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BEYOND THE ONIONS: Olympic dream a nightmare, thanks to CBC
It was a waking dream. One filled with hours of happiness, sitting in my favourite chair, eating snack foods and taking in the achievements of Canadian athletes at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Yes, I am, at best, an armchair athlete. But I am a top caliber armchair athlete, able to flip the remote through multiple channels while sipping a cool beverage and precariously balancing chips and high-stacked sandwiches on my lap. I've spent the last four years training vigorously for this 2008 Olympics: Stanley Cup Playoffs, World Cup Soccer, Superbowls, Grey Cups, and a long list of other televised sporting events have all been a precursor to this one decisive two-week period, this time when the world comes to China and I sit at home in London, Ontario, doing what I do best – watching. So, my dream was hours of sporting entertainment, from water polo to fencing to gymnastics to football (soccer as most North Americans erroneously refer to the world's number one sport). But my dream has been shattered, and in retrospect I shouldn't be surprised. I should have had a stronger memory and recalled the disappointing coverage provided by the CBC – I only needed to reflect back two years ago to the Winter Olympics in Italy to recall the incredibly time-wasting coverage provided by Canada's national public broadcaster. If I had the power of such long-term memory, which I admit has grown feeble in recent years – I would have known better than to even entertain such a dream. I would have known better than to even leave Channel 6 (CBC in London) set in the recall function of my precious television remote. But alas, my loyalties shine bright every two years, and though Ron Maclean is dear to my sporting heart, what ever else the CBC has done so far in covering the Olympics in China has fallen flat, shattering my waking dream and leaving me in a cold sweat, seemingly unable to escape what has swiftly become a nightmare. It seems the CBC spends too much time talking about the games then they do actually showing the games. It seems the CBC believe that the opinions of Alexandre "Sacha" Trudeau – documentary filmmaker, freelance journalist and offspring of Pierre Elliot, our former Prime Minister – is something that we would want to watch, as he blathers on and on about his views of China, as opposed to say – sports! And it seems that this Canadian is forced to hit the recall button on his remote and change the channel to the U.S. television station, NBC, where many of the sporting events are covered in their entirety, and if you can avoid choking on the bile welling up in your throat thanks to the continuous proliferation of American patriotism, the 2008 Summer Olympics can actually become an enjoyable television experience. Now, perhaps I'm being a little harsh. The games, after all, are only three days old and with a little luck maybe the CBC will pick up their game and actually start showing what people want to watch – I'll say it again – sports! Until they do it's NBC for me: a sad but seemingly only alternative to my CBC nightmare. That's all for now from Beyond the Onions. -- -- -- -- Ross McDermott is the editorial director at LondonTopic.ca. Opinions are those of the author. Contact Ross by e-mail (see link). E-MAIL: Ross McDermott |
| CBC TV should be put to rest. They bid for games using our taxes. How many people work there and what are they doing except collecting their wages? This is a black hole of dollars flowing into it to show American programs. Sell this useless network off if you can. Who would buy it with all their redundant staff? And if it can be done, let it compete on equal footing with private networks. Let CBC radio both 1 and 2 and French continue as they have stood out with excellent entertainment. |
| By: RF JOHNS on 08/12/2008 |
| It started with the very poor and commercial saturated opening ceremony, at times the commercials lasted longer then the cut to the opening ceremonies. I've been forced to download a US network version of the opening ceremonies in order to watch them will less interruptions. I was disgusted to see that due to the greed of the CBC and their commercials I missed a large portion of the ceremony. I think the public should be reimbursed for this and the CBC should donate a large potion of the commercial proceeds to a Canadian Olympic charity. CBC, you should be ashamed!!! I know I am!!! Your event coverage is also very poor, if I had cable I would watch the US networks, but I'm stuck with your sorry excuse for a station. I hope the CBC is held accountable for their incompetence with our tax money. |
| By: Smith on 08/11/2008 |
| Oh CBC. I watch the Olympics both winter and summer faithfully, however, CBC has yet again failed me. I give them the opportunity to provide extensive coverage of ALL events, but to no avail. As much as it pains me, I must return to the US coverage once again. Wake up CBC and listen to the people! |
| By: Heather Cook on 08/12/2008 |
| Our Canadian baseball team is playing and beating China 5 - 0 but CBC is broadcasting Australia vs. Brazil in Beach Volleyball. Why oh why oh why? |
| By: Mark West on 08/13/2008 |
| CBC's coverage of the Olympic games is pathetic. CBC seems to be interested only in the financial aspect of the game, not the aesthetic side of it. In between the final seconds of certain programs they show ads, not bothered about the result. They also do not give a comprehensive coverage of the competitions. It seems the managers are not qualified personnel. This kind of avarice in a developed country is unpardonable. The authorities should wake up and take action before it is too late. |
| By: Jerry Thomas on 08/14/2008 |
| Right after reading this story and comments I turned on CBC's coverage and they were showing Equestrian. Blaaah. Do any other networks show this stuff. One of the guys Ian Miller is in his 9th Olympics and he finally scored a medal. Great for him. I find this sport somewhat elitist and silly so here's a silly question. If a 61 gets a medal for going along for the ride and directing the horse, shouldn't the horse get a medal for doing the work. Secondly is the horse Canadian bred? I recognize these questions are absurd but CBC Olympic coverage and CBC sports continues to show this absurd "sport" which few Canadians have the chance or resources to participate in. The horses and costumes are beautiful but really now the horses are the true athletes and equestrian is near the top of sports one could call elitist because the average person with average means cannot participate in them. Can you name any others? |
| By: David Dimitrie on 08/21/2008 |
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