On a recent Saturday afternoon at ESPN Zone in Atlanta, Vince Johnson’s adrenaline and ambition were double-teaming his lack of sleep–and winning.
The night before, he had headed east from his fraternity house at Samford University in Birmingham, checked into a hotel, napped for an hour, changed out of his Red Sox shirt and Cubs cap into a suit, and parked himself outside the sports emporium just after 2:30 a.m.
The doors would not unlock for more than six hours. Johnson had to be first in a line that would bring 508 fantasizers through an open audition for a one-year role as anchor on ESPN’s nightly “SportsCenter.”
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ESPN will turn the search into the series “Dream Job” in February. Cut from CBS’ “Survivor” mold, “Dream Job” will air in eight episodes, with viewers able to watch as finalists tackle on-air duties, then get expelled until one remains.
It’s just one of many reality shows–so popular on mainstream networks–creeping into sports programming.
“Success breeds imitation on television, and the success of reality on the broadcast nets has morphed into cable,” said Marc Berman, a TV analyst for Mediaweek magazine, who also cited relatively lower production costs as appealing to the sports networks. “It’s what you would call expected.”
ESPN tapped into it last year with “Beg Borrow & Deal,” in which two teams of four contestants traverse the country with empty pockets, relying on their guile.
“Sports is the original reality TV because it’s completely unscripted,” said Ron Semiao, ESPN senior vice president for original programming. ” ‘Dream Job’ will work because we’ve caught onto something that intrigues people. Many people have envisioned what they’d be like as a ‘SportsCenter’ anchor.”
“The hope of fulfilling one’s dream is an emotion everyone can identify with, which is why we feel this program has struck a chord with our viewers,” said David Manougian, president of The Golf Channel, which airs “The Big Break.” The show, which airs Tuesdays, follows scratch golfers compete to play selected Canadian Tour events.
Other reality shows go behind-the-scenes. ESPN occasionally presents “The Season,” which looks at various teams through the year, and “Streetball,” which shows life on the road with playground basketball players.
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Edited by Cara DiPasquale ([email protected]) and Kris Karnopp ([email protected])