Espn Magazine On The Field And Ready For Battle For Si Author Says Sports Illustrated Has Cause To Re-Examine Itself

Michael MacCambridge, in his book “The Franchise,” a thoroughly researched history of Sports Illustrated, cites obstacles faced by the 44-year-old magazine in an ever more crowded sports media environment.

Fans have a growing number of options, from TV highlights and interviews to radio talk to Internet chat. And there is growing concern that such sports snacks are satisfying appetites and not leaving room for longer written reportage. Meanwhile, athletes are more likely to opt for quick, safe appearances on TV, radio or the Internet than risk extended interviews with a print reporter.

The resultant “conundrum,” MacCambridge says, is how to maintain “editorial relevance” and “spectacular profitability” in such adverse competitive conditions.

Now there’s a new battlefront. ESPN, one of the most attractive TV alternatives to SI, has put its mind to paper. ESPN The Magazine hits newsstands this week with a glossy 184-page premier issue.

But if Sports Illustrated reacts correctly, MacCambridge insists, this new competitor could make SI a better magazine.

“It can cause SI to re-examine some of its assumptions and concentrate on what it does best,” he says. “And that is to recapture an event, and make it more vivid and understandable to those who’ve seen it.”

A recent departure from that, one that discourages MacCambridge, was the magazine’s decision to abandon its longtime practice of covering all four NFL conference playoff semifinals, and instead do two stories focused on the next round’s match-ups.

Such spinning forward rather than spinning a dramatic retelling of games seems to be aimed at battling ESPN The Magazine on its terms, MacCambridge says. And he suggests that is not a good idea.

The ESPN publication’s strength is the guidance of print veterans John Walsh and John Papanek, he says. Its weakness is publishing twice a month. “That has to be just to curb early losses,” MacCambridge says. “If the magazine is still around three years from now, I’ll bet they’d go (weekly).”

Until then, SI has a clear advantage in coming out every week, he says. “Where SI could get into trouble is if it neglects in-depth reporting and long feature writing.”

In “The Franchise” (Hyperion publishers, New York), MacCambridge practices the depth he preaches. The 408-page book is probably more than a casual fan wants to know about SI, but it’s a definitive history of managing editor reigns from Andre Laguerre through Bill Colson.

ESPN (Extra Size Pictures Nifty): Looking more like “Rolling Stone” than any sport periodical, the premier issue of ESPN The Magazine is splashy at best, splotchy at worst.

Plum: Terrific photography abounds, from double-page basketball and rugby shots up front, to Steelers coach Bill Cowher’s “game face” in the middle, to Michael Jordan’s leap on page 184.

Dumb: Confusing layouts, ads that look like story art and vice-versa, and murky color blends that obscure type sometimes force a slow read through short stories … and most of them are.

Dumb: Cheesy posed photos abound as well, from the “men in black” cover to an NCAA Tournament portfolio to HIV-positive exboxer Tommy Morrison showing his tattooed thigh or reclining in bed with his wife, Dawn, whose breasts are covered only by her hands. Is that ESPN’s answer to SI’s swimsuit issue?