• Posted to facebook as a status message: “Aaron Whiteman really really hates tape delay. Especially tape delay of live events IN THE SAME TIME ZONE I LIVE IN. NBC, I’m ranting at you.”
  • Posted to facebook as a status message (in reference to a story about the Australian Silver medalist in Men’s Moguls: “Dear NBC: Spamming might be a way to make money, but I don’t care if the person that does it IS a great mogul skier, it’s NOT OK to tell feel-good stories about it.”
  • On Bob Costas during the opening ceremony: “Bob, shut the fuck up”
  • On NBC coverage of the opening ceremony: “Dammit I wish 1) CBC was covering the Olympics and 2) I got CBC
  • Apparently I wasn’t done with Bob during the opening ceremony: “Bob! SHUT. UP. I don’t care about your fucking snowglobe”
  • On NBC programming at 11:00 AM on a Saturday
    2/13/2010 11:11:30 AMAaron Whiteman: there’s olympics going on
    2/13/2010 11:11:40 AMAaron Whiteman: and what’s on the NBC notworks? Paid Programming
  • On NBC saying stuff is “just happening” on their tape-delayed, then delayed some more for the west coast broadcast:
    2/13/2010 8:14:18 PMAaron Whiteman: “freestyle skiing begins at cyprus”
    2/13/2010 8:14:29 PMAaron Whiteman: it’s fucking DARK, NBC. Don’t lie to me.
    2/13/2010 10:41:38 PMAaron Whiteman: you know, if we were watching the same feed as the rest of the country, I could have gone to bed already
    2/13/2010 10:41:43 PMSteve Gravrock: yup
    2/13/2010 10:41:57 PMAaron Whiteman: and I wouldn’t know the results before I see them
    2/14/2010 4:10:41 PMAaron Whiteman: “Dear NBC, there are no afterburners in gravity. Find a better analogy.”
    2/14/2010 8:27:15 PMAaron Whiteman: goddammit NBC, where were all the skiers between Miller and the two guys that beat him?”
    2/15/2010 9:12:40 PMAaron Whiteman: Oh Boy! Figure Skating!
    2/15/2010 9:39:09 PMAaron Whiteman: I knew about the ice machine problem 3 hours ago
  • On NBC’s habit of going away from actual sports events to doing feel-good human stories instead. This is fine, but dammit, I want to watch some sports!
    2/15/2010 9:54:39 PMAaron Whiteman: story time!
    2/15/2010 9:54:55 PMAaron Whiteman: because you know… this isn’t a fucking sports event
  • Posted to Facebook as a status message: “Aaron Whiteman wants to thank NBC, for showing me that my priorities are all askew. Clearly, based on the quality of coverage, curling is much more important than skiing.”

Additionally, I sent the following emails

To: nbcsports@nbcuni.com
Subject: Why must you treat me so bad?

When will NBC stop treating the Olympics like a pageant and start treating it like the sports event that it is?

Why do I continue to read about the results 3 hours before the event is televised “live”? Would you make the west coast watch the Superbowl 3 hours late? Does Fox make the west coast watch the World Series 3 hours late? Does ABC tape delay “Monday Night Football”? Would NBC consider showing Notre Dame college games 3 hours delayed to the west coast? So why, WHY do you continue to do this to the Olympics. This is not a sitcom. While dramatic, the Olympics are not a drama. They are a sports event, and deserve to be treated as such. 200 miles to the north, Canadians are watching the games live. 200 miles to the east, residents of Montana are watching the games live. Why not me?

To: rjudd@seattletimes.com
Subject: more NBC ranting

Ron, a question for you: Am I the only one that is irritated by the NBC prime-time menagerie of events? I really resent that after waiting hours for the pre-recorded event to be aired, I have to suffer through things I don’t enjoy (figure skating) to see the things I do (speed skating, luge).

Keep it up.

To: nbcsports@nbcuni.com
Subject: Keep it up!

Way to go! Tonight, after waiting an extra three hours because you don’t consider us that live on the west coast to be important… I sit down for some downhill skiing. 64 competitors, it should be good. After 6, it’s done. Wait, what? You can’t be seriously considering this to be good coverage?

To: Christopher.Mccloskey@nbcuni.com
Subject: Olympics Coverage

Chris, Let me be succinct first: NBC’s primetime coverage of the Olympics stinks.

Now that I’ve said that, I can give you some reasons why.

This is not 1980. We no longer live in a world where NBC only has one channel available for broadcasts. We no longer live in a world where we must be home and in front of a TV when the event occurs. TiVo has been around since 1997. Tape delay at the network level is no longer necessary or wanted.

However, the tape delay garbage is not in fact why I am writing you. While I find it absurd and frustrating that I have to stay awake past midnight to watch events that ended hours ago—-events that happened in the very time zone I live in, that is not my biggest issue with NBC coverage.

My issue is more simple: your network is producing a turd. I know it’s capable of better; as I write this very message I am watching cross country skiing. It’s well produced, with good, but not overdone commentary, doesn’t cut away from the action for “feel good” background stories…. in short, it lets the event do the talking. Last night I watched multiple hockey games and curling, and was satisfied with similar quality.

I cannot say that of the last time I watched primetime coverage (2 days ago). I tuned in specifically to watch the men’s downhill. I already knew the results, but wanted to watch the runs anyway. Of the 64 competitors, I saw at most 6 runs. 6! That’s not coverage, that’s a highlight reel. It’s pathetic.

Tonight, I will be watching the primetime coverage again, to see the Women’s downhill. I am dreading it, because to see (a pathetic subset of) the event I want to see, I’ll have to suffer Bob Costas, an excess of “personal stories”, figure skating, and an endless stream of commercials. Yes, I’ll be watching. What choice do I have? I promise you, if I could watch the canadian feed, I would be. I’ve heard they do an excellent job.

NBC ratings are good because it’s the Olympics. Don’t mistake monopoly coverage for happy viewership.

Every 2 years, I hope that coverage is better than the Olympics before. Every 2 years, I’m frustrated that it isn’t.