When ESPN presents the X Games from S.F. this month,
ESPN.com "will be featuring interactive elements that will
more than ever be integrated with the broadcasts," according
to Paul Rosano of the HARTFORD COURANT. Because ESPN owns
the games, it doesn't have to "deal with audio and visual
rights issues," and coverage will include "a live Chat
Crawler that will allow viewers to log on to an X Games chat
room on ESPN.com and communicate with other fans." At times
during the telecast, the live chat "will be scrolled along
the bottom of the screen, a la MTV." During the X Games,
"celebrities and athletes will be in the room to answer
fans' questions in real time." Another "unique feature
will be an event where medals will be decided by on-line
voting." ESPN Coordinating Producer Jamie Reynolds: "We're
looking to create a culture or environment where people can
chat back and forth and feel like they're part of our
presentation on the air, and secondarily we're looking at it
as a low-impact focus group to see if we're in tune with
what kids want to see" (HARTFORD COURANT, 6/13).
GO HERE FOR GRAVITY'S PULL: EMAP Petersen announced the
launch of GravityGames.com, the official Web site of the
summer and winter Gravity Games. The site offers photos and
videos from Petersen's sports publications (Gravity Games).
