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5/25/2001
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Article/Press
Release
Rooney
to Lead New ESPN Outdoors Initiative
ESPN
will launch a new business initiative, ESPN Outdoors, to coordinate
company-wide, multi-media efforts in the outdoor genre, it was
announced today by ESPN President George Bodenheimer.
Michael Rooney, senior vice president of ESPN The Magazine,
will assume added responsibility as general manager of ESPN
Outdoors. In this newly
created role, he will oversee the Great Outdoor Games, which will
return to Lake Placid in July; ESPN2’s extensive outdoor
programming; and B.A.S.S., the world’s largest fishing
organization which ESPN acquired last month and which includes
magazine publishing, event management and television distribution
among its businesses.
Rooney
joined ESPN The Magazine as its first publisher in 1997 with
extensive experience in the outdoor industry; he was promoted to his
current position in January 2000.
Previously, he was senior vice president and publisher for
Field and Stream and Outdoor Life, where he was responsible for
turning around the ad sales efforts at both titles.
One of the most important assets of B.A.S.S. is BASSMASTER
Magazine, the largest bass fishing magazine in the world.
“Michael
has the perfect skill set for this new role,” said Bodenheimer.
“He has a successful history in and strong knowledge of the
outdoor marketplace, including publishing; a deep understanding of
our overall company, and a demonstrated ability to forge strategic
partnerships with advertisers an important quality given the
significant role sponsorships play in the outdoor industry.”
Rooney’s
leadership contributed to ESPN The Magazine achieving
record-breaking advertising page and revenue growth and being named
the best magazine launch of 1998 by AdWeek and Advertising Age which
also named Rooney one of the Top 100 Marketers of 1999.
Prior to Field and Stream and Outdoor Life, Rooney was vice
president and publisher during the relaunch of Discover magazine.
Rooney, a graduate of Boston College, was also the first
publisher of Menąs Health.
In
addition to possessing an extensive professional background in the
outdoor industry, Rooney is an avid outdoorsman, participating in
fishing, cycling, boating and more.
As a member of the board of trustees for Outward Bound USA,
he has helped to organize trips for publishers and editors involved
with the organization. These
include climbing Mt. Kilamanjaro, trekking in Costa Rica, a river
trip in Utah and horsepacking in Colorado.
“Our
goal with ESPN Outdoors is to bring more value to our viewers,
readers, participants and sponsors,” Rooney said.
“Our acquisition of B.A.S.S., coupled with our other
outdoor assets, extends ESPNąs leadership position in the outdoor
industry, and Iąm extremely excited about the growth potential of
ESPN Outdoors.”
B.A.S.S.
president and chief executive officer Helen Sevier will report to
Rooney, who will report to Mark Quenzel, senior vice president,
programming, on ESPN Outdoors matters.
He will continue to report to Bodenheimer regarding his
magazine responsibilities.
“I
am delighted that Michael will head this new initiative,” said
Sevier. “Having known him for many years, I am sure that his
experience in publishing and dedication to the outdoors will serve
all of the ESPN Outdoors division, including B.A.S.S. very well.”
ESPN
OUTDOORS
Last
month, ESPN purchased the business and assets of B.A.S.S., Inc., the
largest fishing organization in the world with more than 600,000
members and, like ESPN, a leader in a variety of businesses and
media. These include magazine publishing, event management,
merchandising, television distribution and the Internet.
ESPN2
televises outdoor programming - ESPN Outdoors - every Saturday and
Sunday morning, as well as on weekday afternoons.
Programming includes the 18-show BASSMASTER Tournament Trail
and BASS Masters Classic, as well as 13 half-hour programs from the
World Championship Fishing circuit, which is sanctioned by B.A.S.S
and which combines fishing and boat racing.
B.A.S.S.’s many initiatives include CastingKids, which
encourages youth participation in fishing, and numerous
environmental and conservation efforts.
Based
in Montgomery, Ala., B.A.S.S. was established in 1967 and the
company is currently affiliated with more than 2,800 chapters in 47
states and five foreign countries. ESPN
has a long history with outdoor programming; The Fishiną Hole
joined ESPN in 1980 and is the network’s second-longest running
program, after SportsCenter. Outdoor programming has been a weekend
morning staple since the mid-1980s.
The ESPN Great Outdoor Games, launched last July, were well
received by spectators, competitors and viewers, and will return to
Lake Placid, N.Y., July 12-15, airing on ESPN and ESPN2 July 26 -
August 5. ESPN Radio
has aired a Saturday morning outdoors show since October 1998.
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