The Olympics are here--and, relatively speaking, I'm happy and enjoying them. Being an internationalist by trade, I like the color, the different countries, the competition, and seeing sports that I don't normally get to see in the USA.
There are some things I absolutely HATE about the NBC broadcast, though:
1. The American bias: yes, I know this one is something I probably can't change, given where I live. But I am interested in people and athletes regardless of what country they are from. To sound sappy, the human spirit goes beyond any artificial borders.
2. The announcers and commentary: shut up, already. Let me watch the competition and come to my own conclusion. And the color commentators, who usually are ex-athletes in whatever event is being broadcast, are just loudmouthed know-it-alls who hurt the quality more than enhance it.
3. The focus on particular sports: beach volleyball does nothing for me. I like gymnastics, but not to the degree everyone else seems to. And I'm ready to fight Michael Phelps as much as he's on the boob tube.
There is redemption for NBC, however, and it is the internet broadcast. Not only is there a wide selection of sports to choose from (I've been enjoying Archery, which is almost NEVER on network TV), but it is commentary-free, which means you can hear the same sounds that you would if you were there without some tool telling us what to think about it and what it means for someone's medal hopes. So it's a nice, pure way to watch the event.
Overall I'm enjoying it, particularly because I have a choice of how I want to watch.
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