Sunday, July 29, 2012

NBC's Disgraceful Decision to Skip Opening Ceremony Tribute to Terror Victims

Having exclusive rights to broadcast Olympic coverage in the United States is a double-edged sword for NBC. It draws massive viewership, but its decisions are heavily scrutinized, particularly due to the time difference between London and United States, and hence NBC's ability to control what is broadcast to the American audience. Many objected to NBC's decision not to live stream the Opening Ceremony, which happened in the early afternoon hours in the United States. Instead, NBC tape-delayed the show for prime time on both coasts, explaining that the Opening and Closing Ceremonies are "entertainment spectacles best shown at a time when friends and family are able to gather together to watch." Criticized or not, the decision paid off for NBC. The Opening Ceremony Friday drew "the best overnight ratings ever for an Olympics held outside the United States," a 7% increase in ratings from the Beijing Opening Ceremony.

The debates will continue, but one of its decisions Friday night deserves heavy criticism. When a tribute was played during the ceremony for terror victims, NBC instead decided to showcase an interview with Michael Phelps. This was purely a monetary decision aimed to boost its ratings, as the cost of US TV rights fees topped $1.18 billion. Upon being questioned for this particular decision, NBC spokesman Greg Hughes admitted that its "programming is tailored for the US audience." However, the crucial issue is that the tribute was not irrelevant to United States. In fact, the tribute was more relevant to United States than any other countries of the world. Great Britain has been United States' staunchest ally in the War of Terror. In Afghanistan alone, over 400 British troops have sacrificed their lives, more than the toll Britain suffered from its recent Falklands War. The tribute on Friday was widely interpreted as a memorial for the 52 victims of terrorist bombings in 2005, which occurred on July 7, the very next day after London was awarded these 2012 Olympic Games. The 2005 bombings were believed to be al-Qaeda retribution for British involvement in the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.

While it is understandable that NBC has financial incentives to boost its audience with its selection of content exclusively broadcasted to Americans, this particular decision was ignominious. July 7 bombings were the 9/11 attacks for Britain, and occurred while the country was still in jubilation knowing it would host the 2012 Olympics. For any country to purposefully avoid such dedicated tribute at that moment for the marginal financial gain is classless, but in particular for NBC on behalf of the United States to do so was even more disgraceful.

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