The ESPN Effect

I've been thinking about how there's any possible way to measure various college teams in a manner that's just close to fair, and I keep getting stuck on ESPN. 

On one hand, they're great.  With several channels and media platforms (several of which have only come into existence during the past decade), I can usually see any game that I want, many of which would not have been available a few years ago.

However, they still control what I see.  They pick the channel and time of games based on what they think will generate the best ratings.  And since not all channels and platforms are created equal (I'm looking at you, ESPNU and ESPN3), they control to an extent the ease in which I can see certain games.  (Not all cable or satelite systems offer ESPNU, and sometimes I'm in a place without an internet connection fast enough for ESPN3.)

Plus, they have a more of a vested interest in some conferences over others.  Sometimes it's hard for me to comprehend their deal with the SEC.  Basically, they spent a lot of money on a long term contract, but CBS still gets their choice of the best games.  As a result they pimp those teams and games a lot, even when not on an ESPN network.  Meanwhile, ESPN is the exclusive TV home to the ACC (they sublicense the two regional broadcasts), but doesn't seem to pimp them out as much.

They have also shown to change the course of a football season.  The big season opener between Virginia Tech and Boise State last year was originally scheduled to be in October until ESPN threw a lot of money at both schools to move it to Labor Day.  That game certainly would have played differently in the middle of the season.  Maybe VT would have won, but then they wouldn't have had the same motivation going forward and might not have gone 9-0 in the ACC.

For off the field action, SportsCenter is the main source of sports news.  They're not just controlling what stories I see, they are controlling the emphasis placed on those stories.

And this coverage is what is largely guiding people who vote in polls - either they watch ESPN or work for them.

I feel that ESPN basically manipulated the polls into getting the LSU-Alabama rematch for the title game.  They were guided by ratings.  The first LSU-Alabama game was the highest rated college football game of the season . . . and it was on CBS.  ESPN wanted to replicate that on one of their channels.

I'm not anti-ESPN, and I don't think they have malicious intent.  But they are not just an innocent unbiased bystander in college football.  We just need to keep in mind the influence that they wield.