30 July 2003

This is Television

Last night marked the airing of a long awaited breath of fresh air to the general public.

This is SportsCenter.

Did anyone catch their behind the scenes look at ESPN's crown jewel last night? If not, you might well have missed out on television history.

I'd be hard pressed to find any other show for as long as I can remember that really captured, to quote that beat writer for the Chiefs in Slap Shot, "the spirit of the thing". I really hope that this program receives strong Emmy consideration, because it will be well-deserved.
Now I realize that may be a biased opinion, since I work in the same field as these brave souls.

Let's just chalk it up to the fact that this is for all the ignorant. clueless saps out there that have underminded the jobs shared by the lads from ESPN and my other Live TV colleagues. Hopefully, those individuals had a chance to view this program and perhaps gained a little perspective on our "cake" jobs.

When I hear anyone "comment" why we can't cover this story, or where were we for this accident, and how hard can your job be, reading off a prompter, it's hard. There's so much that goes into making it look easy. More programs like these could really help quell those responses, and offer that great insight into a fascinating lifestyle.

It's important to understand that working in this business can be, and often is, very tough and demanding.

We don't do this work because it's easy. We don't do it because it's simple, and we certainly don't do it for the money.

We do it because it's in our blood. We do it for the moments where you can really help make a difference. We do it for the moments where everything comes together just right and a great story reaches the airwaves. I think that most of us do it to really see something we do connect with the public.

The best rewards are the ones expressed by you the public. You are the barometers for success. It's something we take very seriously and affects every decision we make in this field.

Television is a powerful medium. Hopefully we do that power justice for those precious few moments that we wield it.

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