Other things like propping up Westbrook have turned me off ESPN as well, but that's again not the root cause. Stop over-blowing this political stuff, because it's not the root cause.
did you read my post that you replied to? i'm asking because your reply is strange in light of what I wrote.
At least in my case, I'm getting to the point where I don't really need sports talk at all. Not on my radio and not on my TV. I'm fine just watching games and reading Clutchfans. I wonder how many other people are starting to feel this way. And if that sentiment has anything to do with all of this.
What I am saying is that it shouldn't be overblown. Unless I was joking, I wouldn't say something like the Westbrook bias cost ESPN viewers or some crap like that. While it may be true, it's just very low on the list of issues at ESPN.
I agree but I didn't say that. I said the main reason was cord cutters and millennials. I also said that politics is not hurting their subscriber (main issue) numbers but i'm sure it's hurting their neilsen/advertising revenue at some level. The Tebow and Russ points were from someone else.
In the age of mobile, ESPN is a dying company. Information that was once a luxury is now a commodity available through a million different channels. As Adrian Wojnarowski has demonstrated, a single twitter account with relevant and timely information scoops can be more powerful than all the resources of the Worldwide Leader in Sports. ESPN is an old media company struggling the death grip of new media.
What this particular round of cuts says to me is that ESPN is largely getting out of the niche content game, given that so many of the writers and reporters laid off were focused on a single team, a single conference, or a sport not in ESPN's primary suite of sports they carry on TV, such as hockey. What I expect, and what we've already seen, is ESPN doubling-down on the NFL, NBA, and opinion programming, for better or worse.
Exactly how I feel. I don't need a bunch of babbling idiots telling me what is going on. It's sports, its not that complicated. I can't remember the last time I watched sports center and I don't ever listen o sports radio anymore.
They should start letting some of these monotonous commentators/analysts go. Especially the LA based guys (Adande, Michael Smith, Plashcke, etc) and also do you really need Tood McShay AND Mel Kiper? If they're really trying to cut salary they should do so in the biggest markets to the biggest names. Right now it just seems like they're trimming hedges they don't really want. Biggest name on that list to me is Jay Crawford, he seems to have to have been there for ages.
Said this many times already. Here we go again: When ESPN finally launches an app (with ALL of their content) that does not require a cable subscription, cable will go from slow decline to nosedive. Licking my chops.
That's what it looks like to me as well. They decimated the NHL people. And cut a bunch of MLB people too. Baseball Tonight is now scaled back to Sunday only. They are using MLB TV's content on ESPN 2 during the week to fill MLB content. So content sharing. They might as well just link their NHL content right to the NHL.com site.
Football is pretty much always available locally, you don't need a subscription service for that Basketball and baseball aren't the same way, but at least where I live, it seems like most people just pop into a local sports bar to catch the local teams. Plus there are so many transplants in cities in the west that streaming services work for people like me (League Pass). But idk if that is the case in the rest of the country.
Here's the thing, that ESPN content is not worth much outside of the actual game broadcasts, which is why ESPN paid billions for the rights. The content of original ESPN programming is garbage. All the talkshow banter stuff with guys screaming over each other is not going to attract anyone to pay for a mobile subscription. Sports news is already done infinitely better on Twitter with Woj bombs and the likes. That leaves highlights, which are also available on every league's own network and website as well. The democratization and dissemination of sports information all over the internet is why no one watches SportsCenter or ESPN anymore. It has lost relevance and there is no going back. Today, I can get all the relevant information, news, and highlights I want without ever tuning in or visiting an ESPN property and that is not going to reverse anytime soon. The last piece of the pie ESPN is holding hostage, are broadcast rights to actual games. However, if the future is a subscription based model, then I believe the sports leagues can and will do it themselves at some point cutting out the middleman. That's why the NFL is heavily pushing TNF on their network. Build a big enough audience and you can put MNF on there as well and sell subscriptions yourself.
One thing I LOVE about ESPN is their college football coverage, especially as an FCS fan. I can catch any FCS game on ESPN 3 and it doesn't cost a thing. I also still like College Gameday. I love the format and Lee Corso still makes me laugh.
