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ESPN’s Skipper Explains Why He Shut Down Grantland

Jason Barrett

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Say what you will about ESPN president John Skipper, but the guy knows how to come clean. Ever since ESPN announced the immediate shutdown of its revered Internet writing showcase Grantland on October 30, there has been, apart from a terse initial statement, little clarification from the network’s Bristol headquarters about why it happened, when it happened, and what it all means. Now that has changed.

“I made the decision,” Skipper says flatly. “There was no influence from [ESPN corporate parent] Disney on this. And I made sure that I divorced my feelings about Bill [Simmons] from this decision because I would never let that affect the people who are there.”

Skipper‘s decision to end Grantland was informed by the uncertainty surrounding the site‘s personnel and the resources and effort needed to keep the site thriving absent its star founder.

Throughout the 36 years of its existence, ESPN has weathered many a dramatic event—comings and goings of stars, programs, executives, and properties—but the intensity surrounding Grantland’s demise caught many at the network by surprise. Skipper admits to underestimating the effect Simmons’s exit would have, conceding it affected Grantland personnel more than he or perhaps anyone else on his management team anticipated.

“We lacked a full understanding of the bonding nature between Bill and those guys,” Skipper says now. But along with management failing to appreciate fully the bond between Simmons and his staff, it also misunderstood the Grantland culture—enough to imagine that turning the site over to Chris Connelly, brought in as a temporary Simmons replacement, would sit well with the staff.

“Chris was only going to be interim,” Skipper says. “It wasn’t his desire to be a long-term manager there. He made that clear to us. Chris is nothing but a good guy. This has been hard on him.”

In the past several months, two ESPN executives referred to the Grantland offices in Los Angeles as a media Jonestown, populated by a cult far more devoted to their leader than to just any old web site. Clearly, Connelly was marching into a difficult situation. When Skipper flew to L.A. in mid October, he made sure to give Connelly the bad news face-to-face.

“I had to fly out to Burbank on other business but felt that Chris and I are good enough friends that I wanted to talk to him in person. Chris had become an advocate for continuing it when he knew that there was a decision-making process happening. The decision was made the week before we announced it.”

Evidently, it was never an easy one. “In the weighing of a decision like this,“ Skipper says, “you look at the resources, the time, the energy necessary to do this well and balance that with the things you get from it. This was never a financial matter for us. The benefits were having a halo brand and being Bill Simmons related.”

The site was highly regarded inside and outside the media business and brought considerable prestige to the ESPN brand. Grantland, loftily named after erudite sportswriter Henry Grantland Rice, was considered a solid, sometimes-bold step into the world of sports-related journalism, becoming one of the most successful blends ever of sports with pop culture and current events and a paradise for serious writers who wanted to stretch and even experiment.

According to Skipper, there was a scenario by which Grantland would have been saved, and that was when Grantland editor Sean Fennessey was offered the top job.

“We did make Sean Fennessey an offer to become editor-in-chief,” Skipper says. “You ask, ‘If Sean had said yes, then would we have still made the same decision about the site,’ and the answer to that has to be ‘no.’ We would have kept it going. There was no way we would have made that job offer to him if we weren’t going to keep going.”

Fennessey declined to comment for this story, however, few, if any would doubt his loyalty to, and affection for, the site. But, his decision to follow his mentor Simmons off to new worlds wasn’t shocking. It was also clear to many that his decision to turn down the top job at Grantland reflected his uncertainty about ESPN’s commitment to the site. Grantland insiders were convinced Fennessey wondered if he would really have the resources needed to run the site and keep its reputation solid. He had also become aware, sources say, of rumors that ESPN wanted to cut Grantland back to just a sports site and eliminate its pop culture content.

In the weeks ahead, media insiders will watch to see how many of the former Grantland staff will find other writing duties at ESPN, migrate to HBO to re-unite with Simmons, or find work elsewhere. But the hard cold fact for now can be simply if crudely stated: Grantland is dead. Everyone needs to move forward. The noble experiment is over.

“I loved the site,” Skipper insists. “It pained me to make the decision. It was not without difficulty.”

To read the full story visit Vanity Fair where it was originally published

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Erin Andrews Reveals Infertility Journey in Emotional ‘Today Show’ Interview

FOX reporter Erin Andrews sat down with ‘The Today Show’s’ Kristen Welker to discuss her journey, how Welker’s own journey inspired her, and more.

