Fox Sports Live

Fox Sports Live
Genre Sports news
Presented by Jay Onrait
Dan O'Toole
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 3
Production
Executive producer(s) Michael Hughes
Location(s) Fox Television Center
Los Angeles, California
Camera setup Multi-camera
Running time 30 minutes
Production company(s) Fox Sports
Distributor 20th Television
Release
Original network Fox Sports 1
Picture format 480i (SDTV),
720p (HDTV)
Original release August 17, 2013 (2013-08-17) – present
External links
Website

Fox Sports Live (abbreviated as FSL or FSLive, styled as Fox Sports Live with Jay and Dan) is an American sports news television program that debuted on Fox Sports 1 on August 17, 2013, and serves as the channel's flagship sportscast of record. The hour-long nightly program focuses on highlights and analysis of the day's major sporting events and previews of upcoming events, news on professional and college sports, commentary, and feature stories. The program is broadcast from the Fox Network Center in Los Angeles, California.

Overview and format

Fox Sports Live airs most evenings starting at either 10:30 or 11:00 p.m. – depending on when a scheduled sporting event on FS1 concludes – and running until 2:00 a.m. Eastern Time. On some nights, the program may begin at 9:30 p.m. Eastern or earlier (such as on February 14, 2015, the Saturday before the 2015 Daytona 500, when a special daytime edition of FSL titled "Drive to the 500" aired at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time). Repeats running during the overnight and early morning of the following day From the program's inception until July 2015, Fox Sports 1 aired short 90-second capsules known as the Fox Sports Live Update at various times in-between commercial breaks;[1] these update segments were alternately branded as America's Pregame Update (titled after the sports preview show America's Pregame, which itself was cancelled by the network in September 2015)[2] – providing updates of certain stories or reports on headlines that broke since the previous night's initial Fox Sports Live broadcast – during updates aired on weekdays between 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Eastern.

As of 2015, the program is primarily anchored by Jay Onrait and Dan O'Toole on Tuesday through Saturday evenings, and by Ryan Field on Sundays and Mondays.[3] The program also features a panel of rotating talent with Charissa Thompson serving as moderator and segment host, helming a standalone show at 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time, Fox Sports Live: Countdown, on nights when FS1 is not airing a major sports event (during the college football season, the Friday edition of Countdown is known as Fox Sports Live: Countdown to Kickoff).

The program often leads each broadcast with different, and sometimes more expansive, event coverage than SportsCenter – in particular, during the 2014 postseason, the program maintained a larger focus on Major League Baseball coverage, roughly double the amount covered by SportsCenter. Fox Sports executive vice president Scott Ackerson noted that the program bases what it leads each edition with on "the biggest, most important story there is" on that day, with editions leading out of an event tending to skew coverage toward the sport that was broadcast beforehand.[4]

During broadcasts anchored by Onrait and O'Toole, FSL airs short segments under the Fox Sports 1 Sneak Peek brand, which feature either behind-the-scenes featurettes or comedic spots such as the "FSL Thrill Cam" (with the two stating that the pieces were crafted as an homage to the comedy skits featured on Late Night with David Letterman).[5] The channel provides a more detailed news ticker during Fox Sports Live broadcasts, incorporating a panel on the right side of the screen that displays additional statistics pertaining to the teams discussed in the highlight or topical discussion segment being shown and a sidebar which resembles that seen on SportsCenter (with the cosmetic difference being that FSL's sidebar is placed on the right side of the screen, whereas SportsCenter's sidebar is placed at the left).[6][7] Off-the-collar segments are also featured on nights in which Onrait and O'Toole anchor, such as "Are They Related?" (comparing the resemblance of an athlete with another celebrity or fictional character) and "Check the Tweeter" (featuring Twitter posts from sports luminaries). Most of the lighter moments during the program occur during the segments "Get Me that Stat!" (featuring player and team statistics) and "The 1" (which focuses on the top play of the day).

