TV Production 101

For a sports fan, today was a perfect day to spend in front of the TV, as there were great finishes to be witnessed on both the football field and the baseball diamond. But the two best post-game celebrations of the day were marred by an entity that rarely gets criticized: TV production teams.

Both the Giants-Padres game and the Jaguars-Colts games featured enthusiastic on-field celebrations as soon as they were over. Mind you, these weren't surprising, trick-play endings that might catch a TV crew off-guard. In the Giants game, there was a 3-0 lead heading in to the top of the 9th. In the Jaguars win, they had been driving to set up a game-winning kick. Yet as soon as both games ended, a huge pet-peeve of mine reared its head: the parade of quick-cuts during the celebration. Instead of staying on one shot of victorious players celebrating, the CBS and CSN Bay Area crews showed us the coaches, then the losing players, then fans, then, players on the field, then players off the field...you get the idea. Because of TV Producer ADHD, we missed the full swarm of Giants rushing to the infield and we missed the complete shot of Jags kicker Josh Scobee elatedly running a victory lap. Why is 1.2 seconds too long too stick with a dramatic visual?

Here's a simple rule: in baseball, show the dogpile around the pitcher. In individual sports like golf and tennis, give us a tight shot of the winner's face. In all other sports, stay on a wide shot of all the victorious players roaming onto the field. Often times, the simplest visual is the best visual.