Burlington, Ontario -- October 9, 2000 -- Disappointing ratings and
criticism over tape-delayed, hyper-produced coverage aren’t the only
problems NBC is dealing with in the wake of its recent telecast of the
Sydney 2000 Olympics. Now comes word the network’s coverage of the Games’
closing ceremonies has outraged thousands of ballroom dancing fans.
"Since Sunday, October 1, that’s all the ballroom dancing community has
been talking about," said Robert Tang, the founder of www.DanceScape.com,
the Internet’s first and most comprehensive Web site devoted to
competitive ballroom dancing, also known as DanceSport. "People are saying
this is worse than what Jim Gray did to Pete Rose at last year’s World
Series because it didn’t just insult an individual, it insulted an entire
sport."
An "Olympic-recognized" sport currently being considered for official
event status at future Olympic Games, ballroom dancing was prominently
featured during the closing ceremonies at Sydney’s Olympic Stadium. But
DanceSport fans became upset when NBC showed only fleeting glimpses of the
dancers and announcer Bob Costas made what were regarded as flippant
remarks about the sport. "It was certainly disappointing," said Tang.
"Ballroom dancing is a highly athletic, enormously entertaining sport, and
it would have been wonderful if more viewers had been exposed to it,
especially in the United States and Canada."
To date, DanceScape.com has received nearly 500 complaints about NBC’s
coverage. Some are posted are http://www.dancescape.com/info.
A sampling:
"The announcers were condescending and rude." "Making a lame joke about
Rita Moreno pulling a hamstring only shows their ignorance." "We were
verbally abused and molested." "They diminished themselves in the eyes of
many thousands of North American viewers, not only ballroom dancers."
"Shame on you, Bob Costas!" DanceScape.com plans to forward the letters to
NBC.
"This has clearly touched a nerve," said Tang, himself a former ballroom
DanceSport champion. "Since we can’t depend on traditional networks like
NBC to put DanceSport in its proper light, we’re going to do it ourselves."
Tang said that DanceScape.com’s parent company, DanceScape Corporation of
Burlington, Ontario, is planning to launch www.DanceScape.TV, the
Internet’s first dance television network. "DanceScape.TV will be a place
for viewers to watch dance of all kinds and even receive online
instruction," Tang explained. DanceScape Corporation recently announced it
had received $1,000,000 (CAD) in first round funding from Timberline
Venture Partners, a venture capital firm based in Seattle.
Ballroom dancing is a multi-billion dollar industry that’s especially
popular in Europe and Asia, where it’s a well-established spectator sport.
Japan alone has over 15 million ballroom dancing enthusiasts. In the
United States, there are over 30,000 registered amateur ballroom dancers.
PBS’s annual telecast of Championship Ballroom Dancing attracts more than
5-10 million viewers.
