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  • » Name: William E. Ketchum III
  • » Location: East Lansing, MI
  • » Member Since: 04/12/07
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Viewing Posts Tagged "Sports"   View All

ESPN: The Starbucks of Sports Television?


July 20, 2007 | Tags: none

If hip-hop is my H.E.R., ESPN is my M.I.S.T.R.E.S.S. Even when I'm not watching it intently, it's on in the background; I'm infamous for even leaving my home TV on when I leave, so I can walk back in to it after class. My people know that my 4 PM - 6 PM block of every day is filled: NFL Live, Jim Rome Is Burning, Around The Horn, and Pardon The Interruption. And if I miss ATH or PTI at the crib, don't worry - I'm subscribed to the free podcast on iTunes. Sometimes I'll even watch the other shit - World's Strongest Man, bowling, poker (even though I don't how the damn game works), etc. I'm a pretty hardcore fan. Shout-out to the former roommate Andrew Copeland, who's working for ESPN now; do your thing.

But recently, ESPN has had a couple of contrived attempts: this year's ESPY Awards, and their new "Who's Now" series. For those who don't know: the ESPYs is an awards show that recognizes the biggest moments/athletes in sports for the preceding year. "Who's Now" is a tournament the station is running to determine which athlete is the most "now" - a combination of their on-the-field success and their off-the-field buzz.

The reason that those two attempts are so wack is because they're trying too hard to be hip (or, "Now"). The ESPYs had LeBron James and Jimmy Kimmel as hosts, and ESPN continued the LeBron cock-snuggling ((c) Phonte) they started when homie came into the league. A royally robed King James came onstage sitting on a throne, had Jimmy Kimmel kiss his pinky ring, and had a live performance as Bobby Brown singing "My Prerogative," complete with the fake fade and tacky jacket. Hosts included athletes and random celebrities. "Who's Now" has Stuart Scott and any chosen three judges emphasizing athletes' advertisements and romantic relationships as much as their stats, and the product placement is ridiculous: the music is a tailor-made remix of T.I.'s "Big Things Poppin," and two of the latest aforementioned judges are Jessica Biel (an inclusion of my impending Top 5 White Guhls entry, the sequel to my Top 5 Underrated R&B Wifeys joint) and Kevin James from the movie "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry." Sure, there were certain show segments that we knew were started just for the advertisement dollars - the Gatorade Ultimate Highlight, the Coors Light "Cold Hard Facts" - but this shit is too much.

But why try so hard? The reason that ESPN is so successful in the first place is because they do sports well, utilize a streamlined presentation, and shine charismatic personalities to make us enjoy their anchors as much as the sports themselves. I turn to ESPN knowing that they're either going to be talking about a sport that I love, or they'll make a sport that I don't like interesting enough for me to keep watching. Stuart Scott's realness and Kenny Mayne's hilarity are what keep me coming back (pause), not a random Jay-Z appearance on Sportscenter's Hot Seat. ESPN is best at what they do, and they don't need celebrity cosigns or contrived product placements to succeed; they'd get ratings and advertisement dollars anyway, and other networks wouldn't have a choice but to follow because ESPN is the trendsetter.

But I'm still watching those joints. And Bronx Is Burning is my shit.
--
P.S.: Ya boy turned 22 on Wednesday. Aside from the parties going down this weekend, ya boy got an interview with Eve, one of the illest albums of the year (Common's Finding Forever), one of the illest mixtapes of the year (Sean Price's Master P), and a couple other interviews over the next week. I keep tellin y'all, hip-hop is good to me.



The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the writer and not necessarily those of HipHopDX.com or Cheri Media Group.

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