WTF ESPN

[Strazos]

(possibly in the wrong forum)

Just got done watching Brazil vs Croatia on ESPN2. Next up: Dominoes.


DOMINOES??

One of the guys even called it a sport> A sport? So, is poker a sport now too? How about backgammon, or Scrabble?

ESPN is really reaching now. Their programming has taken a sharp dive since they dropped Hockey coverage.

[stray]

Their programming has taken a sharp dive since they dropped Hockey coverage.

You had me until there. Not that I don't like Hockey, but it really has nothing to do with it.

[Yegolev]

What else are they going to show outside the Eating Contest season?  Curling?

[CmdrSlack]

Late at night, they just have two guys playing catch.  It's hard to be ESPN.

[Wolf]

Isn't poker officially reckognized as a sport?

Also didn't ESPN have like tv series? I remember a thing called Tilt with Michael Madsen. It was pretty awesome, but got canceled. I don't care about espn, but that Tilt thing was cool.

[WayAbvPar]

They have shown everything mentioned in this thread and more (including the fucking Cup Stacking Championships!). When you have 4 (5? 6?) 24 hour channels to fill with programming, sometimes you are gonna scrape bottom. A lot.

Caber tossing ftw!

[stray]

ESPN is so lame and not about sports that it's even been parodied in the movies already (ESPN 8 in "Dodgeball").

[EDIT] And when it is about sports, it sucks too. They have the worst, trendy, catchphrasy, shit for brains commentators ever.

[Righ]

They have the World Cup.

You havent seen dominoes until you've seen Jamaican men play it for money. It's fast, loud, and involves much beer and cursing.

[Sky]

Cartoon Network plays movies that aren't animated. Two MTV stations and VH1 (and now even Fuse, much of the time) don't play music videos. Don't get me started on G4TV, ffs. It's spreading, and I find it hilarious. Maybe people didn't think being a channel dedicated to one form of content all the way through.

Then there's the news channels with babbling talking heads who have no clue what they are saying, distributing what can only be called news in the loosest of fashions.

Cable tv is a hilarious place.

[stray]

Then again, HBO has some of the best TV shows and sitcoms around.

[sarius]

Cartoon Network plays movies that aren't animated. Two MTV stations and VH1 (and now even Fuse, much of the time) don't play music videos. Don't get me started on G4TV, ffs. It's spreading, and I find it hilarious. Maybe people didn't think being a channel dedicated to one form of content all the way through.

Then there's the news channels with babbling talking heads who have no clue what they are saying, distributing what can only be called news in the loosest of fashions.

Cable tv is a hilarious place.

G4TV was one of the things that was pitched to us to expand into digital TV.  But everytime I turn to it there's basically shit on that even begins to appear entertaining.  Is there anything at all on this station someone here might recommend?

[Sky]

No.

Maybe the Man Show.

On the gaming network.

[stray]

Trek. DS9, TNG, and now TOS reruns, I think.

[HaemishM]

Trek. DS9, TNG, and now TOS reruns, I think.

No, he asked if there was anything appealing. The answer is, of course, no.

As for ESPN, they showed the fucking SPELLING BEE from last year. THE SPELLING BEE. Now it's bad enough that ABC showed it this year, but fuck. They even had fucking highlights of the Spelling Bee on ESPNNews every 30 minutes. Dominoes should surprise no one who watches the channel.

[stray]

I like ST. Then again, I went out of my way to avoid it for a good 20-25 years as well.

[El Gallo]

ESPN is COOL AS THE OTHER SIDE OF THE PILLOW!

[Strazos]

I use to be able to tolerate SportsCenter, until the show was turned 90% into NBA highlights.

[stray]

I use to be able to tolerate SportsCenter, until the show was turned 90% into NBA highlights.

And not even good highlights. It's the Lebron show, even when his team loses.

[Hoax]

Dont rag on the spelling bee, when the one kid fainted mid spell?  That was fucking quality television, god I was drunk that night.

[Abagadro]

They had the Scrabble championship on ESPN a few months ago. 

[HaemishM]

Dont rag on the spelling bee, when the one kid fainted mid spell?  That was fucking quality television, god I was drunk that night.

Sure, it was interesting TV. It just wasn't sports.

[Triforcer]

Just curious: who here thinks chess is a sport?  Guys like Fischer or Kasparov are pretty well known.

[Righ]

It's more of a sport than diving or gymnastics. At least you don't need a bunch of 'impartial' judges exercising subjective opinions to determine who the winner is. If you're going to let a bunch of people choose a winner based on what they like, you might as well have rock music in the Olympics.

