ESPN sucks, so do thread closers

[Slayer 0]

For the last few days, I was in a hotel room that had ESPNClassic on its basic cable lineup and now I see what everyone had been talking about in terms of its decline.

 

I noticed it's all original programming now, whether the biographical programs, countdowns and ESPN sponsored sports (the wonders of bowling, pool and piker, hoorah!). They must really not want to pay for the rights to old MLB, NHL and college football/basketball games anymore, because I really can't see anyone logically pushing any of those three non-sports.

 

Then again, ESPN does believe they are above the industry...

 

Oh yeah, I finally got to see that Cheap Seats I'd been hearing so much about. Good stuff, I was quite surprised given that I hadn't liked the Sklars in other bits where I'd seen them

[Damaramu 0]

I hate the opinion and commentary the anchors throw in. If they're just reporting the news then there is no need to give their opinion.

You don't see your local news anchor reporting the news and going "The war in Iraq continues....FUCK BUSH! FUCK THIS OIL WAR!" I mean god damn. If they do then they're not a very good anchor.

They're talking about McNair and they gotta throw in commentary tearing down Vince Young.

They have to make sure their opinion is heard everywhere. I mean the guys on Baseball tonight were talking about Reggie Bush! And then if they're wrong they refuse to admit it and all they do is make sure we know they think they're right. Like Kiper with Leinart. He still won't shut up.

[Art Sandusky 0]

Dama, did you watch any game that Bush played in at all? Even if it doesn't translate into the pros for whatever reason, there's no indication right now at all that he isn't everything he's billed to be. Kirk Herbstreit put it best about the guy about midway through this past college season: "He's a guy that makes you go (gasp) whenever he gets the ball, because you have no idea what's about to happen next."

 

My beef with ESPN right now is the crap mentions of the NHL playoffs, but that's no shock. Having the NFL Draft picks on during the entirety of Sportscenter tonight pissed me off too.

 

I think you just need to calm down when you watch that channel. I just watch it so I can see highlights and scores and screen out most of the opinions, and because I refuse to support any Fox sports channel. As bad as ESPN is, a world with a monolithic Fox Sports Network would be hell in comparison.

[TheDevilAndGodAreRagingInsideMe 0]

During the entire draft, they would not stop talking about Bush and Leinart.

[The Man in Blak 0]

I hate the opinion and commentary the anchors throw in. If they're just reporting the news then there is no need to give their opinion.

You don't see your local news anchor reporting the news and going "The war in Iraq continues....FUCK BUSH! FUCK THIS OIL WAR!" I mean god damn. If they do then they're not a very good anchor.

They're talking about McNair and they gotta throw in commentary tearing down Vince Young.

They have to make sure their opinion is heard everywhere. I mean the guys on Baseball tonight were talking about Reggie Bush! And then if they're wrong they refuse to admit it and all they do is make sure we know they think they're right. Like Kiper with Leinart. He still won't shut up.

 

[Guest Smues]

Bill Plasche: He needs to die. Painfully.

 

And Around The Horn needs to mute everyone else during the face time at the end. It's really fucking annoying to hear the columnists (usually just Bill Plasche) making noise in the background.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

I used to love Around the Horn when it first started, but now it's just painful to watch. Plaschke is an absolute moron. The fact that he was able to put enough pressure on Dodgers management to get rid of DePo is a travesty.

 

Mariotti, Page and the rest are a bunch of loud blowholes who say nothing of consequence and are never called out for the trite that they spew each day.

 

And while I am ranting, can we please get rid of Screamin A Smith, Skip Bayless, and Merril Hodge? It's not just the fact that they are wrong most of the time, but that they have to yell it at you as loud as possible. Seriously, just shut them up please.

[Guest]

I hate Plaschke, but I like Paige, because he's a retard and knows it.

 

PTI's a hell of a lot better.

[Mole 0]

I think you just need to calm down when you watch that channel. I just watch it so I can see highlights and scores and screen out most of the opinions, and because I refuse to support any Fox sports channel. As bad as ESPN is, a world with a monolithic Fox Sports Network would be hell in comparison.

I am the same exact way. Sportscenter is the only good thing about the whole network.

[the max 0]

ESPNEWS is WAY better than sportscenter nowadays. Everything is condensed to a half-an-hour, so you get highlights and analysis. No queer "Budweiser Hot Seat" or other waste of time filler that accompanies sportscenter. Plus, the anchors aren't as annoying.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

Yeah, I really like ESPNEWS, especially for their baseball coverage. Brian Kinney is a great, knowledgeable interviewer and Joe Sheehan and Rob Neyere are infinitely better than anything you'll see on Baseball Tonight (Gammons excluded).

 

I actually don't mind ESPN Radio for the most part. Both Dan Patrick and Eric Auselius (sp?) do a good show.

