By Geoffrey Sorensen
A powerful voice in the world of sports broadcasting spoke with students about some of the most engaging issues of the business.
Mike Pearl, senior vice president and executive producer for ABC Sports and winner of 15 Emmy awards, interacted with students in the Business Development Center on Oct. 20.
The event, which was sponsored by the Frank G. Zarb School of Business, drew a crowd of approximately 50 students. Pearl, however, recognized the low turn out was probably due to the fact that sports fans were getting ready to watch game seven of the American League Championship between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox.
Pearl said the game was a “much more important event.”
Throughout his distinguished career with ABC Sports, CBS Sports and Turner Sports, Pearl has been involved in coverage of many Super Bowls and Olympics. Currently he works on programs such as “Monday Night Football.”
During the visit he discussed topics including how he broke into the business, his approach to broadcasting and current events.
Pearl said there are two ways to get a job like his. There is the traditional route, starting at universities and eventually working up. But he said he took the other path, “being in the right place at the right time.”
Pearl worked at a local station and got lucky when his boss was promoted to CBS Sports and decided to give him an opportunity to move up with him.
His philosophy on covering sports is called “coverage to D.I.E. for,” with the acronym representing the media’s responsibility to document, inform and entertain. He said a good broadcast mixes these three qualities and attracts both the avid fans and “non-hardcore” viewers.
Pearl credited the late Roone Arledge, a sports broadcasting pioneer, with developing the ‘up close and personal’ features. Focusing on the athletes as individuals was “an early form of reality TV,” he said. By showcasing the individual, more people would become interested in watching. As in any business, a conversation about broadcasting will always shift to money. For most sporting events, the broadcast networks do not make a profit because of the high costs of obtaining the rights, but continue to air them because they are a great promotional opportunity.
Referring to that night’s big ballgame, Pearl said, “A network will lose money in a four-game series, break even in a five-game series and games six and seven are profit.”
One man asked about the infamous Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake “wardrobe malfunction” during this year’s Super Bowl halftime show.
“They probably didn’t go through those motions when they rehearsed,” Pearl joked. “I think you’ll see a very toned down halftime in the future,” and more broadcasts will opt for the five-second delay so any inappropriate content can be removed. Pearl predicts there will be very few live programs on television in the near future.
When asked of his opinion on the growing use of graphics, Pearl said, “It’s gotten to the point where you’re too often reading the broadcast.” He also complained the announcers do not need to be constantly talking.
“There’s not enough of just letting the moments play,” he said.
At the conclusion of the event, Pearl was presented with a plaque of appreciation for taking the time to talk with University students.