ESPN Is Pathetic

Marciano490

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I never watch anything but live sports on ESPN anymore (intentionally), but from what I've seen of SportsCenter here and there, it seems like all their personalities suck now. When SC was great - with Patrick and Mayne and those guys - they were funny, cool. Guys you'd watch highlights and drink a beer with. Now, everyone is shouting out me or marginally attractive and boring as hell. Am I missing anyone engaging - besides maybe SVP?
 

Kliq

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The only time I watch sportscenter is really late at night if I don't want to commit to watching something for more than ten minutes. I agree with the above posters, it is too personality driven and not in a good way. I do watch a fair amount of Around the Horn and PTI which is personality driven but the people they have on are generally more thoughtful in their approaches.

I
 

luckiestman

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I never watch anything but live sports on ESPN anymore (intentionally), but from what I've seen of SportsCenter here and there, it seems like all their personalities suck now. When SC was great - with Patrick and Mayne and those guys - they were funny, cool. Guys you'd watch highlights and drink a beer with. Now, everyone is shouting out me or marginally attractive and boring as hell. Am I missing anyone engaging - besides maybe SVP?
I overheard it in the student center one day and I couldn't believe how bad it was. Maybe we are just old now.
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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Taking "The Sports Reporters" off the schedule is a mercy killing for everyone involved.

Not Mitch Albom's ears though. Those things are monsters.
 

Ale Xander

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I used to love that show. Then I found out Bill Conlin was an incestual child predator.

When they had 3 of Ryan, Lupica, Kornheiser, and him on the same show, it was pretty heated.

As long as they stayed away from Rhoden and other NYT/WP writers, it was interesting.

---

Saunders made it work. It became nothing without him.

Sad loss.
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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Someone on Twitter once said, "No one looks more pleased with themselves than a commentator on 'The Sports Reporters' finishing up their Parting Shot."

And it's true. Any time one of those guys made some sort of banal proclamation about something sports related, they all looked pensively into the camera as if they just discovered and broadcasted the cure for cancer.
 

Infield Infidel

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I think it's partially true, but the best parting shots were the humorous or sarcastic ones that would usually get everyone laughing. Schapp was great at those, and John Saunders with his Canadian wit continued them.
 

DJnVa

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What in the sam hell is this new SportsCenter 6 thing?? It looks hideous.
 

ifmanis5

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ESPN loves Tebow. They have Sal Pal following him around 24/7 today and he's front and center on their web page. He's basically the face of MLB for them.
 

E5 Yaz

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ESPN loves Tebow. They have Sal Pal following him around 24/7 today and he's front and center on their web page. He's basically the face of MLB for them.
Tebow did get off one good line, however. Sal asked him about the Super Bowl, and Tebow said that "it was the most Tom Brady like thing ever"
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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I watched this today at the gym and the sound was off. I thought, "Wow, this is a long segment, I wonder if Tebow found his stroke in the Arizona Fall League (I sorta lost track/interest)." After the segment they showed his stats: .194 BA, 3 extra base hits and 20 Ks in 62 ABs.

Seems like a perfect guy to follow around for a few days.
 

ifmanis5

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Tebow is on ESPN's HOF binky list with Jordan, Tiger, Favre, Peyton, LeBron and Kobe but he's the only one of them who isn't any good.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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Not that I want to be defending ESPN, but this Tebow thing isn't just them. At least not today. MLB Network was live with his press conference this morning. It's incredible how much attention is being given to a player who is never going to sniff a big league roster in his life.
 

The Napkin

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It's almost like the programming is aimed at the vast majority of people watching who care about different things than the typical SoSHer. Weird.
 

The Napkin

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It was what, a 2 minute segment? NFL is over. NBA trade deadline is over. ESPN doesn't cover hockey. March Madness isn't for a few weeks. Spring Training is like a week old. What should they have put in that spot?

You really don't think the average espn viewer wouldn't see something about Tebow and think "huh, wonder what's up with him" and care enough that they'd pay half attention to it? Moreso than they would a segment on the competition to see who the 4th bench player is on the Brewers? Especially since mlb network apparently did a feature on him too?
 

ifmanis5

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It was what, a 2 minute segment? NFL is over. NBA trade deadline is over. ESPN doesn't cover hockey. March Madness isn't for a few weeks. Spring Training is like a week old. What should they have put in that spot?

You really don't think the average espn viewer wouldn't see something about Tebow and think "huh, wonder what's up with him" and care enough that they'd pay half attention to it? Moreso than they would a segment on the competition to see who the 4th bench player is on the Brewers? Especially since mlb network apparently did a feature on him too?
Was more than just one two minute segment. Sal Pal had several lengthy live shots setting up his day. Front page of the web site, etc. I know it's silly season but this is especially silly. Whore for clicks, basically.
 

The Napkin

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Huh. So they did it for clicks? How dare a company put something on their site that might get them more clicks. So, like, people must be clicking on it then right? I thought nobody cared. Weird.

I'll ask again - what should they have covered? You think a segment on the 13th pitcher competition in Reds camp would have gotten more interest?

And let's take a live look at espn.com/mlb



Huh. One link under headlines. For the face of MLB.
 

ifmanis5

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Huh. So they did it for clicks? How dare a company put something on their site that might get them more clicks. So, like, people must be clicking on it then right? I thought nobody cared. Weird.

I'll ask again - what should they have covered? You think a segment on the 13th pitcher competition in Reds camp would have gotten more interest?

And let's take a live look at espn.com/mlb



Huh. One link under headlines. For the face of MLB.
They recently changed it up. It was there top and center most of the morning.
Tebow is a non-story. ESPN should be smarter than this and actual tell stories of people who will actually be playing Major League baseball. They went with the celeb instead. Good to see they're moving on to other things in your screengrab.
 

The Napkin

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Why should they be doing that? Because the 300 members of SoSH think a story on the backup bullpen catcher for the Rockies is more interesting? Again, you don't think the average person out there watching espn would be more likely to watch the Tebow segment than that? The fact that mlb network covered his press conference doesn't maybe make you think that there's an audience out there for it?

I mean, "He's basically the face of MLB for them" right? Strange that the story on him would be featured on their web site for less than a day.
 

SydneySox

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Why should they be doing that? Because the 300 members of SoSH think a story on the backup bullpen catcher for the Rockies is more interesting? Again, you don't think the average person out there watching espn would be more likely to watch the Tebow segment than that? The fact that mlb network covered his press conference doesn't maybe make you think that there's an audience out there for it?

I mean, "He's basically the face of MLB for them" right? Strange that the story on him would be featured on their web site for less than a day.
While I certainly take your point about the different focus of people in the 'real' ESPN world and SoSH, the big issue with your post is that you haven't acknowledged the crux of the Tebow/ESPN issue. It's the classic media issue. Is Tebow a big deal, still, because people love him and that's why ESPN run it? Or is ESPN running it the reason people are still interested?

This isn't something new or revelatory, obviously, news for profit places like ESPN generate news via editorial decisions every single place in the world. But it does meant he criticism is valid.

If no one reported on Tebow - and for many people he's a car crash like Lindsay Lohan - Tebow might not go away, he's his own guy who is clearly confident in his own god-given abilities, but he would certainly not generate news.
 

ifmanis5

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Agreed with the above.
Also, if you watch carefully, ABC News makes sure to do a weather story in the first segment of World News everyday. Is the weather actually news most days? Nope. They do it for ratings; and it's fair to criticize them for it. Just as it's fair to criticize ESPN for going for meaningless Tebow clicks.
 

E5 Yaz

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.com headline that probably will be changed soon:
Mark Ingram, Saints teammates say there denied entry to London club for being 'too urban'

 

E5 Yaz

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The axe is falling

SI has learned that ESPN will have significant cost-cutting over the next four months on its talent side (people in front of the camera or audio/digital screen). Multiple sources said ESPN has been tasked with paring tens of millions of staff salary from its payroll, including staffers many viewers and readers will recognize. Those with contracts coming up would be particularly vulnerable, sources said. The company is also expected to buyout some existing contracts, which is something rare for ESPN historically beyond a few NFL talents. The cuts are expected to be completed by June. Sources within ESPN say that there is no set list of names yet and stressed that behind-the-scenes people will likely (key word) not be impacted by these cuts.

