When did ESPN jump the shark?

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  • SPTO
    binging
    • Feb 2003
    • 68046

    #1

    When did ESPN jump the shark?

    This might seem like a bit of a dumb question but I've never gotten THAT much exposure to the "worldwide leader" but i've seen enough to know that the network has gone to hell in a handbasket.

    So what was the moment that marked the steady decline of a once great network? I'm guessing a lot of you will say it's when Dan Patrick and Keith Olberman stopped doing SportsCenter.
    Member of the Official OS Bills Backers Club

    "Baseball is the most important thing that doesn't matter at all" - Robert B. Parker
  • TheMatrix31
    RF
    • Jul 2002
    • 52908

    #2
    Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

    I think it jumped the shark when them and ABC started doing NBA games.

    But I can't remember any other outwardly "jump-the-shark" things. Two anchors leaving the network doesn't constitute as jumping the shark when the reason the product has gone to crap didn't involve those two.

    Comment

    • Brian Gee
      MVP
      • Mar 2004
      • 1938

      #3
      Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

      I don't know the exact date and time, but things that have helped the decline of a once great sports network have been mostly non-sport. That entertainment disaster show they tried to get going was awful, Some of the awful movies they've premiered (although, to be fair, a couple have been okay) and Maddennation. WHO THE HELL WATCHES THAT NIGHTMARE OF A SHOW?

      They are turning very MTVish, in that if you want to watch actual sports or get sports news, you have to turn to ESPNnews or some other ESPN station.

      Oh, that and how many hands of poker are we expected to want to watch?
      The line must be drawn HERE! This far, no further!

      Comment

      • Lester206
        MVP
        • Oct 2003
        • 1314

        #4
        Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

        espnews is the way to go

        Comment

        • BaseballCtchr
          MVP
          • Nov 2003
          • 1306

          #5
          Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

          I tell you when! When they stopped doing the whole screen for stats and just showed the little thing at the bottom of the screen. Man I remember the days when a whole screen would show up for stats in a game and would even tell you how many RBIs the guy had hit so far...not BBTN doest even do that. It is like ESPN went for the casual because if you notice the only thing you can see that a player has done all year is HRs.

          That little thing they show now is a sad excuse of a game recap. Especially when Bonds hits and one of the spots is used for him.

          I WANT MY STATS BACK!

          Comment

          • DueceDiggla
            MVP
            • Aug 2002
            • 4915

            #6
            Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

            When Stuart Scott started working there.

            Comment

            • Slymm
              Th* m*n...
              • Nov 2002
              • 3406

              #7
              Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

              Sportsnight killed it. Now every anchor tries to have a "personality" because they want to be the star of the show.
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              Comment

              • JohnnytheSkin
                All Star
                • Jul 2003
                • 5914

                #8
                Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

                Originally posted by DueceDiggla
                When Stuart Scott started working there.
                Agreed 100%!
                I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be. - Douglas Adams

                Oh, sorry...I got distracted by the internet. - Scott Pilgrim

                Comment

                • bkfount
                  All Star
                  • Oct 2004
                  • 8467

                  #9
                  Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

                  Originally posted by Slymm
                  Sportsnight killed it. Now every anchor tries to have a "personality" because they want to be the star of the show.
                  there's nothing really wrong with that. Sports broadcasters were doing that long before ESPN was around. There's also only a few in the ESPN stable that try to take over a highlight.

                  It's their shift towards VH1 style ADD demographic entertainment that makes them horrible. Where the hell did all the stats go? Did they confuse too many people? Do we really need a sportscenter recap, when we've been watching for the previous 20 minutes?

                  Comment

                  • Laettner32
                    Banned
                    • Jul 2002
                    • 2873

                    #10
                    Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

                    Instead of being a sports news network, they are trying more to be entertainment with news. Bermans "back..back..back" , Vitales "Get a TO baby!" started making anchors celebrities..Craig Kilborn, Olberman, and now Patrick (even Stuart) have gotten other more mainstream "gigs"...whereas in the past ESPN was the ultimate goal for a sportscaster, now in a way it is a proving ground for a more mainstream or Hollywood gig.

                    Comment

                    • sven
                      Banned
                      • Jul 2002
                      • 6021

                      #11
                      Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

                      The second they lets Stuart Scott's punk *** on television.

                      Comment

                      • larrygiterdone
                        MVP
                        • Jul 2005
                        • 3037

                        #12
                        Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

                        its the dead zone

                        there is absolutely nothing worth watching happening right now in the world of sports

                        when college football kicks off in less than a month, it will improve

                        Comment

                        • Mo
                          SSN
                          • May 2003
                          • 11425

                          #13
                          Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

                          When they had those fake news conferences with Steve Phillips.
                          Don't you EVER read my blog? It's gotten a lot better.

                          Comment

                          • Blaxican8504
                            All Star
                            • Jul 2002
                            • 4150

                            #14
                            Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

                            Originally posted by Lester206
                            espnews is the way to go
                            QFT.

                            Comment

                            • jima
                              Rookie
                              • Sep 2002
                              • 130

                              #15
                              Re: When did ESPN jump the shark?

                              When the NHL was off the network

                              Comment

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