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When did ESPN start to suck?

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bionic77

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Is it just me or is ESPN becoming less enjoyable every single year? Granted the internet has changed everything, but ESPN seems to be becoming more like MTV and less like the network I grew up with. They seem to be more focused on putting on a show than being a serious sports network. Not to mention they employ the worst analysts for pretty much every sport. Any network will give Skip Bayless a show is obviously being run by complete morons.

Maybe HBO will make its own sports network and eliminate the need for ESPN. Watch Real Sports or any of the sporting events HBO does and you can see how sports should handled.

P.S. I could be totally wrong, but I have a sneaking suspicion that Konex thinks that Sportscenter is better than it ever was and that Skip Bayless is a genuis. Just a hunch from observing his posting history...
 
Getting worse? I thought it was getting better, with the exception of ESPN Hollywood(Which I never bother to watch anyways), and a few other shows more about entertainment than sports that I can't really remember. Production is top notch and I don't hate any of the analysts (Although, I'm very tolerant when it comes to annoying things, so that maybe why I don't mind as much). The only problem I have really is when they put Mariotti on PTI, it's just not right dammit!
 
Iamthegamer said:
Getting worse? I thought it was getting better, with the exception of ESPN Hollywood(Which I never bother to watch anyways), and a few other shows more about entertainment than sports that I can't really remember. Production is top notch and I don't hate any of the analysts (Although, I'm very tolerant when it comes to annoying things, so that maybe why I don't mind as much). The only problem I have really is when they put Mariotti on PTI, it's just not right dammit!
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Must be just me then.

The network is becoming unbearable to me these days. I will just keep dreaming of a HBO Sports channel in the meantime.
 
Interesting... I've noticed that over the last few years that Sportscenter often times only shows highlights or puts the focal point on things in which they can create a story with. For Example if the talk has been about a certain player struggling(in any sport) and they made 5 spectacular plays, ans 4 bad plays, Sportscenter will show 3 bad play and 1 good play in order to perpetuate that story. Stuff like that has I don't really like. They did this real bad in the whole Carmelo vs Lebron thing..Played Lebron's best highlights and only a few of Melo's even though Melo had the better numbers.

Their best two shows are by far PTI(When they have Wilbon and Kornheiser on), Sunday NFL Countdown, and QUite Frankly w/ Steven A. Smith. The NFL Live staff are all morons, but I watch it anyway because well..its NFL Live. EA NFL Match-up is good because Jaws is the man, but merrill Hodge sucks.

I rarely watch Baseball Tonight, but as far as Hockey, Barry Melrose is your god...I've never liked Lee Corso that much, and Kirk Herbstreet is usually his little crony.
 
Multiple channels, that's exactly the problem.

Brady hates espn too Bionic!
 
200967.jpg
 
ESPN would be ALOT bette if Playmakers still came on. How they could cancel that and put some crap like Tilt on TV is beyond me.
 
Sportscenter was alot better when they showed highlights for EVERY game. Not just a few. Back then they left the stories for Outside the Lines.
 
rome is burning, pti, and around the horn is a really good block of shows. my only peeve is that pti and ath usually talk about the same exact things. and if kornheiser and wilbon were on pti they'd blow everyone else out of the water and they would both be in the showdown every day.

i used to HATE stephen a. smith but i like him now. he does good interviews. i still hate, and will continue to hate rick sutcliffe (basebally analyst), this guy just doesnt shut the fuck up.

between espn, espn.com, and espn radio (i just realized how much espn i consume, jesus) i really cant complain.
 
I don't like ATH. The scoring seems totally subjective. Not that I could come up with a better system, but I still think the show is dumb.
 