[Vern Gagne 0]

ESPN's Number One College Football announce team. Mike Patrick and Todd Blackledge.

[Guest pinnacleofallthingsmanly]

The people on ESPN aren't anchormen or reporters, they get paid to analyze the games. My complaint is when they don't have the balls to have an opinion and are afraid to be wrong. That's why I appreciate someone like Charles Barkley who can flat out say, "this team sucks and they're going to lose." He also backs up his opinion with facts. I also think ESPN's style of having two analysts with opposing viewpoints is contrived. Most of their stuff is based around that and I find it hard to believe that everyday, everyone disagrees with the guy sitting across from or next to him. Of course if this wasn't the case, they wouldn't have their current formula and we couldn't have shows like around the horn come on and then have the same exact show come on after it (PTI). I'd like to see more people who have honest opinions who aren't being different for the sake of being different and people not being paid to state the obvious in their analysis.

[Vampiro69 0]

ESPNEWS is WAY better than sportscenter nowadays. Everything is condensed to a half-an-hour, so you get highlights and analysis. No queer "Budweiser Hot Seat" or other waste of time filler that accompanies sportscenter. Plus, the anchors aren't as annoying.

 

This why I watch ESPNEWS. I like being able to see the stats for at least 6 players per team for a baseball game complared to just 1 player for each team like sportscenter does.

[Guest Princess Leena]

I don't understand why Sportscenter dropped the entire stats page a few years ago. What's the point. But, I guess they need the extra 2 seconds to let Sean Salisbury piss us off.

[nl5xsk1 0]

It's a petty complaint, but I dislike the fact that Sportscenter gives all sorts of stats on a game-by-game basis, but don't give much in terms of season stats or team standings.

 

It sucks to see that team A won, and team B lost, but not knowing how the win/loss effects their spots in the standings. Or how so-and-so's points in a given game effect their spot amongst the league leaders.

 

And it's all because of stupid fantasy sports. People care more about how a certain player did in a game than how he's doing all year or how the actual real team is doing.

[Guest Felonies!]

If you'd like to join stupid fantasy sports, visit espn.com!

[Guest Princess Leena]

Or one of the 20 baseball fantasy leagues on TheSmartMarks.com.

[Vampiro69 0]

It's a petty complaint, but I dislike the fact that Sportscenter gives all sorts of stats on a game-by-game basis, but don't give much in terms of season stats or team standings.

 

It sucks to see that team A won, and team B lost, but not knowing how the win/loss effects their spots in the standings. Or how so-and-so's points in a given game effect their spot amongst the league leaders.

 

And it's all because of stupid fantasy sports. People care more about how a certain player did in a game than how he's doing all year or how the actual real team is doing.

 

Some people may want stats for fantasy purposes, but some people like to follow their favorite players, ans sportscenter makes it hard to do that, when all you see is non stop Barry Bonds coverage.

[Guest Princess Leena]

BREAKING NEWS: Barry Bonds, 0-3, 2 BB's.

 

That also irritates me.

 

Everything about ESPN irritates me, why do I watch it.

[Vampiro69 0]

Because Fox Sports has no national sports highlight show?

[Slayer 0]

Because they essentially have a monopoly on the industry

[Guest Princess Leena]

Because they essentially have a monopoly on the industry

 

True, somewhat.

 

Although, there is NFL Network, Tennis Channel, Golf Channel, etc...

 

I need to watch these channels more, but habits suck.

[Slayer 0]

When I wake up in the morning, that's the first thing that goes on the TV...

 

I mean, what the fuck else am I going to watch? One of the network morning shows? Fuck that

[razazteca 0]

Cold Pizza, you cannot resist the hypnotic trance of Woody Paige, Skip Bayless or that chick.

[Guest Princess Leena]

How did Bayless have his own radio show, and then get on TV.

 

Nobody likes the guy.

[Dangerous A 0]

Even ESPN.com is starting to suck. I go there this morning to read up on the game 5 of the Spurs/Kings series. You know, that series with the defending champions. Well, there was no link on the front page. OK, there's gotta be a link in the NBA section, right? Wrong. There is a link about Luke Jackson having back surgery, but no link on a game 5 tiebreaker with the defending NBA champs? Fucking whatever.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

The thing about espn.com now is that it seems 90% of their content is Insider Only. Why do they have to charge money for Joe F'n Morgan transcripts and Chad Ford sucking off 17-year-old European basketball players that I've never hear of?

[Guest Felonies!]

Because Fox Sports has no national sports highlight show?

Would you even want them to?

[Guest Princess Leena]

ESPN.com has sucked forever. Even when the site was mostly free, their content was horrible compared to other sites. Nevermind it takes forever to load, and there's many ads and stupid movies that load no matter what.