Who do you side with? (1 Viewer)

[burd]

im sure everyone has heard about how ESPN has banned Jimmy Kimmel from making future appearances on MNF because of his jokes about Thiesmann, so i won't go into details. But i was wondering what true football fans feel about it.

My take is that ESPN is the Olive Garden of sports reporting .... a diluted, commercialized version of the original catered to the masses. To me, all these gimmics are their attempt to turn ESPN into sport's version of American Idol with the sole purpose of increasing their ratings. In their attempt to turn MNF into a 3-ring circus, they've forgotten about the real sports fans who've made ESPN a major player in sports reporting.

Me personally, I find all the other non-football stuff that ESPN has decided is "entertaining" only distracts me from what i really came to see .... football. As much as Dancing w/ the Stars is a side-show version of a dancing competion, MNF has turned into a side-show version of what a football broadcast should be. It's like an HBO drama of a football broadcast show.

 

[The Man Who Met Andy Griffith]

I think you'll find that the majority of the Shark Pool loathes ESPN and agrees with your assessment. It would be nice if somebody launched a cable station for actual sports fans. I could even see ESPN doing it as a sub-brand.

 

[3C's]

Thought Kimmel was kind of funny, but he shouldn't have been in there in the first place. Now if they would only ban Kornheiser as well all would be good.

 

[mad sweeney]

It was a pretty clunky segment. JK was obviously impaired to some extent and even if he didn't say anything about Theisman he probably wouldn't be back, though not banned I'm sure. He wasn't funny and was the worse guest they've had, although he has been good in there in the past.

Kornheiser made a joke about Jaws getting Theisman fired, if only we'd get so lucky to apply that ban to him.

It wasn't his show, Jimmy was wrong for making those jokes, regardless of the fact that I hate the butt of them. And ESPN was right to ban him, you can't have someone baggin on your personnel decisions on the air.

Jaws pretty much ignored that conversation and talked about the game. He should head up his own network devoted to actual sports analysis

 

[mtffl2]

Now if they would only ban Kornheiser as well all would be good.

I AGREE !!!! it seems like he goes out of his way to try and be funny. he just gets in the way.... he hasn't added any value to the broadcast this year!

 

[circelli17]

I've NEVER found Kimmel funny and I think he made himself look like an idiot on MNF. 5 minutes talking about sports betting with the booth? Now there's some original material

 

[3C's]

Is there a place we can contact ESPN and request a booth of Tirico and Jaws, and only those 2? Tirico calls a great game and Jaws is a great analyst. Kornheiser just gets in the way.

 

[Andy Herron]

Can't help but side with Kimmel here. Though it was a bit uncomfortable, it was still funny. Theismann was a major idiot in the MNF booth, and ESPN proved to be the bigger idiot for leaving him in there as long as they did. Let alone the decision to put him in there to begin with.

 

[timintey]

Sorry I didn't catch it. I was watching CSI Miami...

 

[redman]

I thought Kimmel was funny, and I liked Joey T needling ESPN with a reference to a competing network's show (CSI Miami on CBS).

I doubt Kimmel will be losing any sleep over not appearing on MNF anymore.

 

[mbuehner]

ESPN is just run by idiots. They put an entertainer in the booth to ad-lib and they are surprised when he entertains. I love what Kimmel did, because i think he really just ran with the premise to its logical conclusion. He's not a football expert, he's a talk show host, so he treated the stupid segment with the respect it deserved, none. ESPN tossed some celebrity into the mix at the expense of the game and Kimmel thanked them for it by making a well deserved mockery of the segment.

 

[The Man Who Met Andy Griffith]

The producer's shocked response is just indicative of how clueless ESPN is in general.

As for Kimmel, I don't see how you can fault him. He's a comedian. He told jokes. Some of the jokes were mean-spirited, but not offensive in any way. That's what comedians do.

 

[turleyfan]

Can't help but side with Kimmel here. Though it was a bit uncomfortable, it was still funny. Theismann was a major idiot in the MNF booth, and ESPN proved to be the bigger idiot for leaving him in there as long as they did. Let alone the decision to put him in there to begin with.

This is pretty much how I see it. C'mon, like ESPN didn't know what they were getting with him? And for them to come off afterwards the way they are is disingenuous. I don't buy it for a second. They got exactly what they wanted (hell, we're discussing it, which wouldn't be the case otherwise), and are secretly (I bet) delighted with the buzz.

 

[Whiplash Inc.]

The only reason to watch ESPN is the simple fact some of the games you can't watch on any other channel.

 

[Ghost Rider]

Like others have said, what did ESPN think they were going to get from Jimmy Kimmel?

