Pat McAfee Shatters Old TV Rules and Shows How Much ESPN’s Game Is Changing
variety.comBrian Steinberg Senior TV Editor ESPN has been giving one of its newest show hosts a lot of rope despite a years-long policy of keeping talent on a very short leash.
Pat McAfee has generated reams of unwanted publicity for the Disney-backed sports-media giant in recent days, allowing frequent guest Aaron Rodgers to spread misinformation about vaccinations; insulting Norby Williamson, an influential ESPN executive who manages many studio shows and tries to keep a tight rein on them, and accusing him of working to sabotage his show in talks to media outlets; and giving Rodgers room to call out Jimmy Kimmel, the ABC late-night host who is one of the most high-profile employees in the Disney empire.
Interestingly, few of the controversies that have surfaced on McAfee’s show have anything to do with ESPN’s raison d’etre: games and sports.
Such a program is “unsustainable,” says Joel Lulla, a former attorney for ABC Sports and IMG who is a lecturer at the Moody College of Communication at the University of Texas at Austin.
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