Game Announcers ...
I had a big city, girls varsity, game last week. Not a big game. Just a big city. Midweek game, just a few dozen fans in the crowd. Game starts with the announcer doing a great job announcing the starting lineups, the coaches, and introducing the National Anthem singers. I turn to my partner and say to him, "This guy's going to really pump up this crowd."
I seldom actually listen to game announcers, but I noted a few odd "announcements" during the first period. Not only would he announce points, assists, personal fouls, and team fouls, but he would occasionally add in some comments, like, "That was a great steal by Mary Smith". I mentioned to my partner between periods that the announcer may be going over some editorial "line in the sand", but we decided to just let it go. Same thing in the second period. The announcements are hard to describe, but they are like the games that some of us may have seen back when ESPN used to broadcast those "And One" games, where the announcer is actually on the playing court with a wireless microphone. We also have a summer "proam" league here, with local professional, and college players, in the same city where this varsity high school game was played, and they also utilize an announcer on the playing court. My partner, and I, discussed this at halftime, and we decided that there were no NFHS rules being broken here, and to just let it go, with a report to our assignment commissioner to follow after the game. Well, with the home team up by a wide margin in the second half, the announcer decided to take it up a notch. The visiting fans seemed to take offense at some of the announcements. They didn't complain directly to us, there was just an uneasy murmur in the crowd. The straw that broke the camel's back was the following, "How could she miss both free throws?", after a visiting player missed both free throws. My partner, the referee, went over to the table and told him to cease and desist. After getting our report, our assignment commissioner backed us up 100%, and told us that he would contact the school, also telling them to cease and desist. Anybody else ever run into this problem? Are there any NFHS rules that define what game announcers can, and cannot announce? I don't believe that we get any guidance from our state interscholastic sports governing body in regard too this. Do other states have such guidelines in place? |
In Illinois, the PA Announcer sometimes reads a statement about how they expect sportsmanship from all involved. Wouldn't that be ironic if he had read a similar statement prior to your game?
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Unsporting ???
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If taken to an extreme level, this, I think could conceivably fall under 2-8-1:
Penalize unsporting conduct by any player, coach, substitute, team attendant, or follower. I agree "How could she miss both free throws?" is over the line. |
IMO, if they stick to "just the facts" (points, assists, fouls) then it's okay. If they go to play-by-play or editorializing, I tell them to stop.
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INO ??
I give up. It's not ours?:confused: |
That's The Word I Was Looking For ...
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Now back to the question. Is it the job of the officials, sans anything from the state interscholastic sports governing body, to stop "play by play" announcing, especially if it's not unsporting? |
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I've had it happen at football games, but not in a basketball game, at least not yet. |
Shaddup
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The play-by-play by game announcers seems to follow a plot development trick used in a recent spate of basketball movies -- the ones that inevitably involve some long-neglected or injured athlete overcoming insurmountable odds by taking a game deciding shot in slow motion and teaching a valuable life lesson to his/her parent/coach/teammates/concubine. These films show a PA announcer at courtside and he advances the story of the game through play-by-play. I have long feared that real PA announcers would decided this is how things should be. The "how can she miss" comment about a visiting player is deserving of having the announcer banished for unsporting conduct. There is no way it isn't taunting by someone under the authority of the home site manager, so it becomes a forfeit issue if it continues. |
Play By Play Defined ???
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"I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material I understand to be embraced within that shorthand description; and perhaps I could never succeed in intelligibly doing so. But I know it when I see it." (Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart, 1964) |
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Every Party Has A Pooper That's Why We Invited You ...
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Been There, Done That, Been There Again, Done That Again ...
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What's a Yute?
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Ok, maybe not so young. :o |
Down The Road To Ruin ...
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However, when you're a PA announcer, making such comments to a crowd could easily distract a player, and that's indeed unsporting, IMO. That's not the role of the PA announcer. From me, I'd tell game management "not again" once. After this, citing 2-8-1, removal and/or a T is justified, I say. |
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Define Play By Play ...
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Just What Is Play By Play ???
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Foul shots? OK. Field goals? OK. Assists? OK. Personal fouls? OK. Team fouls? OK. One minute warning? OK. Personal point totals, and fouls at halftime? OK. Most of us that have been around the block a few times can agree on that, I'm sure. Now let's have some fun. Steals? Rebounds? Blocked shots? Nice screens? "Assist" before an assist? Scores from other conference, or league, games going on at the same time? Do you see where this is going? Who says what can, or can't, be announced? If you want to leave it up to me, as the referee, in that game, that night, fine. I'll do my best. But what's to keep this from becoming one of those issues like the "Fashion Police"? "The official the other night let her play with that on." |
At my school we only announce the starting five for the teams and play ball.There are a couple of announcers in our league who do play by play but stay far away from giving commentary like this guy.
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It's The Old 1-18 Trick, Oldest Trick In The Book ...
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time-outs, intermission and post-game. The use of artificial noisemakers shall be prohibited. |
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If you find the announcer to engage in unsportsmanlike conduct, deal with it. IMO, distracting players with opinions, as opposed to mere facts, is unsportsmanlike. |
Un-Un-Sporting ???
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Standard PA here for pregame is to do general announcements, a sportsmanship statement (or 2), & the lineups following by National Anthem Singer(s)/Musicians or saying of Pledge of Allegiance. During the game, announce who scored/fouled, school district event announcements, & other general announcements. I have not heard once the mentioning of the PA saying anything unsporting (incite undesirable crowd reactions). At the end of the game thank everyone for attending, and remind everyone of the next home game. Like others have said, Rule 1-18 applies in this case as the PA is using the microphone to project his/her voice. |
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This same thing happened in a MS game for me a couple of years ago. My partner and I were doing the last 2 games of a 4-game set and the PA lady was doing play-by-play over the sound system (and I thought Dick Vitale was tough to listen to). I informed the crew at half-time of the second game (they were new officials looking for feedback) that she needs to stick to points/fouls/etc. only. They informed her and she ceased the play-by-play.
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