 

[nyftbl_giants]

Is there a place we can contact ESPN and request a booth of Tirico and Jaws, and only those 2? Tirico calls a great game and Jaws is a great analyst. Kornheiser just gets in the way.

Whats with the idea that you have to have a 3rd. Ive always liked jaws.

 

[shredhead]

He wasn't funny

I agree for the most part, but the line about how inpregnating two supermodels at the same time is what impresses him most about Tom Brady had me cracking up. I about spit my beer all over the living room.

 

[mbuehner]

Exactly- they brought in Kimmel because idiots that produce television think that 'edgy' is cool and will bring in an audience. But they want safe edgy, which is a contradiction in terms. Kimmel just gave them that lesson, but of course they wont get it.

 

[redman]

ESPN is just run by idiots. They put an entertainer in the booth to ad-lib and they are surprised when he entertains. I love what Kimmel did, because i think he really just ran with the premise to its logical conclusion. He's not a football expert, he's a talk show host, so he treated the stupid segment with the respect it deserved, none. ESPN tossed some celebrity into the mix at the expense of the game and Kimmel thanked them for it by making a well deserved mockery of the segment.

Exactly- they brought in Kimmel because idiots that produce television think that 'edgy' is cool and will bring in an audience. But they want safe edgy, which is a contradiction in terms. Kimmel just gave them that lesson, but of course they wont get it.

x2I'm different than some here in that I don't like what Kimmel did because I saw it as a way to skewer Theismann (who I don't hate, though I appreciate how he annoys people). I thought it was wonderful the way he hoisted the network in its own crane.

 

[Texican]

What exactly did he say?

 

[FFdork]

Didn't read everyone's response, but I'd like to see them ban all of these lame appearances in the game. They add nothing to the game, in fact, they detract from it.

Furthermore, though I love PTI, remove Kornheiser and add Vermiel stat.

TIA

 

[Weapon of Mass Instruction]

Here's the deal: They have some sort of agreement in the settlement with Joey Sunshine that this behavior violated. They are worried of running afoul of it and being out some $.

Of course it was funny.

Now, show me the game with no announcers and crowd noise in 5.1 surround sound.

 

[Paddy O'Seanessy]

I thought Kimmel was funny, and I liked Joey T needling ESPN with a reference to a competing network's show (CSI Miami on CBS). I doubt Kimmel will be losing any sleep over not appearing on MNF anymore.

Wow!Filled out your collection of Fletch movies yet?

 

[rct]

Can't help but side with Kimmel here. Though it was a bit uncomfortable, it was still funny. Theismann was a major idiot in the MNF booth, and ESPN proved to be the bigger idiot for leaving him in there as long as they did. Let alone the decision to put him in there to begin with.

This is pretty much how I see it. C'mon, like ESPN didn't know what they were getting with him? And for them to come off afterwards the way they are is disingenuous. I don't buy it for a second.

Me either, same as when they had Rush on the Countdown show.

 

[Neil Beaufort Zod]

The only person I find less funny than Jimmy Kimmel is his girlfriend. That being said, ESPN shouldn't have been surprised at what they got. I don't think he really did anything wrong, so I side with him.

It wasn't really funny, but I definitely wasn't expecting anything funny from him.

 

[Pound]

I didn't catch what Kimmel said about Theisman but I did hear him ask if the announcers bet on the games. Jaws said he didn't, Kornheiser said he bet using offshore sportsbooks. HA!

 

[duaneok66]

Thought Kimmel was kind of funny, but he shouldn't have been in there in the first place. Now if they would only ban Kornheiser as well all would be good.

best post of the thread - I turned down the TV volume as soon as I saw Kimmel in the booth . . .

 

[coachjim]

im sure everyone has heard about how ESPN has banned Jimmy Kimmel from making future appearances on MNF because of his jokes about Thiesmann, so i won't go into details. But i was wondering what true football fans feel about it. My take is that ESPN is the Olive Garden of sports reporting .... a diluted, commercialized version of the original catered to the masses. To me, all these gimmics are their attempt to turn ESPN into sport's version of American Idol with the sole purpose of increasing their ratings. In their attempt to turn MNF into a 3-ring circus, they've forgotten about the real sports fans who've made ESPN a major player in sports reporting. Me personally, I find all the other non-football stuff that ESPN has decided is "entertaining" only distracts me from what i really came to see .... football. As much as Dancing w/ the Stars is a side-show version of a dancing competion, MNF has turned into a side-show version of what a football broadcast should be. It's like an HBO drama of a football broadcast show.