http://www.si.com/tech-media/2017/03/05/espn-sunday-nfl-countdown-replacement-chris-berman-sam-ponder
 

soxhop411

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The axe is falling

SI has learned that ESPN will have significant cost-cutting over the next four months on its talent side (people in front of the camera or audio/digital screen). Multiple sources said ESPN has been tasked with paring tens of millions of staff salary from its payroll, including staffers many viewers and readers will recognize. Those with contracts coming up would be particularly vulnerable, sources said. The company is also expected to buyout some existing contracts, which is something rare for ESPN historically beyond a few NFL talents. The cuts are expected to be completed by June. Sources within ESPN say that there is no set list of names yet and stressed that behind-the-scenes people will likely (key word) not be impacted by these cuts.

http://www.si.com/tech-media/2017/03/05/espn-sunday-nfl-countdown-replacement-chris-berman-sam-ponder
Which means the Buster Olney types.... They will be out of a job for 5 min before another network picks them up
 

Clears Cleaver

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You have to think any high priced former athlete is at risk plus older announcers. DickieV. What about Golic? Since Greenberg is starting own show. What sports are they deemphasizing? Baseball? College hoops?

If espn fired 75 percent of the on air talent would anyone notice or care? Is there anyone on espn you tune in to see?
 

Average Reds

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More to the point, will it make a difference financially for ESPN?

The problem they have is that they are in long terms contracts with the NFL and MLB that most likely don't look as smart now as they did when they agreed to them. If ESPN is slashing talent, it means they are going to relinquish some rights, which is where the real savings are.
 

mauf

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More to the point, will it make a difference financially for ESPN?

The problem they have is that they are in long terms contracts with the NFL and MLB that most likely don't look as smart now as they did when they agreed to them. If ESPN is slashing talent, it means they are going to relinquish some rights, which is where the real savings are.
ESPN is no longer a growth engine for Disney, but are we sure ESPN is struggling financially? If they are truly cutting "tens of millions of dollars" in payroll just by culling on-air talent, that tells me spending at the WWL has been out of control; if the P/L was truly out of whack, we'd be seeing deep cuts behind the camera as well.

Maybe ESPN is drowning and there's another shoe to drop here, but this move strikes me as nothing more than long-overdue fiscal discipline.
 

Marceline

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Yes, we're sure ESPN is struggling.

The Media Networks segment's revenues dipped 2% to $6,322 million, primarily due to a 2% decline in Cable Networks revenues to $4,428 million. However, Broadcasting came in at $1,805 million, flat year over year.

The segment's operating income came in at $1,362 million, down 4% year over year. Cable Networks saw 11% drop in operating income to $864 million, while the Broadcasting segment reported a 28% jump in operating income to $379 million. Sharp decline in Cable Networks operating income can primarily be attributed to dismal performance of ESPN. Weaker results at ESPN were mostly due to fall in advertising and increase in programming cost in comparison to the preceding year. ESPN advertising revenues declined 7% in the reported quarter.
http://m.nasdaq.com/article/disney-dis-tops-q1-earnings-sales-lag-espn-woes-linger-cm744844
 

mauf

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"Struggling" is relative; they're still the centerpiece of a division that generated $860 million in quarterly profits -- roughly the same as Disney's movie studios, and only modestly less than its global theme-park business (which is more capital-intensive, to put it mildly).

Investors expect a conglomerate like Disney to deliver both top-line and bottom-line growth. Not every division is going to generate both. Of the two, top-line growth is generally the harder to generate, assuming such growth has to be at least modestly profitable. So if you're Disney's CFO, you're going to apply a relatively light touch to growing divisions and focus your cost-savings efforts on mature businesses. ESPN is transitioning from a growth center to a profit center; that transition won't be pleasant for the folks who work there, and I suspect it will cause them to rethink some of their rights deals as they come up for renewal. Overall, though, most companies (or divisions of big conglomerates) would kill to have ESPN's fundamentals.
 

