| I second this wholeheartedly. I used to watch SportsCenter at night before going to bed and in the morning when I was getting ready all the way back in high school (97-01). I don't even watch it for more than 10 minutes a week now. I've gotten the EXACT highlight I wanted without waiting on a bunch of crap already online, and the rest of it is just the sports equivalent of political punditry. Just throwing around 'hot takes' for the sake of having something to say. For every highlight package there's like 3 sob story human interest pieces that are so contrived (the swim team was only LOWER MIDDLE CLASS and they sold hay bales to make it to the state tournament!) that I just get pissed and turn it off. Let's not even talk about how many commercials are in the middle of their sports broadcasts. ESPN and SC in particular were where you went for the best of the day in a tight, smart package. You had just enough 'funnies' that something as inane as a Scott Stuart 'Booya!' stood out, and the human interest pieces were actually interesting tales of genuine grit and empathy. I was barely a watcher anymore by the time all the Tim Tebow is Jesus stuff came out, but that probably pretty much soured me forever. I don't read the articles, I don't watch the shows, but I do feel that (generally) their prime sports broadcasts are top notch and everything they do has a better quality level than FS1. EDIT:
A question, since I'd imagine the VAST MAJORITY of ESPN's subscribers come from cable package bundling, doesn't it stand to reason that as long as ESPNs decline isn't in stark contrasts to cable/satellite subscriptions that it's more of a condemnation of the entire ecosystem? I, BTW, would absolutely cut the cord except for I love sports, pretty much all the major US sports. I have kids so going to the bar or a friend's place to watch the game doesn't always pan out, and sometimes if it's a game I'm hugely interested in I would rather be at MY house, on MY couch, watching MY TV and not being interrupted (any more than what 3 kids under 4 can do). Other times I want the game on in the background while I'm getting stuff done around the house. |