ESPN: The Bull Connor of Sports Broadcasting?
I think we can say that use of the word “disenfranchise” has officially jumped the shark.
Broadcasters want Congress to look at the movement of televised sporting events to cable, which, they argue, “disenfranchises” millions of households.
The National Association of Broadcasters’ (NAB) television board of directors this week asked the trade association’s staff “to work with policymakers to educate them on the importance of ensuring that no segments of society are disenfranchised from this highly valued programming.” NAB’s action was spurred by reports that cable network ESPN will broadcast future college football games in the Bowl Championship Series (BCS), which determines the sport’s champion. According to news reports, ESPN offered a higher bid for the games than Fox television.
That word does not mean “make people pay for something they used to get for free”, which is how the NAB is using it. They’d much rather push the notion that the evil cable networks are sending round gangs of thugs to take away people’s college football.
The NAB’s sudden interest in educating members of Congress about the plight of the poor television viewer is touching. They just want to help the poor people who are still squinting at a fuzzy picture and adjusting the tinfoil-wrapped rabbit ears to watch their favorite college football teams play in the Tostitos General Motors Nationwide Insurance New Year Bowl at Qualcomm Apple FedEx Stadium.
I’m sure their motives are entirely altruistic and have nothing at all to do with the tens of millions of dollars of advertising revenue and the promotional power televising the games carry.
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Category: It's Entertainment!, The Economy and Your Money
