How America’s Largest Local TV Owner Turned Its News Anchors Into Soldiers In Trump’s War On The Media
Earlier this month, CNN’s Brian Stelter broke the news that Sinclair Broadcast Group, owner or operator of nearly 200 television stations in the U.S., would be forcing its news anchors to record a promo about “the troubling trend of irresponsible, one sided news stories plaguing our country.” The script, which parrots Donald Trump’s oft-declarations of developments negative to his presidency as “fake news,” brought upheaval to newsrooms already dismayed with Sinclair’s consistent interference to bring right-wing propaganda to local television broadcasts.
How NBC Flubbed Its Coverage, Reported The Wrong Gold Medalist, Then Botched The Correction Of One Of The Most Stunning Upsets In Olympic History
When Ester Ledecká crossed the finish line of this morning’s run of the women’s Super-G a hundredth of a second ahead of reigning gold medalist Anna Veith, the Czech couldn’t believe she’d beaten the Austrian champ. Ledecká, after all, is best known for her achievements in a completely different event: snowboarding, where she’s won two world championships and is a favorite in Pyeongchang. Ledecká wasn’t the only one surprised by the outcome. By the time Ledecka finished her miracle run—one, it turns out, she accomplished thanks to her lack of experience in the event, leading her to take a faster but unorthodox line on the course—NBC had long crowned Veith the gold medalist and had switched coverage to a simulcast of NBC Sports Network’s men’s figure skating free skate broadcast.
Here’s The Opening Ceremony Tribute To Terrorism Victims NBC Doesn’t Want You To See
The major transitional element of today’s London Olympics opening ceremony was a downtempo performance of adoptive sporting anthem “Abide With Me” by Scottish singer Emeli Sandé. The song and accompanying dance were a tribute to the victims of the 7/7 terror attacks in London that claimed 52 victims days after the 2012 Summer Olympic hosts were named. (It’s also been suggested the performance was a memorial to the war dead.) Regardless, it was a rather significant and emotional moment in the opening ceremony, coming just before the parade of nations—and it wasn’t aired in the United States. Instead, viewers were treated to a lengthy and meaningless Ryan Seacrest interview of Michael Phelps.
Kevin Harlan’s Play-By-Play Radio Call Of The MNF Idiot On The Field Is An All-Timer
The Idiot On The Field during tonight’s Monday Night Football game didn’t get much TV airtime, but Westwood One radio announcer Kevin Harlan gave the incident a treatment you absolutely MUST hear. Seriously, this is one of the best things that’s ever been aired on radio. Kudos, Kevin, you’re the absolute best.
Bone Crunchers, Crunch Course, And How The NFL Hitched Its Brand To Brain Damage Snuff Films
On Christmas Day, Sony Pictures Entertainment will release Concussion, a film that will almost certainly be very bad. As we’ve already noted, the film—starring Will Smith as CTE researcher Dr. Bennet Omalu—suffers from significant issues, both in theory and practice. (When the film studio’s lawyers call for the film to take fewer dramatic liberties, while Sony chief Amy Pascal sends frantic emails begging for it to be more dramatic, you’re almost guaranteed a stinker that pushes no boundaries at all.) But while Concussionwon’t strike a blow that permanently tarnishes the NFL shield with a dollar sign-shaped cerebral contusion, it doesn’t have to. The NFL’s own films have been doing that for decades.
