ESPN pulls Williams from MNF opening

[NinerSickness]

This seems more like a personal agenda on the part of ESPN/Disney.

You're close. The real explaination is that BSPN / Disney is a bunch of loser bitches.

 

[threelittleturds]

Maybe ESPN did just take this as an opportunity to get rid of a 20 year old introduction like Kinzu suggested. They already lined up the replacement.

Barry Sanders will introduce the match-up, I doubt he's going to break into a song and dance act... but I guess we'll have to watch Monday Night to see what they do. I'd assume they plan to have a different player from the past introduce each match-up? Next week is a Jets home game, maybe they'll let Namath introduce it so he can crap on Rex some more.

 

[mem49er]

Maybe ESPN did just take this as an opportunity to get rid of a 20 year old introduction like Kinzu suggested. They already lined up the replacement.

Barry Sanders will introduce the match-up, I doubt he's going to break into a song and dance act... but I guess we'll have to watch Monday Night to see what they do. I'd assume they plan to have a different player from the past introduce each match-up? Next week is a Jets home game, maybe they'll let Namath introduce it so he can crap on Rex some more.

Just keep him away from the mini-bar. Or better yet...don't!

 

[wartyOne]

What ever happen to freedom of speech.....This is what wrong with this country every day our rights are being taken away from us and we (Americans) are allowing it.We need stand up and take back what belongs to us and fuck the government and it's bullshit law's...

He was allowed to speak. Freedom of speech doesn't guarantee freedom from retaliation.

Ask the Dixie Chicks. They suffered the same thing from the other side of the isle.

Like it matters anyway. That theme song has been tired for over a decade.

 

[wartyOne]

I think ESPN needs to take a long hard look at itself in the mirror on this one. ESPN is a news network first and foremost and as such should fully understand the meaning of freedom of speech.

They should also understand due criticism.

Obama preached during his campaign about how he was change we could believe in. He fleeced the population into believing he would make things better. Three years later and things are actually worst. Obama deserves all the criticism.

Case in point for ESPN. The Eagles spend the off-season bringing in big names and being hyped as the team to beat in the NFL. We are now 4 games into a 1-3 season for the Eagles, and they are getting ripped by the media. Do they deserve it? absolutely and so does Obama.

Imagine if the NFL conducted their business the way ESPN is right now? Imagine if the NFL came out and said they were pulling ESPN's media rights to their product because of harsh comments being made on Sportscenter about some of their teams?

This is a joke and someone for Disney made an ill-advised decision on this one.

ESPN is an entertainment network unilaterally. End of story. If they cared about journalistic credibility, they wouldn't have so many ex-jocks as analysts. Or do you really think Sean Salsbury and Mike Golic are the equivalent of Tom Brokaw?

 

[wartyOne]

So instead of being pissed off and speaking out about something you think is ridiculous, you would just sit back and not care. I have a feeling if he said this about Bush, ABC does nothing.

You're boiling this down to "left vs. right" or "blue vs. red." This was a decision about one color only. Green. Are you specifically so bent out of shape that you're going to boycott ESPN, ABC or the NFL?

Nope.

It's called hedging your bets. If I'm the president or CEO of a major entertainment corporation, and one of my employees brings something that i MIGHT perceive as harmful to ratings to bear on my network, you can bet your ass I'm firing him publicly to avoid the monetary backlash that his words might incur.

 

[wartyOne]

I agree. But doesn't make it any less wrong IMO.

Were you this up in arms when the Dixie Chicks lost their careers over being critical of Bush?

I highly doubt it.

 

[wartyOne]

The article, and the comments, are all about the amazing and widening polarization in our political environment. Not only do you have a guy comparing Obama (a very mild political leader, if nothing else) to Hitler (an extreme murderous revolutionary), which should be ridiculous no matter how you feel about the guy, you actually have people defending the comment out of pure party loyalty......THEN acting like Disney is just doing this because they have liberal sympathies. Its like people just assume conspiracy at this point, the internet is making people into paranoid loons who think the other side is like some other species.

Look, Disney is solely in this for the money. They make a decision like this based on pure economic considerations, nothing to do with right vs. left or liberal bias. They play everything as straight down the middle as they can, they are not in the business of being controversial. If they think there's one dollar to be made canning this fool, they'll do it, nevermind who said what about which party.

And I was three pages late. Good post, Space.

 

[wartyOne]

Maher was right. It takes balls to fly a plane into a building creating a fiery inferno in which you die a horrible death. Now lobbing cruise missles from a submarine 100 miles out in the middle of the ocean, that does seem more cowardly.

Seems like an instant death to me. Being defeated by cancer would be a horrible death. Going from "I'm alive" to "I'm dead" in a fraction of a second doesn't sound that bad to me.

