ESPN

ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is a U.S.-based global cable and satellite television channel that is owned by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ESPN_Inc. ESPN Inc.], a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company (which operates the network, through its 80% controlling ownership interest) and Hearst Corporation (which holds the remaining 20% interest). The channel focuses on sports-related programming including live and recorded event telecasts, sports news and talk shows, and other original programming.

ESPN broadcasts primarily from studio facilities located in Bristol, Connecticut. The network also operates offices in Miami, New York City, Seattle, Charlotte, and Los Angeles. John Skipper currently serves as president of ESPN, a position he has held since January 1, 2012. While ESPN is one of the most successful sports networks, it has been subject to criticism, which includes accusations of biased coverage,[1]  conflict of interest, and controversies with individual broadcasters and analysts.

ESPN headquarters in Bristol, ConnecticutAs of August 2013, ESPN is available to approximately 97,736,000 pay television households (85.58% of households with at least one television set) in the United States.[2]  In addition to the flagship channel and its seven related channels in the United States, ESPN broadcasts in more than 200 countries,[3]  operating regional channels in Australia, Brasil, Latin America and the United Kingdom, and owning a 20% interest in The Sports Network (TSN) as well as its five sister networks and NHL Network in Canada.



Contents
[hide]  *1 History  ==History[ edit] == Main article: History of ESPNFounded by Bill Rasmussen, his son Scott Rasmussen and Aetna insurance agent Ed Eagan, ESPN launched on September 7, 1979 in Connecticut, under the direction of Chet Simmons, the network's President and CEO (who later served as the first commissioner of the United States Football League). The Getty Oil Company provided funding to begin the new venture via executive Stuart Evey.
 * 2 Programming
 * 3 Executives
 * 4 Related channels
 * 4.1 ESPN2
 * 4.2 ESPN Classic
 * 4.3 ESPNews
 * 4.4 ESPN Deportes
 * 4.5 ESPNU
 * 4.6 Longhorn Network
 * 4.7 SEC Network
 * 4.8 Other services
 * 5 In popular culture
 * 6 Criticism
 * 7 See also
 * 7.1 Competitors
 * 8 Notes
 * 9 Bibliography
 * 10 External links

ESPN's signature telecast, SportsCenter, debuted with the network and aired its 50,000th episode on September 13, 2012. In early 2009, ESPN opened an office and studio facility in Los Angeles located at L.A. Live, from which the late night edition of SportsCenter is now broadcast. SportsCenter '​s iconic theme[4]  (colloquially known as "DaDaDa, DaDaDa," for the six-note sequence used in the theme and subsequent others used for the program) was written by John Colby, a Grammy-winning composer, producer and music director.[5] ==Programming<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == See also: List of programs broadcast by ESPN and List of ESPN sports properties<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Alongside its live sports broadcasts, ESPN also airs a variety of sports highlight, talk, and documentary-styled shows. These include:

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Many of ESPN's documentary programs (such as 30 for 30 and Nine for IX) are produced by ESPN Films, a film division created in March 2008 as a restructuring of ESPN Original Entertainment, a programming division that was originally formed in 2001. 30 for 30 started airing in 2009 and continues airing to this day. Each episodes is through the eyes of a well known filmmaker and has featured some of the biggest directors in Hollywood. <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-6" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[6]
 * SportsCenter – The flagship program of ESPN, a daily sports news program delivering the latest sports news and highlights
 * Around the Horn – Competitive debating between four sports writers across the country
 * Baseball Tonight – A daily recap of the day's Major League Baseball stories and games that airs throughout the baseball season
 * College GameDay (basketball) – Weekly college basketball show airing from the Saturday Primetime game of the week site
 * College GameDay (football) – Weekly college football preview show airing from the site of a major college football game
 * E:60 – An investigative newsmagazine program focusing on American and international sports
 * Mike and Mike in the Morning – A simulcast of the ESPN Radio morning show, focusing on current sports stories
 * Monday Night Countdown – Weekly recap show aired on Monday evenings during the NFL season, also serves as the pre-game show for Monday Night Football
 * Outside the Lines – Talk and debate show that examines critical sports issues on and off the field of play
 * Pardon the Interruption – Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon debate an array of sports topics
 * SportsNation – Poll-driven show based on audience participation, including material generated or suggested by viewers
 * Sunday NFL Countdown – Weekly preview show that airs on Sunday mornings during the NFL season

