ESPN started broadcasting its 10 p.m. edition of “SportsCenter” from Los Angeles this week (LA Times article). Can anyone tell me if they can notice the difference?
To be honest, it took me a while to realize that the switch was made. The LA broadcast looked very similar to every other edition (all other editions of “SportsCenter” continue to originate from Bristol, Conn.).
I was catching snippets of Tuesday’s “SportsCenter” while at The Maltese. Every so often, there would be background footage of Los Angeles — Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, stuff like that. I didn’t think there was any major sporting event originating from LA, so the whole thing threw me off until I remembered about the changes.
At first, there don’t seem to be any major changes — the sports highlights looked the same (although the graphic presentation looks to have been updated in the past few weeks). The studio looks pretty similar to its Bristol counterpart.
I think many of the changes are beneath the surface. Some commentators have said ESPN is throwing the West Coast a bone after decades of being headquartered in New England. I think the changes could be more profound than that.
Having a production center and “SportsCenter” in Los Angeles is an excellent move on ESPN’s part. Sports is increasingly becoming “sports entertainment” (to steal a phrase from pro wrestling). I think the network could have a better access to superstar athletes with their studio across the street from Staples Center instead of relatively rural Connecticut.
Being close to Hollywood could help with other things, such as their series of original movies. ESPN is also ready to kick things up to the next level of TV production — the new studio is the first capable of producing 1080p high-definition TV.
I guess we’ll see if the left coast has an influence on the worldwide leader in sports.
