The Swamp

Guess ESPN figured out how to Stump the Schwab
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Okay so lots of interesting stuff going to the WWLIS
30 for 30 on Hillsboro (tonight I think)--first in a series of soccer ones running up to the cup
30 for 30 on the Bad Boys which is getting good reviews premiers on Thursday
and a new OTL on Sunday that will have an interview about Pat Tillman from a guy in the group shooting at him.

Well Olberman gets suspended for picking a fight with Penn State and their Thon...I like what Penn State does (an am amazed when I see PSU people all over the place raising fund..not even near their campus)...but hate the name..Thon.....way to Sisqo for me

wlu_lax6 wrote:Well Olberman gets suspended for picking a fight with Penn State and their Thon...I like what Penn State does (an am amazed when I see PSU people all over the place raising fund..not even near their campus)...but hate the name..Thon.....way to Sisqo for me

Olbermann was wrong, here. But, I can't believe this is worth a suspension.

sancarlos wrote:

wlu_lax6 wrote:Well Olberman gets suspended for picking a fight with Penn State and their Thon...I like what Penn State does (an am amazed when I see PSU people all over the place raising fund..not even near their campus)...but hate the name..Thon.....way to Sisqo for me

Olbermann was wrong, here. But, I can't believe this is worth a suspension.

Agree completely. Suspensions seems to be ESPNs go to way to discipline its naughty staff members. Maybe there's a yellow/red card system that they have in place, and Olbermann being immature, petulant and moronic was his fourth yellow of the season.

But, for a self-styled moral conscience like Olbermann, this looks pretty bad.

Pruitt wrote:Agree completely. Suspensions seems to be ESPNs go to way to discipline its naughty staff members. Maybe there's a yellow/red card system that they have in place, and Olbermann being immature, petulant and moronic was his fourth yellow of the season.

It's easy cost-benefit for them on relatively minor stuff like this. WWLIS gets to look like they care when their on-air talent does stuff that looks bad. On-air talent who commits the act gets paid to not work. Replacement talent, who is already on salary, fills in for suspended talent at no extra cost (and often jumps at it because it is a different format to show their talents and try to further their career).

No big deal at all.

So Olbermann is done at ESPN again.

wlu_lax6 wrote:So Olbermann is done at ESPN again.

Be a vocal critic of Roger and the NFL? And make a lot of money? See ya....

My favorite part of that ESPN oral history book that came out a few years ago was when they were discussing Olbermann leaving (the first time) and Bob Ley described the reaction among employees with the phrase "unrestrained fucking joy."

Johnny Carwash wrote:My favorite part of that ESPN oral history book that came out a few years ago was when they were discussing Olbermann leaving (the first time) and Bob Ley described the reaction among employees with the phrase "unrestrained fucking joy."

Simmons and Olbermann may not be everyone's cup of tea, but them being shown the door while Whitlock, Screamin' A Smith, Cowherd, Same and Samer, Skip Bayless, and Chris Berman still get paychecks is mind-boggling.

Welp, you don't have cowherd to kick around anymore apparently!

So, Cowherd, Olbermann and Simmons team up?

A_B wrote:Welp, you don't have cowherd to kick around anymore apparently!

Finally.

I've never understood how Cowherd came to be seen a big star in sports radio. I honestly don't get it.

Shirley wrote:I've never understood how Cowherd came to be seen a big star in sports radio. I honestly don't get it.

This. Even putting aside all the stupid shit he actually says, I've never encountered anyone in the media whose basic persona I found so immediately repellent. If I were in a public place and heard someone who sounded like Colin Cowherd talking, I'd have a near-instantaneous impulse to move out of hearing range.

If ever I could be sold on someone literally doing a deal with the devil to explain success - that guy is near the top of the list.

He has his flaws, but I've become a bigger fan of Olbermann's in his recent tenure, mainly because of his willingness to charge at the windmills and point out emperors with no clothes. And, even though I'm less of a fan of Simmons than I once was, I appreciate his frankness, as well. But it seems like espn just wants shills and loudmouths, nowadays. So, it seems odd that Cowherd is leaving.

sancarlos wrote:He has his flaws, but I've become a bigger fan of Olbermann's in his recent tenure, mainly because of his willingness to charge at the windmills and point out emperors with no clothes. And, even though I'm less of a fan of Simmons than I once was, I appreciate his frankness, as well. But it seems like espn just wants shills and loudmouths, nowadays. So, it seems odd that Cowherd is leaving.

I have always liked Olbermann but i could easily see how working with him would be hell. Simmons has his faults but he is still an overall entertaining writer. But Cowtard is fuck awful - I've never been able to stand more than a few minutes of him and most.of his "takes" are beyond ignorant.

Ditto Cowherd. I have no explanation. I guess the bar is low.

I saw somewhere that Cowherd is expected to go to Fox Sports, as the guy who ushered in the "embrace debate" era at ESPN is now there.

