ESPN

The Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by The Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Communications (20%) through the joint venture ESPN Inc. The company was founded in 1979 by Bill Rasmussen and Ed Eagan along with his son Scott Rasmussen. ESPN broadcasts primarily from studio facilities located in Bristol, Connecticut. The network also operates offices and auxiliary studios in Miami, New York City, Las Vegas, Seattle, Charlotte, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles. James Pitaro currently serves as chairman of ESPN, a position he has held since March 5, 2018, following the resignation of John Skipper on December 18, 2017. ESPN reached approximately 76 million television households in the United States—a drop of 24% from nearly a decade ago. , the channel's reach had been reduced to 72.5 million homes. In addition to the flagship channel and its seven related channels in the United States, ESPN broadcasts in more than 200 countries. It operates regional channels in Africa, Australia, Latin America and the Netherlands. In Canada, it owns a 20% interest in The Sports Network (TSN) and its five sister networks. Despite the network's success, criticism of ESPN includes accusations of biased coverage, conflict of interest, and controversies with individual broadcasters and analysts. History of ESPN Bill Rasmussen came up with the concept of ESPN in May 1978, after he was fired from his job with the World Hockey Association's New England Whalers. Eagan and Rasmussen, joined by Rasmussen's son Scott (who had also been let go by the Whalers) first rented office space in Plainville, Connecticut. However, the plan to base ESPN there was put on hold because of a local ordinance prohibiting buildings from bearing rooftop satellite dishes. Available land to build their own facility on was quickly found in Bristol, Connecticut (where the channel remains headquartered to this day), with funding to buy the property provided by Getty Oil, which purchased 85% of the company from Bill Rasmussen on February 22, 1979, in an attempt to diversify the company's holdings.