Criticism of ESPN - Bias Towards Certain Teams and Players

Bias Towards Certain Teams and Players

See also: East Coast Bias and Media bias

ESPN has been known to have a bias towards certain teams and a "love affair" with superstar players such as Brett Favre, LeBron James, Tim Tebow, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Jeremy Lin, Kobe Bryant, Alex Rodriguez (perceived by many as negative bias), Bryce Harper, Danica Patrick, Manny Pacquiao, Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Tiger Woods, along with teams, such as the Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Boston Celtics, Dallas Cowboys, Miami Heat, New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, Texas Longhorns, Penn State Nittany Lions football (perceived by many as negative bias), the Southeastern Conference (during college football season), and Duke Blue Devils. The ESPN ombudsman, Le Anne Schreiber, responded to these criticisms by saying that the industry is ratings-driven.

Since MLB Network went on the air on January 1, 2009, Baseball Tonight has been the target of criticism because of its perceived bias in favor of certain teams such as the Boston Red Sox and the New York teams, in particular. The most vocal comment was expressed by Heath Bell:

“ I truly believe ESPN only cares about promoting the Red Sox, and Yankees—and nobody else. That's why I like the MLB Network, because they promote everybody. I'm really turned off by ESPN and Baseball Tonight. When Jake Peavy threw 8⅓ innings on Saturday, they showed one pitch in the third inning and that was it. It's all about the Red Sox,and Yankees. ”

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Famous quotes containing the words bias, teams and/or players:

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