Pros
• NBC's sports coverage is better. Sunday Night Football is the best sports broadcast on television. The network's broadcasts of Wimbledon and golf's U.S. Open are the highlights of those sports' respective seasons. In terms of production, NBC is top-notch. There are plenty of legitimate complaints about the network's coverage (and we'll get to them) but how it looks and sounds isn't one of them.
Fox dumbs down sports for the viewer and thinks cluttering the screen with graphics and adding whooshing sound effects enhance the broadcast. ESPN is all about promoting ESPN. Though the network's coverage of the 2010 World Cup proved it could be restrained, there's a difference between showing three, uninterrupted soccer games every day and coordinating between dozens of live events.
• Hosts/announcers. This plays into the last one. Bob Costas gets a lot of flak from snarky types who don't like the sweaters and fireside chats and how he and NBC turn the Olympics into a schmaltz-fest. Ask yourself though, were the alternatives any better? ESPN hosts are either professional and slightly boring (Bob Ley, John Saunders) or they're Chris Berman and Stuart Scott. Fox's best one, James Brown, left for CBS years ago. Try to name the guy who's the studio host for the network's NFL coverage. Even if you know it's Curt Menefee, I bet you had to think about it for a second.
Had another network won Olympic rights, there would have been plenty of defections of talent. The big names like Costas may not have been going anywhere. Analysts who specialize in a single sport (think Rowdy Gaines for swimming and Dick Button for figure skating) would have had nothing to do at NBC without an Olympics to call and would likely have jumped at an offer from Fox or ESPN had one been made. Still, having them there is comforting. They're good at what they do. And the thought of Gus Johnson yelling over speed skating races in 2014 would have given me nightmares until then.
• NBC is changing. The network said Tuesday that every event from each of those four Olympics will be available live on some platform. (Streaming Internet video seems the most likely.) With that announcement, the biggest complaint about NBC's coverage is wiped away.
Cons
• Tape delay, tape delay, tape delay. Streaming or not, it still sounds like NBC plans to tape delay television broadcasts. ESPN said in its bid that it would show all events live and compile a primetime compilation for the evening. If I'm reading between the lines of NBC's statement correctly, the network plans to stream some events live on the Internet and then hold their television broadcast until primetime. An improvement, but not the ideal.
Under Ebersol, NBC was notorious for tape delaying Olympic coverage until primetime, seeing it as the best way to attract viewers in the most profitable advertising time of the day. When Usain Bolt broke the world record in the 100 in Beijing, viewers here had to wait nearly 10 hours to watch it on TV. In the digital age of the Internet and Twitter and Facebook, that wasn't going to fly for too much longer.
The problem is that for all the carping, the tactic worked. NBC's ratings on the west coast (where all events on the main network are tape delayed) outpaced those on the east coast. People still watched the second week of Beijing coverage even though it was mostly pre-recorded. This won't be as big a problem in Rio for 2016 because the city's time zone (one hour ahead of New York) will allow most primetime coverage to appear live. In Sochi, it will be.
Maybe by 2016 the viewing experience on our computers will be equal to watching on TV. For now, streaming is an acceptable, if lesser, option.
• Lack of Disney involvement. In a statement released after the bidding, ESPN expressed regret that it didn't place the winning bid and gave a hint at what, beyond billions, that it would have done for the Games. "We put our best foot forward with a compelling offer that included the enthusiastic participation of all of The Walt Disney Company's considerable assets," the statement said. Participation of all Disney assets? Does that mean some of the creative minds at the company could have been tasked to come up with better Olympic mascots than these creepy things?
The sports of golf and rugby sevens have been voted today by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session for inclusion in the programme of the 2016 Olympic Games – awarded last Friday to Rio de Janeiro. The two sports had been recommended by the IOC Executive Board (EB) in August following an extensive evaluation by the Olympic Programme Commission of the seven sports seeking to enter the programme.
“Both golf and rugby are very popular sports with global appeal and a strong ethic,” said IOC President Jacques Rogge. “They will be great additions to the Games.” The two sports, voted on separately in alphabetical order of the sports, golf then rugby, received a simple majority of votes cast by the members of the Session. The result of the first vote was not revealed to the Session until the vote for the second sport had taken place.
“The International Golf Federation is absolutely delighted by today’s results. We thank the IOC for the thorough process and we are looking forward to playing our part as a member of the Olympic Movement,” said Peter Dawson, Secretary General of the International Golf Federation. “This is great for golf and we hope to be of great benefit to the Olympic Games as well.”
Bernard Lapasset, President of the International Rugby Board, said: “I am so delighted and proud. My thanks to the IOC members for their wonderful support. Rugby is honoured to be a part of the Olympic Sports Programme and we are already looking forward to Rio 2016.”
The first Olympic games to be held in South America will be in Rio de Janeiro in 2016!! Very exciting news! I am very surprised that Chicago was out in the first round and that it came down to Madrid and Rio. Would have never expected it to play out that way. Hopefully this will make way for the games to be held in Africa soon! I look forward hearing more info concerning the games as it is released! Congrats Rio!!
*Previously: Rio 2016 Desktop Wallpapers
An episode from the American television series “Law and Order: Criminal Intent” has triggered outrage from the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic bid.
The show depicts an attempt by a firm with financial interests in Rio's bid to buy a vote from a member of the Olympic Committee of Belgium. When the member agrees, she ends up murdered in New York.
Globoesporte.com in Brazil says a Rio 2016 statement condemned the “irresponsible and reckless use of the image of the Brazilian candidate, who is on the campaign to host the games."
