Olympic broadcasters need to have personality, zero chill and the ability to know when to shut up
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Those are just three of the five things that make Olympic broadcasters great, according to Jen Chaney. The other two are expertise and the ability to match the mood of an event. Here is Chaney on the broadcasting quality of knowing when to shut up: "This matters because you can avoid saying things on live television that you’ll need to apologize for later, but even more importantly, it’s also a way to let a moment breathe. During Shaun White’s final gold-medal-winning halfpipe run earlier this week, the Todds (snowboarding commentators Todd Harris and Todd Richards) stopped talking as White prepared to go for his medal, letting the moment and the tension speak for itself. They did the same thing while White waited for his score to be announced. A good Olympics broadcaster can read a moment and understand when the best thing he or she can do is just get out of the way."
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TOPICS: Winter Olympics, NBC, Game of Thrones, Johnny Weir, Lindsey Jacobellis, Shaun White, Tara Lipinski, Todd Harris, Todd Richards, NBC Sports
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