IMO the announcers are sooo bad that I don't listen to the sound anymore. I just enjoy the game without all the inane BS. So therefore I did not hear any of the stupid remarks made by any of them

 

[Bob Sacamano]

ESPN is just run by idiots. They put an entertainer in the booth to ad-lib and they are surprised when he entertains. I love what Kimmel did, because i think he really just ran with the premise to its logical conclusion. He's not a football expert, he's a talk show host, so he treated the stupid segment with the respect it deserved, none. ESPN tossed some celebrity into the mix at the expense of the game and Kimmel thanked them for it by making a well deserved mockery of the segment.

And now everybody is talking about both Kimmel and MNF, both ultimately assets of the same company. Idiots indeed.

 

[H.K.]

Smart move by Kimmel, he figured out a way to avoid that trainwreck going forward.

Sad thing is, if they just had Tirico and Jaws, they'd be a solid pairing.

 

[packersfan]

Thought Kimmel was kind of funny, but he shouldn't have been in there in the first place. Now if they would only ban Kornheiser as well all would be good.

best post of the thread - I turned down the TV volume as soon as I saw Kimmel in the booth . . .

I've hit the mute button for every one of those lame interviews with the exception of Barkley, who's hilarious. Just watching without the sound it looked like Kimmel was stoned.

 

[mbuehner]

ESPN is just run by idiots. They put an entertainer in the booth to ad-lib and they are surprised when he entertains. I love what Kimmel did, because i think he really just ran with the premise to its logical conclusion. He's not a football expert, he's a talk show host, so he treated the stupid segment with the respect it deserved, none. ESPN tossed some celebrity into the mix at the expense of the game and Kimmel thanked them for it by making a well deserved mockery of the segment.

And now everybody is talking about both Kimmel and MNF, both ultimately assets of the same company. Idiots indeed.

The idea that any publicity is good publicity doesnt apply to big corporate monoliths. I dont think anyone is going to tune into MNF to see if they can really get more boring and inane now that they have taken a hard line on Jimmy freakin Kimmel. Kimmel might get a little traction our of the affair but honestly he probably lost more potential viewers by boring us on MNF to begin with. It was only really comedic/interesting to nerds like us that follow the trevails of MNF- i dont think that translates to giving a crap about the late show. For most people it was just uncomfortable and lame, which like i said is really just the current broadcast amped way up.

 

[kyinaz]

IMO the announcers are sooo bad that I don't listen to the sound anymore. I just enjoy the game without all the inane BS. So therefore I did not hear any of the stupid remarks made by any of them

I don't listen to the sound, either. Just the game. I don't need inane commentary and understand football well enough without play by play.However, I am curious at to what Kimmel said. Anyone wanna offer up a brief summary?

 

[3C's]

Smart move by Kimmel, he figured out a way to avoid that trainwreck going forward.

Sad thing is, if they just had Tirico and Jaws, they'd be a solid pairing.

Start us up the revolution!

 

[B-Deep]

. To me, all these gimmics are their attempt to turn ESPN into sport's version of American Idol with the sole purpose of increasing their ratings.

That makes me laugh. Of course there sould purpose is to increase ratigns. Do you thin the 6:00 news exists to inform the country? NO, they exist to GET RATINGS.someone else said they wished we could get a real sports network. I have news for everyone here, there will never be a network who puts the interest of the hard core sports fan above their ratings, that's not how it works. ESPN is a business, and if they put crap on the air, and it gets ratings, they'll put more crap on.

 

[AB in DC]

Guys like Jimmy Kimmel shouldn't be on MNF in the first place. Let's stick to sports, people.

 

[notoriousbob]

I guess I didn't hear it all because all I heard him say about Joe T was he asked how his leg was. I thought that was funny. Then he said something about how there were more people in the booth than were left in the stands. That struck me as funny too because they kept showing all four of them stuffed in there shoulder to shoulder. I think Kimmel should take Tony K's spot.

 

[mozzy84]

I guess I didn't hear it all because all I heard him say about Joe T was he asked how his leg was. I thought that was funny. Then he said something about how there were more people in the booth than were left in the stands. That struck me as funny too because they kept showing all four of them stuffed in there shoulder to shoulder. I think Kimmel should take Tony K's spot.

he is actually funny

 

[bigfeet_88]

For those that missed what Jimmy said...

SI Article:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writ...mmel/index.html

What Kimmel did during his appearance this week on ESPN's Monday Night Football, according to the show's producer Jay Rothman, was "classless" and "disappointing." Appearing in the third quarter of a moribund game between the Falcons and Giants, Kimmel took multiple swipes at the not-so-smooth departure of Theismann from the broadcast ("I'd also like to welcome Joe Theismann, watching from his living room with steam coming from his ears") and zinged sacred cows Tom Brady ("What impressed me most is that he could impregnate two models"), Kelly Ripa ("Listen if we can have a Mormon President, I can marry Kelly") and sports betting ("Are you allowed to bet legally on this game?"). "It was cheap," Rothman told Richard Sandomir of The New York Times. "The more he went on, the worse he got."

