Comments on: Reason No. 786 to detest the Olympics http://www.misterfadedglory.com/2008/08/reason-no-786-to-detest-the-olympics/ Reviews, recaps, retorts and more from a writing and marketing pro. Wed, 28 Dec 2011 12:37:35 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: jjh http://www.misterfadedglory.com/2008/08/reason-no-786-to-detest-the-olympics/comment-page-1/#comment-1518 jjh Thu, 14 Aug 2008 01:11:27 +0000 http://www.misterfadedglory.com/?p=750#comment-1518 I’m actually just thrilled to have a commenter, whether because of, or limited to, a rant striking a nerve. Fair points all, and it’s also fairly hypocritical by me to condemn the Olympics for being so commercialized while I follow sports rife with advertising-fueled hyperbole like the Super Bowl or World Series. However, there is something unseemly about the way Olympic coverage is tailored and scheduled down to the minute in time slots irrespective of unforeseen athletic events occurring throughout a day, and sold in piecemeal. And it would have made more sense for me to condemn the scheduling of basketball in Primetime, juxtaposing it with my whine about the live game not being on one of five channels. Both scheduling snafus seem counterintuitive. I have problems with nearly all sports media, but almost always, I feel it’s best to air everything live when possible. If a revamp or re-air in PrimeTime is needed, then say so. That's probably fair. NBC is always heavy on schmaltz; any time they cover the US Open they begin Tiger's victory lap/slurpfest shortly into the second round. And for crying out loud, why must swimming lead off the hours of coverage? Just when I’m convincing myself the Olympics might be worthwhile, I’m faced with a deluge of swimming, a sport so TV-unfriendly, I may well be watching soccer. (Rolls eyes. _Now, don’t you start._) I’m actually just thrilled to have a commenter, whether because of, or limited to, a rant striking a nerve.

Fair points all, and it’s also fairly hypocritical by me to condemn the Olympics for being so commercialized while I follow sports rife with advertising-fueled hyperbole like the Super Bowl or World Series.

However, there is something unseemly about the way Olympic coverage is tailored and scheduled down to the minute in time slots irrespective of unforeseen athletic events occurring throughout a day, and sold in piecemeal.

And it would have made more sense for me to condemn the scheduling of basketball in Primetime, juxtaposing it with my whine about the live game not being on one of five channels. Both scheduling snafus seem counterintuitive.

I have problems with nearly all sports media, but almost always, I feel it’s best to air everything live when possible. If a revamp or re-air in PrimeTime is needed, then say so. That’s probably fair. NBC is always heavy on schmaltz; any time they cover the US Open they begin Tiger’s victory lap/slurpfest shortly into the second round.

And for crying out loud, why must swimming lead off the hours of coverage? Just when I’m convincing myself the Olympics might be worthwhile, I’m faced with a deluge of swimming, a sport so TV-unfriendly, I may well be watching soccer. (Rolls eyes. _Now, don’t you start._)

]]> By: samo http://www.misterfadedglory.com/2008/08/reason-no-786-to-detest-the-olympics/comment-page-1/#comment-1517 samo Wed, 13 Aug 2008 20:37:14 +0000 http://www.misterfadedglory.com/?p=750#comment-1517 <em>Arguably</em> the most interminable thing about the explosion in the number of sports blogs since the Athens Games is the number of posts I've had to see that start out "I hate the Olympics." Although, to your credit, you have slightly differentiated yourself from those sports fans whose primary beef with the Olympic Games is that they prefer their athletes to have more robust gun possession, drunk driving, and anal rape records. You'll get no argument from just about anybody that Bob Costas is a self-serving ass, but NBC's Beijing Olympic coverage is miles above what its ever been, and the online viewing options are astounding. I realize that you probably don't have time to run to your computer to watch The Preen Team (or whatever the fuck) smack Angola around while you're trying to get ready for work, but--honestly--the Olympics aren't really about basketball (and are even less about baseball, a fact the IOC has conceded by bagging that sport for at least the London Games). Look, it bothers me a little bit that I'm going to know who won Friday's 10,000 meter final (that's a track event, BTW) 12 hours before I can watch it on NBC. But at least I get to watch it on NBC. That's something that I, as a sports fan, only get to do every four years. For fans of track & field (athletics to the rest of the world), swimming, triathlons, gymnastics, and a dozen other sports, it's not uncommon to get televised coverage of an event days or weeks after it happened. Believe it or not, live telecasts of sporting events are a luxury often only afforded to fans of basketball, football, baseball, soccer, tennis, and bowling. Once you've watched a swim meet that you know happened a month ago, 12 hours seems like nothing. For most people--sports fans or otherwise--the Olympics are an opportunity to be exposed to "other" sports and "other" athletes. Are "real" sports fans threatened by the fact that the Olympics is an opportunity for someone like a Michael Phelps or a Tyson Gay--for at least a few moments--to be a bigger star and a bigger story than Kobe or Lebron? Basketball HAS its moment, from October through June every single year. Baseball HAS its season--it runs from April to November and is boring until mid-September, last I checked. Even for soccer, the Olympics is not the Holy Grail that another quadrennial event--the World Cup--is. Do those sports really need to be the center of attention for three <em>more</em> weeks every fourth year? Arguably the most interminable thing about the explosion in the number of sports blogs since the Athens Games is the number of posts I’ve had to see that start out “I hate the Olympics.” Although, to your credit, you have slightly differentiated yourself from those sports fans whose primary beef with the Olympic Games is that they prefer their athletes to have more robust gun possession, drunk driving, and anal rape records.

You’ll get no argument from just about anybody that Bob Costas is a self-serving ass, but NBC’s Beijing Olympic coverage is miles above what its ever been, and the online viewing options are astounding. I realize that you probably don’t have time to run to your computer to watch The Preen Team (or whatever the fuck) smack Angola around while you’re trying to get ready for work, but–honestly–the Olympics aren’t really about basketball (and are even less about baseball, a fact the IOC has conceded by bagging that sport for at least the London Games).

Look, it bothers me a little bit that I’m going to know who won Friday’s 10,000 meter final (that’s a track event, BTW) 12 hours before I can watch it on NBC. But at least I get to watch it on NBC. That’s something that I, as a sports fan, only get to do every four years. For fans of track & field (athletics to the rest of the world), swimming, triathlons, gymnastics, and a dozen other sports, it’s not uncommon to get televised coverage of an event days or weeks after it happened. Believe it or not, live telecasts of sporting events are a luxury often only afforded to fans of basketball, football, baseball, soccer, tennis, and bowling. Once you’ve watched a swim meet that you know happened a month ago, 12 hours seems like nothing.

For most people–sports fans or otherwise–the Olympics are an opportunity to be exposed to “other” sports and “other” athletes. Are “real” sports fans threatened by the fact that the Olympics is an opportunity for someone like a Michael Phelps or a Tyson Gay–for at least a few moments–to be a bigger star and a bigger story than Kobe or Lebron? Basketball HAS its moment, from October through June every single year. Baseball HAS its season–it runs from April to November and is boring until mid-September, last I checked. Even for soccer, the Olympics is not the Holy Grail that another quadrennial event–the World Cup–is. Do those sports really need to be the center of attention for three more weeks every fourth year?

]]>