 

[wartyOne]

I stopped going to Wednesday dinners with my family because of politics. It seems to me politics is like religion. You choose a side, hate is bread, and the other side is the enemy. Fuck, I don't want to hear about that shit anymore. I'll stick to following sports in my spare time and keep my blood pressure low. I truly feel bad for people that devote all their free time to following politics so they can argue with people about it. It ain't healthy.

Word.

 

[wartyOne]

I agree it was a horrid comparison and it was over the top, just trying to make people understand he never called Obama Hitler. I agree Disney has the right to pull his song. I never screamed freedom of speech. If you want fee speech, exept the backlash that might follow. But people need to get shit right with their backlash.

What does that mean?

 

[wartyOne]

This is where I'm at at this point. I used to argue about it all day and think that one side had all the answers and the other side were idiots. The politicians definitely are pulling a Jedi mind trick getting regular people to argue on their behalf, and justify their scams and greedy BS. They somehow get people to take such pride in their political affiliation that they'll defend scumbags just out of loyalty.

I've been saying for years, "vote anarchy." Nobody seems to get where that comes from.

 

[wartyOne]

So does anyone think pulling the song hurt or helped ESPN?

I would say it did not matter either way. The pulled in double the ratings of the MLB playoffs for the Colts (without Manning) vs the Bucs. They would have pulled the same ratings with or without the song.

Does pulling the song help ESPN avoid controversy?

I guess it's a matter of opinion. I think they brought more heat on themselves and more light to the topic by pulling it. If they just air the damn song I say very few people notice or care. By pulling the song ESPN made a whole lot more people aware of the comments Hank Williams Jr made earlier that morning. If anything ESPN just helped Junior's word get out there.

Some problems are best left ignored rather than escalating them. The comments he made were not so horrendous that drastic measures needed to be taken, but by making said efforts all ESPN did was make this whole situation worst.

I don't get why ESPN wanted all this controversial media surrounding them. It would have been easier to air the song like normal, and then issue a statement about not agreeing with Williams but his song was tradition to their program.

How?

 

[SRPnVA]

This goes to show don't get drunk or high and do a TV interview. I think it's funny he called Obama and Biden the three stooges. This is why our Country is in the shitter. Obama is portrayed as "the enemy" on a certain media outlet. Sad part is millions of people actually agree with Hank.

 

[grayghost668]

Obama really hasn't done much to help,,,,,,,,,and Barry Sanders,MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL WILL NEVER BE THE SAME,,,,,,SO FUCK ESPN

 

[grayghost668]

This goes to show don't get drunk or high and do a TV interview. I think it's funny he called Obama and Biden the three stooges. This is why our Country is in the shitter. Obama is portrayed as "the enemy" on a certain media outlet. Sad part is millions of people actually agree with Hank.

WILL YOU VOTE TO PUT HIM BACK IN FOR ANOTHER 4 YEARS,,,,shit caps,,,

he said he would bring our troops home they are still over there and that is only one of his promises

 

[SRPnVA]

WILL YOU VOTE TO PUT HIM BACK IN FOR ANOTHER 4 YEARS,,,,shit caps,,,

he said he would bring our troops home they are still over there and that is only one of his promises

Depends on who he's running against. Romney is probably the only one I would vote for. But he would really really have to impress me for that to happen.

 

[Kinzu]

How?

Because it's still a story nearly a week later. Then again if you believe no press is bad press then it's been great for them. Also like I said with or without the opening it does not effect their ratings. I have a hard time believing it was a money decision. They either got political pressure, a higher up pushing an agenda, or simply they just wanted to end the song anyway. Their was no other reason for ESPN to bring more out of this story than their needed to be.

It's more harmful to them that they did pull the song. Trust me pulling a 20 year old opening song from your program is much more noticeable and rememberable than somebodies dumb choice of words. What Hank Williams said would have been forgotten in a week, but pulling his song will be remembered for quite awhile.

 

[grayghost668]

Depends on who he's running against. Romney is probably the only one I would vote for. But he would really really have to impress me for that to happen.

NO WAY i WOULD VOTE FOR HIM if there is no one else I won't vote,i won't vote for some one I don't think can do the job,and OBAMA we all know he can't do the job so if thats the way it pans out I won't vote

 

[Southern9er]

I like Hank's music, I tend to agree with his comments, and he's my kind of people...but damn, if you speak boldly the consequences can be bold. ESPN had to make that decision, if they don't the public, press and pols jump on it. It wasn't political, it was $$$ and distraction; they did what was inevitable. Who gives a spit about a song that opens the game?

I'm more upset about the choice of commentators than that song going away. I've watched Monday Night football long before that song became the anthem....things change...as long as they don't take away the classic theme music, I'm good!...Hell, its time for a new song, but PLEASE NOT from Faith Hill! Let's go old school, "Drop kick me Jesus through the goal posts of life."

Can't bring Howard back from the dead, but can we at least get back Giffords and Al Michaels back on?...they were the best!