SVG Summit 2022: Panelists Sum Up a Challenging, Pivotal Moment in Broadcast Sports

Pithy comments tell the story of these times

Scores of panelists spoke reams of words at the SVG Summit last week, but there were plenty of Dorothy Parker moments, when a succinct observation or concise comment spoke volumes. It’s what happens when great storytellers get together.

“Work has come back as a tidal wave. The business is on the top of the mountain, and we are on the chairlift.” — Mary Ellen Carlyle, SVP/GM, Dome Productions

On the shortage of trained A1s: “We’ve seen a few shows where the A2 mixed the show, because that was our only option.” — Bob Carzoli, chairman/CEO, ProCrewz

On the steady shift toward at-home production: “Trucks are not going away.” — Glen Levine, president, NEP US Broadcast Services

On supply-chain problems: “There are thousands of parts in a mobile unit, and it hurts to have to wait on one single piece.” — Nick Garvin, COO, Mobile TV Group

On supply-chain problems: “We’re good at sharing resources and moving equipment around, but there always has to be a Plan B.” — Glen Levine, president, NEP US Broadcast Services

“Freelancers are not like corporate employees: they have finite resources, and we have to understand that they have to maximize them. There’s no line around the block of people wanting to come into the industry.” — Bob Carzoli, chairman/CEO, ProCrewz

On the challenges that freelancers face with changing technology: “One day it’s REMI, the next day it’s in the cloud, the next day it’s Game Creek Anywhere. We’re not asking [freelancers] to just run a Calrec [console] anymore. They have to have a broader range of knowledge than ever before.” — Carzoli

“All media strategy is wholly temporary.” — Josh Stinehour, principal analyst, Devoncroft Partners

“The cloud is a way station on [the industry’s] way to data- and AI-automated solutions.” — Stinehour

“For the first time, the mobile[-production] providers are talking to each other, and those that aren’t will be left behind.” — Michael Connelly, SVP/EP, Bally Sports

“I’m struck by the amount of risk that we’re willing take now as an industry, doing shows from at home on the internet while the kids are watching Netflix.” — Susan Stone, SVP, operations and engineering, MLB Network

“Our tolerance for risk has greatly increased.” — Mike Davies, SVP, technical and field operations, Fox Sports

On the arrival of immersive broadcast audio: “We laid down the pipes for this. Now it’s a matter of content creators getting the content into them.” — Jim Starzynski, director/principal audio engineer, NBCUniversal