Hence the reason Big 12 fans tend to emphasize additional revenue streams.

No, this is because our revenue streams are structured differently. Our tier 3 TV rights aren't bundled together and people don't understand that so we have to explain it every time.

Conference administrators absolutely do emphasize their earnings through the press. Here are some of his recent comments about ACC earnings and the network:

ACC Commissioner John Swofford, though, said at the end of his league’s annual spring meetings that ESPN remains “bullish” about the live broadcasting of college sports. Swofford has provided few hints about a potential ACC channel, but he intimated that the ACC is considering a non-traditional model.

“With technology and so forth, you want to be with people that are progressive and that have flexibility, that are willing to adapt,” Swofford said. “And I think that’s who our partner is (with ESPN).”

Swofford at the end of the league’s spring meetings said a prospective ACC channel “might not look exactly the same” as a cable channel might have looked years ago. In recent years the SEC, Big Ten and Pac-12 have launched channels that have helped their revenue growth.

Some athletic directors at ACC schools have expressed concern about the ACC’s ability to keep up, financially, with leagues that have a television network. Swofford downplayed those concerns at the spring meetings. His confidence, he said, “comes with the development of what we anticipate doing.”

“That’s why ESPN is in the discussions with us,” he said. “They like to make money, too. And we like to make money, as well.”

Source

The issue of him saying nothing about a contractual detail and the issue of him talking about earnings are completely separate.