Too many factors come to play that went against ESPN. I think cord cutters and politics are a major factor.
People are cutting cable as it is expensive and people do not watch all the channels. Why spend the money on cable when you can just stream it through the Internet with something like Roku. Cable companies are stuck in the 1990s and have not changed. Cable companies do not offer al a carte in which people can choose what channels they want. I have yet to see that happening. Than again, many people get cable because of sports channels.
People want to watch sports, not hear political lectures by sports casters. Sports is suppose to be a refuge from life. Politicizing of sports is very off putting. People want to hear what the players are doing and all things sports. Nothing more.
Over-simplifying like, "The reason for _____," is very tempting and sometimes useful, but when one is talking about millions of people, well, people are more complex. In fact, I would guess that many individuals among those millions bailed on ESPN for multiple reasons. Hypothetically, it would be useful to ESPN to know the reasons and percentages for subscriber losses, but I doubt upper manglement would swallow their pride enough to make necessary and useful changes.
How does Bruce/Caitlyn Jenner get an Arthur Ashe Award for Courage? I also wonder if it is because he is connected to the Kardashians. Lauren Hill or Noah Galloway deserved it way more than Jenner. Both should of gotten the award together.
Well, Obama got the Nobel Peace Prize despite not having been in office long enough to know where all the bathrooms are in the WH. OTOH, the torrent of disgust and mockery - even considering it followed a partisan divide - should have been a warning against feel-good accomplishment-free awards like that.
More deserving sports accomplishments ..... just some random choices ...
... there is a trail race in California called the Western States Endurance Run. Like the Boston Marathon, one has to qualify to run it. The distance is 100 miles, and
it is not flat! It starts in Squaw Valley in the heart of the Sierras and goes to Auburn, in the Sierra foothills. It's a net downhill, but there are some crazy uphill climbs, as well. One of the finishers - I believe it was in 2015 - was lady in her 70s!
... did any survivors of the 2012 Boston Marathon bombing run it in 2015?
... there are blind people who run in organized marathons such as the Rock-n-Roll Series (races with 10K-30K runners). Were there any of those in 2015?
... I'd like to suggest a finisher of
the Barkley Marathons 100 mile, 60 hour trail run, but there weren't any finishers in 2015.
This course map with elevation profile note that this loop is done 5 times, not just once) gives an idea why there have been 6 successful finishers since 1986.
Those - in addition to the amputee war vet you mentioned - are just a few ideas from the world of running. I respect Bruce Jenner's Olympics accomplishments. I have a feeling that had he in the late 1980s seen the info for the Barkley Marathons he would have shaken his head at the thought of trying to run it.
I'm sure there were athletes from other sports field who had similarly
amazing REAL accomplishments in 2015.
