Doran is terrible, probably even worse than Sika, but who the TV and radio announcers are is really way down the list on things I worry about with the team.
I assume it's related to the Fox Sports Ohio broadcast deal. FSO is based in Cleveland, and presumably has its primary studio set-up there. FWIW, both our local Fox affiliate (WTTE) and FSO are owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, though FSO is actually also owned by a company called Entertainment Studios. So, yeah, you'd think Crew broadcasts could be handled locally. But then again, what the hell do I know about sports broadcasts? And despite shared ownership, maybe it's not so simple to use a local Fox channel for FSO broadcasting. Anyway, I await the day when we actually send broadcasters to away games. That was never an option for Dwight, who had other commitments during the week. It was also never a priority for the club. Maybe that'll change now, but I wouldn't bet on it.
Given how media works these days, with consolidations, I expect to see a time where the away broadcasts are just done by the home team--or a neutral league broadcast office. I'm thinking we're going to see more and more of this in print media too. Didn't the Dayton paper get rid of their Reds beat writer not long ago??
A production that reflects 2020 standards. 1. consistently functioning microphones 2. competent direction: fewer close ups, wider angles, better replays 3. on location commentary I watched a decent amount of other team's broadcasts via ESPN+ the last couple years. I tried to watch our opponent's previous game each week. Our production was bottom of the barrel. This organization has done so much to drive away the casual sports fan over their 25 year existence. It's maddening to those of us that make up the die-hard fan base. If Dee brings anything to the table it's an eye for what looks good on TV and what it takes to make that happen. I'm hopeful she makes a big impact there.
What I don't really understand is how this all works in a system where, unless I'm mistaken, MLS is responsible for the primary video feed for all broadcasts.
It's impossible to find a fan base where everyone enjoys the PBP and Color commentators. No matter if it's Crew or national televised games of any sport. To me Neil and Dwight were both fine covering games for the Crew although their Being a Reds fan I was surprised with the amount of people that don't like Thom Brennaman and I've never understood the hatred of Joe Buck for both baseball and football games.
I think each team is responsible for their own production and that is required by the league. I think our local production is handled by a local company. I can picture their semi truck outside the stadium but can't come up with the name of it. My guess is they provide the direction, cameras, production staff. Based on the appearance, I'd say they are still using first generation HD cameras, a few generations past green screen tech and a generic director who doesn't watch much high quality soccer broadcasting. All that contributes to the bad product that get's sent to MLS and put out to ESPN+ and our local broadcaster.
People who can't stand Gus Johnson on NCAA football and basketball are a very small minority of fans.
In the early years of MLS there was no way to get TV coverage of games which were neither your local team nor the national TV game, and I used to listen to radio broadcasts online. Dwight was the best. And by that I mean the best English-language radio soccer announcer on this side of the Atlantic.
For me, it's the constant yelling. He has this annoying tendency to treat a sack for a loss of three yards the same way as a 40-yd run.
Thom Brennaman doesn't really seem to understand or even like the game of baseball, and likes to harp on things for innings on end. There are quite a few times when I've wondered if Chris Welsh was ready to choke him out.
You had to bring up Welsh. I can only take so much of him. He has great insight but could make the most exciting play seem like the most boring play. He has no enthusiasm.
I'd be happy with Ale or a return for Duncan. I'd be miserable if they went with some needlessly British guy, a la SKC or Seattle. Surely they wouldn't sink that low, right?
Well, the 'British guys' tend to be play-by-play guys, right? At least in this most recent configuration, Burgess has been the analyst. That's often a former player or coach. Dunc seems an obvious contender. And it doesn't look as though his Soccer & Beer tv gig keeps him all that busy: A lot more to come! pic.twitter.com/cLtNtbEgwO— Soccer & Beer (@SoccerandBeerTV) December 18, 2019
Sirk catches up with St. Dunc. https://sirkbook.com/2020/01/31/crew-qa-duncan-oughton-on-dwight-burgess/