In the world of sports, there is only one media outlet that can truly be deemed legitimate, and that is ESPN. ESPN, the “worldwide leader in sports” (a slogan created by the channel), has monopolized the sporting world to a point unmatched in any other genre of entertainment.
ESPN’s monopoly in sports broadcasting would make Teddy Roosevelt the “trustbuster” roll in his grave: the network has rights to the National Basketball Association, NBA Playoffs, Monday Night Football, College Football, College Football Bowl games, College Basketball, Major League Baseball, MLB Playoffs, major golf tournaments, major tennis tournaments, and starting in 2011 the Bowl Championship Series, including the College Football National Championship. ESPN will probably soon scoop up rights to air National Hockey League games. And this list does not even include the daily programming that ESPN puts out, including shows like “Sportscenter”, as well as the multitude of other sports shown on the ESPN family of networks.
Any sports fan loves ESPN, and why wouldn’t they? ESPN gives you the all-access pass to every professional team in the country, not to mention some international teams. Sure, they cover the Red Sox and Yankees a bit more than the Pirates and Rockies. But can you blame them? ESPN only has a certain amount of stories to fit into shows, and they will always revert to the big-market teams. Their programming provides the viewer with 24 hours a day, 7 days a week sports coverage, analysis, and action. What isn’t there to love?
Well, lately I have become a bit discontented with ESPN. Sure, you will find me watching the network every day of my life. But maybe that is because it is the only sports channel to watch. ESPN has become this all-encompassing, massive, well-oiled sports machine that dominates the sporting world as a whole and which also dominates the individual fan. It has no rival in the world of television, a prospect that can be dangerous. Can you imagine if there was only one national news network, unlike the three that we currently have (Fox News, CNN, MSNBC)? It would be the only voice in the lives of the people, and you bet that it would affect the views of those who watched.
Am I saying that ESPN is trying to brainwash us all into loving the Dallas Cowboys? Although it seems like some analysts are (Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin to name a couple), such a concept is obviously absurd and unfounded. ESPN does give the Cowboys more attention than a team like the Seattle Seahawks, for example, but that is because the Cowboys have a more substantial fan base. Naturally, a television channel plays toward its audience.
We love you Tony Romo! -ESPN
What is nerve-racking is that ESPN gives coverage mostly to the events and sports that it has the rights to broadcast. While a network is naturally inclined to cover events that make up its programming, such a tactic is very unhealthy for the sports world. For example, ESPN currently does not broadcast hockey games. Thus, on shows like Sportscenter, network executives made the decision to show hockey highlights sparingly. Because every sports fan must tune into ESPN, the sole provider of 24 hour-a-day sports analysis, interest in the National Hockey League goes way down.
So, the NHL loses a bit of popularity, who cares, right? Only Canadians like hockey anyways, correct? Wrong on both accounts. The NHL is the most intriguing it has been since the days of Wayne Gretzky. Not only does the game have a superstar who could go down as one of the greatest players ever (Alex Ovechkin), but hockey also has unbelievable teams like the Detroit Red Wings, San Jose Sharks, and Boston Bruins, as well as a number of other players that are extremely fun to watch, including Sidney Crosby, Jarome Iginla, and Evgeni Malkin. However, because ESPN decided a few years ago to discontinue broadcasting NHL games, the network heeds little attention to the extremely exciting NHL. Such ignorance is injustice toward hockey fans and casual sports fans that are missing out on a truly exciting sport.
You won't see too much Jarome Iginla on ESPN.
ESPN also feels the need to grab every possible retired player, retired coach, or fired coach to analyze his or her respective sport. This strategy usually leads to atrocious commentating and lackluster programming. At the 2009 NFL Draft, viewers were treated to the awful analysis of Herm Edwards, an NFL coach just fired from the Kansas City Chiefs. Edwards clearly is an awful coach, as he was fired. The viewer does not want to hear him stutter over his analysis of rookie football players when he obviously is not a good talent evaluator in the NFL.
The network recently announced the hiring of Matt Millen, an ex-NFL linebacker and the ex-General Manager of the Detroit Lions. Although Millen was a good linebacker and a stellar announcer before his days with the Lions, his résumé with the Lions was absolutely abysmal. Under Millen’s watch, Detroit had a mere 31 wins and 84 losses record from 2001-2008, by far the worst stretch in the league during that time span. Now why would anyone want to hear Millen’s analysis of a game? Does a guy with this bad of a record have any credence at all? Of course not, but ESPN still finds it necessary to hire him just to add to their out of control machine.
The insight ESPN's "experts" provide us with? Seriously?
The “worldwide leader” has even started to infiltrate other larger networks, namely ABC. ABC, which owns ESPN, broadcasts several major sporting events, including the Rose Bowl and the NBA Finals. Now, sports broadcasts on ABC are dubbed “ESPN on ABC.” ESPN continues to expand and has become synonymous with the word “sports.”
ESPN is undoubtedly the “Worldwide Leader in Sports”. But its monopoly on the world of sports television broadcasting has me a bit worried. The network is able to promote certain teams above others, and tell the fan which sports to like. ESPN needs to find a way to obtain the rights for every major sport (and thus cover each proportionately) if it will not give substantial amounts of airtime to less popular sports and teams. So, now I am done griping about ESPN—got to go catch the latest edition of Sportscenter.
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