Peter King, I’m afraid, is among the last of a dying breed. For more than four decades King has been a trusted voice of all things NFL. His most recent effort, the Monday Morning Quarterback, was a must read for any NFL fan. Except, I never read all of it. That’s because my already short attention span has been shortened even more by the media world that is around me.
To be fair to King, I never had a long attention span before. This has nothing to do with his writing, it is superb. I also loved the way the MMQB was broken into segments, it helped me know where I could end my skimming and resume my reading. As I write this, I really hope Peter King isn’t reading it, this reads as a shot at his ability to write things that hold my attention. It isn’t intended as that, it is simply the acknowledgment that the media consumer has changed greatly during the time King has covered the NFL.
If we are to continue reaching younger audiences, we must realize their attention span is rapidly shrinking. In fact, the average attention span of a human is now less than a goldfish. That is not hyperbole, it has actually been tested. I am not certain how one calculates the attention span of a goldfish, I am sure there are articles written about it and I am equally sure I wouldn’t make it to the end of those articles.
Even more alarming is that studies have shown that the average adult attention span has decreased by more than 30% since the year 2000. The most alarming part is that study was conducted in 2015. We’ve had eight full years since that study was completed, at the rate shown in the study, we have lost almost half the adult attention span since the turn of the century.
I can go on and on; the average online video view is less than three minutes, the average website visit is less than a minute. While on webpages, readers consume less than 30% of the information contained in the page. The average radio listener consumes just over an hour per day but that doesn’t mean it is all on the same station. The average podcast listener gives you between 25-30 minutes in listening time.
The point is this; we in the media have a very limited time to reach an audience, we must make the most of it. Hosts can’t afford to throw away segments, writers can’t afford to “mail in” an article, commercial producers must get to the call to action quickly. Our society just isn’t paying close attention anymore. I applaud those of you who have fought through this to read the first 450 words of this column, I’m sure it has been life changing.
I fight this battle all the time. I am constantly skipping songs. I’ll give a TikTok creator roughly five seconds to hook me. The first thing I do after starting any video is tap the screen to see how far along I am in the status bar. As someone who makes a living, and is part owner of a company that makes money off hooking and keeping an audience, this trend is more than alarming.
I am sure there are long form writers that will try to replace Peter King. Heck, he even suggested four of them (I read that part). I just don’t know that they will be able to build a long-term audience in that space. We all have a shelf life and I think that style of journalism is on life support. What will replace it for some is a podcast, for some it will be a video, for some a simple social media post will do. It is who we’ve become.
I’m sure there was a day when people bemoaned the decreased need for the guy that used to just shout out the news in the town square. He had an important job for a long time but that fancy new printing press put him under. You know why? It took less time to read it in the paper. Attention spans are shorter and options have never been greater. It is a recipe for disaster if you don’t embrace the fact that you have to change to appeal to them, they aren’t changing back for you.
By the way, well done Peter King. There should be some sort of spot for him in Canton. He’s been as much a voice of the NFL as anyone for quite a while. Whatever time I spent reading his work, or even skimming through it, was never time spent in vain. And that is not just something I think I think…if you know, you know.
Ryan Brown is a columnist for Barrett Sports Media, and a co-host of the popular sports audio/video show ‘The Next Round’ formerly known as JOX Roundtable, which previously aired on WJOX in Birmingham. You can find him on Twitter @RyanBrownLive and follow his show @NextRoundLive.
This was a great piece, Mr. Brown!
In terms of a spot in Canton, he is already in the HOF as a writer. With that said, Dan Shanoff, someone who worked in sports media for awhile, suggested the following for him:
“I think Peter King should be – and will be – inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a Contributor to the game, and it will hopefully happen soon.”
What do you think?