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| The Real Story Behind ESPN’s Wednesday Massacre |
| 2017-04-27 |
| You also can place this at the feet of the sports leagues and conferences. When you try to pander to that segment of the population who instinctively hate sports, you drive away your traditional customers and change your product to please your new customers. It's unworkable... FTFA: [Federalist] ESPN, the self-proclaimed worldwide leader in sports, became the worldwide leader in sports layoffs on Wednesday morning after news leaked that the cable network was in the process of laying off 100 staffers, most of whom are reported to be on-air talent. The layoff reports came as no surprise to those who have followed ESPN and its on- and off-air struggles to profitably provide the kind of content that most sports fans want to watch. Shortly after the mass layoff reports were confirmed, the Internet hot takes began. ESPN is failing because of cord-cutting, because it has too much politics, because it has too little politics, because sports fans are racists, you name it. So what’s the real reason the network felt forced to slash its payroll overnight? There is no one reason. There are a number of factors, each of which has been multiplied by poor strategic decisions. ESPN would have you believe that the network is a victim of circumstances, caught up in an industry whirlwind over which it has no control. Maybe, but that’s hardly the whole story. The real reasons aren’t all that complicated, but they’re not as simple as much of the social media hand-wringing would have you believe. ESPN isn’t struggling because of one thing. It’s struggling because of a bunch of different things happening simultaneously. Some are outside of its control, and some are not. Here are the big reasons for these mass layoffs. 1) ESPN Overpaid for Broadcast Rights In a nutshell, ESPN committed to paying massive long-term fixed costs for the right to air professional sports events, namely NFL and NBA games. Sports reporter Clay Travis of Outkick has been banging the drum on this score for quite some time, much to ESPN’s chagrin (Just last month Travis predicted Wednesday’s mass layoffs only to have ESPN sic its PR hounds on him and accuse him of making it all up). In accounting terms, the network committed to high long-term fixed costs (broadcast rights) in exchange for declining variable revenues (cable subscription fees and advertising dollars). You don’t have to be a mathematician to see the problems with this formula for success. Even if ESPN is making decent money right now, the music is eventually going to stop, people are going to stop dancing, and somebody’s going to be stuck without a chair. More at the link |
| Posted by:badanov |
| #8 Yet Jemele Miller and Michael Smith are oh so popular with their SJW management with their |
| Posted by: Frank G 2017-04-27 16:32 |
| #7 Here's a link of carrion groaning for burial: https://www.si.com/tech-media/2017/04/26/espn-layoffs-firings-list-details The targets appear to be mostly working sports announcers and analysts rather than that the JV SWJ debate team... Ed Werder; longtime columnist Johnette Howard; espnW staffer Jane McManus; college football and ESPN Radio analyst Danny Kanell; NHL reporters Scott Burnside, Pierre LeBrun and Joe McDonald and a mass of college sports reporters including C.L. Brown, Eamonn Brennan, Jeremy Crabtree, Brett McMurphy, Max Olson, Dana O’Neil, Jesse Temple, Derek Tyson, Austin Ward, Ted Miller, David Ching, Chantel Jennings, Dr. Jerry Punch and Brian Bennett. MLB reporter Doug Padilla, ESPN Dallas columnist Jean-Jacques Taylor, soccer reporter Mike Goodman, ESPNU anchor Brendan Fitzgerald, NFL analyst Trent Dilfer, SportsCenter anchors Jay Crawford, Darren M. Haynes and Jade McCarthy, correspondent Reese Waters, contributor Jarrett Bell, legal analyst Roger Cossack, golf broadcaster Dottie Pepper, NBA writers Ethan Strauss, Justin Verrier and Calvin Watkins, NFL reporter Ashley Fox, Len Elmore and longtime MLB reporter Jayson Stark. |
| Posted by: regular joe 2017-04-27 16:01 |
| #6 ...when a diehard sports fan finally decides that ESPN’s just not worth the cost of cable anymore. This brings us to the next cause of these revenue problems. Yeah, I'm one of those. Cable companies gouge you and you still have to put off with a plethora of commercials. ESPN has a near monopoly on many sports events, e.g. college football. If they can't make money under those circumstances, they must have a bunch of morons running things. Moreover, they are not paying their bills as I understand it. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2017-04-27 15:44 |
| #5 On the day ESPN laid off 100 people, it celebrated Asatta Shakur, who murdered a police officer in 1977. |
| Posted by: Spolugum Unineque9148 2017-04-27 14:57 |
| #4 Is there a link anywhere to who was let go? The most recognizable name I heard mentioned yesterday was Ed Werder. |
| Posted by: Crusader 2017-04-27 12:17 |
| #3 The pressure on the costs of broadcasts rights will have an interesting impact on team finances and player comp. We're already seeing it in the NFL -- moving teams, more primetime/night games, color rush unis, paid sponsorship of every aspect (USAF Fly Over Courtesy of Sprint), expanded coverage of Draft Day, Fantasy gambling. |
| Posted by: regular joe 2017-04-27 11:57 |
| #2 ....another example of why the Sherman Anti-Trust Act should have been actively enforced. Never allow such concentration of power. Fortunately, it appears ESPN is significantly financially obligated in long term contracts with the sports leagues now facing declining revenue and fans. The leagues are unlikely to renegotiate the terms and costs of those contracts which means senior management, Disney, is going to have to cover the losses. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2017-04-27 09:58 |
| #1 One word: Disney. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2017-04-27 08:37 |