Fifth Sense: Federer-Nadal Earns NBC 10% Ratings Bump

NBC Sees 10% Gain In Overnight Ratings For Wimbledon Men's Final

REVIEW: In Toronto, Chris Zelkovich writes of coverage of the men’s final, “For the most part, NBC … [had] a minimum of hype, not filling the screen with distractions in the stands and letting the story unfold naturally.”  NBC’s Ted Robinson and John McEnroe “handled things with a mixture of wit and insight.”  However, NBC “might have overdone" shots of Bjorn Borg watching Federer tie his record for most consecutive men's titles (TORONTO STAR, 7/9).

FARE THEE WELL, MY BUDDY: NBC, after the completion of the Federer-Nadal match, aired a tribute to Bud Collins, who joined NBC in '72 and worked his last Wimbledon for the net this year.  In an interview with Jimmy Roberts, Collins said, “Thirty-five years of great memories, Jimmy. Terrific times, lots of fun. Beat working for a living, certainly.  And I want to thank my colleagues at NBC, and all of those out there who have encouraged me over the years. I’m gonna be moving on, but I’m gonna try to stay near tennis” (NBC, 7/8). SI.com’s Frank Deford wrote, “NBC fire Bud Collins? It might as well axe the peacock. Oh well, maybe CBS will be smart enough to hire him for the U.S. Open” (SI.com, 7/6).

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