ESPN: The Worldwide Leader in Agenda Setting
By Larry Brown February 23, 2007 - Posted in Sports Business

If you attempted to view PTI last week as I did, your life and smile was undoubetdly turned upside down in disappointment.  Same thing with SportsCenter — although that program doesn’t produce nearly as many smiles for me.  Something took over the week’s worth of coverage.  Something new has become a steady presence on ESPN recently, something unfamiliar.

Endless NASCAR coverage.

Reality is that ESPN is an integral part of any serious sports fan’s life.  And for people who work in the business, it’s your only stop for 24/7 sports coverage (although dog contests and poker tourneys disagree).  That being the case, it didn’t take long to notice the new “Pit Lane” segment of SportsCenter, and the endless promotional mentions of ESPN’s coverage of the Busch Series all season long.

I’m not complaining — I’m just pointing out the fact that the result of Friday night’s truck series race, and Saturday’s Busch Series winner all of a sudden matter.  Why you ask?  Because ESPN says so. 

If ESPN aired NHL games, hockey would all of a sudden become relevant.  If they ventured to lead SportsCenter off with Sidney Crosby and Martin St. Louis goals, those players would immediately matter.   

ESPN might not determine what sports are important for YOU, but they determine what sports are relevant — they set the agenda.  That is a fact. 

Keeping that in mind, let me be the first to warn you, get prepared to join your first ever fantasy Arena Football League, no joke.      

About Larry Brown:
Larry Brown has over nine years of professional sports media experience, working in online, radio, and TV capacities. He recently was a nationally syndicated sports radio host. Follow him on twitter @LBSports
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1 comment
  • Chris

    Completely agree~
    And as you know it goes deeper. ESPN can no longer claim to be a credible journalistic outlet, its a corporation set to make money. For example- They have an upcoming game between South Carolina and Vanderbilt, Hardly a big game, however PTI, Around the Horn, and Sportscenter all dedicate a large portion of their respective shows to the Vandy-S Car. game. They set the agenda so the viewers believe the game is somehow bigger than it is to garnish attention and viewership. I don’t blame them, they have to make money, but it is sickening to see.