Pardon This interuption

Pardon the Interruption (PTI) has revolutionized sports discussion shows since its conception in 2001. With hosts Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon, both sports journalists with opposite viewpoints on many of sports topics, viewers tune in for the good cop/bad cop arguments on all topics in the sports culture. The show itself has helped recreate the formula sports discussion shows, inspired new ones and the visual set up has even changed how sports center is viewed in the mornings.
First off, the way the show is set up into specific segments in-between commercial breaks lets the view know what to expect when watching. They start off covering the hot daily headlines within sports, and then a majority of the time the second segment is “Good Five Minutes” where they interview a sports figure (player, coach, former play, fellow sports journalist, etc…) to ask questions and give the viewer a different perspective of their interviewee’s standpoint. The third segment is where the show gets creative. Every day the show uses a variety of creatively designed segments ranging from “Good Cop/Bad Cop”, where the hosts take turns taking sides on issues in sports, “Psychic Hotline”, where the hosts take turns putting their hands on a plasma lamp and pretend to predict what will happen in the future of the sports topic, “Over under” where the hosts are asked a question if an athlete or team will get a certain amount of something (i.e. if a certain baseball player will get over under 40 home runs in a season, win more or less than 9 games in the season), and “Role Playing”, where the hosts take paper cut outs of sports icons faces on popsicle sticks and pretend to talk from their perspective of an issue. Their final segment is “Happy Trails”, where they wish people happy birthday, happy retirement, goodbye, etc., then they go to “stats boy” to correct any mistakes they have made throughout the show. This character Tony Reali also keeps their odds and became host of “Around the Horn”, a related sports discussion show because of his role in PTI.
The segments and the chemistry of PTI are unmatched in any sports show, and the visual set up of both the broadcast and the set make it fun to watch. Since they began showing the rundown on the right side of the show, its popularity has helped make it move to Sports center’s morning versions to help keep people watching and interested in what is coming up. The set itself is set up with their Role Playing masks from throughout the season and other sports memorabilia. As stated before, the show has revolutionized sports talk shows because of the fact that the hosts are not reading off of que cards but instead are legitimately arguing points, their chemistry when on air, and the overall creativity ranging from the hosts themselves, to the writers, producers, and so on. The show has flourished because they are not afraid to take chances and try new ideas to keep the show exciting and fresh for viewers to watch. I have been watching since about 2005 and can never get enough of it. Just like “The Daily Show” or “The Colbert Report”, I trust my news from a more satire set up because of its blunt truth and overall honesty. Also, the show is never the same set up two days in a row, which makes it fun and interesting to view into. From the visual run down to the original segments, PTI sets the bar high for other sports news discussion shows and will continue its success because of the intelligence and stubbornness of its hosts.