Average Reds

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ESPN is no longer a growth engine for Disney, but are we sure ESPN is struggling financially? If they are truly cutting "tens of millions of dollars" in payroll just by culling on-air talent, that tells me spending at the WWL has been out of control; if the P/L was truly out of whack, we'd be seeing deep cuts behind the camera as well.

Maybe ESPN is drowning and there's another shoe to drop here, but this move strikes me as nothing more than long-overdue fiscal discipline.
I think that's about right. They're not hemorrhaging money by any means, but they're no longer a growth engine. So they need to run a tighter ship because they can't just outgrow their mistakes and still hit their P&L targets.

My larger point is that talent alone is a rounding error in terms of their costs, and if they are making serious cuts, it probably means they're no longer going to be dishing out (or setting the market for) huge $$$ for the rights to the NFL, MLB, college sports, etc.
 

Van Everyman

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I still think that's the problem: ESPN is now sinking tons of money into broadcast rights and I'm not sure how well that coexists with being a news and opinion network, even one about something as ostensibly trivial as sports. Yet at the same time, I'm not sure they can step back from that either.
 

The Needler

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Well, if they want to continue to demand and receive upwards of $8/month in subscriber fees for their networks, they can't just stop bidding for broadcast rights and go back to being the SportsCenter network. Those fees have ballooned as their rights slate has grown. I would guess that from a subscriber fee standpoint, they've had a positive ROI on those rights payments, but we'll see.
 

mauf

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I still think that's the problem: ESPN is now sinking tons of money into broadcast rights and I'm not sure how well that coexists with being a news and opinion network, even one about something as ostensibly trivial as sports. Yet at the same time, I'm not sure they can step back from that either.
ESPN's business model is centered on live sports -- that's what sustains the subscriber fees, advertising revenues, and so on. ESPN's news and opinion programs are not strategically important; beyond filling airtime, they are only worthwhile to the extent they are profitable. The current cutbacks are likely a first step toward bringing the N&O budget into line with that non-strategic role.

This is going to be a big culture shock for folks who work at ESPN, because prior leadership definitely thought that SportsCenter was the network's crown jewel. They have been shockingly tardy in realizing that if that was ever the case, it ceased to be at least a decade ago.
 

DJnVa

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ESPN is no longer a growth engine for Disney, but are we sure ESPN is struggling financially? If they are truly cutting "tens of millions of dollars" in payroll just by culling on-air talent, that tells me spending at the WWL has been out of control; if the P/L was truly out of whack, we'd be seeing deep cuts behind the camera as well.



They've already done the behind the camera cuts:

ESPN’s last major layoff was in October 2015, cutting somewhere north of 300 employees, mostly behind-the-scenes people. Not much more cutting can be done there before hitting bone, so it makes sense that these layoffs will be focused on “talent.”
http://deadspin.com/here-come-big-espn-layoffs-1793002796
 

mauf

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They've already done the behind the camera cuts:

http://deadspin.com/here-come-big-espn-layoffs-1793002796
That article's analysis of the business leaves a lot to be desired, which is not surprising considering the source. I'm going to reserve judgment on whether ESPN has truly cut as deeply as possible behind the camera; my guess is that we'll hear about another round of cuts within the next 12-24 months.

Perhaps the biggest failing here has been by Disney's senior management. The "problems" that ESPN faces now have been foreseeable for at least five years; they should have tightened belts sooner and begun preparing investors for the inevitable retrenchment.
 

RG33

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The axe is falling

SI has learned that ESPN will have significant cost-cutting over the next four months on its talent side (people in front of the camera or audio/digital screen). Multiple sources said ESPN has been tasked with paring tens of millions of staff salary from its payroll, including staffers many viewers and readers will recognize. Those with contracts coming up would be particularly vulnerable, sources said. The company is also expected to buyout some existing contracts, which is something rare for ESPN historically beyond a few NFL talents. The cuts are expected to be completed by June. Sources within ESPN say that there is no set list of names yet and stressed that behind-the-scenes people will likely (key word) not be impacted by these cuts.

http://www.si.com/tech-media/2017/03/05/espn-sunday-nfl-countdown-replacement-chris-berman-sam-ponder
It appears that 11 of 12 ESPN employees should start looking for another line of work?