The 2012 Summer Olympics is not what it was promised to be, not by a long shot.
Delayed streams and notable omissions have characterized what many have called a “lackluster” Olympic summer.
In an era where professional sports dominate TV markets, it’s time for the Olympics to step up and try to compete with rival organizations like the NFL and NBA.
I don’t know about you, but when I watch sports, I like watching them live. I don’t want to know about Michael Phelps winning gold on ESPN.
NBC’s delayed coverage of sporting events and the opening ceremony make an already struggling network look exceptionally weak.
When I tuned in Friday to watch the opening ceremony, I already knew what happened.
With Facebook, Twitter and satellite TV, I knew exactly what was going to happen and when.
The Olympics, perhaps the greatest sporting event that the world has ever seen, has been greatly tarnished in an era when social media and TV compete for attention.
I understand why NBC aired the opening ceremony hours after it actually occurred, though I strongly disagree with its decision.
The Olympics should make everyone want to get around the television and partake in something special that only occurs every two years.
Instead, NBC’s coverage of London’s games makes me want to not watch them at all.
I found out that Michael Phelps became the most decorated Olympian of all-time Tuesday from ESPN, not NBC. If I wanted to watch Phelps’ race, I would have had to wait quite a long time.
If NBC is to better its public image, it needs to change the way it broadcast the games.
NBC should emphasize more live coverage and focus on making all of the results as timely as possible.
An issue that I had watching the games was the International Olympic Committee’s abject failure to acknowledge the 1972 Munich killings, where Palestinian terrorists killed 11 Israeli athletes.
It had been forty years since the massacre and for some reason unbeknownst to viewers, the IOC refused to acknowledge and commemorate the 1972 games.
With all these problems, I don’t know if the Olympics will be able to recover. In a world of instant information, I don’t think the Olympics will be able to compete.
Perhaps the greatest question that has plagued Olympic viewers this summer is, are the Olympics even worth watching, in an era where the MLB and NFL reign as kings?
For me, I’d much rather watch women play volleyball than watch Mark Sanchez as he tries to defend the ever so hot quarterback seat in the New York Jets’ locker room from a “running back.”
Shane Newell is a sophomore journalism student and the assistant city editor for the Daily 49er.