NBC Ruins Olympics Men's Downhill For Millions Of Fans

[FarCenter]

It didn't seem possible that, in the middle of a national holiday, NBC would be so self-serving and outrageous that it would risk infuriating millions of viewers by tape-delaying one of the most popular events at the Winter Olympics--the Men's Downhill.

<SNIP>

Because, as usual, NBC wants to maximize its revenue by delaying the event until the most people will watch it: This evening in primetime.

So the eager audience who tuned in to watch the Men's Downhill live, like the eager audience that tuned in to watch the French Open and Wimbledon and other sporting events that NBC buys the rights to so it can ruin, are instead left to curse a network that is now actively preventing them from watching the event until it's long over and all the drama is gone.

Someday, perhaps, the NBC Sports brass will understand that the world has changed in the past 25 years. Within an hour or two, the name of the winner of the Men's Downhill will be everywhere--on the radio, on other TV stations, on the Internet, on news sites. Even people who want to play along with NBC's self-serving little game will have a hard time avoiding the news. Thus, for most of them, the most exciting event at the games will be ruined.

<SNIP>

So, once again, on behalf of sports fans everywhere, we have a message for Jeff Zucker, Dick Ebersol, and the rest of the people in charge of NBC Sports:

F#$% you!
http://www.businessinsider.com/henry-blodget-nbc-ruins-olympics-mens-downhill-for-millions-of-fans-2010-2

[tridim]

1. They announced it on MSNBC too out of the blue, I'm pretending I didn't hear it.

Spoilers are evil in the age of tape delay.

[theHandpuppet]

36. Yeah, I saw the results scroll by on ESPN and I'm really pissed!

:mad:

[DoBotherMe]

2. k&r

[spanone]

3. so THAT'S how they get that daylight 'lighting effect' at night......

[IADEMO2004]

4. and they cut for commercial when Kris Freeman started the 15k cross country

crap

[yorgatron]

5. I don't care about that downhill crap,when are they going to show some

Curling?

[lazarus]

9. starts Tuesday

http://www.nbcolympics.com/tv-listings/zone=PT/sport=CU/index.html For all curling air times in your area. You can sign up for email and text alerts, even.

[suffragette]

63. Looks like they'll only cover it on cable

Arghh! I miss being able to watch on CBC.

[upi402]

10. when they hook a 2-stroke motor onto the rock thingy n/t

[immoderate]

25. I love curling.

Can't figure why though. :bounce:

--imm

[Miss_Underestimated]

42. I love curling too! Didn't get it 'til I read about it at Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curling

I'd like to hire some of those guys to clean my carpets!!

[ChiciB1]

57. I Think I Like It So Much Because It Reminds Me Of Bowling Or Billiards!

You have to hit the rock exactly right, plus determine how it will affect the other rocks. I find it very interesting and enjoy watching it, even though I never heard of it before the LAST Winter's!

I've bowled on many teams, and played a LOT of pool too! Have a table up in our barn, but it needs to be resurfaced right now!

[ChiciB1]

58. I'm One Who Wants To Know... Yes, Seems Crazy, But Watching The Games

at night is like watching a "little" of the games, a "massive" amount of commercials, and some repeat upon repeat conversations with the commentators! So since I have a Dish, I can watch during the day! Curling is on right now!

[theHandpuppet]

38. Hey, I love curling!

Bring it on! :D

[ChiciB1]

60. I Guess I Need To Learn More About It... I Don't Exactly Understand How

they figure the standing, or how many changes any team gets. Winner's bracket, loser's bracket, is that how it works??

[izzybeans]

6. And if you have NYtimes news alerts coming to your inbox you just found out who won.

Damn it.

[Lisa0825]

7. Yep, that was what I was just about to post! What idiots!!! nt

[izzybeans]

12. My Outlook flashes them on my screen and I had no way of avoiding it.

[Lisa0825]

20. If they had any amount of common sense, they wouldn't have put it in

he subject line, and that would at least spare most people of the spoiler. I don't really care, as I am not watching the Olympics anyway, but my first thought when I saw that email come in after reading this post about the time delay was "Oh shit! A lotta pissed off sports fans right about now!"

I hope they get deluged with emails over this.

[A-Long-Little-Doggie]

37. If you want to change Outlook so that the new message alert does not show...

In Outlook go to Tools => Options => Email options => Advanced Email Options where you will see a checkbox for Display a New Mail Desktop Alert. Uncheck the box and you will never see those alerts again! Click OK on all of the boxes to save your options.

[catbyte]

8. That's why I stopped watching the Olympics

It's been butchered for years, but NBC has taken it to a new level. It's like the producers have ADHD or something. I know there are a lot of events to cover, but please cut out the crap fillers--it drives me insane and puts me to sleep at the same time.:boring:

I miss the days when I could tune to CBC--MUCH better coverage! sigh...:banghead:

Diane

Anishnabe in MI

[WitchyWoman57]

11. Ditto

Just show the damn games, live.

