OT: Most Annoying Modern Day Media Cliches, Trite Phrases Etc.
Last week I was grinding my hands at a stop light listing to SportsRadio (pick one) and the "clown with the Mike" stated. "I really don't like Wings chances winning 4 of 5." upon the Wings return for game three. Seven Game series are so limited on their analysis, so whether or not the Wings can make it or not is yet to be seen. Through 12 months of sports I cant get through the sporting calendar without hearing "Tackling In Space" or "Walk Off Homer."
Whether it is "Boo Ya" or whatever I would like your input on what terms and phrases need to be eliminated for the goodness of all sporting mankind.
Love the Blog, I'll Hang Up and Listen
There are many cliches I cannot stand but one that has recently been driving me crazy. A tigers fan living in Chicago, I am forced to listen to the White Sox broadcasters instead of Mario and Rod. After the last strike of every single Sox strike-out he says "He gone!" It's unbearable.
Than Hawk with his 'He gone' or 'Can of Corn' or 'Put it on the booooaaaarrddd...YES!' or 'Take some bench!'
Luckily the Sox suck this year. Love it.
Using "craft" when talking about a guy's physical skills/technique. And "playing within himself."
I can't stand it when commentators say stuff like "You know, the Red Wings are 15-1 this season when both Datsyuk and Zetterberg score a goal." Nooo, really? And I'll bet they're undefeated when Datsyuk, Zetterberg, AND Franzen all score. Why is that interesting? Basically they're just telling the viewers, "Well, when the Red Wings' players have a good game, they typically end up winning..."
Stats are my favorite meaningless sportscaster trick (by favorite, I mean drive me crazy). Oh, in games where they lead by thirteen in the last twenty-seven minutes, they're undefeated. Okay, and if you'd stretched that to twenty-eight minutes they'd have one loss? Nice to know, I guess.
That actually happened in the Redwings game last night - "a bit of a scrum in the corner" - and bothered me, too.
How about "Extra curricular activity" instead of "fight"?
WHat bothers me the most is the classic vanilla racial explanations. Generic black athlete "Oh he's athletic and explosive!" generic white athlete "Hes got grit and is a hard worker!"
As if no black athletes have grit or work hard and no white athletes are athletically gifted or explosive. It isn't thrown out there as much as it was say ten years ago but it still pops up ALOT in peoples explanations of certain athletes tendencies or positives.
Personally I love when this happens thanks to The League.
Black coaches: Oh he's a real class act.
Black players (as used by my high school basketball coach): "These guys can jump out of the gym"
White players: He's a real gym rat!
Hispanic players: Oh yeah he's a real firecracker.
that if a black linebacker chases you down it's because he's super athletic and if a white linebacker chases you down, it's because he had the knowledge, grit, and understanding to know that he had to chase down the opponent. It has nothing to do with the white guy also having 4.3 speed.
Don't forget that black quarterbacks are almost always compared to other black quarterbacks, and white running backs and receivers are almost always compared to other white running backs and receivers.
It's never a case of the winning team simply being better than the losing team, either in talent or in coaching. Nope, sportswriters and fans have the amazing ability to read the minds of the losing team:
"They didn't want it badly enough"
I hate anything involving the word "nation" (ie. red sox nation).
"It is what it is" and "at the end of the day." Jim Rome did a bit about how, no matter the situation or athlete, in an interview at least one (and often both) of these phrases will be used. He was right.
I'm surprised I had to read this far down the thread to find "at the end of the day" being mentioned. That one drives me nuts.
........anything coined by Dick Vitale.
"Flip the script". Godawful.
"Facing adversity".
Hate when announcers are explaining an injury and they say:
So and So is out with an elbow or a knee or a face.
FOOTBALL ANNOUNCING
"This team just needs to figure out how to make plays."
NFL DRAFT
"This pick is a really good value."
BASEBALL
{Pitcher with 6-2 record but 5.90 ERA} "He just knows how to win ballgames."
"He has a closer's mentality. He knows what it takes to pitch in the ninth inning."
"This guy has a lot of upside." I blame Mel Kiper who doesn't think "potential" is sexy enough. Sometimes he even forgets the meaning of his own bs sports cliche and refers to a player's "potential upside."
Another annoyance: sportswriters, especially at espn, who obsessively write "impact" when they mean "effect" (or "affect"). You kids, who need to get off my lawn, probably don't find that irritating.
...is analysts saying "That being said..." as a transition from one inane observation to another. If you have to use that crutch, at least keep it simple: "That said...", or "On the other hand...".
I've read several sports columnists (and others) who use the phrase, "That being said, ..." To which I think, "No, you dolt, you didn't say it, you wrote it!"
Using the word literally in the exact manner it's not supposed to be used in: "He literally ripped his head off on that play"
I'm just waiting for some analysts to start saying, "Man, he just FIGURATIVELY knocked him out of his cleats!"
