Dave Mazza is a planner. That’s a very good thing for you and me, because starting tomorrow, all Mazza’s planning will come together to help bring about 325 hours of daily Olympic programming to TVs, computers, and phones in the U.S. He’s featured in a New York Times story this morning that reveals, among other things, his penchant for setting alarm clocks 3+ years in advance. Mazza has a reminder in his calendar that’s set to go off as the opening ceremonies get underway tomorrow. He set that reminder as the 2008 Olympics were coming to a close. The Times writes:
What a difference a decade makes. In Sydney, Australia, for the 2000 Summer Olympics, NBC sent three video feeds, technically called circuits, to the United States. Now it sends 92. They show up as small lines of strings on the diagram, each with a different color name (turquoise, scarlet, taupe, maroon, azure; colors translate well around the world) and a different purpose.
As engineer-in-chief for NBC sports, Mazza’s been through this before. He’s been in London for three months, along with a team of almost 100, laying cable, testing switches, and building control centers all so you can get your fill of synchronized swimming or sculling or whatever sport you like to watch every four years… basketball(?).
So, before you go cursing your smartphone because the Olympic feed is buffering and you have to wait 30 seconds before you know who bounced their way into the quarterfinals of trampoline, think about Dave Mazza. Maybe check out the Beijing finals while you wait:
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.
