Life of Reilly: The rise, fall and rise again

This. It wasn't "can" as in ability. It was "can" as in opportunity.

 

Good thread.

15,000-word pieces? God help him for running across those.

 

Rob King couldn’t run a concession stand never mind a media titan

 

You have got to be shitting me. Is this a Rob King burner account?

 

ESPN isn't trying to succeed?

(I'm not making an argument that Rob King or ESPN are successful. I'm making an argument that neither Rob King nor ESPN have a leftist political agenda.)

 

Jesus Christ go get some fresh air

 

WAKE UP SHEEPLE

 

Some people just aren't good on television. Of the crossovers -- Kornheiser and Wilbon were very good on television. Whitlock is decent.

Rick Reilly wasn't good on TV. Neither is Simmons. But not their fault that someone offered them a Koncak contract. I'd take it. too, even knowing that I might not be good at it.

I'll agree with those who say it is a "hard job". While I'm nowhere on the level of a Top 20 news anchor (or someone on SportsCenter), the job has changed. 20 years ago, everyone did an hour in the morning and there was no social media to jump on every goddamn mistake or misspeak.

Now I do 3.5 hours a day, the people around me have less experience/less understanding of news context and social media is ready to jump down my ass if they perceive we like Trump or hate Trump. It is a harder job because people expect perfection out of others while most people don't hold themselves to any modicum of standards.

 

Kevin is one of the best sports anchors in the country. He's been doing this since he was 20. The real deal.

Perhaps people like competence.

The SC6 had two non-TV people and they just weren't good.

 

I used to be a big Sting fan Andy one day he started putting out just the worst, gimmicky crap and I just about gave up on him. I still enjoyed his Police and early solo work, but stopped looking for new material, because each time I ran into it, it was so disappointing. Years later I saw him do a ted talk (i think, or something like it) where he told the story about how he lost his creative spirit. One day we’ll hear the story about Reilly, if he’s self reflective enough. Does the timing work with his divorce? I remember that was something people were talking about.

 

Since we’re on the race topic with SportsCenter, Bristol is VERY aware of its pairings on the show. It’s definitely not random.

You’ll very rarely have two white males on SC at the same time and it’s been that way for about 15 years. That’s been an effect of opening up that job to more than just the Ivy Leaguers that filled the chairs from 1979 to about 2000, when you saw more diversity.

Their first stabs at diversity on the desk weren’t always good. For every Gayle Gardner (who was very good), you’d get a Jason Jackson (who wasn’t).

The job now, however, isn’t as important as it was 20 years now. Now SC is mostly just filler TV for bars.

 

Looking back, I think ESPN only took Reilly to wipe out SI. It’s a common TV trick. Overpay for a competitive asset and then neutralize that asset by making it irrelevant. NBC does this whenever they’re threatened. Josh Elliott. Megyn Kelly.

They’re currently doing that with Katie Nolan, anyway.