Wikipedia

Grantland

For other uses, seeGrantland (disambiguation).

Grantlandwas a sports and pop-cultureblogowned and operated byESPN.[1]The blog was started in 2011 by veteran writer and sports journalistBill Simmons,who remained as editor-in-chief until May 2015.Grantlandwas named after famed early-20th-century sportswriterGrantland Rice(1880–1954).

Grantland
Type of site
Sports, popular culture
Available inEnglish
OwnerESPN
URLgrantland.com
CommercialNo
Launched2011
Current statusShut down

On October 30, 2015, ESPN announced that it was ending the publication ofGrantland.[2]

History

edit

Origins and Concept

edit

In early 2011, ESPN announced the creation of Grantland. The site was intended to focus on long-form content and feature contributions from both established writers and new voices in the fields of sports and entertainment.[3]Simmons envisioned a platform that allowed for in-depth analysis and storytelling, akin to traditional magazine journalism but adapted for the digital age.

Launch and Initial Reception

edit

Grantland officially launched on June 8, 2011.[4]The site quickly gained attention for its ambitious and high-quality content. Articles ranged from deep dives into sports history to analytical pieces on contemporary pop culture phenomena. Early contributors included Chuck Klosterman, Malcolm Gladwell, and David Eggers, among others.

The launch was seen as a bold move by ESPN, given the declining attention spans of online readers and the increasing popularity of quick-hit content. However, the site's initial reception was positive, with many praising its fresh approach to sports and culture journalism.[5]

Content and Contributions

edit

Grantland stood out for its diverse range of content. It featured long-form articles, shorter blog posts, and multimedia content such as podcasts and videos. The site's hallmark was its deep, thoughtful essays on both sports and pop culture topics. A significant aspect of Grantland's identity was its editorial independence. Despite being backed by ESPN, the site operated with considerable autonomy, allowing its writers to explore a wide range of topics and voices.

One of the most popular sections was "The Triangle," a basketball blog led by Simmons and featuring contributions from well-known NBA analysts. Another notable feature was the "Grantland Quarterly," a print publication that compiled the best content from the site.[6]

Closure

edit

In May 2015, ESPN's PresidentJohn SkippertoldThe New York Timesthat ESPN would not be renewing Simmons' contract, effectively ending Simmons' tenure at ESPN.[7]Later in the month,Chris Connellywas announced as interim editor-in-chief.[8]

On October 30, 2015, ESPN officially announced the shut down ofGrantland:"After careful consideration, we have decided to direct our time and energy going forward to projects that we believe will have a broader and more significant impact across our enterprise."[2]The closing ofGrantlandwas met with harsh criticism of ESPN, from both former writers ofGrantlandand admirers of the site. Former Editor-in-Chief Bill Simmons called the shutdown "simply appalling."[9]ESPN president John Skipper said the decision to shut down the site was not a financial matter and instead was done because ESPN did not see the value in spending the time and energy necessary to continue the excellence ofGrantland.[10]

Grantland's closure was seen by many as another blow against long-form journalism.Huffington Postwriter Justin Block writes, "In an era ruled by bite-sized content and dumbed-down click-bait journalism,Grantland's defining characteristic came at odds with sustainable finances. "[11]Grantland's articles were often long form and usually not instant but measured reactionary pieces, a trend not common in today's media landscape.Grantlandwas considered by some to be the highest-quality work under the umbrella of ESPN and received critical acclaim, but its financial success has been widely debated.[12]Grantlandreceived 6 million unique visitors in March 2015, a number that some people believed could not support a staff of 50 writers, editors and IT personnel. The shutdown was also coming at a time of relative financial uncertainty for ESPN. In September 2015, ESPN laid off 300 employees or approximately 5% of its workforce.[13]It has also been widely reported that in 2015 ESPN lost 3.2 million subscribers due to consumers abandoning traditional cable packages.[12][14]

