Daily News Columnist Trashes Erin Andrews

Fox Sports president Eric Shanks welcomed Erin Andrews to the fold this week by calling her “one of the hardest-working, most respected individuals in sports television.” LA Daily News columnist Tom Hoffarth begs to disagree.

In a scorching piece that already has one blogger coming to the former ESPN reporter’s defense, Hoffarth criticizes Andrews for reading off notes on-camera and being a poor ad-libber. He opines that the 34-year-old’s “bafflingly spectacular” career arc has more to do with her looks, reality TV detours and public’s fascination with TMZ-fed scandal:

The Erin Andrews Effect, as sports media phenomena, is driving more female communications majors into taking as many shortcuts as possible to grab a coveted sideline reporting or studio host job instead of risking the time and challenge necessary to try play-by-play, game analysis, or even what’s still referred to as journalism at a magazine, newspaper or website. You’d think that by now, someone would have realized her actions speak louder than her nasally vapid words.

Hoffarth makes his case against Andrews very convincingly, noting that The Dan Patrick Show is now the de facto destination for those exiting ESPN to conduct their public “exit interview.” As Andrews gets ready to contribute to Fox Sports’ broadcast of next Tuesday’s MLB All Star game, Hoffarth suggests that the IMG-guided transitioning reporter is a complicit queen of today’s “unreal media world.”

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