LA Times: NBC commentators don’t know when to shut up.
“Even with the more restrained commentary, an air of participation inevitably creeps in — the commentator’s admiration and enthusiasm or, occasionally, anger and bewilderment become part of the experience, which then becomes more about entertainment than athleticism. [snip] But if that’s what you’re going for, then why not liberate Morgan Freeman from the Visa ads (which are, by the way, really terrific this year) and have him in the booth? Freeman can inject a sense of drama just by saying the athlete’s name.” Timely. I realized I’ve been getting cranky in the evenings, just from being blathered to death watching the Olympics. Last night, I started muting the sound, and had a much more pleasant time.
Comments:
There’s something for future broadcasters ... mixing background noise separately from commentary. Allow us to decide how we want our audio mixed.
Don’t get me started on the cable news talking heads who keep cutting away from a LIVE broadcast of Obama just so they can give us their opinion, before Obama has even finished speaking. Give it a rest already. FOX News is the worst offender, of course.
If we unplugged people from the 24/7 news cycle, put them in a room, fed them straight news (no editorials), we’d likely find consensus on many issues.
Media exists strictly to create controversy, IMHO.
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I was already irritated by the end of opening ceremonies. Them folks just won’t shut up for even a second!