Announcers We Love and/or Hate

[JTMacc99]

Never Forget

[legaleagle53]

Is it just me, or is Terry Gannon getting hotter and hotter with each passing year?

[Peace 47]

I don’t follow what Leslie Jones is up to these days, but I was curious if anyone knows what this People article really means because it came up on my Apple news headlines on my phone.

I guess that she is implying that she is getting blowback from NBC for doing Olympics “coverage” (bite-size commentary?) on her TikTok or Instagram.  And perhaps also implying that she would have liked a deal with NBC to do a comedy sports coverage on Peacock a la Kevin Hart, since she had some dismissive words for Snoop and Kevin in particular.  I thought she had some kind of deal with NBC a few years ago (not sure about now):  maybe that is what they are holding over her?

[rcc]

Leslie has said that she has watched the Olympics for years. She is very appreciative of the athletes and is also very funny. Yes she curses a lot but IMO it isn't a big deal. She is probably right Kevin and Snoop don't care about the games. It is a paying gig for them. I haven't followed them at all. NBC should have hired Leslie instead of them.

[AuntieDiane6]

Just today, NBC said they want Leslie to do her commentary.

[emma675]

On 1/21/2022 at 9:05 AM, JTMacc99 said:

Never Forget

How did I not notice this until today?? 🤣

[blackwing]

Ted Ligety is a great analyst for men's alpine.  Lindsey Vonn is great as well.  They are both very insightful and I really appreciate how they explain what happened, clearly and in terms that viewers who aren't ski experts can understand.  I particularly liked when Lindsey said that one skier was "squashed", his butt was over his bindings and his shape was squashed which decreased his speed/power. 

[absnow54]

On 2/7/2022 at 1:39 PM, Peace 47 said:

I guess that she is implying that she is getting blowback from NBC for doing Olympics “coverage” (bite-size commentary?) on her TikTok or Instagram.  And perhaps also implying that she would have liked a deal with NBC to do a comedy sports coverage on Peacock a la Kevin Hart, since she had some dismissive words for Snoop and Kevin in particular.  I thought she had some kind of deal with NBC a few years ago (not sure about now):  maybe that is what they are holding over her?

I get the impression that there's some bad blood between Leslie Jones and NBC (she abruptly left SNL, when she was becoming one of the headliners, and hasn't been back since.) I believe NBC when they say they autoblocked Olympic footage, because they block reuploads of content all the time, but I get that there's some additional tension at play here.

[b2H]

I get a kick out of Johnny Weir.  I thought Scott Hamilton looked awful.  I know he is a cancer survivor and is being in a remote room tells me he may still be fighting it, or taking appropriate precautions being medically compromised.

[Crashcourse]

I was worried about Scott Hamilton, too.

[absnow54]

Has Mike Tirico been broadcasting from Beijing or Connecticut? I thought he was actually in Beijing, but then just saw him at the Super Bowl. 

[Rootbeer]

2 minutes ago, absnow54 said:

Has Mike Tirico been broadcasting from Beijing or Connecticut? I thought he was actually in Beijing, but then just saw him at the Super Bowl. 

He was in Beijing until sometime earlier this week, Monday, I think.  At that point, he flew back to LA to do the Super Bowl.  The original plan was for him to return to Beijing to finish out the Olympics after the SB. but, due to the COVID rules and other red tape in China, NBC decided not to send him back.  Craig Melvin from the Today Show has taken his place on the evening broadcasts from Beijing and will be there 'til the end.

[choclatechip45]

29 minutes ago, absnow54 said:

Has Mike Tirico been broadcasting from Beijing or Connecticut? I thought he was actually in Beijing, but then just saw him at the Super Bowl. 

Bejing>Stamford>LA

[nittany cougar]

On 2/5/2022 at 8:38 PM, legaleagle53 said:

Is it just me, or is Terry Gannon getting hotter and hotter with each passing year?

