If you’re a regular viewer of ESPN’s SportsCenter, you may have noticed the show has been originating from various sporting events. This weekend, SportsCenter has a presence at the season-ending NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Homestead. Over the last few weeks, SportsCenter has aired live from the World Series, San Antonio and Cleveland to open the NBA season, and various SEC and ACC college football games. Why is ESPN doing this?
According to Rob King, ESPN Senior Vice President, SportsCenter and Content, it’s a natural progression for the show which has aired since the network debuted in 1979. SportsCenter has usually traveled to the four major events (Super Bowl, World Series, NBA Finals, Stanley Cup Final) and some others (BCS Championship, U.S. Open, NCAA Final Four), but has mainly stayed in the studio.
Since taking over SportsCenter earlier this year, King wants the show to be seen as “more fun” and to have the show connect with the fans. Acknowledging the new 194,000 square foot ESPN Death Star which houses SportsCenter, King noted the show is isolated as it originates from bucolic Bristol, CT.
King tells Awful Announcing via e-mail, “As magnificent as the new studio is, we’ve found that the show feels bigger when we strike the right balance of being in Bristol and out in the world. We saw that from Day One, when the first show featured reports from the World Cup, the NBA Finals and the U.S. Open.”
He says going on the road is a way to bring the show closer to the fans and connect with the show’s anchors, “We want SportsCenter to be a show fans can not only see but experience firsthand. There’s a cool new thing happening when we see fans tweeting, ‘Did you see me on SportsCenter?’ And our anchors now have the chance to interact with their audience in ways that are more real and more memorable than social media.”
But is there a criteria for bringing the show on the road? What events will be selected for SportsCenter to originate from? King says it won’t be just any game but “big events, highly-anticipated matchups or ‘moments’ such as LeBron’s return to Cleveland.” King said, “It just feels right for SportsCenter to be on the scene of big sports events and moments that fans are most excited about.”
King says the next SportsCenter road trips will be this Tuesday when the show sets anchor at the Champions Classic in Indianapolis, Wednesday in Cleveland for San Antonio-Cavs and then in January when the show will be live from all six New Year’s Day bowl games and the College Football Playoff.
We’ll see if the SportsCenter on the Road can bring more eyeballs to the show.
[The Wrap]
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