that would be impossible to do. Some movies (mostly sci-fi, action, older movies) are not in 16:9 like the Television, and have thin black bars on the top and bottom (I think the ratio is 1.33:1, I could be very wrong). Stretching that image to fit your screen would result in a blurry mess, due to having to zoom in.It should not be a problem. I think people worry about burn in too much. Burn in does occur on some sets, but it takes years before it actually becomes a problem, and by then, you would be ready to buy another television. Older plasmas had a problem, but new plasmas deal with it much better. As far as ESPN, leaving the same image on the sides is the same as having black bars. I think they do that, to let viewers know that they are watching the HD broadcast.
Watch your movies and 4:3 SD channels to your hearts content.
