The ESPN Bloodbath

[RattlerGator]

I may have mentioned in this thread that I enjoy Jemele (she grew up in Detroit) and Michael (he grew up in New Orleans) on ESPN. I liked the midday His & Hers show they had, and I like the new show (rarely watched 6 p.m. before, rarely watch now) but . . . objectively speaking, that 6 p.m. flagship slot is wrong for them.

RATINGS FOR 'SC:6′ WITH JEMELE HILL AND MICHAEL SMITH ARE TUMBLING
http://mashup.weei.com/sports/2017/05/12/sc-6-ratings-jemele-hill-michael-smith

And this writer thinks ESPN allowed Fox Sports to spook them into an overreaction:

https://sportstvratings.com/on-sc6-and-giving-jamie-horowitz-due-credit/8058/

Probably true.

[RattlerGator]

Also, this may have been mentioned but I was outraged by ESPN pimping for Michael Sam the year he entered the draft. I mean, there was a serious question whether the man was a tweener and worthy of being drafted at all but there they were with a camera at his party. They seemingly were trying to guilt an NFL team into drafting him and eventually succeeded wihen the homestate team made him their last selection.

On and on and on they droned about who was going to pick Michael Sam. For three damn days. The kicker for me? Plastering his damn boyfriend all over my television screen with an obviously staged kiss when the moment finally came.

They were unquestionably advocates for that cause and they lost me right there. I have more than a few proud gay friends but the staging engaged in by ESPN, the moral superiority preening, was just too damn much.

Of course, Oprah's production company (I believe) had signed him up for some reality TV shiznit -- proving they, and he, didn't understand the way the NFL works. He had to drop that initiative. He was then cut by the Rams before the season began, the Cowboys gave him a lifeline but he couldn't cut it, and he finally tried the CFL but he didn't really want to do that.

In the end, Michael Sam wanted to be a damn TV star. That's what he REALLY wanted to be.

But ESPN had to embarrassingly club us over the head with that mess. Everybody knows there are multiple gay players in the NFL and *any* pro sports league. Wherever there is a collection of men, there will be gay men there in "X" percentages. But there are rather obvious reasons why gay athletes are hesitant to be advocates, number one is it takes away from the concept of team. It takes away from a singular focus on team.

But like Michael Sam, ESPN was more interested in being -- dunt duh da dunhhhhhh -- social justice warrior TV hero.

To hell with that crap.

[I-10east]

HAHAHAHAHAHA, you actually recommended an article where the author then recommends you read Ben mother fucking Shapiro-- a true genius thinker if ever there was one, at least when he isnt obsessing over bathroom predators. 
GTFO with this crap.  THIS is your example of corporate fascism?!? Canecelling a TV show, and not, say, FIFA literally enslaving people to build stadiums, Coke destorying entire cities with pollution to make sugar water for fatties, Amazon and other places slowly doing away with human workers all together, or the way all companies are slowly creeping on your free speech rights?? You're upset over Tim Allen losing a shitty TV show? God i wish I lived in a bubble where the things that dont matter do matter and the important things dont matter at all.

Thank God that I now often take mini hiatuses from the MJ madness...So the outlet that is reporting (whether conservative liberal or whatever) overshadows the message? The lame stream media sure as hell not gonna report the liberal propaganda taking over everything...It's not like I vouch 100 percent what Shapiro say, the message is the main thing here...

[fsquid]

I just saw where the 6pm SportsCenter is now sponsored by MSNBC. 
.
https://twitter.com/SquirrelTew/status/863584394937851904?

[I-10east]

^^^That says it all. They might as well have MoveOn.org  as a sponsor as well.

[Keith-N-Jax]

I didn't read through all the comments but ESPN has basically turned into a reality TV show as every network feels they have to have one. Very little on TV worth watching these days since the past 20 years.

[PeeJayEss]

Only read the last page of posts, but I feel like I'm in the T-U or news4jax comments section.