Olympic Coverage Is Again Overdone Instead of Well Done

Remember ABC’s coverage of the 1988 Winter Olympics?

For starters, there was one commercial break after another. Making matters worse was the placement of the breaks, which often intruded on live action. More than one hockey goal was missed.

The coverage--some live, some delayed--was disjointed, and there were more technical glitches than there should have been. Host Jim McKay stumbled and fumbled.

Then during the 1988 Summer Olympics on NBC, host Bryant Gumbel was accused of being too smooth. Viewers yearned for the more human McKay. And NBC was also criticized for too many commercials.

Now it’s CBS’ turn, and it’s the same old story.

There is too much talk and not enough action, the coverage often lacks continuity and is incomplete, and of course there are still too many commercials.

Can’t anybody get it right?

The time difference has allowed CBS to edit much of its coverage, which is good and bad.

Highlights from some of the lesser events have been edited into nice magazine-style packages, but at times there has been too much over-editing and over-producing.

For example, cross-country skiers were shown falling at the finish in exhaustion to some lighthearted music Wednesday night. The treatment was too flippant.

Also, an interview Pat O’Brien did with Christopher Bowman for the late-night show was ruined by over-production. The black-and-white close-ups of Bowman didn’t work, and the fancy editing took away from the flow of the interview.

But, overall, there has been less to complain about than in 1988.

Also, these Games are doing a little better in the ratings. Through the first five nights, CBS is averaging a 19.1 rating in prime time. At the same juncture in 1988, ABC was averaging an 18.6.

There have been fewer flaws in TNT’s daytime coverage. There are fewer commercials, for one thing. And less talk.

Also, TNT’s coverage has more continuity and, with less delay, there is less fancy editing.

Maybe the secret is that TNT doesn’t try to cover everything. Nor does it try to dazzle the viewers.

In covering an Olympics, simplification may be the key.

Boxing beat: Even without Mike Tyson, the pay-per-view boxing business will continue.

The business got a boost last Friday when Holmes upset Ray Mercer on TVKO, leading to speculation of a Holmes-George Foreman fight.

TVKO announcer Len Berman looked at it this way: “What is 85 years old and weighs a quarter of a ton? A Holmes-Foreman match.”

Jay Larkin, the executive producer of SET, the pay-per-view arm of Showtime, said of a Holmes-Foreman matchup: “It would be a travesty, but it would do well.”

However, promoter Bob Arum said Thursday that the next megafight will be Holmes against Evander Holyfield, with Foreman to meet the winner. Reportedly, an announcement is likely early next week. Caesars Palace is the expected site.

The Holmes-Mercer fight drew a 1.3% buy rate (250,000 subscribers), a record for a TVKO fight of the month. The Mercer-Tommy Morrison fight last October was the previous high with 210,000 subscribers.

The Holmes-Mercer fight will be replayed on the USA network Feb. 25.

Holmes’ victory no doubt will help sales for TVKO’s next fight, which is a good one. It’s Thomas Hearns vs. Iran Barkley at Caesars Palace on March 20.

How Razor Ruddock fits into the heavyweight picture will be determined Saturday night at the Mirage in Las Vegas, where he meets Greg Page in a non pay-per-view fight on Showtime.

Heavyweight Bert Cooper opens the three-fight card, facing Cecil Coffee in a scheduled 10-rounder. The second fight is a World Boxing Council middleweight title fight between Julian Jackson and Ismael Nigron.

Also on the card but not scheduled to be covered in full by Showtime is a heavyweight fight between Tony Tucker, coming back from reconstructive hand surgery, and Kimmuel Odum.

Add boxing: Boxing got another black eye last weekend when James Toney was awarded a split decision over Dave Tiberi in an ABC fight at Atlantic City, N.J.

Arum, the promoter, said the decision wasn’t as bad as commentator Alex Wallau made it sound, but he will never convince Tiberi.

Tiberi, in an interview with KLAC’s Gabe Kaplan, said the judges gave the fight to Toney because he has big-money fights coming up.

Tiberi also said a rematch would not provide vindication. “Not five rematches,” he said, adding he wouldn’t participate in a rematch until the Toney decision is rectified.

