Brilliant move by ESPN, who, as we’ve mentioned, is losing subscribers to cord-cutters.

The first part of their five-part highly acclaimed documentary, O.J.: Made In America, airs tomorrow night at 9 p.m. on ESPN. Part two airs on Tuesday night. After that, the entire thing will be available to stream – or binge – through the WatchESPN and  and its associated platforms, before parts 3-5 air on ESPN.

From the LA Times:

“As we were thinking about the compelling nature of this content, it became more and more clear that there might be people who may want to sit down and watch the whole thing,” said Lori LeBas, senior vice president of affiliate partnerships and operations for ESPN.

The streaming plan is part of an extraordinary cross-promotional effort by ESPN to turn “O.J.: Made in America” into a major television event, reaching viewers who use an outdoor antenna, cable or a broadband Internet to get video.

This is super-smart. The documentary is getting rave reviews and could potentially be the Serial–Making a Murderer of the summer. Parts 1 and 2 will get people talking… parts 3-5 will develop the cult following.

ESPN, which has been struggling to keep subscribers around, will require binge-watchers to enter their (or someone’s) cable credentials to stream through WatchESPN.

Without overstating it, this is a first-of-its-kind broadcast-streaming event by a major network.