The best way to get the true experience

Everyone has their favorite way to experience the game.

Whether it's being at the venue cheering on your team, being in front of the TV in the comfort of your home, or listening to the radio announcer call the game.

So, which is best?

I have to say, there's nothing like the atmosphere of being in the stadium.

Nothing tops the fans, the cheers, the pop of a baseball on a bat, the sound of pads and helmets colliding on a football field, and the P.A. announcers and their quirky catch phrases.

But if you don't have the option of being at the game, do you rely on the TV or the radio?

Or are you one of those people that watches the game with the TV on mute while listening to the radio play-by-play?

I'm going to stick to just going with one or the other, but if that's where you fall, carry on my friend. I can't blame you.

For me personally, the radio wins hands down.

Why?

Sure with TV you've got the pleasure of seeing the action as it happens and visually keeping up with the game, but the advantages of the radio are some that I can't see passing up.

It's ironic I'm saying this since I want to go into TV broadcasting. I'm certainly not discouraging anyone from watching the games this way, and it depends on the sport you're talking about too, but I'll get into that in a minute.

With TV announcers, they are usually hired to broadcast individual games, maybe working with the conference, but they don't build relationships with the players.

The radio announcer knows the team. No, really, he knows them. He didn't just get assigned the game, learn the players names, and go to work (I'm not saying all TV guys are this way, but hopefully you see where I'm coming from).

He eats, sleeps, and breathes his team's sport.

That, I can admire.

He puts so much passion into the game and into the team, how can it not be infectious?

Tuning in to the radio also gives you the listener the pleasure of creating the scenery in your mind.

Usually, you know the setting of the game you're tuning in to. But you can't see the action happening before your eyes. However, sometimes seeing it with your mind is even better. You create the action that the announcer is broadcasting through his descriptions and details.

I'll admit that my opinion on this could change depending on the sport, but in general, I truly love listening to games on the radio.

For football? Sure, you can't beat being in the stadium or on the field, but hearing the play-by-play announcer say "Massaquoi massacres him" when your defensive tackle takes out the ball carrier, well, it doesn't get much more vivid for the imagination.

I love watching football in person and on TV, but the radio still adds a flair that TV can't for me.

And for baseball, it's just different listening to the guys who know your team fill the time between pitches, versus the guys who throw out stats and the things they read up on during the week to fill TV time.

All this is coming from a TV broadcaster, not a radio broadcaster, though I have worked in radio before.

Describe it to me and let me visualize it in my mind.