ESPN Bloodbath

[BigKen]

I was a teenager in the 60's. First time I heard about PPV was for boxing matches. I remember shelling out $19.95 for what they called "The Big Contender Matches. There were eight fights from Middleweight, to heavies. The only names I remember was Bob Foster and Jose Torres, both light heavies

 

[Godstree]

It's a much cheaper alternative to paying the cable gougers $250 a month for what used to be free TV and $5.99 for month HBO.

It might seem like the normal thing, but I remember when nightly TV shutdown at midnight and Friday and Saturday at 1:00 am. HBO started satying on air until 3:00 am and in 1983 went 24/7. All of the major networks had to follow. Around that same time a new Sports network opened iBristol, CT. East Sports Programming Network. They immediately went 24/7 and it was free if your cable company picked it up. I had a company called Comcast and they provided everything for $12.99 a month and you could get HBO and movies for $5.99 a month.

Did you know that when HD came out, you actually had to have your cable reset? You couldn't pick up HD without cable. Do you knw what year HD was offered? November 2004. I bought one of the first HD televisions available. It had an unheard of 43" screen and the TV weighed in at 338 pounds. I had a stroke on Friday, Feb. 2nd 2005. On January 30 I bought that new Mitsubishi TV and on Feb. 1, I had HD connected. There were only two programs in HD. Bonanza and another series. Except for the Super Bowl, on Sunday Feb. 7, it would be the first live cast HD sports event. I refused to stay in the hospital that weekend because there was no way I was missing the Patriots and Eagles in the Super Bowl in HD. The doctor asked me if he come over to my house to check me out and watch the game. (You don't forget the events that surround a medical emergency)

Fast forward 38 years. You may not be old enough to remember anything I just posted. But the cost of all broadcasting has gone out of control. Check your news over the past week. 27 highly paid people at ESPN got canned. Why? Because Disney can't give away tickets to Disneyland or Disney World and it's affecting everything they own. Advertisers refuse to pay for programs where people can speed through ads to watch a program, movie or event. The easiest place to toss bodies is a sports network. There are thousands of wannabes just waiting for the chance to be on the tube for $2500 a week.

You just might have to go dark if you ain't willing to pay the toll.

I am old enough and I would go dark.

Youtube be fascists and they get no $$ from me

 

[fastforward]

...Did you know that when HD came out, you actually had to have your cable reset? You couldn't pick up HD without cable. Do you knw what year HD was offered? November 2004. I bought one of the first HD televisions available. It had an unheard of 43" screen and the TV weighed in at 338 pounds. I had a stroke on Friday, Feb. 2nd 2005. On January 30 I bought that new Mitsubishi TV and on Feb. 1, I had HD connected. There were only two programs in HD. Bonanza and another series. Except for the Super Bowl, on Sunday Feb. 7, it would be the first live cast HD sports event. I refused to stay in the hospital that weekend because there was no way I was missing the Patriots and Eagles in the Super Bowl in HD. The doctor asked me if he come over to my house to check me out and watch the game. (You don't forget the events that surround a medical emergency)

I bought a 46" HD tv in 1999 before HD was broadcast. I'm still watching it. The idea was to be future proof and to have HD films on DVD/Blu-ray. It's a Sony Bravia 7000:1. It still has a great picture but the remote and some of the functions have seen better days.

 

[eaglesnut]

I remeber in the 60's in my hometown in California.
There was a big debate going on and on about "pay per view" TV.
We would be able to get a bunch of stuff unavailable on antenna
The argument against was PPV TV being a slppery slope - eventually you'd have to pay for all TV
Prophetic and pathetic!

All the slippery slopes came true.

 

[wilwhite]

Keyshawn Jwill & Max was a damn good radio show. The only sports show I made an effort to catch. Their NFL analysis was pretty insightful.

 

[redskinsfan1963]

just heard pti is off 2 weeks because of something tony said about hannah storm amd espn suspended him 2 weeks.