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Since September 2006, ESPN has been integrated with the sports division of sister broadcast network ABC, with sports events televised on that network airing under the banner ESPN on ABC;<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-7" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[7] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-8" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[8]  much of ABC's sports coverage since the rebranding has become increasingly limited to secondary coverage of sporting events whose broadcast rights are held by ESPN (such as NBA games, the The Open Championship, and the X Games and its related qualifying events) as well as a limited array of event coverage not broadcast on ESPN (most notably, the NBA Finals). ==Executives<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ==Related channels<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ===ESPN2<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === Main article: ESPN2<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">ESPN2 launched on October 1, 1993, originally formatted as a more informal and youth-oriented channel than ESPN aimed at adults between 18 and 34 years of age, carrying a broad mix of event coverage from conventional sports (such as auto racing, college basketball and NHL hockey) to extreme sports (such as BMX, skateboarding and motocross).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-baltimoresun-espn2_16-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[16]  The "BottomLine," a ticker displaying sports news and scores during all programming that is now used by all of ESPN's networks, originated on ESPN2 in 1995.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-USA_17-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[17]  In the late 1990s, ESPN2 was gradually reformatted to serve as a secondary outlet for ESPN's mainstream sports programming.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-deadspin-lastdays_18-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[18] ===ESPN Classic<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === Main article: ESPN Classic<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">ESPN Classic is a digital cable and satellite television network that launched in 1995 as Classic Sports Network, founded by Brian Bedol and Steve Greenberg. ESPN Inc. purchased Classic Sports Network in 1997 for $175 million,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-19" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[19]  rebranding the channel to its current name the following year. The channel broadcasts notable archived sporting events (originally including events from past decades, but now focusing mainly on events from the 1990s and later), sports documentaries and sports-themed movies. ===ESPNews<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === Main article: ESPNews<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">ESPNews is a digital cable and satellite television network that was launched on November 1, 1996, originally focusing solely on sports news, highlights and press conferences. Since August 2010, the network has gradually incorporated encores of ESPN's various sports debate and entertainment shows and video simulcasts of ESPN Radio shows, in addition to sports news programming (which since the 2013 cancellation ofHighlight Express,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-20" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[20]  consists mainly of additional runs of SportsCenter); ESPNews also serves as an overflow feed due to programming conflicts caused by sporting events on the other ESPN networks. ===ESPN Deportes<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === Main article: ESPN Deportes<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">ESPN Deportes (Spanish pronunciation: [i.es.piˈen deˈportes], "ESPN Sports") is a digital cable and satellite television network that was originally launched in July 2001 to provide Spanish language simulcasts of certain Major League Baseball telecasts from ESPN. It became a 24-hour sports channel in January 2004. ===ESPNU<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === Main article: ESPNU<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">ESPNU is a digital cable and satellite television network that launched on March 4, 2005, and focuses on college athletics including basketball, football, baseball and hockey. ===Longhorn Network<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === Main article: Longhorn Network<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">The Longhorn Network is a digital cable and satellite television network that launched on August 26, 2011, focusing on events from the Texas Longhorns varsity sports teams of the University of Texas at Austin.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-21" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[21] It features events from the 20 sports sanctioned by the Texas Longhorns athletics department, along with original programming (including historical, academic and cultural content). ===SEC Network<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === Main article: SEC Network<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">SEC Network is a digital cable and satellite television network that launched on August 14, 2014, focusing on coverage of sporting events sanctioned by the Southeastern Conference. Created as a result of a 20-year broadcast partnership between the two entities, the network is a joint venture between the conference and ESPN Inc. (which operates the network).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-22" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[22] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-secdigitalnetwork1_23-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[23] ===Other services<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === ==In popular culture<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">ESPN has been a part of popular culture since its inception. Many movies with a general sports theme will include ESPN announcers and programming into their storylines such as in the 2004 comedy DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story, which gently lampoons the channel's multiple outlets by referencing the fictional ESPN8, "The Ocho",<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-30" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[30]  a reference to a nickname formerly used by ESPN2, "the Deuce".
 * John Skipper – President, ESPN, Inc.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-9" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[9]
 * Sean Bratches – Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-10" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[10]
 * Christine Driessen – Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-11" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[11]
 * Ed Durso – Executive Vice President, Administration<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-12" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[12]
 * Charles Pagano – Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-13" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[13]
 * Norby Williamson – Executive Vice President, Programming<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-14" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[14]
 * Russell Wolff – Executive Vice President and Managing Director, ESPN International<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-15" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[15]
 * John Wildhack – Executive Vice President, Production
 * John Kosner – Executive Vice President, Digital and Print Media
 * John A. Walsh – Executive Vice President and Executive Editor

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Many jokes have been made by comedians about fake obscure sports that are shown on ESPN. Dennis Miller mentioned watching "sumo rodeo", while George Carlin stated that ESPN showed "Australian dickwrestling". One of several Saturday Night Live sketches poking fun at the network features a fictional ESPN2 program called Scottish Soccer Hooligan Weekly, which includes a fake advertisement for "Senior Women's Beach Lacrosse". SNL also parodies ESPN Classic with fake archived obscure women's sports event telecasts from the 1980s (such as bowling, weightlifting and curling), with announcers who know nothing about the sport, and instead focus on the sponsors, which were always for feminine hygiene products. In the early years of ESPN, Late Night with David Letterman even featured a "Top Ten List" segment poking fun at some of the obscure sports seen on ESPN at the time. One of the more memorable sports on the list was "Amish Rake Fighting". A recurring skit on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon named Sports Freak-Out! is a parody of SportsCenter '​s overexcited anchors.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">An occasional joke used in comedic television and film involves people getting ESP (the common abbreviation for extrasensory perception, that was ironically the working abbreviation for the channel prior to its launch) confused with ESPN, often including someone saying a sentence along the lines of "I know these kind of things, I've got ESPN". Sports video game releases by Electronic Arts in the early 1990s featured a logo for a fictional sports network, EASN (Electronic Arts Sports Network); this was soon changed to EA Sports after ESPN requested that the company stop using the similar name. There are also at least 22 children that are named after the network.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-names_31-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[31] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-_32-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[32] ==Criticism<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == Main article: Criticism of ESPN<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Throughout its history, ESPN has received accusations of biased coverage, conflicts of interest and controversies with individual broadcasters and analysts. ESPN has been criticized for focusing too much on College and Professional Football and Basketball, while not showing enough hockey or Women's athletics. ==See also<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ===Competitors<span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">The list below features links to articles on national sports networks (both general interest services and channels dedicated to a single sport) that have surfaced in the United States in recent years: <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">National sports networks
 * 2espn
 * ESPN 3D
 * Wieden+Kennedy

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:inherit;">Specialty networks
 * Fox Sports 1
 * Fox Sports 2
 * CBS Sports Network
 * NBCSN


 * beIN Sport USA
 * GOL TV
 * Golf Channel
 * MLB Network
 * NBA TV
 * NFL Network
 * NHL Network
 * Tennis Channel
 * TVG Network
 * ONE World Sports
 * Universal Sports