[Broughden]

Just curious: who here thinks chess is a sport?  Guys like Fischer or Kasparov are pretty well known.

Sport: Physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively.

Unless Fischer and Kasparov got into a boxing match half way through the chess match I dont think what they do counts as "physical." Although the term as it is now commonly used is highly subjective since Formula1, Nascar and horse jumping/racing/riding (some of which are even in the olympics) are considered sports, and I dont necessarily agree (IMO) that sitting on your ass while driving qualifies as a sport.

As for Righ's comment about gymnastics, Im pretty sure there are objective standards to be met above and beyond that of any individual judges asthetic preferences. But then again the only reason I watched women's gymnastics growing up is because Im soooo old that other than the occassional bare breast on HBO it was the closest we got to porn in the South.
Thank God for the internet!

[Righ]

Sport: Physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively.

There's Webster's New Millennium Tower of Babel being quoted verbatim as the Gospel according to Broughden again. Is your whole life experienced through the results of a Google search?

[Broughden]

Sport: Physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively.

There's Webster's New Millennium Tower of Babel being quoted verbatim as the Gospel according to Broughden again. Is your whole life experienced through the results of a Google search?

Actually that definition was provided by The American Heritage Dictionary. And I only used it because it closely resembles what I as an individual categorize as a sport.

I know it might be a stupid opinion, but I just don't see why horse events are in the olympics. Unless we are going to give the medal to the horse. Its also why I agree Formula1 and NASCAR might be entertaining to some I don't categorize them as "sports" per se.

[Strazos]

Have you ever tried aggressive, high-speed driving for any period of time (speeding down a straight highway does not count)? It takes most of the things other "sports" need.

[Signe]

Can't get much more physical than F1 racing.  Just try flinging one of those cars around Suzuka if you don't believe me.  We haven't, but we'd like to... we did drive around Brand's Hatch and Righ has driven on other circuits.  It's physical enough even in just a TVR.

[Strazos]

It's physical enough even in just a TVR.

You speak as if the car is akin for a damn Civic or something.

[Righ]

Actually, it is just a road car and even though it has light weight, huge power and torque and no power steering or ABS, you can't really do the sort of stuff that really punishes the body in the way that a race car does. A few dozen laps in a little pro kart on racing slicks - now that's going to hurt you if you're in any way unfit. Even if you are fit, you'll wake up the next day with aching muscles that you didn't know you had. Doubters should try it, then consider how much harder it gets above 50mph, when the G forces are re-arranging your internal organs.

http://www.endurancekarting.com/

[Abagadro]

If you are talking about Fischer his chess was a physical assault on his opponent.  His strategy was to so demoralize his opponents mentally, psychologically and physically (yes chess at that level can be physically demanding because of the stress level put on the body) that they basically gave up.  A lot of his opponents simply quit in the middle of matches after the first few games because he tore them up so bad.   He'd basically go "Here is a game you dedicate your life to and think you know at the highest level and here is how I will show you are a complete idiot about it."  Too bad he is/was such a fucking loon.

[SurfD]

I know it might be a stupid opinion, but I just don't see why horse events are in the olympics. Unless we are going to give the medal to the horse.

You have obviously never ridden a horse.

I mean, thats like saying Waterskiing shouldnt be a sport, unless you are going to give awards to the Boat Driver.

[Broughden]

I know it might be a stupid opinion, but I just don't see why horse events are in the olympics. Unless we are going to give the medal to the horse.

You have obviously never ridden a horse.

I mean, thats like saying Waterskiing shouldn't be a sport, unless you are going to give awards to the Boat Driver.

I grew up on a horse ranch in Florida. I could ride damn near before I could walk. I live in the heart of horse country in North Carolina. The DuPont family stables are a few miles down the road from me. My point? Im familiar with riding and horses.

I don't care how great of a rider or "athlete" you think you are, I guarantee you you aren't going through jumper trials with a plow horse.
In most horse events (especially racing) the horse is doing more athletic training than the rider or jockey ever will. (Unless you count the local jockey's gathering nightly at our local pub to slam back Jameson whiskey as training.)

This is why in professional horse racing the HORSE gets the glory. But the olympics decided to give medals to the riders instead. bleh..

[Ironwood]

I hit reply.  I didn't mean to.

Forgive me.

[Sky]

I landed a Sebring (406 or something, I'm not an engine guy) in a field once. Last big engine I ever raced.

you might as well have rock music in the Olympics.

Blah, you'd end up with a bunch of bland shred metal.