Be careful of the mainstream narrative. It is often misleading, driven by ignorance or ideology.

ESPN is laying off on air talent. It is cancelling shows, some which were "woke". This leads to accusations that Disney, the parent of ESPN, is afraid of being called woke.

Here we have a narrative that is nonsense.

ESPN is making decisions surrounding its programming. Are they targeting "woke" shows.? Perhaps. But the ratings tell the story.

Before diving into ESPN, this is the same nonsense we heard about Hollywood. Scour the net for videos of people who follow the industry and you hear that Hollywood's decline is due to being too woke, COVID killing theaters, poor scripts, or the death of the movie star.

While that factors could have fed into the situation, they were not the main cause.

The Rapid Decline of ESPN

The decline of ESPN is due to one thing: no more monopoly on distribution.

This is a topic I covered in detail regarding Hollywood. It is also part of the reason for the decline in the cable news ratings. We are nearing the end of traditional broadcast and ESPN is no different.

ESPN is going to continue to decline because they offer nothing outside live sports. Once the game is over, what makes ESPN unique?

In the past, ESPN had the monopoly. If you wanted updates, scores, or commentary on what was taking place, that was the place to go. It was followed up by other channels like FS1, which offered similar programming.

Today, we can find that on social media. I am not referring to the episodes of the programs. Instead, I am talking all that was provided in the past. Want a score, head to X (or perhaps a chatbot). If you seek commentary, there are plenty on YouTube who might know more about a particular team (or sports) than those on ESPN.

In other words, people have options.

This is following what is happening with the media.

Fragmentation

We are watching the fragmentation away from the traditional corporate entities.

Why does anyone need to watch the debate shows on CNN, MSNBC, and FoxNews. There is commentary all over YouTube covering any perspective one wants. In fact, many people who are, or were, on the mainstream channels have their own online productions.

Megyn Kelly. Bill O'Reilly. Bill Maher. Keith Olbermann.

In the sports world, Stephen A Smith, of ESPN, has his own podcast. Over the last few years he delved more into politics but he still expresses his views on sports. Pat Mcafee was a YouTube star before ESPN hired him (and he might be on his way out). Jason Whitlock, formerly of FS1 and ESPN, does a show.

Of course, this is a list of known names. There are hundreds who have channels that could offer better insight into specific topics. Many of the videos I watch are of people of lesser stature.

Then you have longtime shows such as Outkick (in sports) and the Young Turks (in politics) that draw in many viewers online. Chris Cuomo, formerly of CNN, has a show on NewsNation. I guess this can be subscribed to as a pay channel through the cable service but, like most things, clips are on YouTube.

When ESPN was introduced in 1979, it was revolutionary. As I write this, 45 years later, we are looking at a dinosaur.