For the next two a a half weeks, I will once again cover the Quadrennial International Sporting Event (don’t want to get sued for using the O-word).
I’m not a big sports fan, but QISE is an exception—not so much for the actual competition, but as a news / media / marketing / merchandizing event. (If you’re interested in the actual results, this is NOT the place to go). The opening/closing ceremonies, the swelling music, the histrionics, the hyperbole, the overblown graphics—that’s my sweet spot. I’ve been glued to QISE coverage since I was a kid.
I’m still a cord-cutter, and I’m not making the mistake I made last QISE to sign up for cable—just the Peacock coverage, along with what I can find online.
We’re already seeing a lot of QISE commercials—not just promos, but athletes hawking various products. The whole concept of amateur athletes has fallen by the wayside. It’s a far cry from Jim Thorpe, who had his medals pulled for making $877 (in today’s dollars) a week playing “professional” baseball in 1909-10, although the International QISE Committee reinstated them posthumously in 1983. Today, it’s estimated that Shaun White is worth $20M.
Tomorrow—the the games begin!