I once heard a play-by-play guy say something like "That defense is literally a stone wall."
Circa 2008: "Rodriguez is going to have a hard time bringing the 3-3-5 to Michigan; we'll see how it goes"
Used in sports and regular life. Hate that one.
"He has great hang time." (Insert comment on science education in the U.S.A.)
"He plays the game the way it's supposed to be played."
"Tonight on CBS -- CSI Des Moines!"
"HOW 'BOUT THOSE DUKIES!!!"
"See? Right there! He just comes around the corner and ... BOOM!!!"
Anything said by an ESPN dork as he's introducing the lead story on "Highlight Express" ...
"The spread doesn't work in cold weather. When the temperature drops to 15F, as it commonly does in the Upper Midwest in October, the ball becomes hard as a rock. Midget Floridian receivers won't be able to catch it. You need a big guy to POUND the ball in those situations."
I was okay with that, but when CSI Alpena came out, I drew the line.
But the following is a linguistic pet peeve of mine:
I was thinking to myself...
Unless you're a clairvoyant or a visitor from another world, you can't think to anyone except yourself.
That running back is a real home run hitter. Sidney Crosby at No. 1 was a slam dunk pick. You get where I'm going with this.
That running back is a real home run hitter. Sidney Crosby at No. 1 was a slam dunk pick. You get where I'm going with this.
On Channel 4 news in Columbus, sports guy Jerod Smalley frequently uses the handle 'J-Rod' on live broadcasts.
Best ever. Worst ever. Craziest ever.
I also hate "take it to the next level" or "step their game up". Just a less-straightforward way of saying "play better". FUCK OFF AND TAKE YOUR SUPERFICIAL ANALYSIS WITH YOU, YOU ARE ADDING NOTHING BY SAYING THIS.
These are announcer specific but I fear they are catching on. I hate:
"...National Football League" and
"He can make all the throws" especially when talking about an NFL QB. Duh, he's a QB in the NFL
I'm so beyond sick of EVERY GAME needing to be broken down by a panel of talking head "experts" on SportsCenter for 15 minutes. SC has become so watered down with these segments that it's pretty much intolerable to watch now -- especially because most of these experts can't even form a complete sentence.
CASE IN POINT: On last night's SportsCenter we got to hear Magic Johnson spend 5 minutes repeating himself about how the Lakers' play was embarassing (no shit Magic, thanks for that), while all of 30 seconds were spent showing Wings/Sharks highlights.
...NHL highlights you watch the NHL Network, NFL highlights the NFL Network, MLB highlights MLB Network (or MLB.com), and NBA highlights NBATV. SportsCenter is pathetically bad.
As for why ESPN chose to show Magic Johnson lamenting about his former team in the second largest US TV maket ending their run for another three-peat in spectacular flameout fashion vice a non-deciding game between two NHL teams who are not defending Stanley Cup champions I think that's fairly self evident.
that it makes sense for them to pander to big markets. I also understand that the Lakers' flame-out was one of historic proportions and obviously deserved more attention than the Wings/Sharks game.
The content still needs to add value though. If they want to spend time giving me thoughtful insight as to why the Lakers were so bad, or where they go from here, that's fine. But hearing Magic Johnson slowly repeat obvious statements after watching several minutes of post-game press conference fluff is just Goddamn mind-numbing. SportsCenter doesn't need to be 2 fucking hours long.
I realize that I can go online (or to ESPNews, or wherever) if I just want to see highlights, but why does SC have to be so irritating to watch now? I honestly don't know who is still watching it at this point, not counting the people who leave it on and set the sleep timer.
It got really bad at the beginning of the NBA season when ESPN would break down a 20 point Miami Heat win for 10 minutes.
...who cares if SportsCenter is being filmed in Connecticut or Los Angeles? I don't get the whole "SportsCenter: L.A." thing. Are the highlights better if they're broadcast from the West Coast?
1. Skill player.
2. Using the term literally when you mean figuratively, or when you don't mean anything.
"[Mike Hart] is a little guy but he's got a big heart" not funny or clever the first time.
"...is a real heady player" not even really sure what that means.
"...is a great teammate" how do you know, are you his teammate?
"...after Lloyd Carr resigned..." we've been over this.
"...doesn't wow you with the physical stuff, he's just a good football player" okay...
When the announcers talk about momentum of a game shifting too often. If the momentum is swinging back and forth, as announcers sometimes say, then there is no momentum.
Also: stud. "This kid's a stud." You mean he's kept around specifically for the purpose of breeding more of him? Nowhere in the dictionary does "stud" refer to being good at anything except fucking.
Is the Master of Talking About Momentum Shifting. It annoys me so incredibly much.
Not that being a stud is a bad thing...
I love pressing other peoples' buttons!
But...girls want to, and do, fuck athletes.