Content and legacy

edit

Grantlandwas known for its long-form journalism and award-winning writing.[15]Its sports journalism pieces often had a strong focus on sports analytics and data analysis, referencing and pulling data from sites like Football Outsiders, Baseball Prospectus, Synergy, and ESPN.[16]Grantlandwove statistics into part of the story and made the analytics understandable to the average sports fan. As Stephen Carter from theChicago Tribuneput it, "This was sportswriting for grownups."[16]These pieces would also often include a data visualization representation. Some have concluded thatGrantland's closure represents a trend in today's media business that unless you are one of the biggest web properties or smallest one-person "micro sites" it's tough to be economically viable.[12]

Simmons started a new media venture in 2016,The Ringer,which, likeGrantland,focuses on sports and pop culture.[17]A number of formerGrantlandemployees, including Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan, Mallory Rubin, Juliet Litman, Craig Gaines, Bryan Curtis, Ryan O'Hanlon, Danny Chau, Shea Serrano, Jason Concepcion, Riley McAtee, Joe Fuentes, and Tate Frazier joined the new venture.[18]

Additionally, Simmons has launched a podcasting network, featuring shows re-purposed from theGrantlandnetwork, includingThe Watchwith Ryan and television criticAndy Greenwaldand his own podcastThe Bill Simmons Podcast.[17]

Ryan and Greenwald also hosted aGame of Thronesre-cap show onHBOmodeled after theirGrantlandpodcastWatch the Thronesand produced by Simmons.[19]

Simmons debuted a weekly show on HBO, titledAny Given Wednesday with Bill Simmons,on June 22, 2016, which ran for one season.[20]

Dr. V controversy

edit

An article written by Caleb Hannan and published on theGrantlandwebsite in January 2014 received considerable criticism from thetransgendercommunity.[21][22][23]Hannan's article was about the Oracle GXI golf putter and its creator, Essay Anne Vanderbilt, referred to asDr. V.[24]It treated Vanderbilt's transgender identity in the same manner as a number of scientific qualifications that Vanderbilt had fraudulently claimed to hold, suggesting that Hannan considered Vanderbilt's gender identity to be untruthful as well. Before the article was published, Vanderbilt committed suicide.

After initially dismissing all criticisms and drawing even more fire,Grantland's editor-in-chief Bill Simmons published a response to the criticism, acknowledging errors made byGrantlandand Hannan, including Hannan's outing of Vanderbilt to one of her investors andGrantland's "collective ignorance about the issues facing the transgender community in general, as well as our biggest mistake: not educating ourselves on that front before seriously considering whether to run the piece".[25]A profile of Simmons inRolling Stone,published in April 2014, lambasted him at length over the Dr. V matter and incorporated criticism from senior ESPN personnel, but also included Simmons' defenses and disagreements with some of the harsher criticisms of the article.[26]

Writers

edit

The site featured contributions fromSimmonsalongside other sports and pop-culture writers and podcasters including:Holly Anderson,Mallory Rubin, Katie Baker,Bill Barnwell,Rembert Browne,Andy Greenwald,Bryan Curtis,Kirk Goldsberry,Steven Hyden,Michael Weinreb,David Jacoby,Jonah Keri,Chuck Klosterman,Molly Lambert,Jane Leavy,Mark Lisanti,Zach Lowe,Robert Mays,Davy Rothbart,Sean McIndoe,Brian Phillips,Charles P. Pierce,former NBA playerJalen Rose,Shea Serrano,Andrew Sharp,Louisa ThomasandMark Titus.

Former contributors includeMen in BlazersduoRoger BennettandMichael Davies,Spike Friedman,Tom Bissell,Lane Brown,Jason Concepcion,authorDave Eggers,authorMalcolm Gladwell,Justin Halpern,Mark Harris,Jay Caspian Kang,screenwriter of the movieRoundersBrian Koppelman,Juliet Litman,Pulitzer Prize-winning journalistWesley Morris,Chris Ryan,MacArthur Award-winning novelistColson Whitehead,former sportswriter and television producerNell Scovell,andEmily Yoshida.

