From the USA Today via the Sports Business Daily:
Adding Stephen A. Smith seems to indicate that network brass did not have much interest in the protestations of ombudsman Le Anne Schreiber. It is obvious that ESPN is attempting to amp up the ‘loud’ meter on its new First Take program.
Smith and Bayless debated each other in a Sunday SportsCenter feature called ‘Old School – Nu Skool’ and several summer editions of Pardon the Interruption years ago. Their chemistry was far lower than that of usual hosts Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon.
ESPN tennis analyst Patrick McEnroe has guest hosted Jim Rome is Burning on occasion, and has also debated Bayless on the show formerly known as Cold Pizza. Jemele Hill, relatively new to ESPN, will have a chance to expand her profile.
In addition to McEnroe, Smith and Hill being added to First Take, ESPN is making several other changes in the coming weeks.
SportsCenter will add a ‘Pardon the Interruption‘ style rundown, which will “list all the upcoming elements of the show along the right side of the screen”, while “First Take, Mike & Mike in the Morning simulcast and 1st and 10 start airing in high-definition”.
Edited to add: Commenter Morgan Wick makes this very good point: “SportsCenter adopting a PTI-style rundown (if true) may actually be taking a cue not from PTI, but from FSN’s Final Score program. That sounds like the most interesting part to me.“
