Hank Williams Jr. Rips ‘Muslim’ Obama During Anti-Gay Rant

Tracy Bloom / Truthdig Sep 4, 2012 Actor Alec Baldwin hit back at Hank Williams Jr. after the country singer's vitriolic, hate-fueled rant against the president and homosexuals over the weekend. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

NFL Charges Broadcasters $20 for Every American

Staff / Truthdig Dec 15, 2011 After negotiating various new agreements, Fox, CBS, NBC, ESPN and DirecTV will altogether pay close to $6 billion a year to broadcast NFL games to a football-addicted America. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

ESPN Pulls Song After Hitler Analogy

Staff / Truthdig Oct 4, 2011 A song by country singer Hank Williams Jr. was pulled from the opening of ESPN's "Monday Night Football" broadcast after he used an analogy to Adolf Hitler in comments about President Barack Obama. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

An Oral History of ESPN

By Steven B. Roberts Jun 10, 2011 The book lacks a narrative voice to set the scene, pull the reader along. Authors are not just tape recorders with expense accounts. They need to analyze, criticize, validate their characters. Here, they're often missing in action.About $4 of your monthly cable bill goes to ESPN, even if you never watch it. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

ESPN Is the Diva, Favre Is Just an Old Pro With a Bum Ankle

Mark Heisler / Truthdig Aug 23, 2010 In the 10 months from September to July, at least two of the four major leagues are playing In July and August, we’re on our own and the Big Paparazzo does what it does when it has nothing guess at something, blow it up, project from it and comment on itIn July and August, we’re on our own and the Big Paparazzo does what it does when it has nothing guess at something and comment on it. Dig deeper ( 6 Min. Read )

What ESPN’s Bill Simmons Superdeluxe Media Empire Means for Facts, Fans and Sports

Mark Heisler / Truthdig Jul 8, 2010 Going bonkers, lionizing winners and dumping on losers is fun, even if the cycle is accelerating to absurdity and beyond with modern 24/7 reportage That’s today’s price of fame Privileged as they are, today’s starry-eyed young athletes pursue their dream through a driving shitstormThat’s today’s price of fame. Dig deeper ( 10 Min. Read )

Everything Wrong With America on Display at Hot Dog Contest

Staff / Truthdig Jul 6, 2010 Competitive eating (aka food contests) is enough of a cultural phenomenon that the annual Nathan's hot dog chokedown is broadcast on ESPN. This weekend Joey Chestnut took the honors, but his greatest threat (and some would argue the "sport's" true champion), Japanese phenom Takeru Kobayashi, was barred from participating. (continued) Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Et Tu, A-Rod?

Staff / Truthdig Feb 10, 2009 Yet another top MLB player's reputation has been besmirched by use of performance-enhancing drugs: Take a bow, Alex "A-Rod" Rodriguez. The Yankees star admitted Monday that he'd dabbled in steroids years ago in a moment of high pressure and youthful indiscretion. He said the drug use occurred only while he played for the Texas Rangers. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

‘Monday Night Football’ Does Politics

Staff / Truthdig Nov 4, 2008 Who would have guessed that the "Monday Night Football" candidate interviews would turn out to be so bizarre? ESPN's normally affable Chris Berman asked questions with a perplexing intensity while John McCain sounded as if he was in a vacuum cleaner showroom. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )