CBS changes its angle on 'Cable Cam'
The good news for the 68,000-plus who will be watching Sunday's Colts-Patriots game in person at Gillette Stadium is that the weather should moderate by game time.
The even better news for the national audience -- larger by about 25 million homes -- who will be watching the game on television (Channel 4, 3 p.m.) is that CBS will be more judicious in its use of the "Cable Cam" than it was during last Saturday's Titans-Patriots game.
Those shots, which show the action from a camera suspended by cables over the field, above and behind the quarterback, are able to take viewers where they've never been able to go before. Trouble is, large numbers of viewers in Patriot Nation are saying, "Don't go there." The outcry following last weekend's telecast was unprecedented, in that it was over a techno-artistic (yes, I made that word up) aspect of the coverage.
The barrage of e-mails from outraged viewers in the Northeast at first made CBS officials think the reaction was part of an organized campaign by a radio show. Instead, it was a grass-roots reaction that showed that a large part of the football-viewing audience not only is wise to the nuances of the game but also is savvy when it comes to the technology employed in sports TV coverage.
CBS used "Cable Cam" on live plays more than ABC, ESPN, or Fox have. And so far, the shot seems best suited for replays, though it works well on kickoffs, running plays, and shorter field goals. The problem: While high-definition viewers get to see the action across the field, standard-definition viewers -- still the vast majority -- generally see just "between the numbers," not a complete picture of the game. Still, the networks want to cater to the HD market, which is growing, especially among sports fans, faster than anyone projected.
"In the second half, we perhaps used it more than we will in the future. But overall I liked the look of the camera," said CBS Sports president Sean McManus.
"We'll use it again this weekend and in the Super Bowl," said CBS Sports executive producer Tony Petitti. "It was only the second time our guys used it, but in general I was pleased with the way it performed. It takes a while for people to get used to the view. It brings a lot of motion to the action on the field. We know the 50-yard line view is the preferred way to watch. But people sit all around the field, and some plays are better illustrated from behind."
Translation: CBS went to school on last Saturday's telecast and will adjust for Sunday's game.
Fox analyst Troy Aikman said, "I prefer [that view] as a replay camera. No. 1, you see the action in the trenches and get a better feel for what the linemen are doing and seeing. No. 2, it's best for giving the perspective of what the quarterback sees when he's throwing and how that relates to seeing the receivers. When it's used live, it can become a matter of whether you guess right. I find it effective when it's a running play. You can track the play developing and see blocks."
They rate
McManus says the Patriots have become the AFC network's best national team. "Before, it was Pittsburgh or Oakland," he said. "But the Patriots team plays well on TV. It's a matter of how they've done it. They've been to two Super Bowls in recent years and developed a big national following that transcends New England." . . . Last weekend's national ratings were a local talk-show topic because Patriots-Titans (15.9 rating, 27 share) was the lowest rated of the four playoff games. Putting games on Saturday night -- considered TV's ratings wasteland -- actually came about because, in past seasons, 1 p.m. games on Saturday drew even worse ratings. "The night games have become a marquee event with a prime-time cachet," said McManus, "and they generally get similar ratings to Saturday's 4 p.m. game." . . . Fox Sports president Ed Goren noted, "We hit the trifecta [in postseason] with back-to-back-to-back overtime games." All three of the network's postseason games went to OT. Fox also had the desirable 4 p.m. TV window on both Saturday and Sunday last weekend, with Panthers-Rams doing an 16.6 rating and 32 share Saturday and Packers-Eagles a 23.8, 40 on Sunday . . . Sunday's 1 p.m. Colts-Chiefs game on CBS did a 19.7 rating and 42 share. "We got a bad break Saturday with the Rams-Panthers overtime bleeding into our [Patriots-Titans] game. I'd say it cost us .6 or .7 of a rating point," said McManus. "The Saturday rating was about as anticipated. Sunday [Indianapolis-Kansas City] was on target, too, especially without a large-market team involved." . . . Both McManus and Goren call the Super Bowl pretty much bulletproof as far as ratings go. "You know you'll come in above a 40 rating. The question is how much," said Goren . . . CBS has the Super Bowl this year, and Goren wishes his AFC rivals the best, saying, "I hope they hit one out of the park, to borrow a baseball term. I hope the game does big numbers and they sell out all the commercials, because we'll be selling next year's game off what they do." . . . McManus conceded that Colts-Panthers wouldn't be his ideal Super Bowl matchup, but added, "You play the hand you're dealt, and I'd rather have a close game that goes down to the last play, with two small-market teams as opposed to two large-market teams in a blowout." . . . Fox ends its 10th NFL season with today's Panthers-Eagles NFC Championship game (Channel 25, kickoff at 6:49 p.m.). Goren: "I love our booth with Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, and Cris Collinsworth. They've been together for two years, and I couldn't be prouder of this group. I think back to the glory days of `Monday Night Football' when Frank Gifford, Don Meredith, and Howard Cosell each brought a different perspective and element to the broadcast."