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Erin Andrews

FOX reporter Erin Andrews shared her story of infertility and surrogacy with NBC’s Today Show. Last summer, Andrews and her husband welcomed a baby boy via surrogate after trying for a decade to get pregnant via IVF, during which she was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2016. Today, she sat down with Kristen Welker to discuss her journey, how Welker’s own journey inspired her, and more.

Andrews says Welker’s announcement on the Today Show made her think a baby could be possible. “I remember Kristin Welker’s announcement on your show,” Andrews said last year, “and I actually watched that the morning Mac was born, because that just hit me.”

When they finally sat down, Welker asked Andrews why her journey resonated with the sports reporter so much:

“Because I see myself in you. Kristen, the video of you moderating debates after you’re waiting on bad news or maybe you just received it, that’s me. I can tell you every stand-up I’ve done at a football game where I’ve gotten the news that it didn’t work. I’d be talking about Tom Brady going for this record and my record is that I still was failing…I would have chest pains every time I was waiting for the call if it worked, and I knew it wouldn’t work.

Erin Andrews on ‘Today’

Andrews knew surrogacy was the only path to having a child. Although her family’s first attempt failed, her second attempt was a success, and she got to hear her child’s heartbeat for the very first time. The pair discuss the complex emotions that come with surrogacy, saying that bonds with their child could be affected because they didn’t carry their child. However, Welker assured Andrews that those feelings go away once you can talk to your child.

Once her son was born in June, who Andrews called, “a miracle,” she then talks about her child glowingly, talking about how he is just like mom — vocal. “He’s all me,” she says.

Andrews supports Baby Quest, a non-profit that grants money to families in need of IVF or surrogacy to have a baby but don’t have the funds to pursue these expensive treatments. Both Andrews and Welker acknowledged how difficult and unattainable their journies are for some families — and Andrews even used the NFL’s “My Cleats, My Cause” initiative to raise awareness for her cause.

“People don’t need to feel embarrassed that they have a surrogate or are looking for other help,” Andrews said.

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Curt Menefee and Joel Klatt to be Lead Fox Sports UFL Broadcast Team

Curt Menefee, Joel Klatt, and Brock Huard will make up the first XFL on FOX announce team, while Kevin Kugler, Devin Gardner, and Jake Butt are the #2 team.

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FOX is ready for the United Football League (UFL) season and recently announced its broadcast lineup for the upcoming season. Curt Menefee returns to the booth alongside Joel Klatt to make up the primary UFL commentary team. Joining Menefee and Klatt from the sidelines will be former NFL and University of Washington QB Brock Huard.

Menefee and Klatt will call the season-opening matchup between the defending two-time USFL Champion Birmingham Stallions and the reigning XFL Champion Arlington Renegades on Saturday, Mar. 30 at 1 p.m. ET. The second team of Kevin Kugler and former Michigan quarterback Devin Gardner will call the second game of the day when the St. Louis Battlehawks take on the Michigan Panthers at 4:00 p.m. ET on FOX. Former Denver Broncos tight end Jake Butt will man the sidelines for that game.

Former NFL and USC QB Mark Sanchez was also mentioned in the FOX news release but details of his involvement were not made clear.

The UFL season kicks off on FOX this weekend and continues over on ESPN. Both networks will split coverage of the league all season long.

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CBS Sports Host James Brown To Receive Lifetime Achievement Award at Sports Emmys

“I am incredibly humbled by this award. I know full well that it’s not as much about me as it is about all the people with whom…I worked over all these years.”

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James Brown
Courtesy: Mary Kouw, CBS

Longtime CBS Sports host James Brown will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 45th Sports Emmys. The awards show announced the news via its X account last night:

Brown is a three-time Sports Emmy winner for his work on CBS’ The NFL Today and previously FOX’s The NFL On FOX, and HBO’s Inside the NFL. Brown’s career spans more than 30 years and includes numerous accolades such as the Pete Rozelle Award from the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Uncommon Award from Tony Dungy.

He was named “Best Studio Host of the Decade” by Sports Illustrated in 2010 and was honored with the 2009 Dick Schaap Memorial Award for Media Excellence. In 1998 he was awarded the Golden Mic Award by the Black Broadcasters Alliance. Brown was elected into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame in 2021.

“I am incredibly humbled by this award,” Brown said via the Sports Emmys. “I know full well that it’s not as much about me as it is about all the people with whom and for whom I worked over all these years. Thank God for the blessing!”

Sports media came together to honor Brown’s achievement:

Brown and other award recipients will be honored at the Sports Emmys award ceremony in May.

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