Espn: The Uncensored History

Rating:
Summary: Did the author actually check facts?
Review: A very poorly written book with too many "anonymous" quotes. It seems that Freeman had something against ESPN with little to prove.

ESPN: An Uncensored History is a tiring read. It doesn't flow and it is full of the writer's slant and opinion, shaping unsubstantiated rumors into a very leaky case. Freeman would be better served writing an article with some of the allegations that have been made, rather than trying to stretch a few innuenedos into an otherwise boring book.

Also, it was too full of locker-room banter and crude jokes that he supposedly found. Why couldn't have just told the narrative about the rapid rise of this gigantic sports network?

This is a bad piece of investigative work. Don't waste your time with it.

Rating:
Summary: Strongly recommended reading for all sports buffs
Review: ESPN: The Uncensored History by sports journalist Michael Freeman is an eye-opening, bare-all look at the global telecommunications network that since its inception in 1979 as the "Entertainment and Sports Programming Network", has gone on to become virtually synonymous with televised sports. From its relatively humble origins, ESPN has gone on to expand into additional offerings for the dedicated sports enthusiast including ESPN2, ESPN Classic Sports, ESPNews, and ESPN Magazine. Extensively researched, ESPN: The Uncensored History presents a fascinating, candid, revealing story in clear, unambiguous, and highly evocative language. A singularly memorable and compelling "tell-all" book, ESPN: The Uncensored History is strongly recommended reading for all sports buffs.

Rating:
Summary: Too much emphasis on the sexual harassment angle
Review: I am a fan of ESPN and enjoyed learning about the history of the company (channel, network, whatever you want to call it). I particularly enjoyed the first quarter of the book that focused on the original entrepeneur that started the network. However, after that I thought the author focused too much on the bad parts of the history, particularly the sexual harassment incidents. While these seem very serious and should have been mentioned, I don't think they should have overshadowed everything else in the company's history in the last decade.

Rating:
Summary: not bad, but too much sexual harassment angle
Review: I think Freeman's book is a good history of how ESPN became the media giant that it is (I was born in 1982-- i cant imagine life without ESPN), but the book focused WAY too much on the sexual harassment angle, and it bogs down the story.

Rating:
Summary: Very disappointing...
Review: I'd read mixed reviews when Freeman's history first came out, so I wasn't anticipating a great book. Unfortunately, ...ESPN: The Uncensored History... fell fall short of even my rather tempered expectations.

A large part of the problem is that ...Uncensored... can't decide whether it is a corporate retrospective or a tell-all expose. Freeman spends the first third of the book on a rather dull detailing of how ESPN was founded, the close calls it encountered in finding financing and trying to stay afloat, and the power struggle that ensued among the founding fathers. Only the principals and their family would find this portion even mildly interesting.

As the book progresses, it switches into expose-mode, teasing the reader with hints of scandals behind the scenes. However, even though the author spends page after page dwelling haughtily on the personal foibles of ESPN personnel, particularly focusing on a culture which seemingly encouraged sexual harassment, Freeman mostly avoids naming names, with one very notable exception.

Freeman then goes back and forth, between a dry rendering of ESPN's corporate evolution from a backwater independent cable channel to the crown jewel of Disney's purchase of ABC, and a bowdlerized tale of malfeasance among the employees of ESPN.

Occasionally, Freeman tries to focus on some of the anchors which the so many viewers have seen so often, but even then, the portraits seem two-dimensional. Other than Mike Tirico, who is portrayed as a Jekyll-and-Hyde family man/sexual predator, and Keith Olbermann, cast as the tortured genius, the sketches of the on-air personalities seem rather hollow.

All in all, disappointing, and not worth the time.

Rating:
Summary: Very disappointing...
Review: I'd read mixed reviews when Freeman's history first came out, so I wasn't anticipating a great book. Unfortunately, ...ESPN: The Uncensored History... fell fall short of even my rather tempered expectations.

A large part of the problem is that ...Uncensored... can't decide whether it is a corporate retrospective or a tell-all expose. Freeman spends the first third of the book on a rather dull detailing of how ESPN was founded, the close calls it encountered in finding financing and trying to stay afloat, and the power struggle that ensued among the founding fathers. Only the principals and their family would find this portion even mildly interesting.

As the book progresses, it switches into expose-mode, teasing the reader with hints of scandals behind the scenes. However, even though the author spends page after page dwelling haughtily on the personal foibles of ESPN personnel, particularly focusing on a culture which seemingly encouraged sexual harassment, Freeman mostly avoids naming names, with one very notable exception.

Freeman then goes back and forth, between a dry rendering of ESPN's corporate evolution from a backwater independent cable channel to the crown jewel of Disney's purchase of ABC, and a bowdlerized tale of malfeasance among the employees of ESPN.

Occasionally, Freeman tries to focus on some of the anchors which the so many viewers have seen so often, but even then, the portraits seem two-dimensional. Other than Mike Tirico, who is portrayed as a Jekyll-and-Hyde family man/sexual predator, and Keith Olbermann, cast as the tortured genius, the sketches of the on-air personalities seem rather hollow.

All in all, disappointing, and not worth the time.

Rating:
Summary: If you're an ESPN junkie, you'll enjoy it.....
Review: If you have spent years watching nearly every Sportscenter as I have, then you will love learning about the history of the network and its personalities. But to be honest, I thought the early chapters moved slowly and there were ambiguous parts where it was hard to tell what was fact and what was the author's version of the events. I also agree with an earlier review that it is a bit presumptuous to state that certain reporters and anchors are "the best" talent, reporters, etc....

However, like I said, if you can't get enough of the network(s), the magazine, and the Web site, then this is a quick read and an enjoyable one.

Rating:
Summary: A must-read for sports junkies, but...
Review: The first half of this book is interesting. It reveals the history of ESPN and is well written. The second half of the book is an amalgam of gossippy information about the internal organization that is ESPN. It may be interesting for some to read about personality tension, the plight of low level employees, and sexual harassment at ESPN. Yet, unfortunately, personality tensions, bad conditions for workers, abuse of power and sexual harassment are characteristic of many organizations. Abuse of power and sexual harassment needs to be discussed no matter where it prevails. However, I thought much of the second half of the book was a thatched collection of episodes that may have been "uncensored" but did not contribute to a unique history of ESPN. Therefore, I think the title of the book is misleading and thematically, after the first section, the book loses its ostensible focus.