How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

ESPN has followed the trail of just about every other cable network there is. High amounts of promotion advertising, create new types of shows, and market the hell out of them. Seems a majority of networks only have a few good hits that they rely on to bring in viewers.

Take A&E. I would never watch them but now I always watch DOG the bounty hunter, and sometimes I'll watch the Airline shows. Same for Bravo, FX, hell even CNBC now has a lineup.

Well I look at the morphing of ESPN over the years. In the past couple it seems to me to have taken a downturn. First off the new reality shows or game shows they have come up with mostly are bad. There were few gameshows they created that actually lasted. The reality shows they have made, well, most of them are just boring material. Teammates? Well that one blew. Stump the Schwab didnt last. Its obvious there is a surplus of reality shows and only fitting that sports have their own. Just some of these are pointless. Who wants to watch the documentary about Dick Butkis going to coach his old H.S. team? Or a documentary on select NFL rookies? Also Steven A. Smith is a sportswriter, he doesn't need a full show. Oh yeah ESPN hollywood is pointless. And to finish my argument, Sportscenter is just getting a tad too overplayed. Now there are always new sports stories each week, but it just seems they take the same topic and recycle it over and over and over. Just endless discussion groups on topics that are dead. Examples? All the sponsor segments (Coors light 6 pack) about the upcoming NFL week. I mean if people want that much material on the nfl you would figure that target audience would watch more of the NFL network. Its to the point now I try to stop watching sportscenter, because it just bores me after 5min.

Oh yeah, Sean Salisbury was a bad player, and he is even a worse analyst.

Shows I still watch: PTI (always), Around the Horn is still good, WSOP coverage, College Gameday Final.

Shows I dont watch: just about everything else. including bass masters.

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

re: The title of the post.

I cannot accurately express my contempt and hatred in words.

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

Yes, this new direction sucks. They were having CONCERTS on Sportscenter last summer.

I love PTI. I actually love Stump the Schwab too, because I love sports trivia. I'm surprised it didn't have more success.

But Hollywood, Return to Glory, Cold Pizza, etc are all crap.

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

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Shows I still watch: PTI (always), Around the Horn is still good, WSOP coverage, College Gameday Final.

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PTI is a good show and I find myself usually tuning in when I can.

Around the Horn, on the other hand... I used to be such a fan when Kellerman was the host. I can barely watch it now with Reali. Kellerman needs a show on a network that doesn't suck, he's pretty entertaining.

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[censored] that. ATH rules.

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

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[censored] that. ATH rules.

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no.

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

I think Reali is a good host of ATH. Whether I enjoy the show is heavily dependent on who the guests are.

(If you're curious, I like Cowlishaw and Smith. I dislike Mariotti.)

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

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PTI (always), Around the Horn is still good

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if you think this, i cant take youre tv opinion seriously. these shows are awful and are a total waste of time.

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

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PTI (always), Around the Horn is still good

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if you think this, i cant take youre tv opinion seriously. these shows are awful and are a total waste of time.

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[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]

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Mariotti is TV gold.

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

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PTI (always), Around the Horn is still good

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if you think this, i cant take youre tv opinion seriously. these shows are awful and are a total waste of time.

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If you think "your" is spelled "youre" I can't take your opinion seriously. [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

(See, because there's no apostrophe, you have the excuse that maybe it's a typo, since R and E are next to each other.)

EDIT: Mariotti's next thoughtful, non-knee-jerk, unconventional, non-superficial observation will be his first.

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

oops. typo.

any discussion show where people just yell at each other for 20 minutes is crap. kind of like those stupid foxnews shows. i prefer more of a mcneil lehrer approach. i watch mike and the mad dog fairly regularly, they are very good IMO. theyre pretty old school and should catch up on what people have been studying in terms of baseball statstics but they are not in the joe morgan school of thought at all.

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Right, but I would argue PTI has a fair amount of pretty sophisticated sports commentary. Wilbon and Kornheiser were both respected journalists before they got TV deals.

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You touched on some of the flaws of sportcenter, but ill go a bit deeper. They are trying to make sport center just like local news. The local news are 5 minutes actual news, 5 minutes of commercials and 20 minutes some BS story about some kid that has a disease that is 1 in a million and about how hard he is fighting to make it, yet they rarely if ever put an address to donate money or something. So their story accomplishes nothing except makes you say, "man good thing I dont have rectal cancer." Thats the way sportscenter is going. Out of an hour usually 20 minutes is actual news. 30 go to some sad story of the day of some kid who used to play sports that now has some 1 in a million disease and no number to donate or nothing so they accomplish nothing, the last 10 minutes go to commercials.

