When Did ESPN Lose Its Journalistic Integrity?
TMC
Written by Ryan Yoder | 20 July 2011
ESPNWhen exactly did ESPN lose its journalistic integrity? It's a
difficult question to answer, but one that certainly needs to be asked
in light of the Bruce Feldman fiasco. Granted, trying to sort through
the answer to this question is an exercise more suited for an educated
journalism professor or the Poynter Institute instead of a sports fan
who's a grad student in chemistry. Although, I will spare you ten
minutes reading Poynter's response to the situation by summing it up
in one word... weak. Our own Ben Koo took down Poynter's lame
response in grand style yesterday.
In fact, any critique of ESPN, either by bloggers or their own
ombudsman, may be entirely fruitless. Attempting any criticism of
ESPN at this point is like attacking a battleship with a BB Gun.
Quite simply, ESPN is a monopoly sports fans can't live without. Many
are of the mindset that we as fans should just accept ESPN's faults
and learn to live with them, no matter how glaring they grow by the
day.
But, stop to consider what we've been through the last several days.
Even though the #FreeBruce revolution on Twitter will quickly be
forgotten, ESPN sat (we can play semantics all we want) a man with
supreme journalistic integrity for merely doing a job he'd already
been approved to do. So why the "enforced period of inactivity?"
Apparently because writer Bruce Feldman helped confirm the worst fears
about fellow ESPNer Craig James and shed light on the shady practices
of supposed straight news reporter Joe Schad. As if the "suspension"
alone weren't bad enough though, ESPN's lame PR statement failed to
hide their mistakes throughout the Mike Leach story.
Apparently, ESPN and Poynter would like all of us to get caught up in
the semantics of the word suspension and feel guilty for being bad
bloggers by spreading mean, nasty rumors. And while no amount of blog
posts, boycotts, and hashtags will make a sizable dent in what's left
of the mothership's appearance of integrity, we as sports fans have a
right to examine the credibility gap now present at ESPN. Ask
yourself, how long will it take to fully believe ESPN again when it
reports the news? How long should your skepticism last? If the
lessons of #FreeBruce aren't forgotten within our ADHD 24-hour news
cycle, the credibility gap between ESPN and its viewers should be
permanently at the forefront of fans' minds...
Perhaps ironically, one of the most striking portions of "Those Guys
Have All The Fun," (hear the AA podcast with author Jim Miller here)
was the impact John Walsh had on SportsCenter when he joined ESPN.
The former print editor successfully brought journalistic credibility
to the forefront of ESPN's mission. The way ESPN handled hard news
stories throughout the mid-90's such as the O.J. trial and the Atlanta
Olympic Bombing served as a journalistic model for any news
organization to follow, let alone a sports and entertainment network.
One might see the mid-90s as the journalistic high water mark for ESPN
The News Source.
But, somewhere between that long ago time and now, ESPN lost its way
as a top notch news organization. After all, the initials of the
network stand for entertainment first and sports second, with news
nowhere to be found in the famous acronym. However, it would be
naive to think that ESPN lost all of their journalistic credibility in
one fell swoop that resulted in the #FreeBruce movement.
ESPN has actually been slowly marching to this point for the last
several years, inch-by-inch sacrificing their reputation amongst fans
as a legitimate news source for the sake of entertainment, profit, and
access. Perhaps there is no better example of this phenomenon than
the ESPY's. Thankfully, the pathetic spectacle the ESPY's have become
just hit their lowest ratings in years. Everyone remembers Jimmy V's
speech at the first ESPY's in 1993 as a poignant moment showcasing the
inspiring power of sports. Since then, the ESPY's have devolved into
a quagmire of self-congratulation by ESPN and for ESPN, mixed with an
unseemly marathon of worshiping at the feet of athletes and
celebrities.
But it's not just the ESPY's that have cost ESPN most of its
journalistic integrity. Another key figure in "Those Guys" was the
young firebrand executive Mark Shapiro. Even though he was only in
charge of programming for a brief tenure, Shapiro's fingerprints are
still all over ESPN, and not in a good way. His push for ESPN
Original Entertainment may have been a forerunner for the well-done 30
for 30 series. But, it also spawned the likes of Tilt, Playmakers,
and Brian Dennehy as Bobby Knight.
