NBC has been getting hammered for poor Olympics ratings. The network has no one to blame but itself. Gossip politics have been put before sports: squabbling on the speed skating team, snowboarder ethics, and Bode Miller’s nightlife have been the gold, silver and bronze subjects of the talking heads.
Melissa Stark’s dreadful interview with 1,000 meter speed skating gold medalist Shani Davis (“Are you angry, Shani?”) was a microcosm of NBC’s failings. After spending days painting Davis as a vile, self-centered wretch, Stark appeared dumbfounded that Davis looked at NBC with disdain and answered leading questions with monosyllables. Personally, I think he would have done better to be gracious in front of the cameras, but one can sympathize with his reaction. One can’t, however, sympathize with Stark and her NBC colleagues for playing petty politics with our athletes in a bid to boost ratings.
Sadly, NBC will be our host in 2008 as well, perhaps because its Senior Vice President for Global Operations Alex Gilady is also a member of the IOC. Here’s hoping improved broadband access will allow us to watch Olympics feeds in streaming HD from other companies in the future.
Personally, I found it dfficult to choose between watching the person Dick Cheney shot covered in birdshot ,all black in blued,(dude di you see him!!!) with the biathlon. At least in the bialthlon when you get a target you avoid a penalty lap, in the Cheneyathon you shoot a friend and go into the hideathon. But seriously NBC, get real we want to see the events.
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In regards to Shani, give the guy a break. He was the ONE that had a chance to be the first African American olypmian to get a medal, do the American People realize what was on his shoulders? It doens;’ appear his teammates do.
Bob, I can’t thank you enough for seeing through this and stating it as eloquently as you have.
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Go Team USA
And it doesn’t help that they have 10 minutes of commercials after every five minutes of coverage… only 2 of those 5 minutes actually being dedicated to the actual sports events.
I have an international family, from Europe and Asia, as well as lots of parts of the good ole US of A, and friends and neighbors from all over the world.
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We would love to see all kinds of competitors from everywhere.
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One of my relatives said this was like the weather maps on the Weather Channel, that show no weather in Canada or Mexico, as if what’s happening there doesn’t influence our weather, or possibly, even exist.