ESPN viewers have noted a marked increase in its usage of Pat McAfee, putting him into almost every major program they have. While some wonder why ESPN is so insistent on using him so much, former ESPN host Elle Duncan believes she knows the answer.
Appearing on Casuals with Katie Nolan, Duncan mused that ESPN has made McAfee their man in trying to tap into the “young, white male demo.” She said that ESPN knows how big that particular demographic is, which is why they’re being so aggressive.
“I just think in general with any company … sometimes it’s about trying to be as creative as possible, to say, ‘OK, we’ve got our Pat McAfee, and he’s one of our faces of the network, how do we build our next version of that from inside the house?’” she said. “Instead of going and licensing or co-opting, how do we build that here? How do we take a home-grown talent and give them the platforming and the positioning and the producing to make them of that level? How do we tap into other demos that are also important?”
Duncan believes that ESPN has been going after that particular demographic by pursuing Barstool, but turned to McAfee when that didn’t pan out.
“I’m a fan of Pat, I was before. Just because I get his audience. I understand why people think he’s an asset,” she said. “I think years ago before Pat, ESPN was trying to tap into that demo by pulling in Barstool. It didn’t work out with Barstool; in fact, it was a very quick end to that. But I think that they’re trying to tap into that young, white male demo. It’s a big demo. I get why they want to give him that.”
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It’s become clear from the discourse that McAfee isn’t for everyone. Between the oversaturation and some of his behavior, he just isn’t a unifying force at ESPN (other than maybe getting people angry at him from time to time).
But McAfee is clearly doing something that ESPN wants. They wouldn’t give him all the money and attention he’s receiving if he weren’t giving them their money’s worth.