The larger impact Shapiro had on ESPN's journalistic integrity though
was the spawn of shows like Pardon the Interruption and its red-headed
stepchildren, Around the Horn and 1st and 10. While PTI might be the
best show on ESPN, the need to manufacture debate to fill content on
shows like ATH or create daily controversy for Skip Bayless has
brought sports discussion to an all-time low. If nothing juicy is
happening in the news, then ESPN's attitude seems to be to make up
some controversial angle just to fill their endless hours of debate
between talking heads. In recent years, ESPN has found themselves in
the position of creating news as much as they were reporting it in the
mid-90s.
While ESPN has made no bones about their emphasis on entertainment and
debate in recent years, they've also been increasingly sketchy on
their impartiality as a news source, with both athletes and larger
institutions seeing ESPN's favor. If sacrificing some of their
journalistic ethics for entertainment wasn't bad enough, the loss of
impartiality over the years by the mothership has been appalling.
Perhaps the most vivid example of ESPN crossing the line from
journalistic enterprise to bloodthirsty money-making machine is their
partnership with the University of Texas to form the Longhorn Network.
The ethics of ESPN funding the Longhorn Network are very complex, but
suffice to say anyone with half a brain can see the conflict of
interest. If Texas were to be under NCAA investigation, would Mark
May be foaming at the mouth to bring them down in the same way ESPN
has been crusading against Ohio State? Will ESPN's College Gameday
try to inflate Texas's resume to get into the BCS, even if they don't
truly deserve it? After all, BCS money means money for Texas, money
for the Longhorn Network, and money for ESPN. The same could be said
for ESPN's partnership with the SEC and their "SEC on ESPN" agreement
which blurs the line between normal rights fees and network
cheerleading.
Events like the ESPY's and ventures like the Longhorn Network are bad
enough in terms of ESPN blurring the lines between the athletes they
are in business with and the athletes they are supposed to cover
objectively. But controversies like their "reporting" of sexual
assault allegations against Ben Roethlisberger have shown a
favoribility in ESPN's coverage that would be revolutionary if it
wasn't so disturbing. In Big Ben's case, ESPN deliberately delayed
reporting serious allegations against a star QB with whom they had a
cozy relationship. They claimed their motivation was that the events
weren't "news." But somehow, T.O. doing situps in his driveway was
treated as the story of the decade.
Of course, the true watershed moment where ESPN gave away their
journalism card was The Decision. Needless to say the consequences
are still being felt today. The Decision was the single worst thing
ESPN has ever put on their air and severely hurt their journalistic
integrity. Perhaps the failure of Bonds on Bonds should have been
fair warning against ESPN craving access and ratings above keeping any
shred of journalistic integrity in their future, but evidently that
lesson wasn't learned.
Whatever really happened to Bruce Feldman wasn't actually the final
straw for journalistic ethics at ESPN, it was another chance for the
network to show its true colors. The entire episode has only shone a
brighter light on the inner workings of ESPN in their calling to not
let the truth get in the way of an entertaining story to fill hours of
air time and drive ratings. As excerpts from Texas Tech's former
coach Mike Leach point out, Craig James helped peddle false stories to
make Leach look bad at the expense of his lying weasel of a son Adam.
Not only did ESPN have their martyr in the son of an on-air
perssonality, but they had weeks of debates and stories ready to
transform Mike Leach from football coach to punching bag.
But the more damning allegations from the book's legal documents
center around reporter Joe Schad. According to Leach, Schad was
taking direction from Craig James's PR firm without caring to hear
Leach's side of the story. Reporters are supposed to deal with facts
and finding the truth. And yet, Leach's book alleges that Schad was
merely a stooge for an ex-jock who held sway at the WWL. How do we
know other ESPN reporters aren't taking similar talking points for
whatever interests they're trying to protect? How do we know ESPN
isn't quashing stories that would make their favorite athlete, team,
or conference look bad? Fifteen years ago, these questions would be
ludicrous. Now, after the journalistic path ESPN has taken since,
these questions have to be foremost in viewers' minds.
