Media reviews of Fox's first Super Bowl telecast were
generally positive, however, most critics noted the lengthy,
five-hour pregame show as a bit too long.
REVIEWS: The AP's John Nelson: "Fox did a great job on
its first Super Bowl. ... Green Bay left New Orleans the
biggest winner of the day. Fox was second-biggest"
(AP/DETROIT NEWS, 1/27). In Cincinnati, John Fay calls
Fox's broadcast "solid. Not spectacular ... but solid."
Fay notes the "weakest part of Fox's day was the pregame
show" (CINCINNATI ENQUIRER, 1/27). In Charlotte, David
Poole: "The game itself was about as good as Fox could have
hoped" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 1/27). In Dallas, Barry Horn
notes Fox's cameras "were dead on," and adds that the TV
ratings "should be kind" as both teams "put on a great
show." Horn, on the pregame: "If Fox has won television
rights to the Hundred Years War, would its pre-game show
have lasted 167 years" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 1/27). In DC,
Leonard Shapiro: "This was clearly a rare Super Bowl shoot-
out to remember. ... Fox's game coverage was generally
superb" (WASHINGTON POST, 1/27). In Hartford, Jerry Trecker
calls the telecast "bland" (HARTFORD COURANT, 1/27). In
Miami, Barry Jackson calls the five-hour pregame show a
"mind numbing marathon," but "thankfully, the game broadcast
moved considerably faster ... In its first Super Bowl
production, Fox proved again it can handle the big event"
(MIAMI HERALD, 1/27). In Milwaukee, Bob Wolfley: "The
pregame show was too long, but once the game arrived, Fox
clicked into telling the story with its signature
thoroughness and energy" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 1/27).
In N.Y., Bob Raissman, on Fox's telecast: "Amid all the
hype, promos and hoopla, they gave fans a clean and
insightful production" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 1/27). In N.Y.,
Richard Sandomir: "What did Fox Sports prove with its three-
and-a-half hour pre-game show? That there's not enough
worthwhile material to merit such a ... load" (N.Y. TIMES,
1/27). But Phil Mushnick calls the pregame "creatively
staged and well researched. ... it held our attention" (N.Y.
POST, 1/27). In Philadelphia, Bill Fleischman notes Fox had
a "smooth telecast" for "a competitive Super Bowl"
(PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS, 1/27). In Philadelphia, Mike
Bruton: "Fox Sports did fine last night -- for a rookie"
(PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 1/27). In St. Pete, Ernest Hopper:
"Fortunately for viewers, Fox delivered and moved a step
closer to becoming a major player in the industry and not
just the fourth network" (ST. PETERSBURG TIMES, 1/27). In
Tampa, Carter Gaddis writes on Fox's broadcast under the
header, "Fox Both Clever, Clumsy" (TAMPA TRIBUNE, 1/27). In
Toronto, Rob Longley: "Thankfully, once the game started,
Fox didn't gimmick us to death." But Fox's field level mike
"in the Packers' pre-game huddle provided an X-rated movie
the NFL usually takes pains to avoid" (TORONTO SUN, 1/27).
