Is a sports media blue wave coming, too?
This originally appeared in Thursday morning’s edition of The A Block, Awful Announcing’s daily newsletter with the latest sports media news, commentary, and analysis. Sign up here to be the first to know everything happening in the sports media world each day. Only a fool would try to extrapolate what happened on election night and…
The Blue Tsunami from Tuesday's election may have ripple effects on sports media, two years after shifting political winds affected the industry. The political change, centered around Donald Trump, has been a long time coming. The sports media landscape has already seen some effects, such as sports leagues modifying policies and the mainstream acceptance of Barstool Sports.
With Trump's popularity waning, many companies and networks felt compelled to distance themselves from his influence. However, some of these shifts are already reversing, and the sports media world may be undergoing a subtle reset. For instance, the LIV Golf funding collapse occurred shortly after the election, and Fox has dropped its Dave Portnoy Experiment.
Prediction markets have thrived, but regulation is looming. Even ESPN's support for Pat McAfee, once a staple of the Trump Vibe Shift, has faced backlash. As Trump's influence wanes, sports media entities are less likely to pander to him. The impact may be gradual, but in a year or two, we might observe significant changes in the sports media landscape.
Written by urgent.news from Yahoo Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