Also Max Rules, Realli Blows and its not even close, but ATH is still watchable. I still dont understand why ESPN doesnt just put Max as the host again, he is on their payroll, I mean he has a radio show with ESPN.

Also PTI rules all, its keeping the network watchable.

Stump the Schawb was decent sports trivia is always fun.

Itd do anything which was a fear factor knockoff that was kind of cool, a bull almost killed a guy on the first episode. That show was watchable.

Also Rome is Burning is watchable as well.

Everything else has been terrible.

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Mariotti is TV gold.

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what. the. [censored].

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Mariotti sucks. Even his radio show in Chicago only lasted 2 weeks.

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

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Also Rome is Burning is watchable as well.


[/ QUOTE ] Jim Rome hasn't been listenable or watchable since about 1994.

I always liked PTI. I only can watch ATH if certain writers are on. If Mariotti is there or on PTI I instantly turn it off. If Bob Ryan is there I am listening.

I hardly even watch Sportscenter anymore. There is no reason. I used to watch every repeat. Now I can't sit through one show.

You can blame hockey for the reality shows. During the lockout they found they could get higher ratings for all of that crap then they could for a hockey game.

I like Mike and the Maddog a lot. And I really despise every New York sports team.

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Re: Stump the Schwab, they've been casting for season 3 and should be back shortly.

I agree the ESPN "reality game shows", Beg Borrow and Deal (1+2), I'll Do Anything, and all the Dream Job shows left much to be desired (where art thou Dave Holmes).

There are some good EOE produced shows, the problem is they bury the shows. Timeless is a well produced, interesting show on sports that ESPN wouldn't even bother with. Of course they air the show once at 11:30am Saturdays spring/summer.

Bound for Glory was shopped around to many high schools around the country with the idea that Butkus would be their "coach" (he attended high school in Chicago). Not a great idea for the Montour Spartans, they go 1-8 and Butkus left after the 7th game as his contract ran out, although he made a token apperance in their season finale.

Screamin' A. Smith doesn't need an hour-long show or 30 minute "after show". This opinion seems to be shared by the viewers. According to this article (bottom of page), ESPN2 got a .3 with billiards/poker/table tennis/etc. QF, with all the promotion the ESPN machine can muster, gets a .2

If you think ESPN programming is bad, ESPN Classic has really gone downhill the past year. Who wants to watch a low-rent Sportscenter (Classic Now), terrible HBO series watered down by censors (Arli$$), and too much of the same thing (Tyson/Ali weekends). I do enjoy Cheap Seats however, much more when it was an hour instead of the rushed 30 minutes it is now.

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Rome is Burning away my brain cells. That guy I agree is totally unwatchable. He has the [censored] Blind Date Host on there talking about Barry Zitos Arm?!?!?

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

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PTI (always), Around the Horn is still good

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if you think this, i cant take youre tv opinion seriously. these shows are awful and are a total waste of time.

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As Larry King once said about PTI, "This is the best show on television".

Kornheisher and Wilbon are one of the best combos of sports personalities. Just for all the quirks and stuff they call each other out on. Them arguing IS the show. It what makes it so fun to watch to see them try to crack on each other. "Yanks and da soxs!" , "Tom Brady is as good as Montana" "My boy, Donnavan F. Mcnabb". You got a 50+ NY'er jewish man and a old school Midwestern chicago black man yelling at each other with heads on sticks, good cop/bad cop, and they get about everyone in the sports business to come on the show.

Still one of my favorite weekly tivo recordings.

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Sportscenter had a 5-minute piece on the Burger King guy, and his sports ability. WTF? Promotions are now becoming their own segments. Horrible.

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i think they would get good ratings if they started an espn hardcore fan channel, that was packed with nothing but analysis and discussion, that way i would watch espn a lot more than i do now, its such garbage these days. i remember when every highlight on SC was 2 mins long and they put up the box scores at the end of it, now every highlight starts in the 2nd half and it just has the summary score at the end. total garbage, i watch espnews a lot more than i do sc

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

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Sportscenter had a 5-minute piece on the Burger King guy, and his sports ability.

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I could not stop laughing at this on Sunday. The King's ex-girlfriend, the special rules for special players line. That was a pretty funny concept. Normally I just tune out the Mayne event.

Might just be that everyweek we watch games and discuss how the King should be the #1 fantasy pick next year because he scores every week. Take it to the HOUSE KING!

Re: How do you feel about the programming on ESPN?
 

"With the Patriots next pick, they choose..... Diet Pepsi machine!?"