Arum, who paid Tiberi $25,000 for the Toney fight, has offered him $125,000 for a rematch on the April 11 Foreman-Alex Stewart HBO card.

“He turned us down,” Arum said. “He’s nuts.”

TV-Radio Notes

NBC has an NBA doubleheader Sunday, highlighted by the retirement of Magic Johnson’s jersey at halftime of the Lakers’ game against the Boston Celtics at the Forum. . . . During halftime of NBC’s first game, Detroit at Philadelphia, will be an interview with Isiah Thomas talking about Johnson. . . . Recommended viewing: On Nov. 30, Channel 9 aired a one-hour special entitled “It’s Magic.” Producers Jerry Cole and Garth Franklin have put together a sequel, “More Magic,” which will be shown Saturday at 7. “We went back and found some rare footage from Magic’s first training camp in 1979,” Cole said. “Back then, he talked about how if he put the team goals first the individual goals would come.” . . . A half-hour interview KMPC’s Joe McDonnell did with Magic will be replayed on his show Saturday night between 5 and 7 p.m. . . . After Sunday’s game, Laker station KLAC will replay its one-hour tribute, “The Magic Years.”

What does Magic mean to the NBA? Sunday’s NBA All-Star game got a 12.8 national Nielsen rating, up from last year’s 7.8. The highest rating was in Portland, a 24.2. Next was Chicago, 23.4, San Francisco, 18.5, then Los Angeles at 17.7. . . . NBC could have gone without announcing the results of the Winter Olympics men’s downhill during the NBA All-Star telecast. It seemed out of place, and it ruined things for viewers who didn’t want to know. CBS, too, announced the results Sunday morning, but not without warning viewers.

Channel 13, which will televise the Clippers’ home game against Phoenix tonight, at halftime will take a look at the Clippers’ track record with past coaches and also show an interview with Larry Brown. “I wouldn’t say it’s a hard look,” producer Dave Goetz said, “but it’s a realistic look at a dotted landscape.” . . . Jerry Buss will be the featured guest on Channel 9’s “Lakers Tonight” on Monday, before a game at Golden State. Gail Goodrich will be on Wednesday night’s show, before a game against the Clippers at the Sports Arena.

Tommy Morrison, in his first fight since his loss to Ray Mercer, faces Bobby Quarry, the 28-year-old brother of Jerry, in the ESPN fight at the Las Vegas Hilton Sunday night at 6. A Tony Tubbs fight is also on the card. . . . Michael Carbajal fights Marcos Pacheco on ABC Saturday at 4:30 p.m. Also on the card is Rudy Zavala of Costa Mesa, who faces Johnny Vasquez. . . . ESPN will have a one-hour special on Mike Tyson, “The Lost Champion,” Sunday at 5 p.m. . . . ESPN, showing it reacts to a major news story as well if not better than any network, provided nearly an hour-and-a-half of nonstop coverage Monday night after the guilty verdict was announced. The network appropriately preempted college basketball.

KMPC has hired a program director, Len Weiner, 31, to oversee its all-sports format, which will go into effect in April. Weiner comes from New York all-sports station WFAN, where he was the executive producer. He joined WFAN when it changed to an all-sports format in 1987. Before that, he worked for NBC Sports and is currently at the Winter Olympics, working as a producer for CBS Radio. . . . XTRA gives John Hernandez a tryout with his “Thoroughbred Weekend” program Saturday at 7 a.m. Trevor Denman is among the guests. . . . Vin Scully was named sportscaster of the year by the Southern California Sports Broadcasters Assn. Thursday, with Chick Hearn, Al Downing, Rich Marotta, Stu Nahan, Ross Porter and Steve Edwards among the other winners. Nahan, named best sports anchor, is the group’s president. . . . Charles Schulz, the creator the of the comic strip “Peanuts” and an avid hockey fan, will be featured on “Power Stick Hockey Week” on Prime Ticket Sunday at 10 a.m. Schulz says one of the thrills of his life was meeting Wayne Gretzky. . . . Bud Collins may have found his calling. He worked the Westminster Kennel Dog Show this week for the USA Network.