ESPN- Going the Way of MTV?

I remember watching '80s music videos all day long with my friends (only at their houses because my parents didn't want my sister and I seeing some of the stuff shown- with good reason, I might add) on MTV. Then, and I don't remember the exact order, along came shows like Beavis and Butt-Head and Daria (cool cartoons) which started butting in on music video time. But, what finally relegated all music videos to MTV2 and MTV17.5 were the edgy reality shows: Road Rules and The Real World. All of a sudden the first letter of their name was being ignored while the tv part was being enforced. Of course, that was okay with the majority of people in america- or they wouldn't have kept on doing it that way.

As I got a little older I stopped watching MTV and flipped to something a little more constructive than reality shows (ironic fact #1: I now watch Survivor religiously)- ESPN. I enjoyed watching sporting events and getting commentary from Sports Center. In the past year & 1/2, I've bought a house and my wife and I decided not to get cable when we made the move. So, I haven't been able to keep up with Sports the way I would want to in my perfect world inside my head (ironic fact #2: I was the one who suggested saving money by not getting cable... I'm complicated) until recently. The radio gods have smiled upon my prayers for more sports information. 105.5FM (The Fan) has recently been added in middle GA- hallelujah.

As I have been listening over the past few weeks, Poker seems to be the newest thing in the Sports World. When I've caught glimpses of ESPN over the past two years at other people's houses, I've seen shows like PTI and Cold Pizza along with the normal Sports Center I am used to. Now, I don't have a full picture of ESPN, but is it going the way of MTV? Leaving it's original viewers behind for a new crowd of sports fans? And what is the definition of sports? Should poker be included? Cheerleading? What is the criteria for what gets shown on a sports network?

I have found conflicting answers. According to my "Funk and Wagnall's Standard Desk Dictionary" (ironic fact #3: the dictionary way was found on my bookshelf with dead flies on it, not exactly standard desk material) sport is defined as: "that which amuses in general; diversion; pastime." But, Dictionary.com has three definitions in which the three following words appear in each one respectively: actively, exertion, and active. I'm leaning on the side of Dictionary-dot-com on this one.

While I'm sure great wrist strength is required for the repeated holding of cards in the precarious position so as to not let others see your "hand" and great strategy is used to lose the $25,000 in chips sitting in front of you... I don't see it meeting the criterion of sports. While I like to play poker, I'm not a fan of watching it on my sports station (ironic fact #4: if I had one). Let's relegate poker and like shows to the Travel Channel (which is where I first saw poker aired on tv 2 years ago) or maybe even MTV. And just to cause some controversy, I'm going to say that I believe Cheerleading does meet the criterion of a sport. (boo... hiss... comes the calls from men around the world.)

So, am I making too much out of nothing? What is a sport and what should be shown on ESPN? And are Beavis and Butt-head national icons that we should applaud? These are the thoughts in my head this week as I drive to and fro in my blue ranger. What are yours...

And just for your reading pleasure, in case you were wondering what ESPN stands for (from ESPN's FAQ Web Site):
It doesn't stand for anything, but the story is this...When ESPN started in 1979 we were the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (thus, ESPN). However, the full name was dropped in February 1985 when the company adopted a new corporate name --ESPN, Inc.--and a new logo. We are a subsidiary of ABC, Inc., which is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Co. The Hearst Corporation has a 20 percent interest in ESPN.

Next post: Monday Oct. 31 "What's scarier, Halloween or Methodists talking about GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, & transgender) issues?"