ESPN

ESPN is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by The Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Communications (20%) through the joint venture ESPN Inc. The company was founded in 1979 as the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network by Bill Rasmussen, Scott Rasmussen and Ed Eagan.^[2]

ESPN broadcasts primarily from studio facilities located in Bristol, Connecticut. The network also operates offices and auxiliary studios in Miami, New York City, Las Vegas, Seattle, Charlotte, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles. James Pitaro currently serves as chairman of ESPN, a position he has held since March 5, 2018, following the resignation of John Skipper on December 18, 2017.^[3]

As of November 2021, ESPN reached approximately 76 million television households in the United States—a drop of 24% from nearly a decade prior.^[4] As of June 2023, the channel’s reach had been reduced to 72.5 million homes.^[5] In addition to the flagship channel and its seven related channels in the United States, ESPN broadcasts in more than 200 countries.^[6] It operates regional channels in Africa, Australia, Latin America and the Netherlands. In Canada, it owns a 20% interest in The Sports Network (TSN) and its five sister networks. Despite the network’s success, criticism of ESPN includes accusations of biased coverage,^[7] conflict of interest, and controversies with individual broadcasters and analysts