History

Development

On March 5, 2013, as part of Fox Sports Media Group's announcement of Fox Sports 1's launch (replacing the motorsports-focused Speed), the division announced that it would launch Fox Sports Live as a daily sports news and analysis program that would compete directly opposite with ESPN's longer-established sports news program, SportsCenter (which maintains a more straightforward news, analysis and features format). Fox Sports executives later stated that the program would be treated in the form of multiple shows incorporated within a single three-hour block. Initial plans for the program called for Fox Sports Live to expand to include a morning edition (with New York City being considered to serve as the production base for the proposed broadcast) in January 2014, which ultimately did not launch at that time.[8][9][10] Fox Sports previously had attempted national sports news programs (which focused more on highlights than analysis) on its Fox Sports Net slate of regional networks, beginning with the 1996 premiere of Fox Sports News, which in 2000, evolved into the National Sports Report; six years after the cancellation of that program, FSN Final Score premiered on the regional networks in 2006, lasting for three years.

On May 6, 2013, Fox Sports named Jay Onrait and Dan O'Toole as the program's main anchors; the two came to FS1 from Canada's main English-language specialty sports channel, The Sports Network (TSN), where the pair gained popularity for their irreverent presentation of sports news while serving as anchors of the late-night editions of that network's sports highlight and analysis program SportsCentre.[11][12] O'Toole stated in an interview with the sports website The Big Lead that the two gave a directive to Fox Sports Live's writing staff to avoid giving away the highlight within the program's headline segments, in order to use game highlight to help expand upon the story, saying "It’s not just highlights, we want to make it into an actual show and try to develop that 'show within a show world.'" In turn, Fox Sports executives gave Onrait and O'Toole free rein to maintain the humorous, lighthearted approach that made them well known in their home country during their SportsCentre tenure.[13][5]

Two weeks later on May 23, former tennis player Andy Roddick was announced to become a contributor for Fox Sports Live, joining host Charissa Thompson (who rejoined Fox Sports, where she previously served as an NFL sideline reporter and co-host of Fox Sports Net's The Best Damn Sports Show Period, after a four-year run as host of ESPN2's SportsNation) as part of a panel feature discussing the day's sports headlines that would also incorporate interview segments.[14][15] Then on July 25, Fox Sports announced that former NBA player Gary Payton and former NFL players Donovan McNabb and Ephraim Salaam would be added as contributors; Don Bell and Ryan Field were named anchors of the Sunday and Monday editions as well as breaking news anchors for the daytime Fox Sports Live Updates, while Molly McGrath and Julie Stewart-Binks were also named as contributors to the program.[16][17][18]

Launch

The program premiered on August 17, 2013, the date of FS1's launch, following the conclusion of its first UFC Fight Night telecast (featuring a main event card between Maurício Rua and Chael Sonnen).[19][20][21] The extended 67-minute premiere telecast averaged 476,000 viewers and registered an overnight rating of 0.3 (only three-tenths of a point below the 0.6 earned by that night's 11:00 p.m. edition of SportsCenter).[22][23]

Reviews for the program were mixed (many comments of which in print reviews and on social media complimented Onrait and O'Toole's presentation); Awful Announcing's Joe DeLessio and USA Today's Chris Chase noted similarities to SportsCenter's format, with DeLessio adding that Fox Sports Live "[added] a layer to [the sports news format] by having the same panel on the show every night and throwing to it regularly", while Time columnist Sean Gregory stated the production quality had "the Fox Sports feel." Others noted issues with the chemistry of the contributors to the "Fox Sports Panel" segment. Boston Globe columnist Saul Austerlitz stated that although he felt the program was "often amusing", it felt "strained because of its efforts to differentiate itself from [...] SportsCenter".[23][7][24][25][26][6][27] Within a few months of its debut, the format of Fox Sports Live shifted more toward a focus on game highlights and less on panel discussions.[28]

