34. Besides the wince-causing comedian, the viewing audience may have been larger in 2013 due to the films up for Best Picture having larger box office returns than the nominees did last year.

The Academy may wish to have the man behind "Family Guy" return to a place in the spotlight, but MacFarlane already publically stated that he wasn’t going to host again.

Steve Kabelowsky Contributing Columnist

Media is bombarding us everywhere.

Instead of sheltering his brain from the onslaught, Steve embraces the news stories, entertainment, billboards, blogs, talk shows and everything in between.

The former writer, editor and producer in TV, radio, Web and newspapers, will be talking about what media does in our community and how it shapes who we are and what we do.