References

edit
  1. ^Crupi, Anthony (June 9, 2011)."Bill Simmons on Launch of Grantland.com and How Sponsors Will Keep the Site Free".Adweek.RetrievedOctober 31,2015.
  2. ^ab"ESPN Statement Regarding Grantland".ESPN MediaZone. Archived fromthe originalon November 2, 2019.RetrievedOctober 31,2015.Effective immediately we are suspending the publication of Grantland. After careful consideration, we have decided to direct our time and energy going forward to projects that we believe will have a broader and more significant impact across our enterprise.
  3. ^Smith, Chris (November 2015)."The Rise and Fall of Grantland".Vanity Fair.
  4. ^Marchman, Tim (June 8, 2011)."Grantland Is Not What You Think It Is".Deadspin.
  5. ^Holmes, Baxter (November 3, 2015)."Why Grantland Mattered".ESPN.
  6. ^Smith, Chris (November 2015)."The Rise and Fall of Grantland".Vanity Fair.
  7. ^Guthrie, Marisa."ESPN President John Skipper on Bill Simmons:" It Was Business "".The Hollywood Reporter.RetrievedJune 21,2015.
  8. ^Chase, Chris (May 27, 2015)."Bill Simmons will be replaced at Grantland by Chris Connelly".Ftw.usatoday.com.RetrievedOctober 31,2015.
  9. ^"ESPN Shutters Grantland, Effective Immediately".Vanity Fair.October 30, 2015.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
  10. ^"Vanity Fair".Vanity Fair.Archived fromthe originalon February 2, 2015.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
  11. ^"ESPN Closing Grantland Is The Dumbest 'Smart' Business Decision".The Huffington Post.October 30, 2015.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
  12. ^abcReed, Jon (November 5, 2015)."The fall of ESPN's Grantland – an enterprisey take".Digimonica.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
  13. ^Bonesteel, Matt (October 22, 2015)."ESPN layoffs will gut the network's production staff".The Washington Post.ISSN0190-8286.RetrievedFebruary 3,2016.
  14. ^"ESPN's Problems Are of Its Own Making -- The Motley Fool".The Motley Fool.July 14, 2015.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
  15. ^Hobson, Will; Bonesteel, Matt (October 30, 2015)."ESPN shuts down Grantland months after parting ways with Bill Simmons".The Washington Post.ISSN0190-8286.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
  16. ^ab"Oh ESPN, why did you have to kill Grantland?".chicagotribune.com.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
  17. ^abBort, Ryan (April 21, 2010)."Bill Simmons Announces New Website, The Ringer".Newsweek.com.RetrievedFebruary 28,2017.
  18. ^Samer Kalaf (February 17, 2016)."Bill Simmons's New Site Has A Name And Some New Hires".Deadspin.com.RetrievedFebruary 28,2017.
  19. ^Pedersen, Erik (April 4, 2016)."Bill Simmons To Produce For 'Game Of Thrones' Aftershow On HBO".Deadline.com.RetrievedFebruary 28,2017.
  20. ^Michael O'Connell (April 26, 2016)."Bill Simmons' HBO Show, 'Any Given Wednesday,' Arrives in June".The Hollywood Reporter.RetrievedFebruary 28,2017.
  21. ^Levin, Josh (January 19, 2014)."Digging Too Deep".Slate.com.RetrievedOctober 31,2015.
  22. ^Klinger, Lauren; McBride, Kelly."Lessons learned from Grantland's tragic story on Dr. V".Poynter.org.RetrievedOctober 31,2015.
  23. ^Kahrl, Christina (January 20, 2014)."What Grantland Got Wrong".Grantland.com.RetrievedOctober 31,2015.
  24. ^Hannan, Caleb (January 15, 2014)."Dr. V's Magical Putter".Grantland.com.RetrievedOctober 31,2015.
  25. ^Simmons, Bill (January 20, 2014)."The Dr. V Story: A Letter From the Editor".Grantland.com.RetrievedOctober 31,2015.
  26. ^Tannenbaum, Rob (April 29, 2014)."Bill Simmons' Big Score".Rolling Stone.RetrievedOctober 31,2015.
edit
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Grantland&oldid=1247960012"