Round Up
Colby Cosh says, "Sometimes, when fans are ripping bad television sports announcers, you'll hear them express a wish that the games could be broadcast as-is, without commentary. There's good news for those who have always wondered what that would be like. Because of the CBC lockout, Saturday's network broadcast of the game between the Edmonton Eskimos and the Toronto Argonauts will be accompanied solely by the live public-address audio from Commonwealth Stadium"
I recall a few years back, I believe Radio-Canada was having a strike, so they were broadcasting Montreal Canadiens playoff games with just the sound from the rink. I loved it. Without the rink noise turned down so you could hear the commentators drone on, you could really hear the cut of blades in the ice, the rattle of the boards on a check, and the sounds of the puck moving from stick to stick and hitting the goalie's pads (not to mention the players and referees yelling at each other, which included a lot of swearing, but that didn't really bother me).
The one downside was that sometimes the play would be stopped and you wouldn't really know why, or there would be penalties and you'd have to wait for the P.A. to find out what was called, but it wasn't so bad.
This is just one man's opinion but I say down with all commentators.
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A follow up to my recent post on body image. Kim, at Bacon and Eh's looks at the trend towards using 'real people' as models (let me guess, you hadn't noticed that trend either?) and links to an article on Nike ads featuring (what they call) a big butt.
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A follow up to my baiting of the fruit and veggie cult. Dave, at 'How to Save the World' explains how, like other primates, humans were probably herbivores originally, only adapting to eat meat, grains and dairy as we migrated to live outside of our natural tropical habitat.
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I haven't posted on the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes which is probably a good thing because the story keeps changing. He ran from the police - no, he didn't. He didn't stop when he was told - he wasn't told to stop. He jumped the turnstile - no, he used his pass. He was wearing a bulky jacket - no, he was just wearing a denim jacket. Now we hear that he was just sitting in his seat when he was shot repeatedly at point blank range, all because he resembled a suspected terrorist.
At this point, I wouldn't be surprised to hear that at the time of the shooting he was getting up out of his seat to give it to an old lady. This kind of gross ineptitude and ensuing cover-up doesn't do much for my confidence in the London police force. Hopefully the ongoing inquiry will lead to people being held accountable for this unnecessary and avoidable death.
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Finally, I'm pretty sure there used to be a blog called 'The Blank Out Times'. But I can't remember for sure - I should have taken a screen shot!
I recall a few years back, I believe Radio-Canada was having a strike, so they were broadcasting Montreal Canadiens playoff games with just the sound from the rink. I loved it. Without the rink noise turned down so you could hear the commentators drone on, you could really hear the cut of blades in the ice, the rattle of the boards on a check, and the sounds of the puck moving from stick to stick and hitting the goalie's pads (not to mention the players and referees yelling at each other, which included a lot of swearing, but that didn't really bother me).
The one downside was that sometimes the play would be stopped and you wouldn't really know why, or there would be penalties and you'd have to wait for the P.A. to find out what was called, but it wasn't so bad.
This is just one man's opinion but I say down with all commentators.
-------------------
A follow up to my recent post on body image. Kim, at Bacon and Eh's looks at the trend towards using 'real people' as models (let me guess, you hadn't noticed that trend either?) and links to an article on Nike ads featuring (what they call) a big butt.
------------------
A follow up to my baiting of the fruit and veggie cult. Dave, at 'How to Save the World' explains how, like other primates, humans were probably herbivores originally, only adapting to eat meat, grains and dairy as we migrated to live outside of our natural tropical habitat.
------------------
I haven't posted on the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes which is probably a good thing because the story keeps changing. He ran from the police - no, he didn't. He didn't stop when he was told - he wasn't told to stop. He jumped the turnstile - no, he used his pass. He was wearing a bulky jacket - no, he was just wearing a denim jacket. Now we hear that he was just sitting in his seat when he was shot repeatedly at point blank range, all because he resembled a suspected terrorist.
At this point, I wouldn't be surprised to hear that at the time of the shooting he was getting up out of his seat to give it to an old lady. This kind of gross ineptitude and ensuing cover-up doesn't do much for my confidence in the London police force. Hopefully the ongoing inquiry will lead to people being held accountable for this unnecessary and avoidable death.
---------------
Finally, I'm pretty sure there used to be a blog called 'The Blank Out Times'. But I can't remember for sure - I should have taken a screen shot!
posted by Declan at
Saturday, August 20, 2005
6 Comments:
It appears the "Blank Out Times" became self-fulfilling.
By
Anonymous, at 3:32 PM
Re: 'Down with All Commentators'
I suggest you try taking in an English or European soccer match with British announcers. Even if you don't care for soccer (but how could you not?) try watching for ten to fifteen minutes and you will notice two things:
1. The vocabulary and diction of British soccer commentators is far superior to that used by N.A sport commentators. They don't presume their veiwers to be idots.
2. When there is no need to explain something - they don't. This is huge. First, British camera crews know how to film soccer really well, so the job of following the play is already more than half done. Secondly, the commentators assume their audience understands the game, so they don't explain and describe every bit of action. This may be a bit troublsome for newbie viewers but is eminently superior for most. It means that in most cases the commentators shut-up and let the viewer watch, only getting into it when necessary.
Essentially, you get the best of both worlds between being able to see and hear the action for yourself and having the guidance of a professional when necessary.
By
Matthew, at 5:59 PM
Stephanie - indeed! :)
Matthew - Of course, the downside of English commentators is when you get stuck with them for international matches and you have to put up with their parochial vision of the world in which all the players from every other (non-British/Irish) country fit into some simplstic stereotype of that country (the Latins are hot blooded, the Germans are efficient, the Scandinavians are direct, the Brazilians are wizards, the Argentinians are cheaters, the Africans have plenty of enthusiasm, etc. etc.).
But you're right that they are far superior to our North American broadcasters, especially for club football - and especially on the vocabulary front and the willingness not to fill every second with inane chatter. I'd still rather watch soccer without the commentary (or with them talking even less), but it's not as big a deal for sure.
By
Declan, at 8:22 PM
declan, the racism puts the "colour" in colour commentary :) gotta love european nationalism.
also, that is one hell of a lovely arse.
By
ainge lotusland, at 4:40 AM
Blank Out Times was apparently run by MWW. I was fooled.
http://www.no-treason.com/archives/2005/08/17/blanked-out-times/
By
Andrew, at 6:54 AM
hmm, I never thought of 'colour' commentary that way before.
Andrew, thanks for the info.
By
Declan, at 7:19 PM
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