Re: NBC did it again (780 Views)
Posted by:
BitPlayer (IP Logged)
Date: May 16, 2004 11:21AM
To me, this is racing's fault. When they negotiate contracts for TV coverage, racing could impose requirements, and they have consistently failed to do so.
Even when racing has total control, they fail to use it. There was a $200,000 Grade III sprint immediately before the Preakness that could have been run during ESPN's coverage, but was instead run after NBC had taken over, and was ignored.
Even ESPN's coverage of the races on the undercard was poor from a gambling perspective. Rather, than handicapping races and showing odds, they kept repeating the same features all day long.
It's almost as if racing and the people who televise it (other than TVG, of course) are embarrassed by the gambling aspect of the game. Wake up and smell the coffee. Gambling is not exactly unpopular, and without gambling, there is no horse racing.