ajaym@ihu1h.UUCP (Jay Mitchell) (08/08/84)
I was watching the ABC news after the olympic coverage last night and was surprised to see how well they condemned Rigby for her commentary all through the gymnastics. I admit they are probably trying to undo some of the damage she has done, but I thought it still calmed me down a bit. I doubt if she will be given the opportunity again. -- ------------------------- Jay Mitchell ihnp4!ihu1h!ajaym -------------------------
rs55611@ihuxk.UUCP (Robert E. Schleicher) (08/08/84)
One of the things that critics are getting down on Cathy Rigby-McCoy for is her gloating over goofs made by other teams. The tape clip thats run to illustrate Rigby's bias shows Ecaterina Szabo stumbling after an uneven bars dismount, as Rigby says, "That's a big break! The US should make up some ground here!!" (I think she actually says "We" when referring to the US.) When this clip is shown on the news (as in Gary Deeb's critique of ABC's coverage, on ABC's own Chicago affiliate), the impression given is that Rigby is saying "That's a big break!" to mean "what a lucky break for the US". In reality, I think her use of the word "break" is in its gymnastics use, meaning a break in the flow of a routine. Thus, there's nothing wrong with saying "That's a big break!", as it undeniably was a big break in the routine. I'm not defending Rigby, in that I feel her tone of voice and the way she refers to the US team as "we" are offensive enough. It has been bothering me a little, however, to see this clip shown repeatedly, with what I feel is an out-of-context quote. I also feel a little sympathy for Rigby-McCoy, as it looks like she has become the brunt of all of the criticism, when she is merely the most obvious example of US-slanted reporting. This may be her last big commentary job. Bob Schleicher ihuxk!rs55611 PS - Interestingly, the Australian press has been complaining about a pro-Australian bias in the telecast they're showing. This indicates that it's onlyt natural to focus on your own country, especially when the broadcast is only going out to your own country (for the most part).