Media Watch -- "Olympic Fears" Ahead of Sochi 2014

Security officers search people entering a stadium before the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic torch relay in Makhachkala, the capital of Russia's troubled southern republic of Dagestan, on January 27, 2014. Insurgents based in North Caucasus republics such as Dagestan who are seeking their own independent state have vowed to disrupt the upcoming Sochi Games in a bid to undercut President Vladimir Putin. AFP PHOTO / NEWS TEAM / SERGEI RASULOV (Photo credit should read SERGEI RASULOV/AFP/Getty Images)

Countdown to Sochi 2014

New York Times reporter Sarah Lyall explores "Olympics fears" that are "rattling" athletes and families ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics.

The New York Daily News says thousands of Americans are expected to head to Sochi for the Winter Games "under a cloud of suicide bombing and other terrorist threats."

A special report for the Committee to Protect Journalists predicts that the media in Sochi will "suffer a winter chill" in coverage of the Games.

The Weather Channel reports that Sochi is "one of the warmest locations ever to host a Winter Olympic Games." A new report also suggests that climate change could leave only "six of the 19 previous host cities in a position to host the games again by the 2080s."

The AFP highlights a new concern for Russia ahead of the Winter Games: convincing skeptics of the country’s progress on anti-doping.

NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live stages the "US Heterosexual Men’s Figure Skating Championships." The skit satirically showcases a "B squad" that the United State Olympic Committee could send to the Sochi Olympics "in case of any problems" with Russia’s gay propaganda ban.

SNL also features an interview with "a woman who lives in a small village in Russia, Olya Povlatsky." The skit addresses many of the controversies surrounding Sochi ahead of the Winter Games.

Aspen Daily News writer Andrew Travers discusses how a "growing slate" of Olympic events with an "X Games pedigree" could affect the X Games in the long run.

Tokyo 2020

Channel News Asia says the 2020 Summer Olympics has become a "main talking point" in the Tokyo Governor race set for February 9.

Fox Sports writer Jon Paul Morosi predicts that baseball/softball might still have a "pulse" or hope to regain its Olympics status ahead of the 2020 Summer Games.

Compiled byNicole Bennett

For general comments or questions,click here.

20 Years at #1: Your best source of news about the Olympics isAroundTheRings.com, for subscribers only.