In comparing the coverage of Fox and ESPN during the
Stanley Cup Finals, the WASHINGTON POST's Leonard Shapiro
wrote that ESPN "clearly has the advantage" on production,
"even if Fox has more bells and whistles." Shapiro added
that ESPN's production "somehow seems smoother," perhaps
because it "has televised so many more games over the
years." Shapiro did give Fox "a very slight edge in call
and commentary" with its team of Mike Emrick and John
Davidson (WASHINGTON POST, 6/13). USA TODAY's Rudy Martzke
also gives ESPN the "edge" in its "stick-with-the-puck
production." Martzke writes that Fox "scores with the
FoxTrax puck's tail and miking the coach, but its tight
pictures lose perspective and sometimes miss shots on goal."
Martzke says that ESPN's announcing team of Gary Thorne and
Bill Clement is "just as effective as" Fox's Emrick/Davidson
paring (USA TODAY, 6/15). In Toronto, Chris Zelkovich
writes that Fox's Stanley Cup coverage "tries too hard,"
adding that the net "should just let the game sell itself"
(TORONTO STAR, 6/15). For more on the NHL, see (#14).
RATINGS: ESPN earned a 2.9 overnight rating for
Thursday's Game Two, down 34% from last year's 4.4
(Blooomberg/DETROIT NEWS, 6/13). In Philadelphia, Timothy
Dwyer pointed out that "less than" two million people
watched Thursday's Game Two, while an audience of "about" 60
million watched Friday's NBA Finals Game Five. Dwyer: "It's
pure embarrassment" (PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS, 6/14).
