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The sports media always claims that the content broadcasted is what the audience wants to see. But, their declining ratings may show otherwise. Also, the sports pundits are not adequately covering the great competitive series that we are seeing with the Stanley Cup Final, where the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers are battling in a close matchup.
This may be the first time we have seen a competitive Stanley Cup Final as well as an NBA Finals, which is closer than people originally thought. Easy to write off the Indianapolis Pacers in favor of the Oklahoma City Thunder, but the talent, at least in this series, has been equal through the first four games. Both championship series are tied and up for grabs in some manner.
I still think many people favor the Thunder and the Panthers. But many more people would no longer be surprised to see a title go to Indy. They have played above their perceived ability. The Oilers are star studded. So no surprise if they do finally end the Canadian Cup drought.
Hockey is a great sport, but does not have a wide appeal. You are a fan of hockey because of growing up when the Philadelphia Flyers were a perennial playoff team and had a litany of star players, like Eric Lindros, John LeClair, Rod Brind'Amour and Mark Recci.
For many cities outside of the NorthEast, Midwest, and Canada, the hockey teams have not enjoyed sustained success and do not have a strong connection to fans. Therefore, networks like ESPN may not find them appealing.
Some could say the same about the NBA, but the premier basketball league in the world has so many stars who are marketable. The many skilled athletes in hockey are probably perceived as hard to market because ESPN personalities do not generally know much about them.
But as basketball embraces more European talent, networks like ESPN should broaden their scope and cover more sports like hockey and soccer. They are the worldwide leader, but do not really give worldwide content.