Subscribe Feed (RSS)SportsbyBrooks has a really nice analysis of what it means and it’s interesting stuff. Turns out, it’s all about ESPN:
Look at ESPN. With the majority of our only truly national sports network’s revenue derived from contractual agreements to broadcast NFL, MLB, NBA and NCAA hoops and football games, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to think that ESPN’s news reporting operation could be compromised by those financial arrangements.
Add in the fact that ESPN has no major national sports media competitor and now tell me what incentive ESPN has to report negative news about anything involving those league partners?
Of course, you already know all that if you visit me regularly. You see the stories that we produce daily that in many cases have every right to be reported nationally.
Say a sports blog breaks an original story that portrays one of ESPN’s league partners in an unflattering light. Because ESPN doesn’t have to fear another national network competitor widely distributing that blog’s story – because no such competitor exists – why would ESPN acknowledge the story? (Happens every single day, friends.)
That’s where TMZSports.com will come in. Harvey Levin doesn’t have to worry about a college football broadcast contract worth hundreds of millions when investigating Charlie Weis‘ on-the-record claim that Pete Carroll was living with a grad student in Malibu. Levin doesn’t have to worry about getting press credentials to future USC games, or getting access to Carroll for interviews.
Most importantly, Levin has the desire and the ability to distribute what he finds out about Carroll’s living arrangement to a large enough audience that the story will break through into the mainstream. Something independent sports blogs with huge scoops are largely incapable of.
Don’t think for a minute that ESPN’s beaten-down competitors aren’t also aware of this and will pick up TMZSports.com exclusives soley to force ESPN’s hand on inevitable, embarrasing stories dug up by Levin & Co
The sports media monopoly created by ESPN hath wrought a perfect storm for TMZSports.com to not only succeed, but to turn the industry upside down. Because not only will TMZSports.com itself quickly break into the mainstream, but its prominence will cause previously myopotic sports media consumers to suddenly consider a sports blogosphere that has been, to this point, largely ignored on an astonishing scale.
Tags: Dwight Jaynes, ESPN, SportsbyBrooks, TMZ
The Big Ben story comes ot mind as one that ESPN tried to bury.
Erin Andrews too, I believe.
I LOVE SportsByBrooks, glad to see you’ve tuned in. They guys over there are all over ESPN and it’s “lack” of reporting.
And though I am not a big TMZ fan, it’s good to see that they are throwing a monkey wrench into mainstream media reporting.
And why most people were wondering why Tiger got into a car accident, SportsByBrooks was 3 days into reports of Tiger’s affairs. ESPN and crew tried the spin (trust me, it was going full fledged) SBB made sure the truth came out.
I never thougth I would say this but tabloid sports blogs may save us from the “sports reporting” of ESPN.
Problem with every aforementioned story thus far (in the comments and in the post): they have nothing whatsoever to do with actual athletic competition. Am I the only one left who tunes in solely for sport? Have we all been reduced to gossip-starved, scandal-hounds? God, spare us the additional TMZ-angle. Relentless.
Totally know what you mean but when ESPN comes up with the schmaltzy human interest stories to make you think “gee, this guy is such a great person” you have to have something to counter that. Otherwise you have a ton of people feeling blindsided by Tiger’s indescretions or Michael Vick’s dog abuse.
But still, I know what you mean. Box scores and game highlights are why I watch the sports news.
Your right about ESPN being compromised by their financial ties to the sports they cover.
But, TNZ’s scandal rag stuff isn’t the answer.
The missing stories that we need aren’t more gossip about how many women Tiger Woods may have slept with, it is more about concussions and long term health issues for pro football players. It is real analysis on how MLB looked the other way on steroids as long as Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa were putting butts in the seats. And so on.
Touche. 100% agree.
TMZ probably would have know about Donaghy before anyone. They aren’t my cup of tea, but they never seem to be wrong when they report something. I think it would be good for sports and sports wives. They would always know what their husbands were up to.
Isn’t this site already a tabloid? With Joel out now Dwight “the ego” Jaynes can have even more to be negative about. F you Dwight.
Ok I was pretty pissed last night. I may have went a little far on that one. I apologize.
No one needs to know this shit. I don’t care who a coach is sleeping with. This trash SHOULDN’T ME IN THE NEWS.
I want to know who is cheating. I want to know what coaches are porking cheerleaders. I want to know what programs pay cash bonuses to players and recruits. I want to know what coaches and players hang out in bars and strip clubs.
Why??? Because they are public employees (most college coaches, that is), they make a lot of money, they are celebrities, and it’s INTERESTING.
So, if you don’t care, THEN DON’T READ IT. The fact that a lot of people WILL read it is all the proof you need to know that there is a market for this. It’s supply and demand. There is a demand for this kind of news, and TMZ is going to supply it.
Really great site that you have built good info thanks.