SUNDAY COFFEEI received a lot of feedback from my KTVU "Talk like a Pirate" idiocy Saturday--most in agreement that the charade (and it was all that) was chock full of gimmicks not usually associated with a product such as KTVU.
Even in its embryonic stages of being FOXed, KTVU News still puts out fairly quality newscasts but Saturday's travesty makes you kind of wonder.
I'm not a killjoy; I don't mind occasional asides of people having fun, even newscasters and reporters. But there's a time and a place --plus there's a bigger picture too. KTVU News (Fox2) is in the business of delivering the news. It has a history --a news operation that was once the envy of not just this market but markets across the nation. To sully that reputation for a forced and contrived bit; for professional news people to participate in such a circus act does a lot of damage to KTVU's image and those responsible should be aware of that distinction. I'm not sure they do. Maybe they're still in their pirate costumes.
*I'm not a huge Jon Miller fan but I think he's one of the top radio baseball broadcasters in the business. I know Giants fans adore him as they should. That said, Miller does (or in this case, doesn't) do something so obvious, so basic baseball announcing 101A--GIVING THE SCORE!
On Saturday I was driving around doing errands late in the afternoon and had KNBR on like a lot of you and was listening to the Giants--Arizona game. It was near the conclusion of the ballgame, that much I could tell but I wanted to hear the score. So I naturally waited, and waited, and waited --NO ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE SCORE! It was at least ten minutes before Miller uttered "Giants are losing 6-0". I could be off a minute or two but even 7-8 minutes without providing the score is simply ridiculous. Worse yet, Miller routinely doesn't give the score at least once every few minutes. It's a daily ritual with Miller and it's irritating as all hell. Lon Simmons once said "you can never give the score too many times." Apparently, Miller didn't get the memo.
*People that begin a sentence with the word, "So"--add to that list of my growing major irritation matters. "At the end of the day" too but "so" is so lazy and annoying. I know, life is full of joy and laughter.
Ah yes, Rich's Media Coffee on a Sunday Morning; Delicious!! Just as delicious as Christine's KaKa Pancakes!! Yum!!!
ReplyDeleteI am a fan and supporter of bay area sport teams whether they win or loss. I totally agree on Jon Miller's play-by-play voice on the radio. He need to check the reality of listeners' demand or interest. I always prefer to listen the original announcers for A's, Giants, Warriors etc. with a great interest. Hope he makes the adjustment for fans/listeners.
ReplyDeleteYou and your blogs are always classy and meaningful, please keep up the great work. Always with the best wishes!
I saw that KTVU pirate thing on a TV at a restaurant and I let out an audible WTF. Seriously, WTF was that?
ReplyDeleteSo I was reading Liebermans blog today while eating cheez it's and thought to myself, "at the end of the day I'll have some rice a roni".
ReplyDeleteas a Giants fan, i would love to exchange broadcast teams with the A's!
ReplyDeleteAgree that Jon Miller has a high opinion of himself, but he is technically a very good baseball announcer. All you have to do is go around the country and listen to everyone else. We are very fortunate to have Jon on the radio here. The Giants have the best announcing team in the majors....and no, I would not trade that team for the A's broadcasting team...not even close.
ReplyDeleteI agree. You can listen to games from all over the league on SiriusXM. There are bigger market teams that have announcers who are nowhere near the caliber of the Giants' announcers. I don't have a problem with Jon Miller. It's Kruk that I can only take in extremely small doses.
DeleteOf course Lieberman finds fault with Miller. He criticizes EVERYONE. That's his thing.
ReplyDeleteMiller started with the A's then Texas on to Boston then Baltimore and finely sf,to me he is nothing special. He made his name mimicking the voice Vin Scully,Bob Shepard(yanks stadium pa man) and Roy steel(colesium pa guy), very overrated!
ReplyDeleteMiller is something special which is why he won the Ford C. Frick Award in 2010 which is is presented annually to a broadcaster for "major contributions to baseball."
DeleteHe did not make his name mimicking the voice of others but rather by being urbane, witty and a great broadcaster.
