The partnership between WWE and ESPN is underway and there’s already controversy afoot. Wrestlepalooza was the first event on ESPN and fans weren’t overly pleased with the show, especially compared to AEW All Out that was a few hours earlier. That mediocre reception was also alive in Andreas Hale, the ESPN writer who reviewed the show. He gave the show a C and that mark sent the IWC into a tizzy. The reaction to that grade and the conversations around it shows just how far media landscape and the understanding of it has fallen.
Wrestlepalooza featured five matches. Of those five, only Stephanie Vaquer versus Iyo Sky received a grade higher than a C. That makes sense when one recognizes how women’s wrestling has carried much of the business this year, and Iyo Sky is a major part in that. But the reception to the show also speaks to the quality of WWE’s product, which is nothing more than mediocre at best.
Hale’s response to the show was met with online attacks on his credibility and character. Anyone who knows Hale and his work knows that those attacks were as far from the truth as possible. He spoke out about the criticism in the days that followed.
“I love pro wrestling, I’ve loved pro wrestling since I was three years old. I watch everything, literally everything,” Hale said on Busted Open. “So that surprised me that so many people were surprised that somebody at ESPN could give it an average grade. I think the bigger issue is if we can’t be honest with what a show is, then my journalistic integrity is under fire.”
What were fans expecting? ESPN to give the rubber stamp to every WWE PLE, praising the shows for less than quality matches and outcomes? Or did fans want ESPN to be a true journalistic partner? The response is clear that some wanted more of the former than the latter, and that’s the problem.
WWE needs to be called out for giving fans a lackluster product. The company needs to be called out for doing things like bringing Brock Lesnar back in the face of the allegations that are in the Janel Grant lawsuit. The company needs to be called out for its pricing practices that push ticket prices higher each event. These, along with event reviews, are the types of content that fans should hope to see on ESPN. Will that be the case? Only time will tell, but things aren’t getting off to a good start in the eyes of some.
ESPN’s pro wrestling content is already in a questionable position. It has been more than 200 days since anything noteworthy in AEW has been covered. That shows WWE’s influence on the content already. Still, Andreas Hale should be praised for his insightful input and for calling the show what it was, mediocre. Hopefully, WWE will improve its product rather than trying to put pressure on the way it is covered.