NASCAR, which many consider a fairly simple sport, if one at all (go fast, turn left, repeat) is ahead of the learning curve when it comes to media coverage and giving their audience advanced options for viewing their races.
Scanning the headlines this weekend, I saw an article titled "As Daytona arrives, TV networks give viewers more options." I had been hearing buzz about the way NASCAR was changing the coverage of its races to make them more exciting and appealing to viewers, but had pretty much ignored it because I am one of those still unconvinced of NASCAR's validity as a sport. I don't even like being a passenger in a car...why in the world would I want to watch somebody else driving on TV? Personally, I think if you watch an entire NASCAR race you either a) are amused way too easily as seen by the fact that cars making left turns all day keeps you excited, or b) are simply waiting for a nice firey crash.
Anyway, I kept reading this particular article because of the sentence that followed the headline. "Future generations might be amazed that people used to have to attend NASCAR races to see the action in three dimensions. If so, historians might look back to this weekend as the turning point." Now this just lends itself to a blog entry the very week our reading was on visual technology changing the way viewers see things. Apparently, a new technology has been developed that will allow viewers to see the cars in a new type of 3-D coverage, allowing them to see things they have never seen before. The way it works is through a new system that collects various information about the car's speed, position, etc. via satellite, and then uses it to create what Fox Network called, "a camera shot that basically floats-like in a video game-so users can choose between three virtual views."
I'm not sure which amazes me more; the fact that we now have the technology to do something like this, or the fact that we are using this technology to do something like this for a sport like NASCAR. I guess that proves the famous maxim that if it can be done, it will be done. Either way, it represents a significant moment in that it presents an entirely new way to watch a sporting event, giving the viewer much more control over what they see. Technology has enabled viewers to basically attend an event without ever leaving their homes. Advances in visual technology have changed the ways these races will be watched, allowing viewers to not only see more, but choose what they see.
The technology available has also been adapted to suit NASCAR culture in an interesting way. Apparently NASCAR fans are famous for their loyalty to specific drivers, so various networks have taken advantage of the new technology, and developed driver-specific coverage that allows viewers to become way too involved with their favorite drivers. "ESPN will use 60-75 cameras..Each driver's channel will include two announcers — one in a TV production truck and one in the driver's pit — and will let viewers flip among such shots as a driver's in-car camera or a camera focused on his crew chief."
Networks have made use of the new media options to basically allow fans to feel like they are sitting right next to the driver, seeing what they see and hearing what they hear.
This has drastic implications for the way sports are viewed. The new technology has made coverage much more driver-centric, and has given fans many more options. It has also made the entire experience of viewing a race seem much more "real." It's amazing to think that you used to actually have to go to a racetrack to see these things. Now you probably get a more complete or detailed experience by staying at home and watching on your couch.
Scanning the headlines this weekend, I saw an article titled "As Daytona arrives, TV networks give viewers more options." I had been hearing buzz about the way NASCAR was changing the coverage of its races to make them more exciting and appealing to viewers, but had pretty much ignored it because I am one of those still unconvinced of NASCAR's validity as a sport. I don't even like being a passenger in a car...why in the world would I want to watch somebody else driving on TV? Personally, I think if you watch an entire NASCAR race you either a) are amused way too easily as seen by the fact that cars making left turns all day keeps you excited, or b) are simply waiting for a nice firey crash.
Anyway, I kept reading this particular article because of the sentence that followed the headline. "Future generations might be amazed that people used to have to attend NASCAR races to see the action in three dimensions. If so, historians might look back to this weekend as the turning point." Now this just lends itself to a blog entry the very week our reading was on visual technology changing the way viewers see things. Apparently, a new technology has been developed that will allow viewers to see the cars in a new type of 3-D coverage, allowing them to see things they have never seen before. The way it works is through a new system that collects various information about the car's speed, position, etc. via satellite, and then uses it to create what Fox Network called, "a camera shot that basically floats-like in a video game-so users can choose between three virtual views."
I'm not sure which amazes me more; the fact that we now have the technology to do something like this, or the fact that we are using this technology to do something like this for a sport like NASCAR. I guess that proves the famous maxim that if it can be done, it will be done. Either way, it represents a significant moment in that it presents an entirely new way to watch a sporting event, giving the viewer much more control over what they see. Technology has enabled viewers to basically attend an event without ever leaving their homes. Advances in visual technology have changed the ways these races will be watched, allowing viewers to not only see more, but choose what they see.
The technology available has also been adapted to suit NASCAR culture in an interesting way. Apparently NASCAR fans are famous for their loyalty to specific drivers, so various networks have taken advantage of the new technology, and developed driver-specific coverage that allows viewers to become way too involved with their favorite drivers. "ESPN will use 60-75 cameras..Each driver's channel will include two announcers — one in a TV production truck and one in the driver's pit — and will let viewers flip among such shots as a driver's in-car camera or a camera focused on his crew chief."
Networks have made use of the new media options to basically allow fans to feel like they are sitting right next to the driver, seeing what they see and hearing what they hear.This has drastic implications for the way sports are viewed. The new technology has made coverage much more driver-centric, and has given fans many more options. It has also made the entire experience of viewing a race seem much more "real." It's amazing to think that you used to actually have to go to a racetrack to see these things. Now you probably get a more complete or detailed experience by staying at home and watching on your couch.
1 comment:
I think this maxim should be rewritten as, "If it makes money, it will be done."
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