It’s Sunday, so I’d like to talk to you about cheeses…
Sorry…
Couldn’t help myself...
Actually, I spent much of Saturday watching CTV’s coverage of the Winter Olympics. And at a certain point, cheese balls began dancing in my head.
I wasn’t hungry. I just kept noticing all the tired clichés that seem to go hand-in-hand with Olympic broadcasts.
No dig at CTV intended. Although they did spend months promising the most innovative and creative Olympic broadcasting anyone has ever experienced. But, so far, it’s pretty much what we’ve all seen and heard before.
And I think a lot of that just comes with the territory.
It’s hard to cover an event like this without reverting to the “Wide World of Sports” format and pandering to national pride. There’s a lot of Mom and Apple Pie that comes built in. And, as any prairie kid will tell you, ice cream is nice but nothing tops a slice of apple pie like a healthy slab of cheddar.
Apparently, the derogatory term “Cheesy” originated in India, where it was picked up by British soldiers in the early 19th century. It pretty much meant then what it does today, something overly noticed and past its prime like the pong of an over-ripe cheese.
And let’s admit the truth. Cheese is easy.
It’s easy to make. You mostly find milk that’s going bad and let it.
A couple of years ago, I was shooting in a part of France that makes my favorite cheese. I was really looking forward to trying some fresh off the farm. But the day was hot and humid and all you could smell was the odor of that cheese wafting from every direction. It was so thick it clogged your throat and made your eyes water and I haven’t been able to go near it since.
Sort of like that experience with Tequila that I still can’t fully remember.
Anyway, cheese is easy. It makes a quick sandwich and is even quicker to slap on a cracker. And, of course, it perks up almost any meal.
I’m already starting to picture the Cheese Marketing Board ads Google is going to slap up around here if I say much more.
So, you caught me. It’s Sunday morning and I got nothing. Except the early bloat from being force fed all that CTV Olympic cheese.
And a cute cheese related video.
Y’see. Cheese is easy. But it can also be quite tasty if you work with it a little.
Maybe CTV should try harder.
Like the guys who made this.
Enjoy your Sunday.
2 comments:
I'm proud as hell that we got ourselves a Gold medal... but holy heck did they ever spread it on thick.
Every athlete has some sort of story or hardship they've overcome to be there, and CTV's not letting a single crumb of it get away.
Kudos to them for doing their research, but man if it doesn't come off as a little bit forced.
Tho' it is sort of funny to listen to the announcers who make casual digs at the other countries/competitors.
Who says Canadians are above a little bit of sniping? :P
The reason CTV broadcast is using so much cheese is that the coverage has a distinct odour!
And the odour of their brand of cheese is called Hubris.
Never before has a country bragged and boasted so much about their assured gold medals and obvious sporting superiority.
There was one country that ran a fanatical torch relay across their country and boasted about their athletic superiority -- that was in 1936!
CTV is making American broadcasters look like tame kitty cats. Even NBC is more realistic about their American medal hopes.
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