 

[kyinaz]

For those that missed what Jimmy said...

SI Article:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writ...mmel/index.html

What Kimmel did during his appearance this week on ESPN's Monday Night Football, according to the show's producer Jay Rothman, was "classless" and "disappointing." Appearing in the third quarter of a moribund game between the Falcons and Giants, Kimmel took multiple swipes at the not-so-smooth departure of Theismann from the broadcast ("I'd also like to welcome Joe Theismann, watching from his living room with steam coming from his ears") and zinged sacred cows Tom Brady ("What impressed me most is that he could impregnate two models"), Kelly Ripa ("Listen if we can have a Mormon President, I can marry Kelly") and sports betting ("Are you allowed to bet legally on this game?"). "It was cheap," Rothman told Richard Sandomir of The New York Times. "The more he went on, the worse he got."

Thanks, Big Feet.

 

[Legion of Doom]

Eh MNF lost it's luster when it moved from ABC. It seems like a second rate broadcast now that its on espn. The annoucers(jaws is good) are terrible and it only makes it worse when ESPN uses gimmicks like Kimmel.

Unless its a really good game,I can't make it through an entire game b/c its so annoying. I'd rather have Dennis Miller than kornholio.

For the most part I now follow MNF nfl.com

 

[Air Coryell]

Did I miss something else he said?

I remember Kimmel saying "I'd also like to welcome Joe Thiesman from his living room with steam coming out of his ears"

Was there anything else? If thats it, that's pretty minor.

Never mind saw the link above, so it wasnt just the Joey T reference.

 

[Gig Em]

Here's the deal: They have some sort of agreement in the settlement with Joey Sunshine that this behavior violated. They are worried of running afoul of it and being out some $.Of course it was funny.Now, show me the game with no announcers and crowd noise in 5.1 surround sound.

Amen. Many times I wish I had a "mute commentary" button on the remote.

 

[3C's]

Not like these things work, but maybe we'll get lucky. Bye Tony

 

[Bob Sacamano]

ESPN is just run by idiots. They put an entertainer in the booth to ad-lib and they are surprised when he entertains. I love what Kimmel did, because i think he really just ran with the premise to its logical conclusion. He's not a football expert, he's a talk show host, so he treated the stupid segment with the respect it deserved, none. ESPN tossed some celebrity into the mix at the expense of the game and Kimmel thanked them for it by making a well deserved mockery of the segment.

And now everybody is talking about both Kimmel and MNF, both ultimately assets of the same company. Idiots indeed.

The idea that any publicity is good publicity doesnt apply to big corporate monoliths. I dont think anyone is going to tune into MNF to see if they can really get more boring and inane now that they have taken a hard line on Jimmy freakin Kimmel. Kimmel might get a little traction our of the affair but honestly he probably lost more potential viewers by boring us on MNF to begin with. It was only really comedic/interesting to nerds like us that follow the trevails of MNF- i dont think that translates to giving a crap about the late show. For most people it was just uncomfortable and lame, which like i said is really just the current broadcast amped way up.

Fortunately for them, then, the publicity wasn't for the monolith, but for small stones sitting at its feet. For any television show, any publicity is good publicity. That's why they put women in towels next to TO in the locker room and hope somebody raises hell about it. The goal is to get someone, anyone, to take notice. And it doesn't cost them a dime, so what can it hurt?

As the people who are going to tune in just to see football regardless, we may not like it, but there's a reason they keep doing it. Keeping a buzz about MNF and keeping a buzz about Jimmy Kimmel keeps both in the news cycle, and that's always better for business than not being there.

It's being highlighted in the New York Times. That extends beyond nerds like us following the travails of MNF.

 

[Softball 3:16]

with the sole purpose of increasing their ratings.

Shame on them.

 

[massraider]

Do that many people watch games alone?

Yes, Kornheiser sucks, and so does the ESPN broadcast, but either have some friends over to watch the game with, or got to a sports bar. Guaranteed you won't have to listen to it.

 

[Delusions Of Adequacy]

Like others have said, what did ESPN think they were going to get from Jimmy Kimmel?

Exactly. Reminiscent of when they put Rush Limbaugh in the booth to create controversy, and canned him the first time he said something controversial.

 

[bollocks28]

Don't care in the least.

 

[shake zula]

Kimmel