UPDATED, Aug. 6–It has been rightly noted that not everyone might be aware of the source information for my reaction to the sale (impending) of B.A.S.S. For national news, I always go to Bassfan.com when I can, but I overlooked that reference for the following. You can see all of Jon Storm and crew’s good work here.
ORIGINAL POST: There was a time when Alabama’s Ray Scott was a bit of a folk hero. The insurance salesman turned membership salesman built an industry from $15 subscriptions as well as $100 and then whopping $300 entry fees.
When the organization went corporate there was more visibility for the pros, but beyond the local work of federated clubs (a bit of Scott genius at work) most B.A.S.S. members would have to say their greatest connection to the organization was Bassmaster Magazine. It spoke to them and with them, but unlike television, it was a direct funnel to bass anglers.
But look what happened. Cable TV, and especially ESPN, provided the avenue to “grow the sport.” However, what it has actually done is expose the sport to more diverse ranks of people and in doing so has actually reduced the percentage of viewers who truly are interested in bass fishing.
Over the last decade, the number of people who didn’t approach the sport from a fishing perspective has grown. But they weren’t looking for new ideas and methods for catching a readily available game fish. Instead, they saw our new equipment, embroidered shirts (now printed jerseys) and the fist pumping, as something more akin to the activities with which they were already familiar like skateboarding, NASCAR or XGames.
Today, the corps that primarily fishes for entertainment, personal satisfaction or competition share the sport with X-boxers and I-pad users and the result is a one-size B.A.S.S will not fit all.
Jerry McKinnis, one of the threesome of anticipated new owners, may have once enjoyed a nice relationship with angler/viewers, but given the type of partners he’s aligned with, he can no longer hope to survive with the shrinking audience of pure fishermen. And while there is talk of “new (business) opportunities,” the new ownership’s view of the future and the proper fixes to the sport seems quite unclear.
McKinnis’ own words, in fact, may come back to haunt us all: “It isn’t like I’ve got some kind of plan like: Boy, here’s what we’re going to do on the day it all becomes official. I don’t have a plan, and I want everybody to help me….”
Unfortunately (thanks to ESPN) we have come to know who “everybody” must be. And bass fishermen may not particularly like what they get from a new B.A.S.S.
2 Responses to “You may not like it: The ‘new’ B.A.S.S.”
Programing competing for bass angler viewers has grown and improved. Instruction, explanation, theory, and insight are now more common qualities that were more rare in the past. The viewing hours of fishing shows has probably grown, but is diluted and spread out by greater availability.
In the end BASS has more become a vehicle to sell products from it’s advertisers than showing new techniques or the tournament competition between the pros. I know, it’s a business, and ESPN did not feel it was getting enough return on it’s investment. They thought they were getting in on the ground floor of another NASCAR, it didn’t work out like they planned, so they cut their losses and dumped it. I really hope the new ownership will make a real effort to get back to the sport’s core appeal to real fishing fans (while still turning a profit.)