One of ESPN's Highest-Paid Pundits Is Refusing To Watch Any Football Because She Feels 'Marginalized'
ESPN’s low-rated morning show “Get Up!” is hoping to revive itself during the upcoming football season, but one of its hosts says she won’t be watching the sport.
Michelle Beadle, whom the network pays $5 million to talk about sports, said football has made her feel “marginalized” as a woman.
Her comments came during a discussion with co-hosts Jalen Rose and Mike Greenberg about Ohio State giving coach Urban Meyer a slap on the wrist by suspending him for three games for his role in a domestic abuse case involving a former assistant.
“There’s a reason why this will be the second season I don’t watch NFL and I don’t spend my Saturdays watching college football either,” Beadle said. “I believe that the sport of football has set itself up to be in a position where it shows itself in the bigger picture to not really care about women — they don’t really care about people of color, but we won’t get into that for NFL either — but as a woman I feel like a person who has been marginalized.”
While Beadle has a right to her views, it’s a bad look for ESPN when one of its hosts writes off an entire sport that drives much of its content.
It’s one thing, if within her position as the host of “NBA Countdown,” Beadle says she’s done with football, but it’s another as a co-host on “Get Up!”
“If you are a panelist on a sports talk show that is pivoting fully to football — ‘Get Up!’ announced its college and NFL analysts Wednesday — it is hard to see how you can be a regular part of the conversation,” said New York Post sports media columnist Andrew Marchand. “At a reported $5 million a year, Beadle maybe doesn’t care.”
It might not matter now. USA Today reported Saturday that Beadle will be leaving “Get Up!” at the end of the month. She reportedly will be part of a new NBA post-game show launching this fall called “After The Buzzer.”
The report said Beadle will be replaced by a rotating cast of Maria Taylor, Laura Rutledge, Jen Lada, Mina Kimes and Dianna Russini.
Beadle’s comments about football came in the wake of ESPN’s announcement of big changes to its morning show for football season.
“Get Up!” will have a mix of football analysts essentially serving as fourth co-hosts throughout the season. Each will have his own day, with both analysts from the NFL and college football joining the set.
And…. that is just the beginning. NFL analysts will be on @GetUpESPN each day as well! pic.twitter.com/IDJPFWrryV
— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) August 22, 2018
“Get Up!” has been struggling in ratings since it first got up with its premiere in April. The Twitter account @DidGetUpGet300K has tracked the ratings of every episode, and with the show recently airing its 100th episode, it’s managed to reach 300,000 viewers just a handful of times.
100th episode!!!
Wednesday, August 22, 2018
Did “Get Up!” get up to 300,000?
No.
288,000 viewers
15/100 (times reached 300,000) pic.twitter.com/wbAVXJMp3H— Tracking “Get Up!” (@DidGetUpGet300K) August 23, 2018
Time will tell whether Beadle’s departure and the new slate of co-hosts will turn things around this fall.
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