[SoCalDem]

13. I HATE to watch the Olympics.. have for decades

It USED to be the coolest thing to watch.. No matter what time you turned on the tv, there was something on..some event that was happening live..

Now, they chop it up into little pre-packages vignettes..Olympimercials, and only show us the "finals".. I used to LOVE to watch ALL the ice skaters.,.even the really bad ones.. it makes you appreciate the artistry of the ones who are in the finals.. and I don;t really care which "country" wins more medals..

I record the whole thing, and then just whiz through until I find what I'm interested in now.. I watched all of yesterday's events in less than a half hour:)

I LOATHE the upcloseandpersonal crappola.. SHOW US THE COMPETITION AND CAN THE SCHLOCK!

or better-yet.. just package all the events on individual DVDs and let us buy them..sans the announcers.. It would be like "being there".. People who loved the moguls events could just watch those events..or people who liked skating could see the whole event..traiining events, preliminaries, finals & medal ceremonies.. all in one tidy place without the cloying "announcers".

[catbyte]

15. Amen, SoCalDem!

They really insult our intelligence by airing those canned segments. I love your term "Olympimercials". You nailed the problem exactly!

:fistbump:

Diane

Anishnabe in MI

[Bluebear]

18. Roone Arledge's legacy

Arledge somehow decided for all time that we need "up close and personal" vignettes, and that American television viewers need a "story" to compel them to watch international sports. It's a sorry state indeed.

[catbyte]

26. Yeah, it was almost tolerable when they started it

They only aired short profiles and it didn't really detract from the events, or maybe my memory is fuzzy. Now, though, every Tom, Dick and Harry from Lower Bumfuckistan who's dedicating their performance to their 3-legged dog gets a segment at the expense of the event. It's a crime. I see they've dropped their PPV scam, though. It was extortion --PAY UP OR WE SCREW UP YOUR COVERAGE.

Bastards.

Diane

Anishnabe in MI

[Bluebear]

28. "She had to sell her fingers one by one to afford training time."

Enough, already! :)

[catbyte]

32. Lol!

good one!

:rofl:

[Political Heretic]

22. If you had cable and internet, the 2008 summer Olympics was best coverage in decades.

But 2010 - not so much.

[Retrograde]

31. with a DVR and a fast-forward button

you can watch 4 hours of prime-time "coverage" in about 30 minutes by ff-ing through the commercials, talking heads, interviews and shots of people standing around.

[FarCenter]

27. The heartwarming personal crap is really annoying

Show the events, talk about the training, discuss the competition.

But I don't give a damn about the athlete's family or their trials and tribulations.

[Withywindle]

48. Agreed - it's painful, the difference between what it should be and what it is.

For one thing, most people have DVRs these days. What does "prime time" even mean in that context?

It totally sucks to have to avoid internet news sites of any kind to avoid spoilers.

And for events that really matter, people are willing to work around weird hours. My boyfriend laughed at me for getting up at 5 AM to watch the FIFA World Cup final live in '02, but I did it. (And then I woke him up at the crack of ass blasting samba music, and he shuffled out of the bedroom in a towel and said, with his puffy eyes, "I guess Brazil won, huh? Congrats." Staggered back to bed. :blush: :rofl:)

I'll say this, though - I kind of do like the stories about the athletes. But I wish there was more about the athletes from the smaller, poorer countries who might not be medal contenders but I would still like to see more of than just faces in the Parade of Nations. I hate this perception that Americans only care about the superjocks from the rich countries who are already predicted to win something. (Maybe true in many cases - but I miss the days when you got to see a LOT more different athletes competing.)

[flygal]

49. That's why I love watching it in Europe

they show ONLY the sports. There's no cut away stories, or interrupting one event to go to another totally unrelated. Here on Eurosport I watch 3 hours of skating - no stupid up close and personals. I watched the entire x-country and downhill - all of them!

I remember in 94 TNT showed live events and then cbs showed highlights at night. that was cool - I was in college so had time in the day to watch.

[knitter4democracy]

59. Amen and amen to that!

I freakin' hate all the extra crap. I just want to watch the events.

[cali]

14. no shit. and it was known all over who won

as it happened. idiots.

[City Lights]

16. Tape delayed broadcasts SUCK!

Fuck NBC.

[Mudoria]

17. I'm not happy about it

The downhill is the one event I really look forward to in the Olympics (summer or winter). Knowing who has already won, which I do, takes any of the excitement out of it for me. Way to go NBC.

[cali]

19. one of my favorite events too and

it really takes the fun out of it.

[drbtg1]

21. The MSM has ALWAYS done this. The "Do you believe in miracles? YES!" game was tape delayed.

ABC, which broadcast the 1980 Winter Olympics from Lake Placid, NY (which would make world geography a non-factor for broadcasting), taped the semi-final game against the USSR at 5pm and then aired it in primetime.

That's right, THE most famous moment in US Winter Olympic history was tape delayed.

During that broadcast, I knew the outcome because I heard it on another media outlet, but as a fan, I still watched it.

