This deserves its own thread I believe: http://blog.washingtonpost.com/dcsportsbog/2007/08/bobby_boswell_on_bspn.html Mod's note: Please don't quote so much of text.
Damn, hope someone who can do something hears this. And, if the Beckham hype continues and continues, there just may be a number of MLS players who will be very happy to take him out...do you think?
I'm of two minds on that. There are certainly guys who will want to take him out just because they are skillless thugs (and we all know who I'm talking about). I doubt it will happen much, everybody knows how important he is for the league, so he might be on the receiving end of a few harsh challenges, but nothing like what New England saves for Moreno and Gomez. I also think there are also a large number of players in the league who will use games against Beckham to raise their level since they know the exposure that will come with those games. So you might see less thugish play as a whole in Beckham games. Only time will tell really.
I agree about the Sportscenter highlights. Wouldn't it be smart for ESPN to show more highlights on Sportscenter so they can gain more viewers and then charge more money off of advertising for these games?? Just from watching the game with 2 friends last night(non soccer fans) they could not believe how many times the camera would just cut straight to Beckham even if he was out of the play.
Glad to hear him call them out. But Boswell should focus his ire at the local press too. Here's an example: I listen to Washington Post radio every morning during my commute (which is about an hour long on a good day). The usually have Emilio Garcia Ruiz on twice during that time to talk sports. He never fails to neglect DC United (or soccer in general). Of course, this past Monday was different. After he went on and on about Barry Bonds and the home run record (it hadn't been broken yet, and yes, it's a legitimate topic) one of the hosts asked about Beckham and thursday nights game against DC United. So Ruiz goes on about "Beckham's hurt and he probably won't play, blah, blah, blah." He ended with some stupid comment along the lines of "If you bought a ticket to see Beckham, you just got robbed." Did he happen to think to mention that the evening prior DC United demolished the Eastern Conference leaders on the road with 3-0 score? Of course not. So I won't even point out that the win was even more epic because DC was playing without some key players. This is a radio station in Washington DC. It purports to represent the Washington Post, which ironically has one of the best soccer beat writers in the nation. So maybe Boswell should call up Ruiz and give him 'what for.' Better yet, maybe he can shit in a bag and set it on fire on his porch and ring the doorbell...
Totally agree. I watched the game on TV and was continually frustrated by ESPN cutting away from game action to show Beckham or the England coach (spacing on his name). Their producers don't seem to know a thing about soccer. They totally missed the quick start against the Revs that led to Luciano's second goal. Rant over
Oh you're the one! Seriously though - I like Bobby speaking out and I totally agree with him. MLS have to try to get ESPN to try and cover matches for what they are - matches. Call me a Eurosnob, but when I watch soccer highlights I usually expect to see every single goal and any sending(s) off.
I can't remember the last time I watched SportsCenter & I have a hard time understanding why anyone would expect their coverage of a MLS game would be better than this. If its not a World Cup year I don't expect to see any coverage about soccer on SportsCenter worth watching. I don't have enough interest in enough non DC/Baltimore teams in other sports to make SportsCenter worth watching. IMO SportsCenter is overated but i'm sure that's not an original opinion.
Boswell is a BEAST. Hope his comments get some press. I hope everyone on the team, especially Olsen, and maybe Tom too should all be saying similiar things for about a week until ESPN get the message. Yes, some people only watched to see becks, but you only need to show him on the bench once before the game, and if there is a close shot and you have already shown the replay of the shot and the goal kick still isnt ready MAYBE you can show his reaction. And then you don't need to show him again except maybe 3-4 seconds ONCE of him warming up. Don't even get me started with the in game commentary. Hopefully, now that he has actually played there wont be as much focus on will he or wont he and the focus can be on the game, and it should get better when he is fit enough to start, and even better when all the highlight revolve around him for the good reason.
I agree with the Boz. You reel them in with the Beckham hype, but you don't keep them with just one player. You've gotta sell the league, the players, the fans, the passion, etc. I don't mind a couple of weeks of Beckham-cam, but if they do it a year from now I'm going to beat people. And trust me I'm not mentally right. I'll beat you, your cat, your parakeet Charlie, and your sofa. I don't give a damn.
Here's the NY Times' two cents... http://goal.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/08/10/espns-beckham-obsession/ I completely agree, the DC media has been just as bad as everyone else's... just look at the front page of The Post.
Obviously ESPN thinks the only way to capitalize on soccer is Beckham's appeal. Why show highlights to a game most viewers won't care about when they could mention someone most Americans know? Its infuriating and I'm extremely happy Boswell lashed out with such a well spoken/written argument. Hopefully it will change and become more like their coverage of the Champions League but honestly I'm not getting my hopes up. ESPN just wants to make a quick buck on the Beckham craze.
It's no secret that ESPN worships the celeb athlete. Every golf leaderboard on their ticker shows Tiger's score even when he's not on the leaderboard. Jordan beat Babe Ruth for "Athlete of the Century" because the Babe's not around to play golf with ESPN celebrity anchors. And remember the oh-so-brief "Bonds on Bonds" show last season? The nadir of this way of viewing sports--fawning to that ego. They think fans only watch sports if there's a celeb to watch. So if you're ESPN, you start to look at sports primarily through a celebrity lens. Like other TV media, they've dumbed it down for us. No one's interested in soccer, they're interested in Beckham, so why show the soccer? I honestly believe that MLS brought Beckham here to raise awareness of the game, not just of a player, but it looks like ESPN is not playing along. ESPN thinks people only care about celebs--because ESPN only cares about celebs. And because ESPN is the enormous tail wagging the sports dog, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. They care about the beautiful game only to the extent it draws eyeballs, and so casual fans start to think MLS is only Beckham. My only hope comes from the many shots of the Barra Barra (sp?) and the Screaming Eagles--perhaps that was enough of a glimpse to get some folks intrigued enough to give soccer a try?
Beckham is not to blame for the level of stupidity at ESPN.Or for the amount of stupidity on these forums.Why would any MLS players want to take out their frustrations on him.That's just a stupid statement to make.
Boswell may be right and honestly I dont think Beckham should have came, I watched the game last night, the quality of play in the MLS SUCKS. I was getting pissed off and the horrible giveaways and lack of creativity. He should have stayed in Madrid, you can tell he was pissed off while he was watching. Boswell can bitch all he wants but the fact is if Beckham wasnt there no one would be watching you Boswell. Its a slow process to get the league the least bit popular so suck it up.
I disagree... we were watching Boswell long before Beckham decided to play in the U.S. Beckham isn't the be all end all of players.
Wow!! Bobby Boswell<< who is this clown, when he does something important he should start running his mouth. Lets see him hide from the cameras if he ever BECOMES half of what Beckham is. Yes ESPN killed the coverage, but he did put 45,000 in RFK. And it was his FIRST MLS game, what was more important then that, "historic" moment for the league. Something like Juicer Bonds hitting 756 in the soccer world(in the USA).
ESPN should stop broadcasting soccer and just allow the E Channel to they have the superior celebrity coverage in this country
Funny thing is, Becks would probably agree with Boswell about the coverage. ...It took awhile, but ESPN is getting some shots across the bow. The Wynalda call-out it great.
45,000 came to see ONE MLS match. How many would come back and back and back...Boswell has a point...If you want a great support for your team you can't establish that with these one game thrillers...they need to pull in the sports fan and not the celebrity fan...or causual observer...freddy adu had this same effect and it dwindled fast.
