The Cubs broadcast on Marquee Sports Network has improved over time, but still has a major flaw: occasional lack of feel for the moment. The issue is not game-specific situations, but how the broadcast should reflect the team’s current stretch, whether good or bad. When the Cubs are winning, light, preplanned topics can be enjoyable, including offbeat segments about nutrition items, uniforms, or unrelated hobbies. During frustrating periods, such as losing multiple consecutive series, these non sequiturs feel out of place and increase annoyance. Irrelevant conversation can lead viewers to hit the mute button, reducing engagement despite attempts to create an overall gameday experience.
"No, I don't mean any particular game-specific moment, like if a guy is up at the plate with the bases loaded and two outs or whatever. But rather the slightly larger moment in time ... as in, the particular stretch the team is experiencing, good or bad, and how that should impact the broadcast, pre-planned segments, and overall conversation during a matchup."
"When the Cubs are winning, and everyone is feeling good, go ahead, tell me about the apple sauce squeeze pouches Ben Brown is getting from the team's nutritionist. Or opine on the stylistic wisdom of the Brewers' mismatched uniforms. You can even go off on a tangent about which type of fishing - fly fishing or regular fishing - is the most prevalent in America."
"But when the Cubs have lost four consecutive series, including back-to-back series against the White Sox and Brewers in the middle of a particularly frustrating stretch, those types of non sequiturs don't just land on deaf ears; they actively make me more annoyed. More frustrated. And less likely to tune into Marquee at all."
"They don't want people hitting the mute button, but I can tell them from first-hand experience that's what happens (people, both friends and followers of the site, tell me that all the time). Again, I do understand that the team is trying to produce an overall gameday experience and that a few preplanned segments or one-off conversations are going to happen."
Read at Bleacher Nation
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