[bullwinkle428]

54. Growing up in Buffalo, NY, we got to see that game LIVE on the

Canadian network that apparently deemed it important enough to not be shown on a tape delayed basis!

Of course, we went completely apeshit at the end!

[reggie the dog]

23. why not just watch a feed

from the UK or mexico or something?

[Missy Vixen]

30. You can't

We live 100 miles from Vancouver, BC. We finally gave up watching last night's coverage at 10:30 PM. It went on (according to TV listings,) till 3 am this morning.

Anyone attempting to access online feeds of Olympic coverage in the USA are blocked by ISP.

NBC is trumpeting their "100 million viewed our coverage" last night, so I can predict nothing will change at anytime soon.

In the meantime, the results of this morning's events have been broadcast on the ESPN affiliate in Seattle for the past two hours.

[Bluebear]

33. Hide your IP :)

Thank goodness for Canadian internet coverage!


http://www.ctvolympics.ca/video/index.html?assetid=4a659070-6326-4bb2-9174-2831db88b97c

[hootinholler]

43. Ok how?

I can't stream from the link you sent.

-Hoot

[Missy Vixen]

44. If you're caught, it's a violation of the terms of service of your ISP

I can't even tell you how sick I am of NBC and their crappy coverage, let alone the lack of any alternative for those on the West Coast.

[freeplessinseattle]

34. It's just disgusting

what if the Olympics were in Seattle? It would infuriate people to be right next door to the stadium and not be able to see a damn thing until all is said and done. damn greedy NBC bastards-plenty of people would still watch the evening broadcasts, and they'd still rake it in, but no, greed and selfishness must prevail. all in the Olympic spirit, of course.

[foxfeet]

35. Infuriating, isn't it?

My partner is practically apoplectic. I wonder if the IOC/USOC might consider ditching NBC if enough people complain?

[Missy Vixen]

39. Even better

The overnight ratings for the opening ceremonies were higher in Seattle than anywhere else NBC's coverage was monitored.

SEATTLE.

We will not see whatever happened this morning until (possibly,) 7-8 pm this evening. We all know what happened already.

One more time for the cheap seats -- Fuck you, NBC.

:mad:

[paulsby]

40. fwiw, i don't know

so please don't tell me

thx

[cbdo2007]

24. This actually saved me a lot of time during the China Olympics....

I didn't have to watch any events! By the time I got home from work I knew all about Michael Phelps and all of the other results so I didn't wonder who won so I just did other stuff. And I was usually a good casual Olympics viewer but why would I watch swimming knowing Phelps was going to win? Or anything else?

Dont' worry thought, they'll blame poor ratings on plenty of other stuff before they take responsibility for doing it to themselves.

[bullwinkle428]

55. Actually, in China, many of those Phelps races were broadcast LIVE -

they scheduled them for the morning in China specifically for the purpose of showing them live in prime-time in the U.S. I think they did this for a few of the other "glamour" events as well.

[Odin2005]

29. NBC is evil!

:grr:

[hootinholler]

41. Not only that but what about events they won't carry?

They should let some other network handle those, like ESPN or at least stream them on the intertubes.

-Hoot

[bullwinkle428]

56. CNBC is carrying many curling matches; lots of hockey games on USA network.

[swishyfeet]

45. Meh

I watch EVERYTHING delayed from DVR and I know to avoid news when a spoiler is possible.

It's not THAT hard.

[JamesA1102]

46. NBC Sports is run by Dick Ebersol

The guy who had the nerve to call Conan O'Brien a failure.

[ThatsMyBarack]

47. I miss Jim McKay and Howard Cosell....

On ABC Sports. They were truly a class act.

[Elwood P Dowd]

50. And don't forget "Chris" Schenkel.

Those were the days.

[Kablooie]

51. If they made more money out of it, what the hell do they care what you think?

The world is not based on morals or responsibility to others.
It is based 100% on pure, selfish greed.
Always has been but now after so many years of GOP ascendancy, more so than ever.

If you can make more money for yourself, you are virtuous.

[557188]

52. The Olympics are unwatchable on the west coast

I haven't watched a single moment of these games due to NBC's coverage. East coast people think you know what tape delay is? NBC tape delays EVERYTHING for the west coast. The opening ceremonies were tape delayed for crying out loud!

FUCK NBC

[Desertrose]

53. Best coverage I ever saw was in Canada watching CBC.

They showed almost every event & participant not just the top US & competition.

NBC sucks really really really bad. Idiots!

[BrklynLiberal]

61. My friend who lives outside Quebec said she has 24 channels to watch the Olympics..and watches

everything live...Her tough choice was what to watch..

[AngryAmish]

62. This entire Olympics is a grave-shitting exercise

Send them home.

[LynneSin]

64. I refuse to watch the olympics ever again until NBC is no longer producing them

They have horrible coverage. And although I am, without a doubt, pro-USA; I find it abhoring how little coverage other countries get during this sport.

If NBC wants to know why they are losing money, it's because once dedicated Olympic watchers can't stand what NBC does to the Olympics. Let someone else take over and see if they can do it any better.