First off, this has nothing to do with my personal decision to boycott NBC directly until they get rid of Jeff Zucker (which started at about the time that I made this post). And when I say “directly,” I mean “direct viewership of NBC programming on my TV but It’s cool if I’m watching Chuck, Community or Parks and Recreation on Hulu.”
Yeah, I know, my brain is weird.
Truth is, I’ve never been able to get into the Olympics.
It has nothing to do with the entries of non-sports like ping pong (sorry, Forrest) or curling (aka “shuffleboard on ice”) being included on the bill. It’s not that I get bored with watching athletes compete, though watching other people exercise makes me feel fat and lazy. It’s not even the faux-patriotism that many people start to feel when cheering on their country, which is more of a social obligation than something people do by choice.
Actually, I don’t like the Olympics because it seems like I have to watch them.
The other broadcast networks black out their schedules with reruns when the Olympics are on. There are reports, specials, analysts and replays that clog up 24-hour news channels. Every other commercial is for a “proud Olympic sponsor.” Billboards, magazine articles, the main pages of websites…all of it a constant reminder that The Olympics Are On Right Now And I Should Be Watching Them.
Sure, there are similar marketing strategies involved for holidays, major-league sporting events, awards ceremonies and (sometimes) movies. But unlike these events which typically* last only a few days, hours, or less**, the Olympics go on and ON and ON for what feels like an eternity.
I’ll watch some of the opening ceremony (which is a day in and of itself) and tune in a few days later. Then, I’ll be flipping through the channels a couple of weeks later and BAM! The Olympics are still going on! It keeps going on and on and on even past the point of being welcome on my TV schedule, like a house guest who doesn’t know when to leave.
None of this is meant to speak ill of the athletes themselves; their athletic achievements are inspiring, and it takes an incredible amount of skill, dedication, perseverance and ability to get to the Olympian level. It’s just that watching the Olympics requires a far greater investment of time and emotion than I am willing to give. But if someone can put together a highlights reel of the events for me that can be watched in under two hours, sitting down to watch the Olympics sounds a lot more plausible.
* Except Christmas, which started in July last year.
** You only really need to watch the last two minutes of any sports event to get the gist of the whole thing.
