Ranty Olympic rantness

[herveus]

While I am studiously not watching the Olympics on TV, nor actively seeking information on them, I can't avoid hearing about it. Right now, Michael Phelps is getting a lot of mention on the airwaves. All of the reportage I've heard keeps mentioning that he's surpassed Mark Spitz and Carl Lewis in lifetime gold medals. I guess Larysa Latynina (gymnast) and Paavo Nurmi (track and field) are chopped liver. They, too, earned nine gold medals in their Olympic careers, but there has been nary a mention of them. I guess, not being Americans, they are not worthy of mention. *mutter*

...and WTOP could do without the faux "warning" that they are about to broadcast "spoilers" -- that is, report "news", being results that have occurred but that have not yet been aired by NBC in the US on television. If you want to call yourself "news radio", then just bleeping give us the news. The NBC "delayed telecast" "suspense" is just so much BS. Hell, to hear it from others, the actual sports content in an hour is far less than the time dedicated to commercials.

*sigh*

Comments

[weatherman2111.livejournal.com]

Actually I've been suprised by the amount of sport's covereage every night, though the gymnastics comentator has gotta go. The man never farking shuts up.

I do kidna wish I could see some of the not so popular in the US stuff on TV more. I guess I need to check on the CNBC schdule.

[orlacarey.livejournal.com]

Actually my biggest complaint is that the radio stations seem to be determined to track Phelps and MAYBE one other US olympic standing a day. I actually heard one station announce that the US got the Silver in gymnastics without saying who won the Gold. I had to turn on TOP to find out it was China. Really people, there are more countries than just the US at the games.

[ladypyrate.livejournal.com]

I have never been an Olympics fan, so eh.

Eamonn loved to watch them, but since it turned into all human interest stories all the time, he won't watch anymore...

[beatrixherald.livejournal.com]

I am with you on avoiding the olympics. I't totally impossible (they even have it on at work in the Conference room... Arghh)

Where has the news coverage on the war in georgia been? HELLO the Russians just invaded one of the only democratic nations in central Asia. Shouldn't that be the big Olympics story? Russia Starts war during Olympics or something like that?

Oh well, the only commies we are paying attention to is China this week. The russians are old news I guess.

[herveus.livejournal.com]

There are? Gosh! What have I been missing all this time!

Yeah... At least Phelps seems to be pretty cool -- not full of himself.

[silme.livejournal.com]

I sometimes think that the Olympics just aren't supposed to be held too many time zones outside of the US ones. *sigh*

It's very different watching the Olympics in another country. Until I moved to the UK, I didn't realise there were heats for events -- I don't remember ever seeing them aired in the US. It really feels like a world event when you watch the Olympics away from the US. And we get more of the 'minority' sports aired.

[luscious-purple.livejournal.com]

Actually, since Beijing is exactly 12 hours ahead of us, some of the morning competition IS actually real-time late in prime time (probably after you hit the hay) and is mega prime-time on the Left Coast. To be honest, to me the current coverage doesn't seem quite as "canned" as some other Olympiads when U.S. East Coast prime time happened at 3 a.m. in the Olympic city.

[meradudd.livejournal.com]

As someone who doesn't care for the Olympics, my largest problem is trying to avoid the whole spectacle. As for Larysa Latynina and Paavo Nurmi, I think that the age of their achievements is as much a factor as anything. Both Nurmi and Latynina won gold in the time between the Wars, when the media was very different. In truth, I think you would find most people hard pressed to name any Olympic athlete from the 1920's or 1930's off the top of their head.

[vikingsparrow.livejournal.com]

I have to admit, I am an Olympics junkie. I watch it as much as I can. FWIW, Nurmi and Latynina were mentioned a lot at the beginning of the Phelps saga. But, it seems as if the mention of their names have been dropped because the announcers didn't like to list 4 names every time and, as meradudd said, they're so old that no one seems to remember them.