ESPN has long had a monopoly on sporting news and for a long time people didn't mind.  They were trail blazers and SportsCenter was their bread winner.  The show has been a staple for every sports fan since its inception over 30 years ago and they reported the sporting news with a precision and accuracy that prevented any other competition from rising to their level.  Anchors like Stuart Scott, Kenny Mayne, Scott Van Pelt, and so many more brought their own style and personality to sports reporting and the network was better because of them... stronger because of their charisma, their dedication to their craft, and above all else, their perceived sincerity and honesty.

The network built upon that success with additional content.  Baseball Tonight, Gameday, Monday Night Countdown, and many others delivered a more specialized coverage on various sports.  Shows like Jim Rome is Burning, Around the Horn and Pardon the Interruption created an extension to the "water cooler" discussions you would have with your friends, family, and/or colleagues.  Outside the Line, E:60, and 30 for 30 put an emphasis on journalism and gave a detailed look into a particular story.  But all of those shows were prerecorded and the interaction was minimal.  It was the ESPY Awards that first humanized our heroes.  Where else would you see the greatest players from dozens of different sports all under one roof?  The ESPY's seamlessly blended sports and Hollywood and instantly became a must watch television event every year.  The ESPY's made us cry when Jim Valvano gave his speech, made us laugh when Jamie Foxx wanted to be Serena Williams' tennis ball, made us cringe when LeBron James tried to sing, and entertained us by making us feel closer than ever to our sports heroes.

Well that was then, this is now.  The charisma, dedication to craft, and honestly with which the network made its name in sports has faded and been replaced by cookie cutter reporting, lazy writing, and a greed that could rival the most cutthroat Wall Street executives.  As the network has grown to include several channels and mobile apps, the business of sports reporting and journalism has turned into a business of making money.  I understand that the end goal for all businesses is to make money but why sacrifice content to do so?  Did the network not rise to fame and fortune on the foundation of content?  While people have been calling ESPN the TMZ of sports for years now, they reached a new low this past week when they announced that Caitlyn Jenner would be Honored with the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the 2015 ESPY's, which takes place in a little over a month.

In case you're not familiar with Caitlyn Jenner, that is the name that Bruce Jenner will go by.  Jenner was recently known in pop culture as that old guy in Keeping Up with the Kardashians but was known in the sports world for decades as the American who won gold in the decathlon at the 1976 Olympic Games.  ESPN is honoring Jenner with this prestigious award for having the "courage and acceptance of one’s self" to "publicly come out as a transgender woman".  This is the same award that Jimmy V, Muhammad Ali, Pat Tillman, Nelson Mandela, Pat Summitt, Robin Roberts, and so many more were given.  Now Caitlyn Jenner will be given the award on national television.  Why?  Well, ESPN will claim that Jenner is deserving because of the "bravery" that it took to make such a decision.  I think we all know that that's a lie.  The real reason is that, since the ESPY's ratings peaked in 2006, there has been a very obvious and steady decline.  In other words, this is a publicity stunt that ESPN is putting on in order to try and increase their ratings.  It's disgraceful!

Please don't misunderstand what I am saying.  This has nothing to do with politics... at least not for me.  My feelings towards Jenner's decision on the matter are not relevant.  I do think she should've spelled it Kaitlyn rather than Caitlyn but that's neither here nor there.  What is relevant, however, is that for the second year in a row ESPN is giving out arguably their most prestigious award to a person based on politics and ratings rather than based on courage, bravery, personal triumph, etc.  Noah Galloway lost an arm and a leg in a roadside bomb in Iraq and now competes in CrossFit events and runs marathons.  Lauren Hill, who recently passed away at the far-too-soon age of 19, captured the hearts of the nation as she lived her dream of playing college basketball while she fought brain cancer.  Boston Marathon victim Rebekah Gregory, who lost a leg in the tragic attack, triumphed as she completed that same marathon this year, only two years after her life was altered forever.  Those are just three people who displayed the courage, bravery, and determination the award is supposed to be based on.

I ask everyone to please share this with your friends, family members, classmates, and colleagues.  Let ESPN know that publicity stunts like this are not appreciated and are an insult to the more deserving people out there.  If they do nothing, I ask that you refuse to watch the show at all.  What is more important, an award show or principle?