One of the biggest sports media stories of the summer was Skip Bayless’ decision to depart ESPN for Fox Sports 1. The polarizing personality who teamed with Stephen A. Smith to make First Take a huge ratings success, elected to chase larger dollars and more freedom by realigning with Jamie Horowitz at FS1. In previous months, Horowitz went on the record stating that his goal was to add more “opinionists” to his network, and develop the brand into the sports television equivalent of Fox News.
His vision began to take shape when he pried Colin Cowherd from ESPN and launched him on Fox Sports 1 and Fox Sports Radio. He followed that up in June with the debut of Speak For Yourself, a program featuring Cowherd, Jason Whitlock and Jason McIntyre.
The next big move was to raid ESPN again and steal Bayless away, and build a new program around him which would run opposite his creation First Take. Horowitz then added NFL Hall of Fame Tight End and former CBS NFL Analyst Shannon Sharpe, and moderator Joy Taylor to the mix, and the trio now form Skip and Shannon: Undisputed.
Whether you like each personality or not, there’s no question that they possess the ability to connect with an audience. Their prior track records prove that to be the case. Opinions will differ from show to show and host to host, but if you polled most sports media fans, they would likely agree that Fox Sports 1 has improved itself during the past twelve months.
When Horowitz was asked last year about his plans for FS1, he made it clear they were in it to win it. He told attendees at the 2015 NeuLion Sports Media and Technology Conference “We’re here to compete all hours of the day, seven days a week. We’re not going to concede any ground to ESPN. Not now, not in the future, and I think that’s represented in the decisions we’ve made recently.”
A step in the right direction was certainly needed for the company, and the big name additions of Bayless, Cowherd, Whitlock, and Sharpe have provided buzz and a reason to tune in. The early signs are encouraging. FS1 has also done a nice job adding and featuring rising stars such as Katie Nolan, Kristine Leahy, Nick Wright and Clay Travis. But, while Horowitz’s game plan comes into focus and signs of progress follow, others in the media are expecting instant results that are unrealistic.
If you’ve ever worked in the sports media business in an executive role, you know that new shows take time to catch on. You don’t overreact over the first day, week or month of a new program’s performance. It’s understood going in that the goal is to deliver strong content and slowly build a loyal following. To do that, a brand must have consistent effort, popular personalities, creativity, marketing, and the word few people like to hear – patience!
It’s fun to write stories and draw instant clicks by declaring a show dead on arrival when its ratings don’t immediately catch fire, but anyone who expects a new show on a relatively new network to show up and immediately knock off a competitor like ESPN is kidding themselves. If it were that easy, someone else would’ve already done it, and personalities like Bayless and Cowherd would be worth more than six million per year.
On a recent appearance on the “Podcast About Sports Radio“, Cowherd summed it up perfectly: “You don’t do these things overnight. It’s a slow methodical rebuild. I’m already at 80-85% of my previous audience, and we’ll get back to where we were within 12-18 months”. Notice that Cowherd talked about regaining the audience he had, not expanding the audience beyond where it was. To do that takes even more time and promotion, which is why FS1 likely has a five year plan to evaluate their progress.
Many in the media love to critique, complain, defend and attack new shows when they launch, but the harsh reality is that most successful shows reach their level of success after a few years. Let’s not forget, when Cowherd took over for Tony Kornheiser on ESPN Radio many thought it was a recipe for disaster. First Take also existed for a while before it took off with Bayless and Smith. The program featured rotating personalities opposite Bayless, and although their were modest gains compared to Cold Pizza’s previous performance, it was nowhere near the ratings juggernaut that it’s become in recent years.
A sports television network doesn’t invest six million dollars annually, and twenty five million over the span of four years in a personality without expecting success. However, they also understand that it’s a marathon, not a sprint, and you can’t get trigger happy after a few shows.
Yet that’s what I see happening throughout the sports media universe. There’s a large segment of the media who are watching Bayless, Cowherd, and Bill Simmons at HBO, and laying in the weeds like a venomous snake waiting to strike an unsuspecting victim. I’ve noticed that many in the media are more interested in seeing these men fail than succeed. Much of that I suspect is driven by personal opinions on each host, but usually when David (the host) faces Goliath (ESPN) , there are more people cheering him on rather than rooting for his demise.
What many fail to realize is that if these personalities have success, it will open the doors for others in the industry to enjoy opportunities. It may also lead to additional companies wanting to invest more in the sports television business. But more importantly, it gives viewers more to choose from. ESPN is an outstanding operation with a large number of talented people. They have the staff, skill, experience, and programming options to compete with any media outlet on the planet. But even the best deserve to be challenged.
When sports media companies feel the pressure to perform, they often deliver their best. That puts the viewer in a great position. Too often we get caught up in which brand won and lost and lose sight of the bigger picture – to grow the sports media experience and leverage the interest in it to increase business.
We don’t blink an eye when we hear ten or fifteen music stations on the radio. We don’t have an issue with ten or twenty movie channels appearing on our channel guide, and we have multiple apps on our phones to provide us with entertainment. Having two debate shows air opposite one another on two different networks should be no different.
This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t evaluate their content and performance. That’s absolutely fair game. But, we should hope that both shows deliver an audience because it helps lift our entire business. We also need to be able to put things into proper perspective because the FS1-ESPN matchup is in the early stages, not where it potentially could be in the next few years.