The answer is yes.  His voice is very sexy.  He is also reliable and well-informed and knows when to shut up.

i was enjoying listening to his commentary on NBC coverage of a skating competion from 2016.  He is right up there with Jim Nantz as a comforting and familiar voice.

Which brings me to my next point:  On the very same broadcast, Tara Lipinski talked over an entire wonderful performance of Hubbell and Donahue.  She was so annoying that I could not finish watching.

NBC has let her do the very same garbage for years.  I wish that they would get her some voice training. If her voice were smoother or lower pitched, it would be less annoying.  I also wish that they would give her a comment limit.  If you literally count to "5" on any performance she narrates, that's your time to enjoy it without Tara talking.  Five seconds. GEEZ.

Edited February 15, 2022 by nittany cougar

[greyhorse]

Is it Dan Hicks that has been doing all the Alpine announcing alongside Ted Ligety?

I'm getting really tired of him.  I think he brings enthusiasm.  But he's sort of like "Every Man" in his commentating, meaning his style and choice of words are what I would say if I was calling the race.  And I'm no professional sportscaster.  "Here we go with Skier X who looks ready in the start gate.... Wow, off to a good start at the top!.....Whoa, a little bobble there!.....(invariably for anyone without a podium time) And Skier X is struggling to get to the finish."

The guy adds NOTHING to my knowledge base.  But I guess that's why Ligety is there as the professional and analyst.  He's awesome.  I've been on mountains a long time, but obviously I'm no ski racer.  I like hearing about the fall line, tips such as getting your skis into the turn even before you reach the gate to avoid the bounce, what kind of tuck you should be in on the small jumps on downhill, etc.  He is SO informative, and I really feel like I'm learning listening to him.  Yes, the announcer isn't supposed to give the technical description and analysis.  But I feel like the announcer should be at least able to describe the action in a way that's more compelling and interesting to the viewers.  Dan Hicks is certainly no Al Michaels or Vin Scully.  With these guys, you could close your eyes and picture the action as if you were listening on a radio.  Now some may argue that with skiing, how many ways can you describe going down the mountain, which I'll agree.  But this guy is a professional.  He should at least find some more inventive or different ways to call the race.  Ligety last night described that big Norwegian that I think finished second or third - the guy who in the starting gate was stomping his feet incessantly...breathing heavy, psyching himself up - as "he comes out like a tiger just released from his cage" and "skiing angry".  Those are visual descriptions that I would expect from the main announcer, not from the color analyst.

[proserpina65]

I don't know his name, but I'm really enjoying the guy doing the bobsled/skeleton/luge announcing.  I love his accent.

[EllenB]

1. Why is David Doyle (original Charlie's Angels) doing the biathlon commentary. I keep wanting to hand him some hot tea and honey. And a sock to stick in his mouth. REALLY annoying voice.

2. The only good thing about the Druggy Russian figure skater is that Tara shut up for most of her routine. It's the least she's ever talked in her life.

[galaxygirl76]

15 minutes ago, EllenB said:

1. Why is David Doyle (original Charlie's Angels) doing the biathlon commentary. I keep wanting to hand him some hot tea and honey. And a sock to stick in his mouth. REALLY annoying voice.

 

Is that the one that sounds like Tony Romo because I can't listen to that one because he sounds like Tony Romo.

[Guest]

14 minutes ago, EllenB said:

1. Why is David Doyle (original Charlie's Angels) doing the biathlon commentary. I keep wanting to hand him some hot tea and honey. And a sock to stick in his mouth. REALLY annoying voice.

That would be former biathlete Chad Salmela. He must have worn out his voice yelling "HERE COMES DIGGINS" in 2018 and hasn't recovered.

[emma675]

I cannot stand him, he gets so worked up and just SCREAMS things. Dude, you have a microphone, we can hear you. Calm tf down.

[Guest]

Just now, emma675 said:

I cannot stand him, he gets so worked up and just SCREAMS things. Dude, you have a microphone, we can hear you. Calm tf down.

