Has your opinion of the Rio Olympics changed in the last week?
Honestly, I did not know what to expect when I turned on the Olympic Games for the first time. The bad publicity surrounding the 31st Olympiad had me thinking I would see a half-built Olympic village and athletes wandering the streets of Rio like homeless waifs.
Would there be masses of spectators taken ill due to the Zika virus and open water athletes hospitalized from the raw sewage we had heard so much about? The oppressive heat had to have affected some performances, we were led to believe by the biggest dooms-dayers and nay-sayers.
Perhaps everything is not perfect, as swimmer Ryan Lochte and three teammates claim they were robbed at gunpoint and were afraid to say exactly what had happened. Overwhelmingly, however, what we have seen and heard have been not only surprising but spectacular.
The vestiges shown on TV, from the magnificent Olympic structures to the beaches and mountains of Brazil, have been far more breathtaking than heart-breaking. Surely, NBC wants to show Rio and the Games in their best light, hoping to bring viewers back after lower ratings the first week. The coverage, the camerawork, the commentary have been outstanding, from Phelps to Bolt, from basketball to gymnastics, from gorgeous golf courses to high winds during high diving.
Few incidents have been reported among the half-million people who descended upon Brazil, and what looked like awful publicity for a city and country have instead become infomercials for tourism. Al Michaels and Dan Patrick are not anchoring from air-conditioned trailers or secured studios. They are outside, beaches in the background, wearing long sleeve casuals and looking very much like all is serene.
The NBC networks, including two channels covering the Games in Spanish, have given those who have tuned in a scope and breadth that, considering what we heard coming in, make for a much different viewing experience than first expected. If there is bad news anywhere, NBC is bereft to report it. What we see everywhere are tears of joy, cheers for champions and athletes and fans proud to be there representing their countries. Just as any Olympics should be.
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