Area airwaves
Locally, Patriots coverage continues across the dial this weekend. Channel 7 has "Charge for the Championship" tonight at 7:30. Last Friday, the Channel 7 crew of Joe Amorosino, Gary Gillis, Wendi Nix, and friends scored with a 4.3 rating for its "Clash with the Titans" preview . . . Channel 38 has a special edition of "Patriots Game Day" tomorrow at 8 p.m. plus Sunday's postgame "5th Quarter" . . . Channel 4 has a two-hour "Patriots Game Day" Sunday, hosted by Bob Lobel, from noon-2 p.m., before CBS's "The NFL Today." . . . Channel 5 does its "Patriots All Access" live tomorrow (7-8 p.m.) from the league's AFC Championship party at Gillette Stadium, indicating that the station has become the team's official local TV station for the playoffs. Channel 5 hopes for many live guests. Already in the can: a Mike Lynch sitdown with linebacker Roman Phifer; Ed Harding with "all-access" footage from the locker room after the Titans game; and a Mike Dowling report from Indianapolis . . . NECN has ex-Patriot Pete Brock on tomorrow night's "Latenight" at 11, and will have Steve Nelson join sports staffers Chris Collins, Mark Ockerbloom, and Mike Giardi for a postgame show. CN8's Lou Tilley hosts a combination Boston-Philadelphia preview show tomorrow at 9:30 p.m. with Ron Jaworski and Ed Berliner. Sunday, the Philadelphia-based station will do a one-hour show following the Eagles-Panthers game . . . FSNE has "N.E. Tailgate" tonight at 6, with Brock on "New England Sports Tonight" at 6:30, leading into Celtics-Magic. After the game, Scott Zolak joins "NEST" hosts Gary Tanguay and Greg Dickerson at 10 . . . Channel 56 does an expanded "Sports Zone Extra" Sunday at 10:30 p.m. . . . Channel 25's Butch Stearns and Rob Nikoleski will do what could become another delayed "Sports Sunday" live from Gillette Stadium following Fox's NFC Championship game coverage.
Packed schedule
Big week for Bob Neumeier. The WEEI midday talk show co-host was master of ceremonies for the Boston baseball writers' dinner on Monday, was part of the Eclipse Award-winning Preakness coverage team for NBC, and will call Boston University-Boston College hockey tomorrow at 7 p.m. for FSNE. NESN will carry tonight's opener of those teams' home-and-home series, with Tom Caron and Andy Brickley calling the action from BC. There will be an intermission ceremony to retire former player and coach Len Ceglarski's number . . . NESN did a 4.9 rating for Cam Neely's number retirement ceremony Monday, and a 3.4 for the ensuing Bruins-Sabres game . . . Steve DeOssie will be part of Channel 4's pre- and postgame Patriots coverage but also will appear on "Sports Rap" with Norm Karkos tonight at 8 on Portland's Channel 8. Ex-BU player Travis Roy joins Karkos in studio tomorrow during the station's UMass-Maine hockey telecast.
Bill Griffith's e-mail address is griffith@globe.com
