# ESPN - Why is everyone standing? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 13, 2015, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599 "2015-04-13T22:18:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![crypto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b3f665/32.png) [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2015, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/1 "2015-04-13T22:18:08Z")
This is something I have wondered about for a while… I have no idea how long it has been going on, but it has been years. Each SportsCenter, Baseball Tonight, NFL shows… Just about everything has the anchor(s) standing and speaking. I find it strange and off-putting. Guys are standing around like it’s an 80’s Dockers commercial, and most of them stand with their legs spread apart too wide, like they are airing out their ball sacks and ass cracks. It looks like a high school wrestling photograph, except the guys are (usually) wearing suits and ties. Women also look like they are airing out their crack(s), but they have to do it in high heels. Anyone know when this style actually took off, and why do they do this? What ever happened to the anchor behind the desk? What’s wrong with an anchor behind the desk? ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2015, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/2 "2015-04-13T22:32:04Z")
I’m not sure about that either, But I just heard they are finally getting rid of the family’s delusional, babbling uncle, Lou Holtz. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2015, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/3 "2015-04-13T23:38:20Z")
My assumption is that it’s a more “conversational” and friendly style than the usual news anchors behind a desk. No idea on when the idea took off, though. ---
**Author:** ![journeyman\_southpaw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5e9695/32.png) [@journeyman\_southpaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/journeyman_southpaw)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/4 "2015-04-14T00:54:19Z")
MTV VJ’s were deskless - [here’s broadcast footage from its first day](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBf0yJVMSzI). The first time I saw it in a “newsroom” context was City TV in Toronto in the early '90s - [here’s a clip from 1992](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-b8aXsfmYk). I remember reading a profile about the head of the station and he explained that he got rid of the desks because he saw them as an obstacle between the news presenter and the viewer. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/5 "2015-04-14T01:00:17Z")
Many DJ’s stand now, too, even though you can’t see them. It makes your voice more energetic. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/6 "2015-04-14T01:15:08Z")
Even the network news anchors stand for some stories. Supposedly it’s to make them more approachable, literally not distancing themselves from the audience behind an artificial barrier. Somewhere a focus group is to blame. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/7 "2015-04-14T02:14:07Z")
> [@bup](#): > > Many DJ’s stand now, too, even though you can’t see them. > > It makes your voice more energetic. When I was in radio in the 1970s, one of the debates at rock stations was whether the dj’s should stand or sit. The more “high energy” the jock was while on the air, the more likely he was standing. As for when it started, here’s Dave Garroway on the [first broadcast of the Today show](http://hypervocal.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/First-Today-Show-Ever.jpg) in 1952. Notice that microphone he’s wearing? That wasn’t designed for someone to sit behind a desk. ---
**Author:** ![crypto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b3f665/32.png) [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/8 "2015-04-14T16:07:42Z")
> [@journeyman\_southpaw](#): > > MTV VJ’s were deskless - [here’s broadcast footage from its first day](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBf0yJVMSzI). The first time I saw it in a “newsroom” context was City TV in Toronto in the early '90s - [here’s a clip from 1992](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-b8aXsfmYk). I remember reading a profile about the head of the station and he explained that he got rid of the desks because he saw them as an obstacle between the news presenter and the viewer. I remember Entertainment Tonight, with John Tesh and Mary Hart, having a desk with no sides. So, they sat down, but you could see their entire body (and hence, Mary Hart’s legs, which seemed to be the reason for the view). I personally don’t understand the obstacle theory (not that it’s not real, I simply don’t get it), because when I watch something like a local news broadcast, everyone with the exception of the weatherman is behind a desk, and I have never wanted to feel closer to them, nor did I ever feel like I was being blocked from the anchor. I find this idea interesting, because it never crossed my mind that I needed to see the person stand to deliver information to me on TV to make it more credible. Now, if I was watching a public speaker in person, I would not want to see that person sitting behind a desk. I understand the idea that a desk would look like an obstacle, and block the person from the audience. However, many podiums are solid, and block the speaker’s legs, even when they are standing and delivering a speech. Standing would make someone more visible to the entire live audience, and would also help a person project their voice. > [@bup](#): > > Many DJ’s stand now, too, even though you can’t see them. > > It makes your voice more energetic. I get this. As I understand it, it is easier for your diaphram to create a powerful sound when you stand. That’s why professional singers stand when they are in a recording studio. So a DJ at a nightclub standing makes perfect sense to me. > [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Even the network news anchors stand for some stories. Supposedly it’s to make them more approachable, literally not distancing themselves from the audience behind an artificial barrier. Somewhere a focus group is to blame. Does anyone here feel like the anchors are “more approachable” if they are standing? On a TV broadcast, I view the TV screen as the obstacle. Since I can’t get past that to get to an anchor, I don’t think of a desk as anything at all, especially when all they show you is a person’s torso. If a shot is pulled back wide enough to see the top of a desk, you rarely see more than a person’s hands holding a piece of paper. Curse that focus group! ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/9 "2015-04-14T17:45:41Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Even the network news anchors stand for some stories. Supposedly it’s to make them more approachable, literally not distancing themselves from the audience behind an artificial barrier. Somewhere a focus group is to blame. IIRC, some major anchor - might have been Dan Rather - tried to take the national broadcast ‘deskless’ when he took over. It freaked people out and ratings plunged. We want our news anchors seated behind a big, sturdy, artsy desk. And pantless. ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/10 "2015-04-14T18:40:34Z")
