ESPN boss defends preferential treatment of the Heat

by Tim Griffin

Since ESPN broadcast LeBron James’ infamous “The Decision” made-for-television spectacle earlier this summer, many journalism analysts have wondered about the expansive coverage of  the superstar player and his team by the network.
Those charges became louder after the network’s website started “The Heat Index,” a special page that includes coverage by two beat writers and other columnists that far transcends anything given to any other NBA team.

During ABC college football broadcasts last week, the bottom-screen scroll at one point included only the Heat — and the point totals of its top players — among its NBA scores. ESPN did that regularly during the preseason, leading a good explanation for the backlash against the team among fans throughout the league.
But ESPN president George Bodenheimer defended his network’s blanket Heat coverage to the Miami Herald.
“It’s a story that transcends the NBA,” Bodenheimer told the Herald. “There’s tremendous interest in the team. Fans want news and information on the Heat.”
Whatever.
It’s comments like those that are making many fans across North America feel like they are having the Heat rammed down their throats — much like the network’s overkill coverage of the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox in baseball.
Am I wrong on this? Or does Spurs Nation really feel like we’re getting too much Heat too soon in this season?