Question: why do so many folks have issues with Raj Mathai?
Is it the GQ looks, the pretty-boy image, the notion that this 40 year-old anchor for NBC Bay Area is a lightweight?
The answer to all of the above is a decided "no."
I know Mathai and thought early on he was a softie. And a bad one at that, but clearly, if you meet him, you come to the conclusion he knows his shit.
And as far as the looks, hey, TV is a visual medium--it's not his fault that he has the 'Miami Vice' aura.
I have watched Mathai from his early days here as a sports anchor and now a newsie, (he anchors the 5, 6, and 11 PM cast); generally, I've been impressed with his smooth transition. He reads well and asks fairly pointed questions--what's not to like?
The Peninsula native has worked for NBC stations in Fresno, San Diego, and Arizona. As he settles into his new gig barely a year after he sat in the news chair, I expect him to get better. And that can only help NBC Bay Area and they need help.
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Its just plain wrong to me (viewer) when a news station puts a "sports guy" on anchor duty. To me, he's nothing more than a guy who eats/breathes sports and enjoys watching games. The only valid people to take the anchor desk (again, to me, a viewer) is a reporter. At least then we know that the person is versed in news and protocol. To me, Raj, or any other sports person who is put on the anchor desk, is nothing more than a sports guy who needs a producer to feed him line by line should anything bad happen, i.e. earthquake, wildfire, mass shooting, etc. I am someone who believes in earning your stripes to climb the perverbial ladder, and to me, doing sports highlights is not sufficient to sit in the anchor chair, or to be viewed as a credible news person. Shame on you NBC, ABC and now Fox for underestimating the intelligence of the viewer. What's next? Radnich in for Pam Moore? From KRON I would expect that. Lawd help us!
ReplyDeleteGood thing the producers at the Today Show were careful to take that sports guy, news guy advice before they hired Bryant Gumbel. Who knows where they would have been.
ReplyDeleteRich,
ReplyDeleteI watch Raj nightly, he has grown into his new role very nicely. A true pro.
'I know Mathai', hahahahahahahahaha
ReplyDeleteRadnich in for Pam, so what? He can read a teleprompter, too.
ReplyDeleteShame on all the closed-minded folks who can't accept that a sports anchor can also be a strong news anchor! Van Amburg was a sports anchor before he was a news anchor! Jan Hutchins did well at TV 36 during the 1980s moving from sports to news before he left the industry outright. Cronkite covered sports at Texas! As long as a sportscaster is a consummate professional who speaks great, he or she can transition to news!
ReplyDeleteI suspect his popularity would be higher if his first name were Bob. Yes even in the progressive Bay Area. {sigh}
ReplyDeleteHe's a brown-noser.
ReplyDeleteA suck up
Fitz lite...
It is still somewhat weird to watch Raj as a news anchor, especially with all those years in sports. But, he doing a good job in his new role. The other night after watching NBC's "Sunday Night Football," I actually missed Raj and Jerry Rice hosting the local post-football show. I didn't care for the Comcast Sportsnet version with its wanna-be slicked anchor and sports set. I liked the lay back version of NBC 11.
ReplyDeleteRaj is a true pro and does a very credible job. I agree with the post from 11:51pm...there have been plenty of sportscasters who became solid anchors. As far as being a brown noser like Fitz, I don't think so. No one sucks up to higher ups as well as Rudy. Giggles has that title all to himself!
ReplyDeleteI agree with the folks who accept that people can switch beats and still do well. Mathai was a great, smooth sports guy. Good interviews, good sources.
ReplyDeleteI also think he's grown well into the news anchor role.
I just don't get why Mathai provokes such strong negative emotion. I sure hope it isn't because his ethnicity is the reason. I don't see a problem that he wears tailored suits or has a "slick" look. It's not tacky in the least, at least in my opinion.
Having said that, the new Comcast sports desk is awful! And for that reason, I do wish we had Mathai on sports. (also?)
How does Comcast sports work? It's a central desk for the Comcast owned stations on the west coast? So one sports desk for four or five stations? Ugh!
Raj is good and has done an amazing job in transitioning. However I live in northern Contra Costa which NBC11 barely can spell it! LOL! I still regularly watch KGO and KPIX at least they have some reporters and anchors living here and some camera people get to take their live news trucks home. DOH!
ReplyDeleteRaj is an absolute pro and his success should not come as a surprise, considering he hails from San Diego State University.
ReplyDeleteThe whole Xfinity sports consolidation idea is poor. Expect a new format and a brand change in 18 months when they wake up. Raj is a professional and I particularly miss what he brought to the Sunday night sports programming.
ReplyDeleteRaj is good, I like him, but I'm still thinking of him as a sports guy. That being said, he's FAR better than Jessica Aguirre, I'm SO Fing sick her throwing out the heavy Spanish accent EVERY SINGLE TIME she reads a Hispanic word or name. She's another tool.
ReplyDeleteMany people already said it, he's NOT a news anchor. He is a sports anchor. He does not have the look/experience to be a news anchor.
ReplyDeleteRaj Mathai is a great anchor. He has charisma and great speaking skills. To the anonymous person who wrote the negative comment; you're an idiot. We live in a multi-cultural society. Is he supposed to look like the average American male?
ReplyDeleteRaj Mathai is THE BEST thing to happen to NBC11. And for the jackass who wrote the negative comment, (prob Gary or some other has-been who isn't aging well), F*#@ off - Raj is THE only anchor on the market who KNOWS the local market and has a passion for our area. The bigger question is when network will pull him. San Jose LOVES you Raj Mathai!
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