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Sports Outside the Beltway

Why ESPN Sucks

ESPN’s most popular show, by far, is “Pardon the Interruption” (PTI), the chat fest staring Tony Kornheiser and Mike Wilbon. It airs at 5:30 Eastern weeknights. For most of us, it means it’s on while we’re driving home from work. No problem. Through the magic of TiVo, I can watch the show at my convenience when I get home.

Except when I can’t. Which is quite often. Like tonight, for example. The programming geniuses at ESPN bumped PTI to show the remainder of a game in some meaningless baseball exhibition between Cuba and the Dominican Republic, with the score standing at 9-1 in the 9th inning. Aaaargh.

This happens routinely, with PTI getting bumped by a college basketball game involving schools who haven’t seen a player drafted by the NBA since the 1950s. Or amateur golf.

Surely, I am not alone in preferring to see the show that’s supposed to be on than a sport that’s so lame it is on live at 5:30 on a weeknight?

 
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Comments
 

Quite true, James. I also find it annoying that they delay the end of the show until a few minutes into Sportscenter. From what I’ve read, PTI’s ratings are significantly higher than the 6pm Sportscenter, so they use the big finish from PTI as a lead in.

Posted by Alexander | March 13, 2006 | 08:42 pm | Permalink
 

I was annoyed by the lack of PTI last night as well.

Posted by Steven Taylor | March 14, 2006 | 01:08 pm | Permalink
 

I’m disappointed. I saw the title of this post and hoped it was about how ESPN fabricates news, rather than reports it. I think I’ll post my own on here later, when I’m good and riled up.

Posted by David Harris | March 14, 2006 | 05:07 pm | Permalink
 

David: I was going to title it something like “Why ESPN Sucks MXVII” but it was my first post on the subject. But, yes, this is not the only reason.

Posted by James Joyner | March 14, 2006 | 07:08 pm | Permalink
 

yeah, i agree with david. espn has a big problem with covering the same teams and the same players. i’m getting sick and tired of hearing about TO and reggie bush! he hasn’t even played a real NFL game yet and they think he’s a god. they did the samething with freakin’ ricky williams and what has he done, ummm….NOTHING except get high and rush for 20 yards a game! they still have this thing with brett favre where they think he’s a good quarterback. they don’t care if he sucks there still going to put him on TV just because he’s brett favre.

Posted by richard | August 30, 2006 | 11:10 am | Permalink
 

I use to love watching ESPN back in the day. But unfortunately the ass-monkey commentators think that we turn on the t.v. to watch them. You are not what we care about!!! Want to see highlights and clear simple tid bits of information. Not any of your stupid antics. Chris Berman is the worst! And take Stuart Scott with you!!! Boo Yah!!

Posted by Mike | September 7, 2006 | 01:45 pm | Permalink
 

Well the idiots at ESPN did it again!! Preempted Around The Horn for a “Special” about Micahel Vick. Talk about filling 30 minutes with nothing. I guess they think they are CNN now.

This used to be a great network but it pretty much sucks now.

Posted by Larry Brown | August 20, 2007 | 04:18 pm | Permalink
 

ESPN is nothing but guys in suits yelling at each other…WTF is the matter with announcers and hosts these days…Interupting and yelling louder than the other to be heard is the norm…Who wants to watch that…Dan Lebitard is the worst when he fills in on PTI…He yells and screams…What a joke…It’s sports you bird brains…It’s a GAME…WE DO NOT NEED TO BE YELLED AT…GET A CLUE

Posted by gwetniksakle | August 29, 2007 | 04:54 pm | Permalink
 

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