ESPN is Evil

I can zone out to SportsCenter, ESPN's daily highlight reel, with the best of 'em. But the network's latest foray, creating localized sports web sites that will go head-to-head with local television and newspapers - if predictable - is upsetting. For anyone with a rooting interest in the local news, sports is an important franchise - a reason to tune in to a stripped-down 11 o'clock News or to buy a diminished morning paper. Now, another threat to a news media already under siege.

ESPN has launched in Chicago. New York, Los Angeles and Dallas are next up. No word on a New England site yet. But given the hefty appetite for sports here, it seems only a matter of time.