04/23/24
September 06, 2016
Troy Aikman Blasts Fox Hiring Skip Bayless: "To say I'm disappointed in the hiring of Skip Bayless would be an enormous understatement. Clearly, [Fox Sports exec] Jamie Horowitz and I have a difference of opinion when it comes to building a successful organization. I believe success is achieved by acquiring and developing talented, respected and credible individuals, none of which applies to Skip Bayless." -- Fox lead NFL analyst Troy Aikman
I know someone who was a property manager where Bayless lived in Dallas not long before he wrote that Cowboys book spreading rumors about Aikman being gay. I found his speculation ironic because that's exactly what neighbors said about Bayless.
posted by rcade at 11:00 PM on September 06, 2016
I'm with Aikman.
I find Bayless and his cohort's shtick boring and pointless. I must admit that I've never endured more than about 45 seconds at once in developing this opinion.
I could care less whether Aikman, Bayless, or anyone else is gay, bisexual, or otherwise.
Aikman is really good at what he does.
Bayless is not.
posted by cixelsyd at 10:27 AM on September 07, 2016
Aikman is really good at what he does.
Bayless is not.
Actually, Bayless is VERY good at what he does. He draws eyeballs to the screen. He draws attention to his product. He draws discussion about him/show/network.
Talking intelligently about sports? Oh, he's definitely shit...but that's not his real job.
posted by grum@work at 10:31 AM on September 07, 2016
I read Skip Bayless in the Dallas Times-Herald as a kid, listened to the Cowboys post-game show where he'd just learned the Times-Herald was being shut down and was a day one listener to his first talk show on The Ticket.
Early Skip in the newspaper was good. When he got that radio show, it became apparent quickly how much he relied on shtick and hot takes he championed for shock value. I don't think he believed he would get attention any other way. People still make fun of his show-ending gimmick where he'd play a basketball horn and say, "Shot clock got me."
He was The Ticket's morning drive guy and supposed to be one of its two stars. But listeners didn't like him and he was out pretty quickly. That was the beginning of the end of my Bayless fandom.
Sometimes I entertain the idea of writing a book on Bayless. He's been bad for sports journalism in so many ways.
posted by rcade at 10:48 AM on September 07, 2016
Talking intelligently about sports? Oh, he's definitely shit...but that's not his real job.
Wasn't aware he still had a show. Do people watch it?
I'm not totally against shtick in sports commentary. Don Cherry often manages to blend shtick with meaning in NHL broadcasts some 25 years after he was certifiably senile.
There are many others across sports who do the same. There are others who ruin the game to the point viewers switch to another contest - Bayless fits here.
Sure hope FOX doesn't use him during game action.
posted by cixelsyd at 12:30 PM on September 07, 2016
Actually, Bayless is VERY good at what he does.
I agree 100%.** Horowitz's responsibility to the shareholders of Fox, Inc. is to maximize the profits of the machine, which is done by drawing eyeballs and selling advertising. He seems to believe that Bayless will serve in that function, and Bayless' history at ESPN appears to bear that theory out.
If Aikman is disappointed because he had a different vision for what FS1 was going to be, that is his business, and his right. But Aikman, to my understanding, is "on-air talent," and not management. His role in the corporate structure is vastly different.
**Like the prevailing wisdom here, I can't stand what he does. But he does it well.
posted by tahoemoj at 01:44 PM on September 07, 2016
There was a reference to "Bayless loyalists". Who are they and how were they identified as such? Are they both from the same county?