It’s a SPORTS network. Sitting isn’t sporting! ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/11 "2015-04-14T19:45:04Z")
It was Linda Ellerbee, I think, who pointed out how much artificial “action” there is in news presentation. The anchor could just read the item, but no… they have to “go to Karen, in the newsroom” as if that makes the news fresher or more important. And, of course, there’s the double handoff to Karen in the newsroom and then to Bob in the field. All to just basically read 30 seconds of copy. ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/12 "2015-04-14T21:57:57Z")
Clearly they were inspired by the example of the peerless newsman Ted Baxter on the _Mary Tyler_ _Moore Show_. (Admittedly, even back in the '70s that struck me as odd - I don’t remember anyone else standing back then, aside from weathermen of course). ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/13 "2015-04-14T22:31:56Z")
For me, it has the opposite effect. I’m probably sitting, and the fact that they are standing draws attention to the fact we aren’t in a group having a conversation. If you want that, you need to sit. That’s why people sit on talk shows, and only stand for the monologue. The Monologue is a show, but the the interviews are you being part of a conversation. ---
**Author:** ![Alex\_from\_CB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/278dde/32.png) [@Alex\_from\_CB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alex_from_CB)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2015, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/14 "2015-04-19T21:20:36Z")
They’re standing because many of their sports talkers are women and most of their audience is male. The women sports talkers are mostly babes. We can see more of them when they’re standing. I thought that was obviously the reason they’re standing. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2015, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/15 "2015-04-19T21:32:58Z")
So, have we _completely_ dismissed the OP’s hypothesis that they stand in order to Air Their Cracks? ---
**Author:** ![Uncle\_Jocko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncle_jocko/32/2932_2.png) [@Uncle\_Jocko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncle_Jocko)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2015, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/16 "2015-04-20T00:29:35Z")
> [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](#): > > Clearly they were inspired by the example of the peerless newsman Ted Baxter on the _Mary Tyler_ _Moore Show_. > > (Admittedly, even back in the '70s that struck me as odd - I don’t remember anyone else standing back then, aside from weathermen of course). The local station I grew up watching - I think this was the late 70s, but it may have been a bit earlier than that - had their news anchor standing behind a clear Lucite-like lectern. Surrounded by darkness. As if they were in a dark, empty room behind this clear plastic stand. There was also a suspended cube behind him, about head-high, that served to show pictures and headlines about the story he was reading. It’s amazing how far technology has come in my lifetime. Anyway, just to throw out there that I know of one TV station that had their anchors standing in the 70s, apart from WJM. 😃 As for another annoyance, from ESPN and just about every other news/sports channel - what’s with the cameras zooming around the set while the hosts/commentators are doing their thing? From CNN to MSNBC to ESPN … all their studio shows seem to feature this mobile, active camera work. I suppose it’s to hold the interest of today’s attention-span-challenged audience, but all I can think of is those poor out-of-shape union cameramen being told to move back and forth and all about the set during the taping. No sir, I don’t care for it, it’s a visual gimmick that adds nothing to the show. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2015, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/17 "2015-04-20T01:54:24Z")
> [@Stink Fish Pot](#): > > I get this. As I understand it, it is easier for your diaphram to create a powerful sound when you stand. That’s why professional singers stand when they are in a recording studio. Professionals, sure, but you might be surprised to learn that the one and only Barbra Streisand sat on a stool, somewhat hunched over, for the studio takes I was involved with in Los Angeles, during the height of her career. ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2015, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/18 "2015-04-20T02:28:13Z")
> [@Alex\_from\_CB](#): > > They’re standing because many of their sports talkers are women and most of their audience is male. The women sports talkers are mostly babes. We can see more of them when they’re standing. > > I thought that was obviously the reason they’re standing. Interestingly enough, my local sports talk station was discussing this topic–and it’s exactly their theory. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2015, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/19 "2015-04-20T02:57:35Z")
It’s 'cause that trailor park bitch at the impound had all their chairs towed. Lose some weight honey indeed. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2015, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/espn-why-is-everyone-standing/717599/20 "2015-04-20T13:47:30Z")
> [@Stink Fish Pot](#): > > This is something I have wondered about for a while… I have no idea how long it has been going on, but it has been years. Each SportsCenter, Baseball Tonight, NFL shows… Just about everything has the anchor(s) standing and speaking. > > I find it strange and off-putting. Guys are standing around like it’s an 80’s Dockers commercial, and most of them stand with their legs spread apart too wide, like they are airing out their ball sacks and ass cracks. It looks like a high school wrestling photograph, except the guys are (usually) wearing suits and ties. Women also look like they are airing out their crack(s), but they have to do it in high heels. > > Anyone know when this style actually took off, and why do they do this? > > What ever happened to the anchor behind the desk? What’s wrong with an anchor behind the desk? I always thought it was odder that they had to wear custom tailored three piece suits in order to talk about a bunch of sweaty guys chasing a ball.