Since its premiere, viewership for the 11:00 p.m. broadcast has fluctuated wildly on most nights when the program did not have the help of a strong event lead-in. With declines experienced during its first week (including a 0.0 overnight rating it registered for the August 19 edition), the August 20 edition registered the program's lowest audience up to that point with 61,000 viewers (along with an additional 6,000 viewers on average with simulcasts on many of the Fox Sports regional networks factored in); overall during the period from August 19 to 26, Fox Sports Live averaged 61,451 viewers (compared to the 1,002,588 that SportsCenter averaged during that week).[29][30] The program saw its highest ratings (to date as of January 2014) on November 10, 2013, when the program averaged 161,000 viewers after FS1's telecast of the Camping World Truck Series Lucas Oil 150 race. Its morning rebroadcast also registered the network's highest ratings in the Sunday 10:00 a.m. Eastern timeslot, with 132,000 viewers on average during the fourth quarter of 2013.[13] Fox Sports Live's highest ratings to date occurred in October 2014, on nights when it had college football and National League Championship Series games as lead-ins, with an average of 353,000 viewers. On October 16, the program earned a single-day ratings high of 2.3 million viewers, following Game 5 of the NLCS, beating the previous high of 2.2 million following a February 2014 NASCAR race telecast (the October 20 edition, without a strong lead-in, comparatively was viewed by only 23,000, a 99% decline); overall during that month, Fox Sports Live averaged 1.3 million viewers leading out of postseason baseball coverage, and just 75,000 viewers without any live event lead-ins, with very limited increases on nights when Fox aired coverage of the World Series (despite heavy promotion during the games).[31]

In February 2014, Fox Sports started scaling back its rebroadcasts of Fox Sports Live; as a result, the 3:00 to 6:00 a.m. Eastern repeat block of the program was moved to sister network Fox Sports 2, while FSL repeats on Fox Sports 1 from 5:00 to 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time. On June 26, 2015, Fox Sports announced that it would eliminate the Fox Sports Live Update segments as part of a cost-cutting effort done to restructure Fox Sports 1's news operations and streamline the division's television and digital operations, resulting in the layoffs of some of FS1's news and production personnel. The segments were replaced by video content source from Fox Sports Digital's @The Buzzer website. In addition, Fox Sports 1 would scale back on live reports for events to which the network does not hold broadcast rights to air.[1]

2016 relaunch and rebrand

On February 22, 2016, Fox Sports Live was re-launched with a revamped format as Fox Sports Live with Jay and Dan; the new format places a larger focus on comedy bits, sketches, and interviews, more in line with a late-night talk show rather than serving as a conventional sports news program.[32]

On-air staff

This section lists the program's main hosts and principal panelists (or "opinionists", as termed by Scott Ackerman, executive vice president of Fox Sports), some of whom also serve as substitute presenters. In addition, Fox Sports Live also periodically uses reporters and commentators from the various Fox Sports regional networks.

Current on-air staff

Anchors
Opinionists
All were mainly seen Monday through Fridays during the old run. The new show will rarely feature the opinionists.