Even if you believe ESPN and Poynter as the Gospel truth, there are
still way too many questions for the integrity of the mothership. Why
does Bruce Feldman suffer from a conflict of interest and not Craig
James? Why wasn't James "sidelined" during the initial reporting of
the Leach controversy? Why did ESPN lose out on Leach's side of the
story to other media companies in favor of exalting Craig James? Was
every ESPN exec in upper management too busy with the ESPY's to
properly respond directly to #FreeBruce before nearly a full day had
passed? Is ESPN so mismanaged that the company can't craft a quick,
concise denial to a supposedly "erroneous report?" Is the Poynter
Institute really drinking ESPN's Kool-Aid as their latest article
suggests?
The entire #FreeBruce episode is in some ways ESPN's journalistic
Waterloo. But I see ESPN's slow march to their journalistic ruin,
crystalized by their actions regarding Bruce Feldman, as more akin to
Caesar boldly crossing the Rubicon to bring civil war upon Rome. ESPN
is a defiant Caesar, making the firm decision to leave behind its
reputation as a credible news source. The die that was cast with The
Decision has now been confirmed to the masses with the James/Leach/
Feldman saga.
While many, including those at ESPN, want to compartmentalize and
separate Bristol's journalistic duty from their live sports and
entertainment, the task is impossible. ESPN The Brand can't be
separated from ESPN The News Source as long as the two live at the
same network, under the same umbrella.
If anything, the Feldman situation has taught us all a valuable
lesson. ESPN values entertainment and big names in sports more than
truth, journalism, and transparency. It's all well and good that ESPN
has their sports and entertainment empire to dominate the world and
it's all well and good that ESPN finds it more important to protect
the jocks, ex-jocks, and celebrities that are highest on the Bristol
food chain. At least now fans know the internal battle between ESPN
The Brand and ESPN The News Source has been decided. But will it have
been worth it for ESPN to lose journalistic credibility with fans in
the process? After all, even Caesar's empire didn't last forever...
RaginPage
> http://awfulannouncing.com/2011-articles/july/when-did-espn-lose-its-...
>
> Written by Ryan Yoder | 20 July 2011
>
You know, that was really long when I'm not sure anyone that really
stops to think about it, finds ESPN to have had a lot of "journalistic
integrity" to begin with.
But yeah, they lost it a long time ago, if indeed, they ever had it.
Brent
Thomas R. Kettler
<1051ef39-17d4-42c0...@a11g2000yqm.googlegroups.com>,
RaginPage <btpag...@yahoo.com> wrote:
One could add canceling "Playmakers" at the behest of the NFL since they
wanted to keep NFL games.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playmakers>
The few "Outside the Lines" they have done do not compensate, I agree.
--
Remove blown from email address to reply.
Dano
Mason Barge
>You have GOT to be freaking kidding me!
Really.
Answer: About the same time Rupert Murdoch lost his.
P-dumbell
"Mason Barge" <mason...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:islg2714rg5gimefs...@4ax.com...
Will
"P-dumbell" <pdum...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:j09on8$5qb$1...@dont-email.me...
When they started having athletes participate in ads for their network.
Tonawanda Kardex
Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick.
The Inconvenient Truth
"Tonawanda Kardex" <tonawan...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:2676b444-f1ea-45c3...@d8g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
> Two names that pinpoint the exact time and place:
>
> Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick.
So what's your beef with Patrick? Olbermann is a given for you, since you're
just another right-wing fascist.
But what did Patrick do to upset you, fat Sammy?
Huck Kennedy
wrote:
> Two names that pinpoint the exact time and place:
>
> Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick.
Yeah, sure, it's all their fault. *chuckle*
They were one of the few things about ESPN that wasn't boring
or kowtowing to ESPN's financial concerns.
Huck
Tonawanda Kardex
<doandroidsdr...@electricsheep.com> wrote:
> "Tonawanda Kardex" <tonawandakar...@gmail.com> wrote in message
>
> news:2676b444-f1ea-45c3...@d8g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
>
> > Two names that pinpoint the exact time and place:
>
> > Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick.
>
> So what's your beef with Patrick? Olbermann is a given for you, since you're
> just another right-wing fascist.
TMML.
> But what did Patrick do to upset you, fat Sammy?
So did this.
Tonawanda Kardex
It's when ESPN became unwatchable, however, as they abandoned sports
journalism and moved closer to the "entertainment" aspect of
programming.
Probably could throw Jim Rome in there, too.
Dano
news:baaeccb8-39cb-4b83...@z7g2000prh.googlegroups.com...
======================================
What exactly IS sports if not entertainment?
This is like complaining that TMZ doesn't take their "journalism" seriously
enough.
I mean seriously...you have NOTHING more important to whine about?
Tonawanda Kardex
> "Tonawanda Kardex" wrote in message
>
> news:baaeccb8-39cb-4b83...@z7g2000prh.googlegroups.com...
>
> On Jul 21, 4:30 pm, Huck Kennedy <tempeh...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > On Jul 21, 3:38 pm, Tonawanda Kardex <tonawandakar...@gmail.com>
> > wrote:
>
> > > Two names that pinpoint the exact time and place:
>
> > > Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick.
>
> > Yeah, sure, it's all their fault. *chuckle*
>
> > They were one of the few things about ESPN that wasn't boring
> > or kowtowing to ESPN's financial concerns.
>
> It's when ESPN became unwatchable, however, as they abandoned sports
> journalism and moved closer to the "entertainment" aspect of
> programming.
>
> Probably could throw Jim Rome in there, too.
>
> ======================================
>
> What exactly IS sports if not entertainment?
Written like a true non-athlete: if one has to ask this question, it's
clear s/he never made it off the JV bench in high school.
Go ask Plato.
> This is like complaining that TMZ doesn't take their "journalism" seriously
> enough.
Nice false analogy, fallacy boy.
> I mean seriously...you have NOTHING more important to whine about?
No more than you do in responding so angrily, of course.
Perhaps your misguided derision and laughable intellect should be
better directed at the originator of the thread, though.
The Inconvenient Truth
TMML.
So did this.
Aw, come on Sam. I was just kidding. Has your skin grown thinner with age?
The Inconvenient Truth
Sports are entertainment.
The Inconvenient Truth
On Jul 21, 10:10 pm, "Dano" <janeandd...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> "Tonawanda Kardex" wrote in message
>
> news:baaeccb8-39cb-4b83...@z7g2000prh.googlegroups.com...
>
> On Jul 21, 4:30 pm, Huck Kennedy <tempeh...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > On Jul 21, 3:38 pm, Tonawanda Kardex <tonawandakar...@gmail.com>
> > wrote:
>
> > > Two names that pinpoint the exact time and place:
>
> > > Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick.
>
> > Yeah, sure, it's all their fault. *chuckle*
>
> > They were one of the few things about ESPN that wasn't boring
> > or kowtowing to ESPN's financial concerns.
>
> It's when ESPN became unwatchable, however, as they abandoned sports
> journalism and moved closer to the "entertainment" aspect of
> programming.
>
> Probably could throw Jim Rome in there, too.
>
> ======================================
>
> What exactly IS sports if not entertainment?
Written like a true non-athlete: if one has to ask this question, it's
clear s/he never made it off the JV bench in high school.
Oh geez. Ok Sam, spectator sports are entertainment. ESPN is mostly about
spectator sports. It didn't start off as a private athletes-only channel.
Go ask Plato.
Can't. He's dead. But his words live on. We'd know which ones you were
referring to if you actually included them for us dumb, non-athlete types.
Dano
Go ask Plato.
======================================
I'll direct my comments where I wish. You sound like a frustrated jock who
never made the grade and is filled with resentment over the fact. Sports is
NOT entertainment? Seriously? You are a rather obvious fool who deserves
less response than this. Fortunately your silly "handle" will not soon be
forgotten by me and I will waste no more time giving consideration to your
idiotic ravings.
Mason Barge
I think "sports" is just too broad a category. Some sports are definitely
"entertainment". I mean, hell, they sell tickets! They do get an
asterisk, since "real" sports (i.e. not WWE) test the limits of actual
human abilities, rather than existing entirely in the imagination.
But "recreation" would be a more accurate word for participatory sports.
And many or most participatory sports have a self-improvement or health
component.
The Inconvenient Truth
"Dano" <janea...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:j0c4bj$t4n$1...@dont-email.me...
Dude, Sam has been over on the 49ers group for years spitting on the
championships that they won. He made fun of Bill Walsh's illness, one he
eventually died from.
Sam is a bitter person.
Ubiquitous
>ESPNWhen exactly did ESPN lose its journalistic integrity?
Its what?
You're not going to claim cheerleading is a sport, are you?
--
"If Barack Obama isn't careful, he will become the Jimmy Carter of the
21st century."
