Around The Hor n came into our lives in 2002 and forever changed the way sports journalism is presented on television. From the moment the show began, it has provided a pathway for storytellers to give their takes in a catchy, gamified format. In July, the New York Post broke news that shocked many fans of the ESPN staple when it was revealed that the show may be ending in 2025 . For the livelihood of sports media, it is essential this show survives.
Most sports talk shows on television today exist in the silos of New York and Los Angeles. Around the Horn is one of the few places where you can find panelists from different parts of the country. The journalists that appear on the show speak for their cities and for fans that sometimes feel unheard in the greater ecosystem. Shows like First Take and most of ESPN’s lineup do a great job of serving their viewers with provocative conversation but they don’t always do the best job of providing geographic diversity among their guests. Around the Horn showcases journalists who live in cities like Denver, D.C., Boston, Chicago, Milwaukee, Atlanta, and Miami and can understand the context behind the pain and joy those sports fans have experienced over the years.
The show also does a great job of embracing debate in a non-inflammatory way. It doesn’t award hot takes, it awards nuance and perspective. It has always provided a space for journalists of different races, ethnicities and creeds to open up about their own experiences and how that relates to the hot sports topics of the day. Around the Horn was embracing women in sports journalism before it was cool and gave reporters like Jackie MacMullan, Jemele Hill, Mina Kimes and Kate Fagan a chance to shine on the same level playing field as the guys.
The voices of sports journalists who are reporting on a beat day to day are rarely considered or interviewed during talk shows in today’s world. Viewers and aspiring sports journalists would be led to believe that the key to success in the journalism world is to have the loudest take rather than the deepest well of sources. Without ATH, the nation wouldn’t have understood the impact of Sports Illustrated’s layoffs on the future of journalism , the effect the Capitals and Wizards moving out of Washington, D.C. could’ve had on their community , and the importance of being aware of violence Asian-Americans face among other things. This show, unlike most, isn’t afraid to tackle social issues and personalize them. It brings light to a conversation that needs to be had no matter how uncomfortable it makes some feel.
Around the Horn also provides a human touch that is rarely seen in all of television. Tony Reali, the show’s host, has taken time to address personal situations such as the loss of a child and the birth of a new child . Every Halloween, the panelists get into the spirit of the holiday and dress up in costumes . This is not a show that treats itself as the almighty edict of takes. It’s a show that makes its viewers feel like family.
ATH brings out a variety of opinions and in a world that is embracing diversity more than ever, what sense does it make to take a show off the air that has a diversity of thought? The bite sized conversations for each topic even fit well for the age of TikTok where it’s important to capture an audience with quick soundbites and fast facts. There’s eye appeasing graphics and constant movement that capture a viewer’s eyes more so than a set with the same two to three people slinging random, outlandish observations.
And there’s nothing wrong with having those kinds of shows on air either. There’s a reason that kind of conversation is highly rated. But it is ESPN’s duty as the worldwide leader in sports to provide a balance that also strays away from the norm. While Outside the Lines and E:60 are still on air in some capacity, they don’t impact the sports world in the same way they did 10 years ago. The Sports Reporters and Real Sports are gone. There aren’t many places left for journalists with knowledge, insight and reporting chops to give viewers their perspective. Around the Horn has prime real estate in the grand scheme of sports.
If there’s anything that needs to be done with ATH, it needs to be uplifted and spotlighted even more on social media and across the ESPN universe, not cast aside and taken for granted.
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