Slo said:
If there wasn't 10 freaking ESPN channels, the content wouldn't be as diluted as it is.
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Boomer said:
I hate Stephen A. Smith.
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DjangoReinhardt said:
Baseball Tonight has been unwatchable for the last two years.
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I agree with all of these points. With PTI as an exception, ESPN has gotten worse the past couple of years. Even NFL Sunday Countdown isn't as good as it once was; instead of talking about actual games, they seem to do more "personal" stories. Meh. :|
 
The ATH/PTI hour is solid when they actually have it and dont preempt it with golf. I'm just pissed that they're putting more bullshit on tv, like pool, poker or darts, than smaller football games, etc. I dont know about you guys, but I'd rather watch a Boise State vs. San Diego State game than the "Midwest Regional 310 Dart Championship Presented by Old Spice in affiliation with Nextel by Sprint and And1 Sports"

plus, the anchors on Sportscenter are actually getting better. That one black guy they pulled off of Dream Job is phenomenal and better than probably 90% of the anchors they have, with the exception of Dan Patrick and Linda Cohn.
 
bjork said:
To answer the question:

About 1990 or so.
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^^^ Yep.

They've become almost all schtick and little substance. Stuart Scott is a cartoon character. So is Chris Berman. PTI is the one good show I can think of, but even that is often too focused on sound bites and trash talking. I haven't been able to watch Sportscenter for a long, long time. It's so smarmy.
 
Surely, I'm not the only one to notice the decline in quality at ESPN just happened to coincide with the arrival of one Stuart Scott to the big-boy network. He wasn't so bad when he was on ESPN2, back when it was espn2, and all "edgy" and "street" and "alternative" and all that. But then they rebranded the network, moved Stu to the big leagues, and he "YEAH BOYYYY"-ed me to the point that I don't even watch SportsCenter anymore.

Of course, espn2 also gave me Suzy Kolber, so I guess you gotta take the good with the Stu.
 
I only Tivo ATH/PTI and watch college football and basketball on the channel. I never watch Sportcenter any more. Sometimes I watch ESPNews for results/highlights

And by far the worst thing on ESPN is:

interior_pic_stuart.jpg
 
Battlezone said:
Surely, I'm not the only one to notice the decline in quality at ESPN just happened to coincide with the arrival of one Stuart Scott to the big-boy network. He wasn't so bad when he was on ESPN2, back when it was espn2, and all "edgy" and "street" and "alternative" and all that. But then they rebranded the network, moved Stu to the big leagues, and he "YEAH BOYYYY"-ed me to the point that I don't even watch SportsCenter anymore.

Of course, espn2 also gave me Suzy Kolber, so I guess you gotta take the good with the Stu.
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I don't even MIND him that much. Like, some of his shows aren't bad. I really enjoy watching Teammates, cuz you can learn alot about teams that way. I don't think its a coincidence that the Colts players know themselves and their teammates inside out, while the guys from the Bears didn't even know who showed up first to practice or who was injured the most...
 
suaveric said:
I only Tivo ATH/PTI and watch college football and basketball on the channel. I never watch Sportcenter any more. Sometimes I watch ESPNews for results/highlights

And by far the worst thing on ESPN is:

interior_pic_stuart.jpg
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nooo shit. I've turned to watching espn news because it's actually more tolerable than sportscenter. I get what I want-- big stories-- and don't have to hear about why I should care that Barry Bonds didn't really juice and it's such a good thing for him to come back 3 weeks before the end of the season. WAY TO GO BIG BERR!
 
I hate Stuart Scott personally, and not just because his eye problem always freaks me out.

There's some good stuff though to be found, the WSOP is fun to watch although both announcers suck. Tilt was a decent series for what it was, drama. Playmakers rocked. Plus I'm just a fan of Michael Irvin on the NFL Countdown, hah.
 
Matlock said:
With "Inside the NFL" and "On the Record" on HBO, I rarely have a reason to watch HBO outside of PTI.
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HBO is the only constant on cable. It has kicked ass for forever and is in no danger of dropping off. I wouldn't mind it if HBO made their own sports channel. I would gladly pay 5 bucks a month to get that kind of quality sports coverage.

HBO should also make a music channel, I would love to see their take on it and kill off MTV once and for all.
 
Any sportschannel you watch is ALWAYS going to have douchebag analysts you don't like. That will never change.

