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NBC Olympic Anchors


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Ah...Jim McKay...he was the host of the first WOG coverage I saw on Australian TV, way back for Lake Placid. I think it was Channel 9 who had access to the ABC feed and so it was almost all US coverage down under. By Sarajevo I think the mix was more Australian content, but it took till Calgary before we got our own broadcasters I think

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I have always appreciated Jim Lampley's personal commitment to the Games, but have never been a big fan of his style. Al Michaels is fine. I will give him a shot at this. I think the future for anchors may be with Terry Gannon who is anchoring the Universal coverage. Terry did figure skating for several years and proved himself to me by learning and respecting figure skating and not just playing TV announcer.

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I think we need to go back to the era of Jim McKay and the ABC broadcast of the Olympics. I have always felt that NBCs coverage of the Games was subpar at best.

I think the opposite, that NBC's coverage has been superior to ABC's. The only beef I have with NBC is tape delays on the West Coast - especially when the games are held in the U.S. or Canada or in the same time zone. Really, really lame. I know that ABC said they would bid for the rights to the games from 2014 on, and they said if they got them, they'd air everything live across the U.S. with no tape delays, and I'm hoping that NBC wins the bid, but feels pressured by ABC's statements and commits to ending the tape delay mentality for viewers in the western half of the country.

I think the future for anchors may be with Terry Gannon who is anchoring the Universal coverage. Terry did figure skating for several years and proved himself to me by learning and respecting figure skating and not just playing TV announcer.

I agree. He also has the right sounding voice.

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I think the opposite, that NBC's coverage has been superior to ABC's. The only beef I have with NBC is tape delays on the West Coast - especially when the games are held in the U.S. or Canada or in the same time zone. Really, really lame. I know that ABC said they would bid for the rights to the games from 2014 on, and they said if they got them, they'd air everything live across the U.S. with no tape delays, and I'm hoping that NBC wins the bid, but feels pressured by ABC's statements and commits to ending the tape delay mentality for viewers in the western half of the country.

Remember about ABC.. they're not the ones who are bidding. It's ESPN that will be running the show, ABC will be a secondary thought to them. So if you're expecting the old Jim McKay/ABC Wide World of Sports quality from them, you will be sorely disappointed.

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Only if theytone back the too-much-salt in Lampley's hair. But yeah, he's a lot more vigorous than Michaels who is a big bore.

And has a big fat gut, and doesn't look good on TV. He's a television anchor, so in his case, looks do matter. But hey, the Today Show keeps that buffoon Al Roker around.

Remember about ABC.. they're not the ones who are bidding. It's ESPN that will be running the show, ABC will be a secondary thought to them. So if you're expecting the old Jim McKay/ABC Wide World of Sports quality from them, you will be sorely disappointed.

I don't want the old Jim McKay style. I'm old enough to remember the ABC/Jim McKay days. I prefer NBC/Bob Costas/Jim Lampley/Jimmy Roberts/Chris Collingsworth and Mary Carillo. I want NBC to keep the games, I just also want them to change their attitude when it comes to live vs. delayed a bit.

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As I'm not privy to what you guys in the US are seeing its hard to comment, but as long as Dick Ebersol is one of the big shots within the Olympic family NBC will keep doing what they're doing. It's gonna take a seismic shift in the nexus between the IOC and broadcast revenue/politics before anyone else will get the chance to improve (or maybe even perform worse) than the Peacock

And before Wikipedia changes take a geek at this:

Duncan Dickie Ebersol[1] (born July 28, 1947) is an American radio and TV executive. He was protégé of ABC Sports czar Roone Arledge and was a key NBC executive in the launching of Saturday Night Live in 1975 and which he produced from April 1981 to May 1985. He became president of NBC Sports in April 1989. In May 2004, Ebersol was named chairman of NBC Universal Sports & Olympics. Ebersol has become the biggest failure in TV history, and has been known to ruin anything he tries to work on. Dick thinks Tape Delay is the greatest thing since sliced bread.

Dick Ebersol entry in Wikipedia

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As I'm not privy to what you guys in the US are seeing its hard to comment, but as long as Dick Ebersol is one of the big shots within the Olympic family NBC will keep doing what they're doing. It's gonna take a seismic shift in the nexus between the IOC and broadcast revenue/politics before anyone else will get the chance to improve (or maybe even perform worse) than the Peacock

And before Wikipedia changes take a geek at this:

Dick Ebersol entry in Wikipedia

Being as that you're an Australian, how are you seeing all our coverage from NBC over the years down under (other than whatever has gotten posted on file sharing sites), and why are you so interested in our regional coverage? You spend more time talking about the American networks NBC/ABC then you do Australia's Channel 7. Or are you an American living down under?

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Being as that you're an Australian, how are you seeing all our coverage from NBC over the years down under (other than whatever has gotten posted on file sharing sites), and why are you so interested in our regional coverage? You spend more time talking about the American networks NBC/ABC then you do Australia's Channel 7. Or are you an American living down under?

Not a Yank...and as for being interested in NBC's coverage it's not because I see much of it but because of the importance of how arguably the most important Olympic TV market is serviced by one of the most powerful companies with an at best indirect influence on the IOC.

As for the local Aussie coverage, Channel 9 and Foxtel have broadcast rights here for 2010 and 2012 and not Channel 7. Plus if you look in the thread I started on local TV coverage you'll see I have lots to say on what has been happening here.

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Not a Yank...and as for being interested in NBC's coverage it's not because I see much of it but because of the importance of how arguably the most important Olympic TV market is serviced by one of the most powerful companies with an at best indirect influence on the IOC.

As for the local Aussie coverage, Channel 9 and Foxtel have broadcast rights here for 2010 and 2012 and not Channel 7. Plus if you look in the thread I started on local TV coverage you'll see I have lots to say on what has been happening here.

Well I know Channel 7 broadcast Beijing, just like ABC and CBS have broadcast games in the past.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Just came back to say that I have enjoyed watching Al Michaels more as the Games have gone on. He sort of settled in after a few days. As a fan of figure skating I appreciated his interviews with those he has worked with over the years. I also enjoyed the stories about the 1980 Hockey competition.

If I understand it correctly, Al has a very bad back - thus he is always sitting down. I remember seeing him having problems with his back as far back as US figure skating Nationals in 1993. I wonder how much trouble he has now. I thought he was a good edition to the commentating team.

I also enjoyed the extended news and preview coverage on Universal - all five hours every day.

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I also enjoyed the extended news and preview coverage on Universal - all five hours every day.

Yes, I've loved the Universal Sports coverage, they've come up with some really great live shows: Vancouver Olympic News Center and Morning Buzz, and Meet the Olympic Press. It's been great.

Oh and I must add that Terry Ganon is really likable and good and should be the heir to Jim Lampley.

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Yes, I've loved the Universal Sports coverage, they've come up with some really great live shows: Vancouver Olympic News Center and Morning Buzz, and Meet the Olympic Press. It's been great.

Oh and I must add that Terry Ganon is really likable and good and should be the heir to Jim Lampley.

I'm thinking maybe Bob Costas.

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Is it acceptable to only want to hear Chris Collingsworth during the NFL season?

Or perhaps not at all?

I mean I'm not that familiar with the sports of the WOG, but I wouldn't sound so damn hokey about everything.

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