The Olympic coverage in Australia has been dominated by swimming, followed by the sports where we boast big names that have done nothing (Opals aside) — basketball, cycling and tennis — plus football a bit further down. They’re followed closely by the sports where non-famous Aussies are doing well or were expected to do well — Hockey, Equestrian, Rowing, Beach Volleyball, Shooting.
Meanwhile, big traditional Olympic sports that just happen to have been dominated by the host country like Gymnastics and Weightlifting haven’t cracked the Top Ten. What a shock.
|
Sport |
Press |
Radio |
TV |
Internet |
Total |
|
Swimming |
1,243 |
8,849 |
7,245 |
4,758 |
22,095 |
|
Basketball |
544 |
1,941 |
2,070 |
1,659 |
6,214 |
|
Cycling |
545 |
1,403 |
1,094 |
1,961 |
5,003 |
|
Tennis |
401 |
1,687 |
1,092 |
1,336 |
4,516 |
|
Hockey |
426 |
1,464 |
1,509 |
1,114 |
4,513 |
|
Equestrian |
244 |
1,454 |
1,561 |
738 |
3,997 |
|
Rowing |
513 |
160 |
2,062 |
1,357 |
4,092 |
|
Football |
649 |
728 |
1,307 |
1,183 |
3,867 |
|
Volleyball |
325 |
649 |
1,183 |
848 |
3,005 |
|
Shooting |
385 |
855 |
412 |
1,231 |
2,883 |
There’s more on the Media Monitors website.
Its not Beijing or the athletes that are boring its just our media coverage that’s alarmingly lacklustre. For years network boardrooms have done a Murray-Darling on media skills and resources sending our infotainment industries back to tinder and rubbing sticks. And until the coin drops with Seven, SOCOG, the SOC and those bidding to broadcast the 2012 variety we’re stuck with the hackneyed trumpery broadcast from the Water Cube last week. In the meantime why can’t we encourage Seven to capitalise on the time-warp concept with studio guest appearances by Rex Mossop or Ron Casey? We could borrow the China syndrome and bus in convoys of old ‘Gold Logie’ winners to fill the empty Birds Nest bleachers. Maybe do some Go for Gold shots of Burt and Pattie, Daryl Somers, Ossie and Jackie Mac with ever-ready Ray Martin doing ‘bus-stops’ as the cast of Homicide arrive with Ernie Sigley and Ding-Dong. Its desperate times out here for a la Olympics stimulation as our broadcasting conglomerates leave us with the distinct impression they’re just not cashed, creative or qualified to give an audience of close to 8-million a gold-medal performance just once every Olympiad.
Swimming on television is another version of electronic valium, boring in the extreme. Why Aussies have to put up with excess of splashing about in water is beyond me. The sports viewers of Oz are being ill-served by Channels 7 and SBS. The Olympics is about watching the best the world has to offer, not seeing an Aussie come seventh in a 200m swimming heat, by all means record it but dont move from a crucial phase in another sport for this jingoistic reflex. I was looking forward to these Olympics coverage, but Channel 7 seem capable of squeezing every bit of affected national pride out instead the joy of sport itself.
A letter in the Age complained about the media coverage of the games. To which I would ask, “What media coverage?” Locked in on the swimming, the rowing for Chri*ts sake and similar sports beloved of simians, but witless to anyone with half a brain, there was no coverage. I did try to watch some of the three day Eventing, but I couldn’t find it. In fact after 10 minutes of the opening ceremony (this has nothing to do with the actual ceremony) and the same old faces of channel seven, the same tired old clichés, the same total ignorance of a culture that is not footy and pies for the knuckle-draggers, I was faced with either throwing-up or turning off. Not only was it a case of ten minutes of ads for five minutes of sport. But every time there was a break there was this nauseating footage of senile old mums and dads vacuously staring at bubs, I think is the expression, struggling to stand before taking their first steps towards Olympic glory, this choice scenario was played to a sombre selection of Australian sporting dirges. I have a feeing there are some pretty peeved people out their in the trenches, and if channel seven gets a hammering from people who turn off. They will have asked for every word of it.
What about media coverage of sailing? Not even the monitors of media coverage mention this highly competitive sport. Australia is leading in 3 of the 7 classes and has arguably the worlds best overall sailing team. In addition many newsworthy and controversial incidents are continually occurring – algae, no wind, contested decisions, collisions etc