Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, February 15, 1992 TAG: 9202150029
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Jack Bogaczyk
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
CBS MISSING THE MARK WITH ITS OLYMPICS COVERAGE
Brief thoughts on a week of telecast coverage at the Olympic Winter Games:Apparently, CBS is trying to keep its miniscule "CBS This Morning" audiences with its 7-9 a.m. Olympic segments. Although hosts Harry Smith and Greg Gumbel have made viewers smile, the shows have been filled with fluff and taped coverage - although it's 1-3 p.m. in Albertville and plenty of events could be aired live.
CBS' ratings remain high in prime time, but not because of the performance of co-hosts Tim McCarver and Paula Zahn. Although it takes time for any team to become acquainted, the McCarver-Zahn pairing has no spark and little chemistry. Both seem as uncomfortable as they might be awaiting their first luge run. CBS' best studio host is weekend day man Jim Nantz.
Viewers must miss the candid, tough figure skating analysis of ABC's Dick Button. Scott Hamilton's gee-whizzing and reluctance to criticize has brought little insight to CBS' coverage of the Games' glamour event. On TNT's weekday coverage, however, skating analyst Peter Carruthers has been strong. CBS hired the wrong guy.
The skiing analysis of Andy Mill and Christin Cooper has been superb. On event calls, Dick Stockton on skiing and Brad Nessler on speed skating - because they know how to draw out their analysts - have been first-rate. Al Trautwig's work on cross-country skiing has been a plus, too.
The best part of CBS' coverage? The pictures. The camera work on those scary skiing runs has to be an early Emmy favorite.
\ As the U.S. hockey team continues to win in Albertville, CBS figures to jump on the bandwagon. That's good news for viewers, who will get to hear more of Mike Emrick's play-by-play.
For years, Emrick has put out pronunciation guide for NHL players' names, but he still gets tongue-tied at times above the Olympic ice.
"CBS has its own pronunciation guide, but there still are a lot of misspellings on jerseys, especially the Unified Team," Emrick said.
The name that has given Emrick the most trouble - Unified Team goalie Nikolai Khabibulin.
"We're just hoping he doesn't get any shots on goal," Emrick said.
\ The Daytona 500 brings a 3 1/2-hour Winter Olympics respite to CBS on Sunday (noon, WDBJ, Channel 7). To display how pressed for personnel the network is because of the Olympic commitment, consider that CBS Sports executive producer Ted Shaker - yes, he's the top dog - is a Daytona pit producer.
That isn't to say the network has a diminished commitment to the NASCAR Winston Cup jewel and season opener. CBS will use four "Racecams" inside the cars of Richard Petty, Mark Martin, Morgan Shepherd and Dale Jarrett, who is behind the wheel for Joe Gibbs Racing in the Redskins coach's debut as a NASCAR team owner.
CBS also will introduce the "Roofcam," another remote-controlled device on Petty's Pontiac, and Telemetry Graphics, which will provide viewers updates from racecam cars on speed, rpm, braking and gear-shifting.
Thursday's "smashing" Twin 125 qualifying races will be aired on tape today in a one-hour CBS special (noon, WDBJ).
\ Locally, the Daytona preview work this week by WDBJ sports director John Kernan has been intriguing. Kernan had live visits from Petty and Gibbs on Channel 7 newscasts. His Twin 125 qualifying report was solid and insightful.
Because of CBS Olympics hours, however, WDBJ will not have a Daytona special preview show. Kernan, who works as a pit reporter for ESPN on NASCAR shows, will file Daytona reports for WDBJ News through Monday.
| Staunton's Dan Bonner, the former Virginia forward whose college basketball analysis work doesn't get the exposure it should on ESPN, will return to CBS' coverage of the NCAA Tournament for a second season.
Bonner, a regular on ACC telecasts for years, has not been assigned a play-by-play partner, although the likely choices are Brad Nessler or Tim Ryan. CBS has chosen Billy Packer, Bill Raftery, Len Elmore, Quinn Buckner, Bill Walton and Digger Phelps as analysts. Bonner and Mimi Griffin or Ann Meyers will be appointed soon, as will another analyst.
The CBS play-by-play men will be Jim Nantz, James Brown, Dick Stockton, Greg Gumbel, Verne Lundquist, Sean McDonough, Mel Proctor, Nessler and Ryan. Nantz and Packer will work in the studio during the first- and second-round games next month.
\ WROV (1240 AM) has made some sports programming moves, the most notable a tie-in to Duke basketball broadcasts.
The Roanoke station will air the top-ranked Blue Devils' regular-season games against UCLA on March 1 and North Carolina on March 8 and Duke's games in the NCAA Tournament.
The station will carry the entire ACC Tournament on March 12-15 as part of Virginia's network.
WROV also has brought back "Winston Cup Today" at 5:20 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 6:45 p.m. Sundays. The half-hour weekend show airs at 7:30 a.m. Sundays.
\ AROUND THE DIAL: With Presidents' Day on Monday, CBS will air daytime Olympics coverage (1-6 p.m., WDBJ), instead of cable's TNT. The bulk of that show will be U.S.-Sweden hockey, live. . . . ESPN's peerless college basketball matchmaker, Tom Odjakjian, came up with a real Presidents' Day special - James Madison at George Washington at 4 p.m. Monday. Who knows what the line will be, but Washington was 6 feet 2 and Madison was the shortest U.S. president at 5-2. . . . ESPN has announced nine of its 10 Thursday night College Football Association telecasts for 1992. There are no ACC appearances and one Big East game (Rutgers-Pitt). East Carolina, off a 12-1 finish, gets a home telecast against Southern Mississippi.
Keywords:
AUTO RACING