The other side of this conversation that creates challenges is when ratings are covered. Unless you understand how they work, it’s easy to be fooled by numbers. Most people form their opinions based on whether a number is up or down. If they see a decline, the next column discusses why a show is headed for a downward spiral. They don’t take into account numerous factors that determine how the number was achieved.
For example, a show could’ve lost yet had its hosts on vacation for most of the month. Maybe the show was pre-empted 3-4x. A show could be ahead for the first 90 minutes yet stumble badly during its final thirty minutes which causes it to finish second. Or one network may aggressively market their brand, while the other chooses not to. Never mind the fact that in many cases a few thousand people in a ratings system represent the viewing interests of millions.
Among FS1’s biggest challenges are that audiences like routine. People don’t change their plans until they’re given a reason to do so. Some will switch to FS1 because they’re drawn to Skip, but even many of his supporters and casual fans will take a wait and see approach. There’s also the reality that many people don’t like Skip, so those viewers are likely to avoid his new show at all costs.
Larger than that though are two other key factors. First, people know where ESPN is on their television. The same recall doesn’t exist for FS1. Earning that space in an individual’s memory bank takes time. Then there’s the challenge of viewers deciding whether to watch or tune out based on their opinions of Sharpe. If that wasn’t enough, toss in the challenge of trying to build an audience while going up against First Take.
Fans either love or loathe Bayless because of his work on First Take, and getting them to change their allegiance when Stephen A. remains on ESPN won’t be easy. It isn’t as much about whether or not Skip and Shannon have a great show, as it is about getting people to sample their content. This is why you see FOX promoting Undisputed on TV, billboards, websites, social media platforms, and anywhere else that they can reach people.
As difficult as it will be to unseat First Take or any of ESPN’s other key shows, don’t think that it can’t be done. Nobody in this business is unbeatable. TNT’s “Inside The NBA” with Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaq has consistently beaten ESPN’s NBA shows, and Adrian Wojnarowski regularly scoops ESPN’s NBA reporting team for inside information. That shows that even the best have weaknesses.
But to accomplish that feat takes hard work, consistently great content, massive amounts of marketing, internal and external patience, and a little bit of luck.
Last week in the Washington Post, Scott Van Pelt said FS1’s ratings were abysmal and Horowitz and friends deserved to be held accountable for them. He’s right. They’re very low. If they’re still this bleak in twelve to eighteen months then Horowitz may have some corporate suits pressuring him to change his strategy. But, to expect a relatively new network to be locked in a dead heat with the world’s largest sports media company when they don’t have a ton of play by play, decades of an established presence, or a ton of original programming is silly.
Whether you want to hear it or not, these things do take time. It may sound cliche when people utter “Rome wasn’t built in a day” but it’s absolutely true. FS1 right now has to concentrate on being better today than yesterday and growing its audience. The rest of the world can compare each day and month’s ratings to ESPN’s but FS1 has to stay focused on their overall strategy and creating incremental progress.
I believe you have to look at FS1’s development similar to that of a sports franchise. It starts with a few talented people, which puts you on the map. Then you add additional high profile talent (Bayless, Cowherd, Whitlock, Sharpe, Leahy, Wright, Taylor) which brings in new fans. Next, you focus on self improvement. Then, when a team has great talent, exceptional content, a smart strategy, and growing interest, a successful story starts to develop. Before long, you set your eyes on the prize and push yourself to knock off the champion.
Right now, ESPN is the storied sports media franchise. They’re seen as the New York Yankees, Dallas Cowboys, and Los Angeles Lakers of the sports media space. FS1 on the other hand is more in line with the Kansas City Royals, Denver Broncos, and Cleveland Cavaliers. They may not be the brand with the better historic track record, familiarity, talent roster or programming options, and they may have to move mountains to reach the top, but don’t forget, the Cavaliers, Broncos and Royals all won titles last year.
Enjoying massive success won’t happen overnight for FS1. It might not even happen at all. And although Jamie Horowitz and his staff probably don’t want to hear that, and are driven to win immediately, it’s important to remember that when you’re shooting for the stars, you first need to get off the ground and into the sky.
That being said, if Horowitz was given an ESPN voodoo doll and could poke it and cause Bristol’s programming to go off the air and speed up his own network’s timeline, you can bet your ass he wouldn’t hesitate. That’s called being competitive and hungry to win.
We’ve become a sports society of Monday morning quarterbacks who expect instant gratification, and view the world in black and white. That doesn’t bode well for FS1, whose narrative over the next 12-18 months will consist of shades of grey. It may be entertaining to read, write, and compare FS1’s ratings and shows against ESPN’s, but the two brands have different short-term expectations, and are at different stages of their development. That may not sound as sexy as the other headline options, but it’s honest and realistic. And sometimes, whether you like it or not, patience and a reality check are necessary.
Jason Barrett is the President and Founder of Barrett Media since the company was created in September 2015. Prior to its arrival, JB served as a sports radio programmer, launching brands such as 95.7 The Game in San Francisco, and 101 ESPN in St. Louis. He also spent time programming SportsTalk 950 in Philadelphia, 590 The Fan KFNS in St. Louis, and ESPN 1340/1390 in Poughkeepsie, NY. Jason also worked on-air and behind the scenes in local radio at 101.5 WPDH, WTBQ 1110AM, and WPYX 106.5. He also spent two years on the national stage, producing radio shows for ESPN Radio in Bristol, CT. Among them included the Dan Patrick Show, and GameNight.
You can find JB on Twitter @SportsRadioPD. He’s also reachable by email at Jason@BarrettMedia.com.