 

[Stakesarehigh]

I was a teenager in the 60's. First time I heard about PPV was for boxing matches. I remember shelling out $19.95 for what they called "The Big Contender Matches. There were eight fights from Middleweight, to heavies. The only names I remember was Bob Foster and Jose Torres, both light heavies

20 in the 60s is about 80 now.

lines up actually

 

[PDay8810]

20 in the 60s is about 80 now.

lines up actually

he's a kid.

 

[BigKen]

20 in the 60s is about 80 now.

lines up actually

yep. In my 70's today. It's the new 50's

 

[Dr. Strangelove]

No Stephen a smith, eh?

That would be racist, or so I've been led to believe.

 

[Stakesarehigh]

yep. In my 70's today. It's the new 50's

congrats

 

[Beengay fudgepackers]

That would be racist, or so I've been led to believe.

That’s okay.

 

[fightinfunbags]

That would be racist, or so I've been led to believe.

Screamin A embodies the modern sports media. He is a hot take artist. More people tune in because they hate the guy than people tune in because they appreciate others. Smith is one of their more valuable commodities.

 

[VikingFan2k2]

Screamin A embodies the modern sports media. He is a hot take artist. More people tune in because they hate the guy than people tune in because they appreciate others. Smith is one of their more valuable commodities.

He's now their highest paid employee now by a wide margin. I don't understand it. I was annoyed with him when he was working with the Philadelphia Inquirer and doing a couple appearances a week on "The Best Damn Sports Show".

Just because you yell your opinion louder then everyone else, doesn't make it the one that is right.

 

[PDay8810]

More people tune in because they hate the guy than people tune in because they appreciate others. Smith is one of their more valuable commodities.

The cowboys of the NFL. Neither has to be any good.

 

[fightinfunbags]

He's now their highest paid employee now by a wide margin. I don't understand it. I was annoyed with him when he was working with the Philadelphia Inquirer and doing a couple appearances a week on "The Best Damn Sports Show".

Just because you yell your opinion louder then everyone else, doesn't make it the one that is right.

I don’t disagree. My post is more about the sad state of what sells in sports media today. The matrix is broken. In a weird way, we have asked for this with the way we consume. Screamin A, Colin Cowherd, Skip Bayless…these are the guys that drive the clicks and it’s because they’re hot take artists who say stupid shit.

 

[ducky]

Fast forward 38 years. You may not be old enough to remember anything I just posted. But the cost of all broadcasting has gone out of control. Check your news over the past week. 27 highly paid people at ESPN got canned. Why? Because Disney can't give away tickets to Disneyland or Disney World and it's affecting everything they own. Advertisers refuse to pay for programs where people can speed through ads to watch a program, movie or event. The easiest place to toss bodies is a sports network. There are thousands of wannabes just waiting for the chance to be on the tube for $2500 a week.

That is so not true. Disney is posting record profits and revenue. And their theme parks are still the major driver of their revenue and profits. It is actually their digital and media arm that are losing money right now. And this move reflects that.

With so many people switching to streaming, fewer and fewer eyes are seeing ESPN. Thus they are generating less revenue in this one area. And they are just cutting their costs to reflect the current environment. Nothing more, nothing less.

 

[VikingFan2k2]

That would be racist, or so I've been led to believe.

They got rid of Jemele "Asians are also White Supremacists" Hill. Although she made everything about race and was on about strike 20.

 

[Southieinnc]

That is so not true. Disney is posting record profits and revenue. And their theme parks are still the major driver of their revenue and profits. It is actually their digital and media arm that are losing money right now. And this move reflects that.

With so many people switching to streaming, fewer and fewer eyes are seeing ESPN. Thus they are generating less revenue in this one area. And they are just cutting their costs to reflect the current environment. Nothing more, nothing less.

• "A recent Cowen and Company report projects a 47 percent drop in attendance at Disney-owned parks next year and a 35 percent drop the year after. (Getty) Attendance at Disney-owned parks could drop by nearly 100 million people over two years, a report by market analysts at Cowen and Company forecasts."

 

[sharkymcwrath]

She is 60 years old and damn good looking.

I never would've guessed that. I never found her attractive but she's fantastic as her gig. Shocked she'd be one of the one's clipped but she'll likely land somewhere better.