WAG Specific Suggestion for NBC

[suds]

For 2020 at least, ensure that all broadcasts of women’s Olympics gymnastics are covered by only female announcers who have competed as international elite gymnasts. If they bothered to look, NBC would find many bright, capable women who are not only extremely knowledgeable but can articulate information quite effectively in a manner that would meet the needs of both the general public and the gymnastics community.

This change would demonstrate that NBC is both penitent for their sins and is willing to break free from the decades-outdated “Good-Ole-Boys’ ” insulting and condescending mentality that permeates their current broadcasts and alienates the women’s gymnastics community. A fresh approach and new viewing experience with highly qualified commentators would also increase ratings…

Anyone on Chalkbucket knows someone that works in the C-Suite for NBC?

More often than not it tends to take knowing someone on the inside to affect change.

 

[Dahlia]

I agree. Or 2 women and one man. Or at least one woman who is more assertive. Nastia would just sit back and let the other two take over.

 

[bookworm]

For 2020 at least, ensure that all broadcasts of women’s Olympics gymnastics are covered by only female announcers who have competed as international elite gymnasts. If they bothered to look, NBC would find many bright, capable women who are not only extremely knowledgeable but can articulate information quite effectively in a manner that would meet the needs of both the general public and the gymnastics community.

.

I don't even think they need to be a former elite gymnast...many upper level girls are way more knowledgeable than the guys they had and wouldn't be making offensive comments...there are a ton of former NCAA gymnasts that would fit the bill as well...#nomoreTrautwig

 

[profmom]

Courtney Kupets did a great job on the live feed. So did Sam Peszek for nationals/trials. If Horton's back at work, kidnap Kyle Shewfelt and drag him down to do the men. He was excellent for Pan Ams. There's no lack of good talent, and I do think all these people explain things clearly in ways that even the four-year fans can readily understand.

Trautwig absolutely must go.

 

[wandrewsjr]

I do think his comments about adoption may finally push him out of the door. Rabid gymnastics fans have always disliked him, but we aren't a huge enough demographic group to make NBC change Olympic programming (and face it, we are going to watch anyway). But now Al has offended everyone who has ever been touched by, or know someone that has been touched by, adoption. I think that may make him not worth the trouble to NBC. We can only hope.

 

[notthatmom]

I do think his comments about adoption may finally push him out of the door. Rabid gymnastics fans have always disliked him, but we aren't a huge enough demographic group to make NBC change Olympic programming (and face it, we are going to watch anyway). But now Al has offended everyone who has ever been touched by, or know someone that has been touched by, adoption. I think that may make him not worth the trouble to NBC. We can only hope.

I must have missed that, what did he say about adoption?

 

[Deleted member 18037]

He pretty much said Simone's parents are not her parents. In other words adoptive parents are not "real" parents. In fact he was insistant about it. Yeah, did not go over well. But then the whole handling of Simone's story, really didn't go over well on many levels.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

And yes many folks of the adoption triad were upset. And I am pretty sure NBC could overall give a hoot. As the Olympics is not even a yearly thing.

They are the only game in town for the casual watch every 4 years viewer. They aren't going to hunt for alternate sources to watch.

 

[1canadiangymmom]

I second Kyle Shewfelt, he was awesome on the Canadian live feed!!

 

[notthatmom]

He pretty much said Simone's parents are not her parents. In other words adoptive parents are not "real" parents. In fact he was insistant about it. Yeah, did not go over well. But then the whole handling of Simone's story, really didn't go over well on many levels.

...wow, that's pretty awful.

 

[Momof2]

I would like to see gymnastics shown all at once instead of one hour at 8:00 and then stopped for swimming for three hours straight and back to gym at 11:00. What a joke. They do it every olympics. I can never catch it all.

 

[LindyHopper]

I would like to see gymnastics shown all at once instead of one hour at 8:00 and then stopped for swimming for three hours straight and back to gym at 11:00. What a joke. They do it every olympics. I can never catch it all.

Everyone always complains that there isn't enough live coverage. So, NBC shows the events that occur in prime time live. We see a lot of beach volleyball, swimming and Track & Field, because those were the events that were live during prime time. If gymnastics had been at 7 or 8 in the evening in Rio, it would have been shown live here in the States (most likely watching a routine, then switching to the pool for a race, and then switching back to gymnastics for another routine and so on). The fact is that gymnastics was at 3:00 PM EDT. If NBC had shown it live there would have been an outcry from everyone who had to work complaining that it wasn't in Prime Time. So, as much as I hate it (and trust me, I do--My girls whined about not being able to stay up until midnight to watch.), they show the gymnastics before the live events and then after the live events, with the bonus of keeping that gymnastics-watching audience all the way until the end of Prime Time coverage.

And the Games in 2020 are in Tokyo... I think that's a 14 hour time difference, so almost EVERYTHING will be tape-delayed. Talk about NBC being able to package everything to create exactly what they want to.

 

[Dahlia]

But why not show it live during the day? We can get it in livestream, but they have Olympics going all day long on several channels. They purposely hold it off to boost prime time ratings. And that is largely why they split it as well, "coming up" and "stay tuned" are there to get everyone to keep watching.

 

[LindyHopper]

They purposely hold it off to boost prime time ratings. And that is largely why they split it as well, "coming up" and "stay tuned" are there to get everyone to keep watching.

I agree with you 100%. But it is also true that the VAST majority of coverage during that split was of live events, not other tape-delayed events. They'll probably split it four ways for 2020... one segment for each rotation.

 

[Dahlia]

Of course living on the west coast, none of it is "live" in primetime.

 

[LindyHopper]

Of course living on the west coast, none of it is "live" in primetime.

Ooh! Didn't even think of West Coast... ergh.

I wonder if tunnelbear to the East Coast will be an option in 2020?

 

[bookworm]

I watched rhythmic gymnastics AA qualifications at 1 PM live yesterday.... And it was so nice to be wide awake for it!

 

[seoulmama]

The announcers for the live artistic Men's and Women's gymnastics events were so good, I really enjoyed the three of them (Jim Watson (PxP), Jonathan Horton and Courtney Kupets Carter). They were entertaining and knowledgeable.