The episode entitled “The Glory that Was” originally aired on the USA Network and NBC in the United States on June 14 without much criticism. However, when it aired in Brazil on Thursday on AXN Network, many took notice. NBC owns the rights to broadcast the Olympic Games in United States.
Rio’s Mayor Eduardo Paes called the show “ridiculous and pathetic” when he spoke to O Globo. He told the newspaper that it could even damage IOC members whose work is completely transparent in relation to the election – and he said it may hinder the U.S. application (for the 2016 Olympics) and strengthen Rio’s campaign. Chicago is also bidding for the 2016 Games.
Law and Order – CI is in its eighth season after becoming a spin-off of the popular Law and Order franchise. The show stars renowned actor Jeff Goldblum and Julianne Nicholson whose characters team up to solve the crime.
The USA Network Website synopsis of the episode describes “the dark politics behind the Olympic Site Selection Committee” and how the show’s murder victim “was the vote he needed on the Olympic Site Selection Committee that would throw the Olympics to Rio.”
The IOC has worked hard over the past decade to clean up its image after the highly publicized vote buying scandal in 1998. The site selection process has been re-engineered and the IOC assures that bribery is a thing of the past. Although the Law and Order show is fictional, it could awaken bitter memories at a crucial and sensitive time of the 2016 Olympic bid.
The depiction of the corrupt IOC member as a member of the Belgian Olympic Committee could add to the sensitivity of the issue; the current President of the International Olympic Committee, Jacques Rogge, was also the President of the Belgian Olympic Committee.
Rio and Chicago are also competing with Tokyo and Madrid to win the right to host the 2016 Olympics. The race is considered one of the closest in history and a single vote could be the difference between success and failure.
The winner will be determined by a vote of International Olympic Committee members on October 2 in Copenhagen. The high profile event will be attended by national leaders and royalty and perhaps even United States President Barack Obama. Via.
*Previously: Rio 2016 Desktop Wallpapers
The final Bid Books for the 2016 Summer Games were submitted today. From what I have seen it seems like they've all submitted pretty nice plans. Madrid seems the least likely to win the bid considering the games in 2012 are right next door in London. Rio would be a nice pick because the games have never been held in South America. The Tokyo bid is very attractive and would be my second personal choice after Chicago. The winner will be announced on October 2nd this year.
From RIO 2016:
Rio de Janeiro’s bid to host the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games invites athletes and sports fans from all around the world to share the Brazilian people’s passion for sport. The campaign slogan, “Live your passion,” will be launched at the 2009 New Year celebrations on Copacabana Beach in a dramatic manner: it will be projected onto a Rio 2016-themed Ferris wheel positioned at Copacabana Fort.
The slogan reflects the Brazilian people’s way of getting passionately involved in whatever they do. It also expresses the open and democratic manner with which the country welcomes different cultures, races, customs and religions. “The Rio 2016 bid is an open invitation for everyone to live their passion for sport in this marvelous city, whether as an athlete, official, journalist or spectator,” explained Leonardo Gryner, Rio 2016’s Marketing and Communications Director.
The slogan will be projected onto the Rio 2016 Wheel immediately after the ten-second countdown to the beginning of 2009. The Ferris wheel will open to the public on 2 January, precisely nine months before 2 October, when the International Olympic Committee will announce the Host City of the 2016 Olympics.
The Rio 2016 Wheel has 24 gondolas seating a total of 144 people in groups of six. One of the gondolas is accessible to people with disabilities. Each ride will average three minutes. As visitors get off, they will see a container identical to the one that will transport the official Rio 2016 documents to the International Olympic Committee, on which they may sign their names and leave messages. At the Rio 2016 Plaza, there will be a range of entertainment options and an exhibition on the bid. Every day from 11pm, images promoting Rio 2016 will be projected onto the wheel, and will be visible along the entire length of Copacabana beach.
Along with a very appealing redesign of their bid website, Rio 2016 has posted desktop wallpapers among other downloads for fans. I've included one above... swing by the site to see more..
I like it. I'm not head over heels about it, but it's very nice in many ways and I think it will serve their bid well.
From GamesBids.com:
Rio’s logo for its 2016 Summer Olympic Games bid was launched Monday during a Brazil Olympic Award ceremony in Teatro Municipal, Rio de Janeiro.
The event was attended by more than 500 Brazilian Olympic and Paralympic athletes, the Governor of the State of Rio de Janeiro Sergio Cabral, Minister of Sports for Brazil Orland Silva, as well as officials of the Brazilian Olympic and Paralympic Committees and several national federations.
The logo was selected by a jury from among four finalists.
Logo designer Ana Soter said, “the heart-shaped Sugar Loaf represents the unquestionable passion and thrill of Brazilians for sports. The exclamation mark incorporated into number 1 produced a brand that represents perfectly their expectation and excitement for the opportunity to host this edition of the Olympic Games”.
She added that having Rio de Janeiro as her source of inspiration for several years, the shapes of the Sugar Loaf represent the natural riches cariocas are so proud of, and the “proposal” of the logo is to frame the wealth of colours of Rio de Janeiro’s “exuberant nature”.
Carlos Nuzman, President of Brazil’s Olympic Committee and President of Rio 2016 called the logo Emblematic, powerful, noble” and said that it communicates with perfection the natural landscapes of Rio de Janeiro. “in addition, it conveys energy, happiness and also the city’s characteristic of warmly welcoming all different races and cultures, just like Brazilians do. These values express what Rio de Janeiro’s bid to host the 2016 Olympic Games is”, he said.
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