He actually gives pretty good analysis, and sometimes his excitability helps sell what's going on. His disbelief, for example, when the Russians blew their lead in the 4x7.5km relay yesterday, I felt added to the excitement and the understanding of why that was a big deal.

There is a law of diminishing returns, though, which Rowdy Gaines has also not quite gotten a handle on.

[emmawoodhouse]

4 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

I don't know his name, but I'm really enjoying the guy doing the bobsled/skeleton/luge announcing.  I love his accent.

Leigh Diffey. He did track coverage in Tokyo.

 

 

 

 

Edited February 16, 2022 by emmawoodhouse

[proserpina65]

17 hours ago, emmawoodhouse said:

Leigh Diffey. He did track coverage in Tokyo.

 

 

 

 

Ah, yes.  Thank you.  I had googled him when I was watching luge but forgot his name.

"The only good thing about the Druggy Russian figure skater is that Tara shut up for most of her routine. It's the least she's ever talked in her life."

That was the silver lining to that whole saga.

[Garden Wafers]

Karim Bashir. I believe he's the only world feed curling commentator who doesn't have any curling experience - and frankly, it shows. For instance, in the men's Norway-Italy game, during the 6th end he was talking about how happy the Italians would be to take one point and maintain their lead; but anyone with any passing familiarity with curling strategy would know they'd opt to blank the end rather than take a force. 

[String Theory]

On 2/15/2022 at 12:11 PM, nittany cougar said:

The answer is yes.  His voice is very sexy.  He is also reliable and well-informed and knows when to shut up.

i was enjoying listening to his commentary on NBC coverage of a skating competion from 2016.  He is right up there with Jim Nantz as a comforting and familiar voice.

Which brings me to my next point:  On the very same broadcast, Tara Lipinski talked over an entire wonderful performance of Hubbell and Donahue.  She was so annoying that I could not finish watching.

NBC has let her do the very same garbage for years.  I wish that they would get her some voice training. If her voice were smoother or lower pitched, it would be less annoying.  I also wish that they would give her a comment limit........

@nittany cougar, I can't  ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤ your comments enough.  Thank you, thank you!  I truly enjoy watching figure skating, with the emphasis on watching! 

I like Johnny & Tara but PLEASE can they stop with the non-stop background chatter & opinions until the skaters performance is finished?   

I'm a laid back person, but once they start talking while I'm trying to watch a performance I turn into a raving lunatic & start yelling at my TV to STFU!!!! Muting the TV defeats the purpose.  Like Nittany Cougar, I got so disgusted with Tara I ended up turning it off.  

[choclatechip45]

Leigh Diffey would always make me forget that he was remote. He is so good. 

[lambertman]

He’s equally great calling IndyCar. 

[Thumper]

There were two blonde women hosts; don’t know their names but one is British.  I appreciated the fact that they did not (or weren’t told to) dress in tight or low cut clothing as we see at many U.S. sports events.   They looked professional and their clothes did not detract from their job — just like male hosts clothes don’t detract from their job.  Imagine that!!!  

[Guest]

22 minutes ago, Thumper said:

There were two blonde women hosts; don’t know their names but one is British.  I appreciated the fact that they did not (or weren’t told to) dress in tight or low cut clothing as we see at many U.S. sports events.   They looked professional and their clothes did not detract from their job — just like male hosts clothes don’t detract from their job.  Imagine that!!!  

You're probably talking about Rebecca Lowe (the British one), the NBC Daytime host, and Lindsay Czarniak, who was on USA. There was also Carolyn Manno, also blonde, who was on CNBC. They were all solid.

[tanyak]

Rebecca is the host of NBC’s Premiere League coverage, so I see her a lot. I think she’s wonderful, and I do appreciate that I’ve yet to see her in anything that looks like she could walk off the set and right into a club.

 

 

[Rickster]

Lindsay Czarniak is married to Craig Melvin from the Today show, who did some of the hosting from Beijing.