Sounds of the Game
Several events over
the past few weeks have gotten me thinking about the way we hear sports. The first was the announcement that USC is
looking to "update
the football gameday experience" by replacing their longtime PA
announcer Dennis Packer. The second was Vin
Scully’s absence
during Dodger’s broadcasts, including the home opener, due to a bad cold. And the third was the Dodgers honoring their
longtime organist Nancy
Bea Hefley for 25 years of service.
We typically think of
sports as purely visual experiences.
However, when you take away the sounds of the game, you learn to
appreciate how important this sense is to your experience.
Growing up, my three
teams were the Lakers, the Dodgers, and USC football. I didn’t go to many Lakers or Dodgers games,
so I spent a lot of time watching them on television. This meant that I spent countless hours
learning the games from Vin Scully and Chick Hearn, arguably the two best
announcers in their respective sports. I
have no doubt that if it weren’t for these two great announcers, my love of
baseball and basketball wouldn’t be nearly what it is today. Watching games with them was like having
great conversations with your grandfather – you always left with vivid stories
of the past.
For USC, however, my
experience with the team was in the stadium, rather than on television. Hearing the booming “TOUCHDOWN USC” over the
PA system from Dennis Packer along with the roar of 90,000 screaming fans made
a huge impression on me as a child. When
news got out a couple weeks that USC was looking to replace their longtime PA
announcer, fans reacted strongly. USC
auditioned several potential replacements at their spring scrimmage today at
the Coliseum and it was quickly obvious that Dennis Packer is one of the best
in the business.
 |
| Longtime Dodger organist Nancy Bea Hefley |
USC football, along
with many other sports teams, is always looking to improve their in-game
experience for fans. This typically
means that they want to make their games more appealing to the younger
demographic (which I happen to be a part of) by playing loud music, having
exciting graphics, and having a PA announcer that could be confused for a
DJ. As you get older, though, you start
to realize that it was the old-fashioned parts of the experience that made you
feel a connection to the team. Nancy
Bea’s organ at Dodger Stadium, Vin and Chick on television, and the sound of
the USC band with Dennis Packer aren’t exactly the edgiest parts of our
experience with our favorite teams.
However, they are the most memorable; they help us to feel a connection
to the teams and the generations fans before and after us. When you take away these sounds of the game,
things just aren’t quite the same.
I definitely can relate and agree with you regarding the removal of sound. As a filmmaker I have examined the impact sound (music) in particular can have in order enhance a scene to increase emotion. I believe that's the same with sports and their announcers. I also am a fan of the Lakers and would watch them with Chick Hearn, it really isn't the same effect today as it was having him speak in the background.
ReplyDeleteI really agree with you about Packer. The athletic department refuses to answer questions about his dismissal, and everyone seems to think he did a really good job. There has to be some other motivation behind this other than "updating the game experience."
ReplyDeleteThere are so many ways for young people to spend their time nowadays, is it any wonder that franchises have to try extra hard to attract new fans that will be loyal for generations? An interesting thing that club soccer teams do in the UK is hire one superfan for each team to announce the games. When their is a game, the fan announcer from both teams sit in a box together and announce the game as fans might talk about the game in real time. I think as television looks for new ways to attract fans they could add several channels of dialogue for different generations of listeners. Though this would certainly cost them more money having announcers for the old crowd and the young crowd could definitely boost viewership and loyalty.
ReplyDeleteIt's a shame that USC is considering removing the announcer who has called games for years and though I can understand their reasoning I always wonder why the older generations are never catered to. I see many things moving toward capturing the youth, and it makes sense from a business standpoint, but I would love to see statistics about how many older people they are losing from viewership next to how many new viewers they are attracting.