The man who pioneered wholesale change in sports media with the founding of ESPN has died.
Bill Rasmussen, the entrepreneur who conceived the 24-hour cable sports network ESPN, died on Tuesday at age 93, the network announced. Rasmussen, along with his son Scott, famously came up with the idea for ESPN while stuck in traffic traveling to the Jersey Shore. Now, nearly 50 years later, ESPN is a behemoth prepared to broadcast the first Super Bowl in the network's history next February.
"Bill was a remarkable man – a visionary and an innovator who conceived the idea of a network entirely devoted to sports," ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a statement. "Quite simply, none of us would be here today if it wasn't for Bill's passion and all the hard work and entrepreneurial spirit he put into building ESPN in the late 1970s – key aspects of our company culture that still carry on to this day."
Rasmussen's time at ESPN was essential but short-lived. The network launched in 1979 on the back of emerging satellite technology and funding from Getty Oil. The early days of ESPN were programmed with the flagship SportsCenter news and highlights show surrounded by a hodgepodge of live sports rights. Securing early-round NCAA Tournament broadcasts in March of 1980 proved to be a springboard for the fledgling network, helping bring ESPN into the mainstream.
Rasmussen left ESPN in October 1980 just over a year after its formal launch. Despite his brief tenure, his impact on the sports media industry was profound.
#sports #Media #died
Bill Rasmussen, the entrepreneur who conceived the 24-hour cable sports network ESPN, died on Tuesday at age 93, the network announced. Rasmussen, along with his son Scott, famously came up with the idea for ESPN while stuck in traffic traveling to the Jersey Shore. Now, nearly 50 years later, ESPN is a behemoth prepared to broadcast the first Super Bowl in the network's history next February.
"Bill was a remarkable man – a visionary and an innovator who conceived the idea of a network entirely devoted to sports," ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a statement. "Quite simply, none of us would be here today if it wasn't for Bill's passion and all the hard work and entrepreneurial spirit he put into building ESPN in the late 1970s – key aspects of our company culture that still carry on to this day."
Rasmussen's time at ESPN was essential but short-lived. The network launched in 1979 on the back of emerging satellite technology and funding from Getty Oil. The early days of ESPN were programmed with the flagship SportsCenter news and highlights show surrounded by a hodgepodge of live sports rights. Securing early-round NCAA Tournament broadcasts in March of 1980 proved to be a springboard for the fledgling network, helping bring ESPN into the mainstream.
Rasmussen left ESPN in October 1980 just over a year after its formal launch. Despite his brief tenure, his impact on the sports media industry was profound.
#sports #Media #died
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