Apparently this blog has become a hang out for disgruntled malcontents who think finding petty things to complain about distinguishes themselves.
Oh Deaf One: Yes, he has been honored by the Baseball Hall of Fame and he's a good announcer, but he reeks of homerism and can be a buffoon at times. Lon Simmons was never like that. A lot of the GREAT announcers put the game ahead of themselves. This guy puts himself ahead of the game.
DeleteAnd if you read the comments carefully in this blog, a lot of truth is being spoken. You probably work for one of the stations carrying the games. You probably can't handle the truth. Keep kissing that ass pal.
Oh Anonymous One: You agree that Jon Miller is good but for some reason insist upon complaining about him.
DeleteSound like you are in the spectrum of malcontents who spend their lives finding petty things to complain about I was referring to earlier.
Not regularly announcing the score is bad, and it has a cousin in the radio talk-show world: not mentioning a few times, during the course of an interview, who the hell you're talking to. It's important if listener joined late. Chip Franklin is a major offender in this area.
ReplyDeleteGuess you've never listened to Ratto and Tolbert.
DeleteI think Miller forgets that the listerner at home can hear the crowd, which often tells the listener whether the play was good or bad for the hometown team. Miller gets around to filling in the details of a play several seconds AFTER it occurred. Really annoying. He needs to tell us what happens AS it happens. And yes, hearing a score once in awhile would be nice too.
ReplyDeleteI will give you the score.
ReplyDeleteThe Giants lost.
The A's lost.
The 49ers lost.
And the Raiders lost.
And they all suck big time.
And they know it too!
Need any more scores?
except that the Giants and Raiders both won.
DeleteMaybe Miller's failure to mention the score is driven by PPM. Got you to listen longer as opposed to hearing the score and then changing stations.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more with the annoying "So, blah blah..." The first time I heard an idiot use that "style" I stopped him at the 3rd sentence and asked "What the fuck is with you? What school did you flunk out of?" Another pet peeve these schmendrick's lock on to: "That said/Having said that..."
ReplyDeleteJon Miller is a blowhard. He thinks his poop doesn't stink. He should know better than to give the score every three minutes. Red Barber used to have an egg timer with him that always reminded him when to give the score. Miller is overrated. Put the broadcast before yourself first. It's a lesson that many in this business don't quite get. The Giants announcers are notoriously ego-driven. The Athletics broadcasters aren't that way. They're a hidden gem.
ReplyDeleteGiants announcers are less likely to give the score when they're losing...
ReplyDeleteIt's because they're the biggest bunch of homers around. People like Mike "Grab Some Pine Meat" may be adored, but they know who signs their paychecks. And then there's that brain dead bitch reporter who can't keep her mouth shut and is always saying "your San Francisco Giants." So glad they're out of the playoff picture. Pop that balloon. Check the egos.
DeleteTALK LIKE A PIRATE DAY? ARE YOU KIDDING ME???
ReplyDeleteI wish for its next stunt, KTVU has "Talk Like a 'Vato Day!" THAT...would get me to watch.
I can see it now--The first words right after the music intro:
"Orale, Homes! Wassup, putos! Ain't no lie, Homes--This is da ten O'clock news, Homes!"
Your racism isn't funny.
DeleteHow is that racism?
DeleteWhat isn't funny is how people see racism in things that are not racist, or how people play the race card constantly (yet inconsistently when it comes to true color blindness...).
There seems to be a serious misunderstanding among readers of this log about local announcers showing home team bias. Local broadcasters ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE TOTALLY NEUTRAL about which team they want to win.
ReplyDeleteA's broadcasters want the A's to win. Giants broadcasters want the Giants to win. That's not a secret, nor is it improper. That's different than say Al Michaels doing the NBC Sunday game between Seattle and Green Bay an openly rooting for the Packers. National broadcasters ARE SUPPOSED TO BE neutral and unbiased.
