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Shame on TSN and Sportsnet


dpetzz

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3 minutes ago, CanadianSoccerFan said:

Looks like Kristian Jack was part of the TSN layoffs.  Another soccer voice gone from the media.  It was sad when Sportsnet cut all of their soccer people (and later Brendan Dunlop).  

 

 

Wow.  Been watching KJ since the score with him, Sharm, Budgie, and Paul James.  There has to be room in the Canadian soccer media landscape for a guy like that.  

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37 minutes ago, Dominic94 said:

At a time when soccer is picking up in Canada this is a bizarre move.

It's not just soccer. Layoffs are across departments.

Cord cutting is squeezing cable revenue.  Even ESPN (owns 33% of TSN) in the states has been a bloodbath because of this.

 

Aside from cord cutting, The shift of soccer properties from mainstream sports networks to streaming services (DAZN in particular) has made the executive decisions easier.  If TSN still had Premier League and Champions League then this may have been different

Edited by CanadianSoccerFan
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1 hour ago, RS said:

Bell Media is notorious for doing this every year, but by all means let them off the hook with a COVID take.

Unless pro sports gets a government bailout they will continue to be under financial pressure until the fans return. We are now seeing that touch sports broadcasting as well, which only worsens what Bell Media does every year. I am not apologizing for them. That a (good) soccer analyst lost his job in this climate is a shame, but it is no surprise either. 

Unless something changes (bailout or return to normalcy or both), I am not optimistic for the long term future of professional sports in general and Canadian MLS franchises in particular.

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20 minutes ago, Bison44 said:

HA HA, this is what happens......you let go a insightful, intelligent analyst, that actually does stories, reporting etc, and keep an absolute useless lump like Caldwell.  I'd rather hear KJ on the broadcast, but maybe they are getting the TFC discount on Caldwell.  

You've always seemed to dislike Caldwell, but I don't see a problem with him TBH. I thought he gave a nice balance to KJ with his insights as a former player. I hope they continue to work together in some capacity.

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16 minutes ago, Obinna said:

You've always seemed to dislike Caldwell, but I don't see a problem with him TBH. I thought he gave a nice balance to KJ with his insights as a former player. I hope they continue to work together in some capacity.

Yeah. I'm by no means a fan of Caldwell's analysis but "useless lump" is mean-spirited.

I will miss KJ.

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3 hours ago, Cheeta said:

Streaming services is doing to cable channels what cable channels did to broadcast networks way back when.  The transition isn't even close to being over in this industry.

Still sucks for those whose lives get scrambled, and that's a lot of lives.

 

This is a great point. The pressure has been on cable channels long before the government shut downs began. The pressure will continue to be on when the government shutdowns end. However, shutting down parts of the economy lowers many ships, be it cable or streaming services, because consumers will cut spending during economic hardship. It is human nature.

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2 minutes ago, yomurphy1 said:

Yeah. I'm by no means a fan of Caldwell's analysis but "useless lump" is mean-spirited.

I will miss KJ.

I recall in a Caldwell/KJ podcast that both men were saying that Davies had the potential to be a solid Bundesliga winger, but a world class full back. I recall Caldwell in particular being adamant about that. He certainly got that analysis right, during a time where Dunfield and others were calling for Davies to play as a winger for Bayern and not a full back. I was on the side of Dunfield at the time.

The other thing I like about Caldwell is his dedication to Canadian soccer. I thought it was cool to see him give our coaching staff a hand. I mean, last time I checked is not a Canadian, but he is very clearly down with the cause, be it broadcasting, podcasting, coaching.

He seems like an all-around good guy as well, as does KJ and Sherman and Dunfield and many others like him. I get why people don't like Wheeler (although I do), but I don't get why some people dislike Caldwell so much. Is his analysis that bad? Does he have some personality quirks like Wheeler? Is it the Scottish accent? I am genuinely curious, because to me he seems no better or no worse than anyone else, just different.

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31 minutes ago, Obinna said:

Unless pro sports gets a government bailout they will continue to be under financial pressure until the fans return. We are now seeing that touch sports broadcasting as well, which only worsens what Bell Media does every year. I am not apologizing for them. That a (good) soccer analyst lost his job in this climate is a shame, but it is no surprise either. 

Unless something changes (bailout or return to normalcy or both), I am not optimistic for the long term future of professional sports in general and Canadian MLS franchises in particular.

The layoffs were not limited to Bell's sports broadcasters — they just happen to be the highest profile cuts. Entire radio newsrooms were gutted, and production staff from non news/sports departments also lost jobs.

Bell's stock price rose in response to the layoffs though, so I'm sure they're happy with themselves.

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1 minute ago, RS said:

The layoffs were not limited to Bell's sports broadcasters — they just happen to be the highest profile cuts. Entire radio newsrooms were gutted, and production staff from non news/sports departments also lost jobs.

Bell's stock price rose in response to the layoffs though, so I'm sure they're happy with themselves.

Something we agree on. Nice.

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1 minute ago, Stryker911 said:

The annoying thing about Caldwell is how negative he seems to be about Canadian players. During his play by play he will be very quick to point out a bad play by a Canadian. Which seems pretty odd when he is also involved with the coaching staff of the national team. If I was the player I would be annoyed by him saying this. 

Thanks. I never actually picked up on that before, but I will keep an eye out now.

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