tipsFromTheTop wrote:
2. don't treat the audience like they don't know anything by having to define every small detail with an example. Most Americans are aware of the events and chances are ... if they are watching they are with someone who can explain it to them or they know it already. (You don't see NBA announcers explaining every small detail do you? or better yet..look at poker on TV.)
5. Tell the distance runners to stop giving boring interviews. No average Joe cares about the fact that the runner has yet to do more speed work and get fit. They want something they can go to work the next day and tell their co-workers about..."so you won't believe xxxx said about..."
This sparks debates...and in turn sparks more interest...just like people debate about Terrel Owens or Ben Rothlisberger(bike incident).
peace
good points. i've only quoted two because i only have specific comments on these two, even though i think all of the points were good.
if you watched the nba finals broadcast at all (and i'd forgive you if you didn't, it was a letdown after a great playoffs in general), the broadcasters made a much larger effort to educate the audience than they typically would for a regular season game. talking about the (idiotic)protective circle under the basket, 8 second calls, etc. madden does the same thing on his nfl broadcasts (although mixed in with plenty of insider jargon).
the point being that when the audience contains some casual fans, the tv broadcasters are trying to explain what's going on to new viewers so that they can understand. it's a fine line because 80% or possibly much more of the viewers already know the information, so it comes across as stupid/condescending.
as for number 5, i don't know if the usatf can force this, but i really do think that head to head matchups get press, and some trash talking in the media gets even more press. i think gatlin vs. powell is fantastic for the sport for that reason. you've got to be careful marketing this because one of the two (or worse, both) can flameout before the big race. this is another way in which team against team is more likely to bring in fans. you can have the trash talk between the teams in a way that is less susceptible to flaming out.
perhaps some old-fashioned nation against nation duel meets. or, if the scoring would be relatively close, a ryder cup style u.s. vs. europe duel meet. nothing like nationalism to get the casual fan to pay attention.
the bottom line, whether it's trash talking, self-promotion or team vs. team concepts, is that you are trying to get casual fans to care about the outcome. in the olympics, nbc always uses those sappy personal interest stories, and it works, to an extent, because the audience is captive. for a weekly track broadcast, that won't work.