There are three types of in-game commentator statements:
VALUE ADDED, GENERAL and MIND NUMBING.
Value added statements teach the listener something they
don’t know about the player, the sport or the venue. They
are quite rare.
General ones are the most common. They describe the
action, tell a story and generally inform. An announcer
who has a day of all general statements has called a great
game.
Mind numbing statements make listeners teeth rattle just
before they change the channel.
1. MISTAKES AND FACTUAL ERRORS
Statements as fact that are just flat out wrong. Nothing
irks a listener as much. This includes mispronouncing a
person’s name, giving a wrong score or misrepresenting
what’s happening in the game. Listeners will forgive a
casual slip of the tongue (It’s 6 to 3, excuse me, 7 to 3.)
But, we won’t forgive more than a few of those per game.
2. TRITE OR CLICHE STATEMENTS
“They gave it 110 percent”
Here are some from a review of 32 football games
(Gordon, 2013), and these all happened in the first quarter
of one game (oh my):
“They believe they can win.”
“It’s all about courage and having no fear.”
“… has a burning desire to get it done.”
“I always think it’s important to get off to a good start.”
Sometimes a statement is so good it becomes a catch
phrase. “Holy Cow! It might be, it could be, it is … a home
run” were two of longtime Cubs announcer Harry Caray.
These became signature sayings or catch phrases that
people love. Chris Berman’s “He could go all the way”
might be another, but he tends to annoy a LOT of listeners.
3. IT’S ALL ABOUT ME
Except for maybe when Vin Scully calls his final game for
the Los Angeles Dodgers or when it’s the broadcaster’s
mother, no listener has tuned in to a game to hear the
broadcaster. No one wants to hear a broadcaster’s stories
about themselves. (If you’re a former star athlete or coach
who’s been hired as a broadcaster and then asked to tell a
story, there’s a different set of rules not included here.)
It is NOT all about you.
© 2016 Jody Roginson
4. BLABBING, BABBLING AND
NONSENSICAL STATEMENTS
Here’s one of the most irritating statements to this author:
“That was some kind of play.” There is no reason to
utter that sentence. It gives a listener zero information
and is now, sadly, so commonly said that it’s also a trite
statement.
And when asking a question, get to the question quickly!
Don’t blab on or ramble.
Here are some actual nonsensical statements (Gordon,
2013) that illustrate babbling:
“A good challenge but maybe not worth the challenge.”
“Can they continue on like this without getting the big
plays? We can see the potential’s there. And I’ll tell you
this, that this offensive line, which is young, youngest in the
NFL, all high draft picks, if they get it together, its going to
change this football team entirely.”
5. OFF THE RAILS STATEMENTS
Learning how to weave a good story into a broadcast can
be useful, especially for sports like baseball and softball
where there’s time to develop them. But, if a story can’t
be summed up in 10 seconds, if need be, or isn’t directly
about someone at the game (athletes, coaches, family
members in attendance), it’s a safe bet the story will go off
the rails.
It is far better for the novice broadcaster to remain quiet
than to utter statements that fall into one of these five
categories. You are there to describe the action of the play
or to provide context about the sporting contest.
Learn to evaluation your own performances as you develop
your skills. Use the chart provided for you.
REVIEW YOUR WORK
Statement made (or time code)
Type (letter) Infraction (#)
Score for A (+2) Score for C (-2)
Total
Listen for your statements. Note the value added
Type of Statement
Infraction (for C: Mind numbing)
statements, when you said something that really
A = Value
1 = Mistake or factual error
adds to the story or is particularly descriptive in an
B = General
2 = Trite or cliche
interesting way, call that an A. When you commit an
C = Mind numbing
3 = Talked about self
error, mix up your words, ramble on, say something
4 = Blabbed, babbled, nonsense
really boring or trite, or generally goof up, check C.
5 = Went off the rails
Everything else is a B statement. These are the really
good and really bad only.
NOTES FOR SELF IMPROVEMENT: