John Clayton out at ESPN

[L-TownCat]

37 minutes ago, rayzor said:

espn sucks and has for a long time. he was one of the few redeeming commodities.

they got into too many political/social discussions in addition to just showing too much bias towards certain organizations.

it sucks that clayton lost his job like so many other good reporters they cut loose, but hopefully they will go somewhere that actually focuses on just good honest sports talk with no desire to get into social/political conversations.

sports should be an escape from all the turmoil in the world, not just another voice in the noise.

[rayzor]

6 minutes ago, LinvilleGorge said:

This. I have no idea why anyone would watch anything on ESPN other than live sports. Their programming consists almost entirely of shows where shameless idiots yell at each other. It's kinda like the Huddle, only televised. 

yeah, that kind of made it unbearable as well. too much yelling at each other in the world, not enough respect or civil conversations. when it's on tv like that i know it gets ratings, but it dumbs down the world watching and only helps to make the world uglier and more hateful.

[Still Brooklyn]

I like Sports Nation and love Highly Questionable. Watch highlights after any big game that entertained me.

Channel still has value for me.

[Mr. Scot]

At this point I think ESPN's official slogan has become "Last one out, turn off the lights."

The channel might suck now, but John Clayton and Ed Werder were good reporters.

[thefuzz]

1 minute ago, Mr. Scot said:

At this point I think ESPN's official slogan has become "Last one out, turn off the lights."

The channel might suck now, but John Clayton and Ed Werder were good reporters.

Agreed.

They seem to want the 18-35 demographic, but forgot what made them a powerhouse....the now 35-50 demographic.

 

The folks who grew up with ESPN always on in the background are now attending their children's high school graduations.

[UpstatePanther]

ESPN wouldn't have this problem if they'd actually start airing sports again. They do have some good content, but not everyone wants to watch constant sports talk shows. Once in a while we'd like to see the actual sport. 

Seriously, how many times can you debate who is the GOAT in the NBA or slob the knob of some big market NFL team?

i want to see some Aussie rules football, soccer, hell lacrosse might even be a great addition.

[rayzor]

6 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

At this point I think ESPN's official slogan has become "Last one out, turn off the lights."

The channel might suck now, but John Clayton and Ed Werder were good reporters.

espn doesn't really care about that anymore and haven't for some time. ratings and commerciality are all that matters. but they are a business and they're just chasing the easy money. quality costs, but doesn't always turn the profit. find the cheapest way to get a sizeable ROI. it's the american way.

[L-TownCat]

8 minutes ago, UpstatePanther said:

ESPN wouldn't have this problem if they'd actually start airing sports again. They do have some good content, but not everyone wants to watch constant sports talk shows. Once in a while we'd like to see the actual sport. 

Seriously, how many times can you debate who is the GOAT in the NBA or slob the knob of some big market NFL team?

i want to see some Aussie rules football, soccer, hell lacrosse might even be a great addition.

At the time I used to whine and moan about little league World Series or fast pitch softball but hell, now I'd take a 4hr Strong Man comp over any of BSPNs "original content".

[bLACKpANTHER]

1 hour ago, rayzor said:

espn sucks and has for a long time. he was one of the few redeeming commodities.

they got into too many political/social discussions in addition to just showing too much bias towards certain organizations.

it sucks that clayton lost his job like so many other good reporters they cut loose, but hopefully they will go somewhere that actually focuses on just good honest sports talk with no desire to get into social/political conversations.

sports should be an escape from all the turmoil in the world, not just another voice in the noise.

sometimes you can't escape powerful political issues and they bleed into other areas of the your life and you can't turn away from them anymore.. 

Sometimes they enhance a good story and create an even greater story (ie. Miracle on Ice, Jesse Owens) but sometimes they create for a dark story that a lot of people don't want to face (ie. Kaep, Jones vs Boston fans, nazi soccer fans).. I think if it's easy to turn away from something and not hear about it ever again - it probably isn't that big an issue - but when you start to hear about something at multiple areas of life: the water-cooler at work, sports stations, social gatherings, etc. - maybe it's calling for your attention for a reason?

 

Now back to Clayton.. sux he got the axe.. but he's great - i'm sure he'll find another gig soon..

[BIGH2001]

11 minutes ago, bLACKpANTHER said:

sometimes you can't escape powerful political issues and they bleed into other areas of the your life and you can't turn away from them anymore.. 

