E:60, ESPN’s award-winning newsmagazine program, will begin a new era on Sunday, May 14, at 9 a.m. ET with the launch of its weekly Sunday morning edition. The new program will mark the first time E:60 will air live and on a year-round basis in a regular timeslot.
With a combined 34 years of producing at ESPN, 27 National Sports Emmy Awards and five Edward R. Murrow Awards, Ben Houser and Martin Khodabakhshian visited Sports Link for a second time in November for a two-day workshop on storytelling. Houser is a coordinating producer on E:60 and Outside the Lines.
With hosts Jeremy Schaap and Bob Ley from a dedicated new studio in ESPN’s state-of-the-art Digital Center DC-2, the program continues E:60’s signature storytelling – delivering viewers the biggest names and the best stories in sports.
On Sunday mornings, the new E:60 will also introduce a new and diverse team of journalists and feature stories from ESPN’s award-winning Outside the Lines team.
The show, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary in October, has received 11 Emmy Awards, 60 Sports Emmy nominations, seven Edward R. Murrow awards and the RFK Journalism Award, among many other honors for its incisive storytelling and groundbreaking journalism.
“We could not be more thrilled to be moving to our new permanent time slot, 52 weeks a year,” said Andy Tennant, executive producer. “For a decade, the staff at E:60 has worked tirelessly to bring our viewers the best stories in sports. From our acclaimed investigations, which have made a global impact, to our features and newsmaking interviews, E:60 has redefined storytelling in TV sports. The decision to go weekly represents a doubling down on this kind of content. Maybe even a tripling down.”
The live show format will allow E:60 the opportunity to react to breaking news and shows will include a mix of profiles, investigations, interviews, global issues, stories that show why sports matter and quirky tales from off the beaten path. The show’s hosts will lead to features and then extend the conversation with correspondents and the production team.
Regular features will include:
- The Take: Schaap and Ley commentary, storytelling and perspective.
- ICYMI: The most bizarre/unusual piece of sports video from the week.
- The sports fact or statistic of the week.
- The Calendar: Looking ahead to the week’s key, interesting and obscure sports events.
- The Social Story: Best fan-generated video of the week from the E:60 Social Team
The studio will create an entirely new look for the program, which will include new graphics and new music as well as groundbreaking 3-D animation and art design to augment the stories.
In addition to live telecasts on ESPN and streaming on WatchESPN and the ESPN App, elements from E:60 will be available on espn.com and other ESPN digital platforms. The program has been the subject of a “Start Your Sunday with a Story” ad campaign across ESPN platforms.
E:60 premiered on ESPN on October 16, 2007, as a prime time newsmagazine show. Reporting has ranged on subjects from corruption at FIFA, to the toxicity of playing fields in Bhopal, to the plight of migrant workers in Qatar, to the safety of artificial soccer fields. E:60 has reported from Kenya, Sudan, India, Dominican Republic, Morocco, Mexico, Senegal, Philippines, Netherlands, Haiti, Costa Rica, South Africa, Ukraine, Serbia, Bolivia, Venezuela, Panama, Liberia, Syria, Uganda, Brazil, and Russia.
“In our new studio, with a new format, with some new reporters and producers, we continue to grow and evolve, and we can surround our storytelling like never before,” said Tennant. “Everyone involved with the show agrees that in this case more means more.”
