Worlds Collide in 2014

2014 brought lots of excitement, but with a big year in sports also comes an important year in the sports media world.

          Before I get down to business, I think it’s appropriate to remember the late ESPN SportsCenter anchor Stuart Scott. Scott died tragically on Sunday after a multi-year battle with stomach cancer. Stuart was a trailblazer in the industry, helping to build SportsCenter up to what it is today, and becoming one of the best known faces at ESPN. Stuart Scott was a truly original sportscaster, bringing terms like “booyah” and “hallah” to the airwaves at ESPN, and leaving a golden legacy behind him, with shoes far too big for anyone else at that network to ever fill. Scott’s death was national news on Sunday, and it warranted remarks from a number of celebrities, including President Barack Obama. Stuart won’t be with the Worldwide Leader anymore, but his brave legacy should, and will live on.

            Scott not only brought a great style to ESPN, but also brought diversity to a network that really didn’t have any. He was among the first African American sports anchors when he started at ESPN in 1993. Scott helped to build ESPN to become one of the most diverse newsrooms anywhere, and made minorities feel welcome in the industry where they might not have before.

“Knowing that he was able to bring the hip-hop culture, that urban feel, to television sports broadcasting, something that’s never been done before,” ESPN analyst  Keyshawn Johnson said. “(It) gave me the hope that I didn’t have to be some corporate guy, to feel like I had to wear the white shirt with the red tie, and sit there and talk a certain way.”

            On a lighter note, 2014 brought a year of changes and excitement to the sports media landscape. Fox made a big step forward in 2013 when it launched Fox Sport 1, a 24-hour cable sports network that was designed to compete with ESPN, NBC Sports Network, and the CBS Sports Network. In order for a national sports network to succeed today, it needs to have the big names—live games from national sports leagues that people want to watch, and in 2013 FS1 simply did not have that.

            However, beginning this year, FS1 began carrying Major League Baseball, and in 2015 they will gain live broadcast rights to NASCAR, US Open Golf, and Major League Soccer. Both the men’s and women’s FIFA World Cups will also air on Fox and Fox Sports 1, which is a huge gain for the network.

            With all of their live sporting events, I think that FS1 will continue to grow. However, it will be a long time before they are able to even touch ESPN’s viewership numbers. ESPN was 2014’s most viewed cable network, with FS1 finishing in 50^th. That’s a huge gap, and one that the network is unlikely to close anytime soon.

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            2014 was also a year in which social justice issues and sports converged, with athletes taking big public stands on current issues that were appreciated by some, but angered others.

            As the athletes were taking stands, so did bloggers, analysts, and other big names in sports media. Among them were ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith. Stephen A, who is a total blow-hard in my opinion, said on his daily talk show First Take that he would tell women to make sure that they weren’t “doing anything to provoke the actions.” His comments created a Twitter explosion, and Smith took heat from several of his own colleagues including ESPN anchor Michelle Beadle. ESPN then suspended Stephen A. from going on ESPN or ESPN Radio for a week.

            It’s important to note that Smith comes from a conservative background. He is a frequent guest on Hannity, a Fox News show hosted by Tea Party conservative Sean Hannity, and tends to lean to the right when he chimes in on political issues. While what Stephen A. said isn’t right, and I don’t agree with it on a number of levels, I’m not sure ESPN made the right move by suspending him. First Take is an opinion show hosted by two blowhards, Smith and Skip Bayless. All Stephen A. did was express his opinion on the matter. That’s the format of the show, and he shouldn’t be punished for doing his job.

            There was also quite a bit of controversy around how ESPN handled its coverage of the Ray Rice issue, in which the Baltimore Ravens running back was captured on video beating his fiancé in a hotel elevator. After ESPN analyst Bill Simmons called NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell a “liar” on his ESPN-based podcast—Simmons claimed that Goodell had seen the video of Ray Rice before it was released by TMZ--ESPN suspended Simmons for three weeks. Ironically enough, Simmons’ suspension was longer than the one that Goodell gave to Ray Rice.

            There is now much speculation about whether Simmons might opt to leave ESPN, but I don’t see that happening, and he would be crazy to do so. Simmons earns $5 million annually from ESPN, and I doubt he will find another network out there that is willing to pick up that tab.

            Much remains to be seen throughout the sports media world, and the 2015 ratings could be a big factor in what the sports media landscape will look like down the road.

            I think that social issues will continue to get responses from the sports world, but how that affects the players and the games still remains to be seen. Stay tuned on one of your 35 cable sports networks that are fighting for your attention.