ESPN's Political Bias

The sport media landscape has seen a noticeable shift politically. I'm currently enrolled in a course titled "Writing About Sport." Professor Ron Denson, my classmates and I have discussed how sportswriting has increasingly become more liberal over the years.

After reading the FAIR article reviewing PBS NewsHour, I thought about ESPN and how the sports network has grown more and more progressive with its broadcasts, coinciding with the blossoming athlete activism movement. I don't watch SportsCenter as much as I used to, not because of ESPN's progressive standpoint, because I consider myself to be left-winger, but more of the fact that the network has become so entertainment and "hot take" driven when it comes to covering the world of sports. When I have, though, I took note of the praise the anchors would give to athletes such as Colin Kaepernick who are standing up and fighting for a cause they are passionate about.

ESPN is primarily liberal, and the sports network has not been afraid of expressing its political views in the recent past. Almost two years ago, the network awarded Caitlyn Jenner with the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the ESPYS. ESPN has also either fired or demoted analysts or anchors such as Sage Steele for expressing conservative views, even though it appears Steele will still have a prominent role moving forward. ESPN even issued a gag order on its entire staff during the presidential election according to the article linked above.

ESPN ombudsman Jim Brady has reported on this issue this past year. Brady concluded his column with a suggesting that ESPN must incorporate a politically diverse group of individuals on their sportscasts, which I agree with. I don't think ESPN should have extreme conservative-types such as the racist and sexist Curt Schilling on their networks, but certainly having analysts who identify as more right from the center would improve the network's credibility.

Since the election, ESPN has taken the steps to address this predicament by establishing new guidelines that emphasize the connection between sports and politics. The marriage between sports and politics seems inseparable in the day and age. In Brady's most recent column, he states ESPN is making the right move of remaining political and not relinquishing to apolitical. I also agree with Brady in this instance as well, so long as the network maintains impartiality.