I think ESPN is as enjoyable as ever. I find myself watching ESPNews more often than ESPN, though.
But ATH, PTI, Rome, Sunday night's edition of Sportscenter....all still make ESPN as good as ever IMO.
 
suaveric said:
I only Tivo ATH/PTI and watch college football and basketball on the channel. I never watch Sportcenter any more. Sometimes I watch ESPNews for results/highlights

And by far the worst thing on ESPN is:

interior_pic_stuart.jpg
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A bit off there sir:


kruk_john.jpg
 
teruterubozu said:
When Kieth Olbermann left in '97, it was all downhill from there.

Keith_olbermann_posed.jpg
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I agree 100%. Nothing was better than the Olbermann/Patrick Sportscenter shows. Kilborn was great, too.

I like: PTI, Peter Gammons, Harold Reynolds, College Gameday, NFL Countdown, NFL Primetime, Jaws, ESPN high def college and NFL football, Mark May, Rece Davis, Joe Morgan

I dislike: Stuart Scott, Stephen A. Smith, the NFL announcers are absolutely terrible, too much poker on ESPN (should be on 2 or something), Lou Holtz is absolutely terrible, ATH, the way they show highlights these days
 
mmlemay said:
I agree 100%. Nothing was better than the Olbermann/Patrick Sportscenter shows. Kilborn was great, too.

I like: PTI, Peter Gammons, Harold Reynolds, College Gameday, NFL Countdown, NFL Primetime, Jaws, ESPN high def college and NFL football, Mark May, Rece Davis, Joe Morgan

I dislike: Stuart Scott, Stephen A. Smith, the NFL announcers are absolutely terrible, too much poker on ESPN (should be on 2 or something), Lou Holtz is absolutely terrible, ATH, the way they show highlights these days
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Agreed - Theisman, McGuire, etc. are just terrible on ESPN NFL Sunday night games.
 
was there a time when ESPN didn't suck?

even their live programming sucks compared to the local feeds.
 
Joe said:
haroldreynolds.gif


is the man.
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Reynolds used to be the world's most efficient baseball cliche machine until Kruk usurped him. Reynolds needs to buy some more double-breasted suits to boost his power and reclaim the throne.
 
the last couple of years i've noticed they are starting to take cues from the sports radio world (which i fucking hate). They will bring on analysts who are dumb as bricks as long as they are loudmouths who say something controversial every once in a while. For fucks sake they put Woody Paige on tv for like 4 hours a day. The guy has to be the biggest, most annoying retard on television. Every story is sensationalized (see how they covered the TO/McNabb situation) so badly now, even on sportscenter, to the point where it sometimes feels like im watching one of those tabloid hollywood type shows like Extra or access hollywood.
 
DjangoReinhardt said:
Reynolds used to be the world's most efficient baseball cliche machine until Kruk usurped him. Reynolds needs to buy some more double-breasted suits to boost his power and reclaim the throne.
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So true. I don't see the appeal of Harold Reynolds. He just spouts off obvious stuff and rarely has anything incisive or informative to say. To me, Gammons is the only reason to watch Baseball Tonight.

And to me, the worst part of baseball coverage on ESPN is Joe Morgan. Terrible announcer stuck in the past. Insists that things like wins are more important than ERA, even though a pitcher has no control of the former. Just relies too much on "intangible" things, and is afraid and dismissive of stats (as are many old-timers)
 
Kruk's getting better in his BT role. Took Reynolds a while to get comfortable behind the desk too.

But really, I'm having a hard time finding ESPN 8 on my cable system. I hear "The Ocho" has some kickass dodgeball action.
 
yeah definitely worse. All they cover is philly and new england, philly and NE. mcnabb and TO this, belichick that. I understand these are two of the top teams but come on, lets have some substance and not the sensationalized shit weve been getting lately. less catch phrases and steven a smith and more highlights please...

if only they had more shows like edge nfl matchup and pti theyd be ok. i honestly have no use for wsop, ath and such.

and also these people need to be fired asap:
steven a smith
woody paige
skip bayliss
jay mariotti
stuart scott
sean salisbury
the entire SNF team, or at least paul fuckin mcgwire
tom jackson

i can deal with schlereth and merril hoge somewhat, but theyre still douchebags. as well as berman.

keep steve young, irvin, and jaws. at least they know what theyre talking about and have the ability to form their own opinions.
 
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