So, you can pretty much forget about that channel, too.

Shirley wrote:I've never understood how Cowherd came to be seen a big star in sports radio. I honestly don't get it.

Same here. The guy was beyond annoying.

But I could say the same of most of the talking heads at ESPN. Skip Bayless? Seriously? Stephen A Smith? My god...Chris Berman still has a job there!

I don't think cowherd is a real person, he's merely the generic everyman representative for the mediocre white bigots across the country who are just smart enough to not drop the n-bomb in public.

Simmons to HBO.

At least a weekly show on HBO will be easy to avoid. I don't mind the documentary stuff as long as he's not interviewed on them. All in all, a win-win for Simmons lovers and haters probably.

Nice. That's where I'd hope he'd go. You can be unfiltered on that network.

Except he sucks at TV.

Johnnie wrote:Nice. That's where I'd hope he'd go. You can be unfiltered on that network.

Ready for a beautiful, open analogy? Simmons is the guy screaming "HOLD ME BACK" during a potential fight. ESPN has always served to be the one that holds him back, maintaining the unknown "what would happen if he got free" and allowing him to appear edgy. HBO won't hold him back.

Hoping he re-builds the Grantland idea over there and a bunch of the writers follow him as their contracts end.

Jerloma wrote:Except he sucks at TV.

His voice blows as always, but he got better as a pure facilitating host toward the end. It got below zero ratings, but I thought the Grantland Basketball Hour Show Thingy was good.

"Simmons will not only have a weekly talk show but also will advise on sports, create documentaries and house his podcasts."

tennbengal wrote:Hoping he re-builds the Grantland idea over there and a bunch of the writers follow him as their contracts end.

I agree. For all of its warts, I really liked the Simmons-helmed Grantland.

govmentchedda wrote:

tennbengal wrote:Hoping he re-builds the Grantland idea over there and a bunch of the writers follow him as their contracts end.

I agree. For all of its warts, I really liked the Simmons-helmed Grantland.

And, for a bonus, would no longer have to click on an espn owned property. I never go to their main website anymore.

I just want to hear him bash ESPN

Just keep him the fuck away from boxing. I am guessing he is one of those guys who thinks since he is male and he saw Ali once on tv when he was a little boy that he knows boxing, but doesn't.

mister d wrote:

Johnnie wrote:Nice. That's where I'd hope he'd go. You can be unfiltered on that network.

Ready for a beautiful, open analogy? Simmons is the guy screaming "HOLD ME BACK" during a potential fight. ESPN has always served to be the one that holds him back, maintaining the unknown "what would happen if he got free" and allowing him to appear edgy. HBO won't hold him back.

He's just a dog trying to chase cars. Who knows what would happen if he actually caught one.

Seems fair to judge that way. But I'm still excited when he eventually rips ESPN. I mean it's the network of Bill Maher and John Oliver after all.

howard wrote:Just keep him the fuck away from boxing. I am guessing he is one of those guys who thinks since he is male and he saw Ali once on tv when he was a little boy that he knows boxing, but doesn't.

He is.

Sounds pretty much how he acts like he knows baseball too. And hockey for those few weeks.

howard wrote:Just keep him the fuck away from boxing. I am guessing he is one of those guys who thinks since he is male and he saw Hagler-Hearns 1,000 times on Youtube that he knows boxing, but doesn't.

(Fixed.)

I probably like Simmons more than most here, but if the plan is to put him on a John Oliver-esque show for sports, I'm not sure he can pull it off. I don't think he has the personal magnetism to draw the interest of people who aren't already fans. Also, while there have been successful sports-talk shows on HBO before (Realsports and Costas Now), those were presented in a way that casual fans could drop in and out of. Simmons is geared toward much more committed sports fans, which doesn't always work on a generalist outlet. I think of Norm Macdonald's sports show on Comedy Central a few years ago, which was great but got canceled on a single season. Opportunity cost is a much bigger issue. ESPN could stick one of Simmons's vanity projects somewhere instead of another rerun of poker or Dipshit Talking Head Show #197, but at HBO he'll be under intense pressure to demonstrate that whatever viewing block he takes up is more worth their while than the large number of premium projects vying to take its place.

As for him going scorched earth on ESPN, I don't really see it. I'm sure he'll drop a bunch of passive-aggressive hints, but as petulant as he can reportedly be behind the scenes, I don't think he wants to be seen as a bridge-burner a la Olbermann.

Will be interested to see what they do with his web presence (columns and podcasts). Apparently the deal with HBO so far doesn't cover that--he could feasibly create a new Grantland-style site there or somewhere else.

mister d wrote:Sounds pretty much how he acts like he knows baseball too. And hockey for those few weeks.

And watching the NCAA Tournament and highlights on YouTube makes him a college basketball guy, too, just in time for the NBA draft.

Stop describing me