I keep reading yahoos on this blog who keep complaining that certain local announcers are homers, as if they've just uncovered some big secret. There is nothing wrong with rooting for the home team. It's a local team broadcast. It's targeting fans of the team
Well said. The Giants announcers are a great bunch, and only listening to Vin Scully (in baseball) or Jim McKay (RIP) makes for better sports listening.
DeleteIt's baseball. Relax. If you can't wait until the end of the inning to hear the score then go to mlb.com or yahoo sports for the score.
ReplyDeleteSeriously, you are going to bitch because you were in and out of your car for 7-8 minutes and didn't catch the score?
Arr,(Yes, 'Arr, not 'Argh', my pet peeve is people who pronounce the 'G')
ReplyDelete'Talk Like a Pirate day' be BILGE, matey!
Why does Keba Arnold sound like a retard?
ReplyDeleteThe best thing about the Giants' season almost being over is that we don't have to listen to that simpering, unprofessional 'Amy G.' with her vapid, breathless, teenage-sounding voice, as she comments about things such as the Giants' community fund, and the wonderful work the Giants are doing in the community. I think that's the reason Larry Baer wants her on the air; she gives baseball fans ZERO worthwhile information during games, but instead, when she comes on she's a walking advertisement who keeps Larry and his sleazy band of co-owners like Allen Byer and the Burns kids happy. This is the only way she would get this job. The epitome of absurdity was when she was riding in the last World Series celebration parade, and doing her ridiculous Rose Bowl queen wave to crowd as if she were some kind of royalty. "Hey, I'm Amy G. and we won the World Series, so look at me guys!" What a joke!
ReplyDeleteIf you don't like the Giants you don't need to watch their games or World Series parades.
DeleteLieberman has complained about Miller's giving the score before, but I don't believe his story. At the absolute worst, the score would be given at the end of the half-inning. We're supposed to believe he was unfortunate enough to turn the game on exactly seven minutes before the end of the inning?
ReplyDeleteIf this happened, Lieberman wasn't paying attention when the score was announced. The games are archived, and I be curious which inning he listened to.
The late great Bill King would have a 3 minute egg/sand timer next to him when doing the A's games. When the sand ran out, he would give the score. Genius. I misss that guy. He did 3 sports very well: A's baseball, Warriors basketball and Raiders football.
ReplyDeleteI am with you, re: missing that guy. He did baseball very well, and there has been none better at football and basketball. He can still be enjoyed on some historical videos on the net.
DeleteJohn Miller is not in the same class as the GREAT Bill King, he is very missed!
DeleteREALLY? Are you expecting Bill King to make a comeback anytime soon.
Deletethose of us who listen to the broadcast KNOW the score Mr. Lieberman. I couldn't think of anything more irritating than giving the score every 3-4 minutes. So....you are so dang busy you can't wait 7-8 minutes to hear the score ????
ReplyDeleteAmy G is the worst. She gives real female sideline reporters a bad name
ReplyDeleteYesterday afternoon, Tolbert and Ratto were making fun of Joe Starkey, Cal's radio announcer, who never gives the score of Cal football games. As Ratto said, "Getting the score shouldn't be like playing Clue."
ReplyDeleteWhen is Starkey going to give up the ship and let Roxy Bernstein become the voice of Cal sports? He is a true BEAR!
DeleteNo problem at all with Miller, his HOF status is well-deserved. He is at his most entertaining when the game is a blowout in either direction, a rain delay, or (unfortunately) when the Giants are no longer in the playoff chase. What I'm tired of is the endless amounts of promo spots he and Flemming are forced to read during the game (not just at the start of the innings). Every pitching change, visit to the mound, home run distance, stolen base attempt, grand slam inning, game start time/temperature, etc all have corporate pitches attached and it's a miracle any score at all gets announced with all that shilling! I understand it's a money grab by the Giants org but I don't have to like it......
ReplyDeleteAgree 100%. I heard Kuiper having to read a spot for an insurance company in between pitches the other night! (a company I've never used, and never will)
DeleteAll teams overwhelm the public with promos and commercials. No reason to target the Giants.
ReplyDelete