I grew up a fan of the Chicago Cubs and Buffalo Sabres, so it goes without saying that my childhood sports fandom was full of disappointment and not a lot of positivity. Until 2016, the Cubs were the poster-children of “here we go again.” Every time they gave their fans a glimmer of hope, it was…
Ten, or even five years ago, the notion of giving eSports the same attention and coverage as traditional sports would have been absurd. Who wants to watch people play games…and more importantly who wants to commentate that game play. However the growth of eSports broadcasting across the world can’t be ignored and is now a…
The single most important thing a broadcaster can do is prepare. You’ll see it all the time in spotting charts and research on teams and histories. Important match-ups or niche stats gleaned from hours of online digging. But it also rings true to the tech side of your broadcast, in particular having broadcast backups for…
One of the most challenging aspects of sportscasting has to be dealing with coaches. If there is a bigger ‘chalk and cheese’ in sports media, I’m not aware of it. Sportscasters want the inside information whereas coaches want to ensure a bubble around their team and players and while on many occasions these two sides…
Regular readers on Sportscaster Life may have noticed a bit of a lull through the latter stages of January and into the start of February. There has been good reason for that on two fronts, one I which I’m addressing here today. It’s been an extremely hectic time over the last few weeks, culminating in…
Building a demo reel can be an extremely tedious task. You not only need to follow a lot of the rules associated with producing a great audio or video demo reel, but you also need to FIND that material to start with. Having compiled more than a few demo reels in my time for both…
There is a huge difference between calling games on your own and having a colour analyst in the booth with you. Chances are throughout a season you’ll have to do both in order to cover your full schedule of games, and both setups require a bit of a different approach from a prep and execution…
In the light of Gordon Hayward’s ankle injury on national television to essentially open the NBA season, the topic of injuries is front and centre in a lot of sportscasters minds. Injuries are common place in sport. Most sports are at least semi-contact, and with that comes the likelihood of someone being injured. Thankfully most are…
The following article is sponsored by Spalk – Crowd Sourced Sports Commentary. To learn more, you can visit http://www.spalk.co. Imagine broadcasting any event, anywhere in the world, at any time. With millions of games and events going on in the world at any one time, the choice and opportunity for sportscasters is better than its…
If you’re lucky enough to have regular radio broadcasts, then you are well versed in the advantages and disadvantages of having a board op back at the radio station running commercials and helping you produce the show. Having an extra hand to get you through your 3-4 hour show can be invaluable, but there will…