Former on-air staff

Anchors
Opinionists

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Joe Lucia (June 26, 2015). "Fox Sports 1 is cutting back its television news operation". Awful Announcing. Bloguin. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  2. ↑ Matt Yoder (September 29, 2015). "FS1 is canceling America’s Pregame". Awful Announcing. Bloguin. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  3. ↑ Reid Cherner (August 12, 2013). "Fox Sports 1 not the usual new kid on ESPN's block". USA Today (Gannett Company). Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  4. ↑ Paul Sanford (October 14, 2013). "Execs From ESPN, FS1 Detail Coverage Decisions On Flagship Highlight Shows". Sports Business Daily. American City Business Journals. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  5. 1 2 Christopher Botta (August 12, 2013). "Fox Sports 1 anchors bring their own style". Sports Business Daily. American City Business Journals. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  6. 1 2 Saul Austerlitz (March 1, 2014). "‘Fox Sports Live’ struggles to make good on its game plan". Boston Globe. Boston Globe Media Ventures, LLC. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  7. 1 2 Chris Chase (August 21, 2013). "FOX Sports Live isn't better than SportsCenter ... yet". For The Win (USA Today) (Gannett Company). Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  8. ↑ Michael Hiestand (March 5, 2013). "Fox Sports launches direct challenge to ESPN dominance". USA Today (Gannett Company). Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  9. ↑ "FS1 To Take Aim At "SportsCenter" With Three-Hour "Fox Sports Live" Airing Nightly". Sports Business Daily. American City Business Journals. March 11, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  10. ↑ Matt Rudnitsky (May 6, 2013). "‘Fox Sports Live’ Might Not Suck And Actually Has A Chance To Beat Out SportsCenter". SportsGrid. RotoGrid LLC.
  11. ↑ "Fox Sports 1 Setting Talent Lineup For Three-Hour Nightly News Program". Sports Business Daily. American City Business Journals. May 6, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  12. ↑ Joe DeLessio (July 29, 2013). "The New Dan and Keith?". Sports on Earth. MLB Advanced Media, L.P.
  13. 1 2 Mike Cardillo (January 3, 2014). "The Sports Highlight Show Isn't Dead Yet, Claim Fox Sports Live's Jay Onrait and Dan O'Toole". The Big Lead (USA Today). Gannett Company. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  14. ↑ "Roddick To Co-Host FS1 Flagship News Program; Not Looking For Tennis TV Role". Sports Business Daily. American City Business Journals. May 23, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  15. ↑ Chris Strauss (October 23, 2013). "Charissa Thompson: ‘Not everything is a clown show’ on ‘FOX Sports Live’". For The Win (USA Today) (Gannett Company). Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Fox Sports 1 Rounds Out ‘Fox Sports Live’ Cast". Deadline.com. Penske Media Corporation. July 25, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  17. ↑ "Fox Sports Announces On-Air Roles For "Fox Sports Live" On FS1". Sports Business Daily. American City Business Journals. July 25, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  18. ↑ Jason Dachman (July 26, 2013). "Behind the Mic: Fox Reveals Talent Lineup for FS1’s Fox Sports Live; ESPN Adds FiveThirtyEight.com’s Nate Silver". SportsVideo. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  19. ↑ "Fox Sports 1 Sets Opening Day Schedule". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. May 9, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  20. ↑ "FS1 Ready To Take On ESPN, Though Fox Execs Know The Battle Could Take A While". Sports Business Daily. American City Business Journals. August 16, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  21. ↑ Josh Sanburn (August 16, 2013). "Fox’s Sports Network To Debut Saturday, With or Without the Sound". Time. Time Inc. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  22. ↑ "Fox Sports 1 Premiere Ratings Boosted By Primetime UFC". Deadline.com. Penske Media Corporation. August 19, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  23. 1 2 "FS1's UFC Debut Averages 1.78 Million Viewers; "Fox Sports Live" Reviews Promising". Sports Business Daily. American City Business Journals. August 19, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  24. ↑ "Early Reviews Of "Fox Sports Live" Flood The Twittersphere". Sports Business Daily. American City Business Journals. August 18, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  25. ↑ "FS1 Still Seeing Mixed Reviews For "Fox Sports Live;" Daily Football Show Has Promise". Sports Business Daily. American City Business Journals. August 23, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  26. ↑ Deven Persaud (August 19, 2013). "Does SportsCenter need to worry about the new Fox Sports 1 anchors?". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  27. ↑ Steve Lepore (August 19, 2013). "'Fox Sports Live' will find its way, but opening weekend showed some speed bumps". SBNation. Vox Media. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  28. ↑ John Ourand (March 3, 2014). "Fox Sports execs like trends at FS1". Sports Business Daily. American City Business Journals. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  29. ↑ Austin Karp (August 23, 2013). "Audience Trends Lower For FS1's "Fox Sports Live" After Debut 11:00pm Show". Sports Business Daily. American City Business Journals. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  30. ↑ Matt Yoder (August 28, 2013). "Fox Sports 1’s ratings are falling back to earth". Awful Announcing. Bloguin. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  31. ↑ Matt Yoder (November 11, 2014). "Fox Sports Live’s ratings have been an insane rollercoaster". Awful Announcing. Bloguin. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  32. ↑ "Fox Sports Live With Jay And Dan" moves away from SportsCenter and towards late night". Awful Announcing. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  33. ↑ Brian Stelter (July 12, 2015). "Donovan McNabb off the air at Fox and NBC after arrest". CNN Money (Time Warner). Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  34. ↑ Joseph Zucker (July 12, 2015). [http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2521482-donovan-mcnabb-suspended-by-fox-sports-indefinitely-following- dui-arrest "Donovan McNabb Suspended by Fox Sports Indefinitely Following DUI Arrest"] Check |url= value (help). Bleacher Report (Turner Broadcasting System). Retrieved October 5, 2015. line feed character in |url= at position 106 (help)

External links

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