The Top Sports Media News Story of 2008
Somewhere on I-95 South (Jan 2, 2009) - Forget all of the silliness of 2008. You know, games like "Where's Brett?", "Did you see what ESPN personality got drunk at some roast?", etc. etc. By far the top sports media news story (or storyline) of the year had to be the major shift in how and where sports fans will be viewing sports in the future.
Newspapers still seem to be gasping for air. The Detroit daily will only offer home delivery 3 days a week. The Tampa Bay Tribune made an ill-fated (and foolish) attempt to shrink their entire print content to one section. And sports reporters are being asked to do more for the same pay, many being required to blog of all things.
NBC's online presence for the 2008 Olympics was unequaled. CBS Sports offered all 2008 SEC Football broadcasts, and 2008 March Madness broadcasts online for free. ESPN and CBS snatched the crown jewel of college sports, the Southeastern Conference, into exclusive 15-year contracts.
Fox Sports is lagging behind the other networks when it comes to new media. NBC, with the exception of the Olympics and Sunday Night Football, still has a long ways to go. Except for ESPN, all of the sports media sites offer examples of how not to draw viewers.
All of the networks have potential. The question is how much they are willing to continue to invest in new media. That should be the the top storyline for 2009.
Hopefully streaming takes on even more importance in 2009. I was annoyed as hell at FOX yesterday because i couldn't watch the Cotton Bowl while at work yesterday. Meanwhile, ESPN360 continue to deliver the goods. It just needs to get a little more consistent with regards to quality.