Sometimes they enhance a good story and create an even greater story (ie. Miracle on Ice, Jesse Owens) but sometimes they create for a dark story that a lot of people don't want to face (ie. Kaep, Jones vs Boston fans, nazi soccer fans).. I think if it's easy to turn away from something and not hear about it ever again - it probably isn't that big an issue - but when you start to hear about something at multiple areas of life: the water-cooler at work, sports stations, social gatherings, etc. - maybe it's calling for your attention for a reason?

 

Now back to Clayton.. sux he got the axe.. but he's great - i'm sure he'll find another gig soon..

Classic case of not knowing your audience.  The typical ESPN viewer doesnt want to hear about politics and social issues either because they don't care or they are using sports as an outlet from the real world.   Also the screaming idiots make it difficult to digest any points they are even trying to make.

[rayzor]

9 minutes ago, bLACKpANTHER said:

sometimes you can't escape powerful political issues and they bleed into other areas of the your life and you can't turn away from them anymore.. 

Sometimes they enhance a good story and create an even greater story (ie. Miracle on Ice, Jesse Owens) but sometimes they create for a dark story that a lot of people don't want to face (ie. Kaep, Jones vs Boston fans, nazi soccer fans).. I think if it's easy to turn away from something and not hear about it ever again - it probably isn't that big an issue - but when you start to hear about something at multiple areas of life: the water-cooler at work, sports stations, social gatherings, etc. - maybe it's calling for your attention for a reason?

 

Now back to Clayton.. sux he got the axe.. but he's great - i'm sure he'll find another gig soon..

i've had to deal with enough poo right around my immediate life without having to be distracted by a bigger picture in areas i can't have an effect on. the more distracted i am with the bigger picture, the less time and energy i have to make the world right around me better. having a break from it all for a couple hours helps my mind rest and makes me better equipped to handle the stuff i need to.

i'm just speaking for myself, though. i know some people who have gone on to make an impact in some hard areas of the world because of injustices they've seen through media and because of the widespread attention they brought (though there are some areas that are far worst who don't get attention the need like what's going on in papua new guinea). i think most people just like to talk about whatever media or social media is making into a big issue without actually doing anything to make it better. talking can lead to action, but talking ≠ action. talking without action is pretty useless.

[h0llywood]

And....it took 3 pages to for the thread turned into politics...

[Mr. Scot]

55 minutes ago, rayzor said:

i've had to deal with enough poo right around my immediate life without having to be distracted by a bigger picture in areas i can't have an effect on. the more distracted i am with the bigger picture, the less time and energy i have to make the world right around me better. having a break from it all for a couple hours helps my mind rest and makes me better equipped to handle the stuff i need to.

i'm just speaking for myself, though. i know some people who have gone on to make an impact in some hard areas of the world because of injustices they've seen through media and because of the widespread attention they brought (though there are some areas that are far worst who don't get attention the need like what's going on in papua new guinea). i think most people just like to talk about whatever media or social media is making into a big issue without actually doing anything to make it better. talking can lead to action, but talking ≠ action. talking without action is pretty useless.

Two things...

One, there are plenty of channels out there for discussing politics. I have my pick of those. When I tune into a sports channel, I want sports.

Two, so let's say your sports channel does also want to devote some program time to discussion of larger issues. Fine, but that being the case why do you cancel a program like The Sports Reporters?

[bLACKpANTHER]

1 hour ago, rayzor said:

i've had to deal with enough poo right around my immediate life without having to be distracted by a bigger picture in areas i can't have an effect on. the more distracted i am with the bigger picture, the less time and energy i have to make the world right around me better. having a break from it all for a couple hours helps my mind rest and makes me better equipped to handle the stuff i need to.

i'm just speaking for myself, though. i know some people who have gone on to make an impact in some hard areas of the world because of injustices they've seen through media and because of the widespread attention they brought (though there are some areas that are far worst who don't get attention the need like what's going on in papua new guinea). i think most people just like to talk about whatever media or social media is making into a big issue without actually doing anything to make it better. talking can lead to action, but talking ≠ action. talking without action is pretty useless.

to be honest - it's not the media's job to act - that's the public's job.. it is the media's job to report.. and if sports and politics overlaps - they can report on said topic.. and if we chose to not act or not care - they won't report on it anymore..