Tonawanda Kardex
<doandroidsdr...@electricsheep.com> wrote:
> "Dano" <janeandd...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
And a disease I've personally raised over $20k for research and
prevention over the last five years, too!
> Sam is a bitter person.
Clearly!
Tonawanda Kardex
<doandroidsdr...@electricsheep.com> wrote:
> "Tonawanda Kardex" <tonawandakar...@gmail.com> wrote in message
>
> news:0a23b580-99df-45fc...@r28g2000prb.googlegroups.com...
> On Jul 21, 4:26 pm, " The Inconvenient Truth"
>
> <doandroidsdr...@electricsheep.com> wrote:
> > "Tonawanda Kardex" <tonawandakar...@gmail.com> wrote in message
>
> >news:2676b444-f1ea-45c3...@d8g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
>
> > > Two names that pinpoint the exact time and place:
>
> > > Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick.
>
> > So what's your beef with Patrick? Olbermann is a given for you, since
> > you're
> > just another right-wing fascist.
>
> TMML.
>
> > But what did Patrick do to upset you, fat Sammy?
>
> So did this.
>
> Aw, come on Sam. I was just kidding. Has your skin grown thinner with age?
What part of "TMML" didn't you understand?
The Inconvenient Truth
Here's what I understand. You made a joke about Bill Walsh's illnes, one
which took his life. You then removed the original post but the references
to it are still there.
*That* is what I understand, Sammy.
The Inconvenient Truth
Brag much? Real men don't brag about being charitable, Sammy.
> Sam is a bitter person.
Clearly!
"what I am supposed to say here? I am not a african-american woman." -Sammy
LOL
Tonawanda Kardex
Surprise. You understand what your limited mind can.
Enjoy that; I'm sure it leads to a fruitful life full of happiness.
Cheers.
Tonawanda Kardex
<doandroidsdr...@electricsheep.com> wrote:
> "Tonawanda Kardex" <tonawandakar...@gmail.com> wrote in message
"Real men" don't do a lot of things, whatever that means.
Cheers, because if I'm the bitter one? You're ... well, you.
Tonawanda Kardex
R-i-i-i-ght.
Ignore what you don't agree with and bury your head in the sand.
Go for it.
The Inconvenient Truth
Cheers.
A proclaimation from the high and mighty fat one!
We are blessed!
Down on your knees, knaves and worship at the altar of a humble man who
brags incessantly about his "charitable works."
lol!
The Inconvenient Truth
"What am I suppose to say here? I am not an African-American woman!"
lmao!!!!
The Inconvenient Truth
R-i-i-i-ght.
Go for it.
Snip what makes you look like an embarrassing old tard.
Go for it.
lol!
R�vNsf�n �
news:tkettler-9F24BA...@news.eternal-september.org...
: In article
: <1051ef39-17d4-42c0...@a11g2000yqm.googlegroups.com>,
: RaginPage <btpag...@yahoo.com> wrote:
:
: > On Jul 21, 1:50 am, TMC <tmc1...@gmail.com> wrote:
: > >
http://awfulannouncing.com/2011-articles/july/when-did-espn-lose-its-...
: > >
: > > Written by Ryan Yoder | 20 July 2011
: > >
: >
: > You know, that was really long when I'm not sure anyone that really
: > stops to think about it, finds ESPN to have had a lot of "journalistic
: > integrity" to begin with.
: >
: > But yeah, they lost it a long time ago, if indeed, they ever had it.
:
: One could add canceling "Playmakers" at the behest of the NFL since they
: wanted to keep NFL games.
I fully concur on this issue and express that IMO the NFL itself took an
even greater cedibility hit for it's abuse of it's influence. If the NFL
can..., and of course they did, ...influence the removal of the future
programming schedule for a successful and acclaimed football series', what
credibility does the league hold toward the random outcome of any game(s),
or championship(s), or suspect scheduling, or suspect referee decisions,
etc, etc, ...
--
~Drew
"Talk is cheap ...lets just go play"
Johnny Unitas - Baltimore Colts
R�vNsf�n �
Entertainment TV is what the NFL commands. Failure to comply with the will
of the NFL has in the past proven devastating.
--
~Drew
"Talk is cheap ...lets just go play"
Johnny Unitas - Baltimore Colts