Blogger Ed Sherman reported due to economic changes, major newspapers no longer automatically "send an army of staffers to cover an Olympics." The Philadelphia Daily News and Philadelphia Inquirer "initially decided [to] skip the trip" to London and "returned the five credentials issued to the papers." However, columnist Phil Sheridan was sent "at the last minute." Daily News Exec Sports Editor Josh Barnett said, "It's exclusively a financial decision." The St. Paul Pioneer-Press made the "same decision, electing not to send a staffer." Pioneer-Press Senior Sports Editor Mike Bass: "With the size of staff we have, these are the decisions we have to make all the time." Meanwhile, Sherman noted the L.A. Times "isn't cutting back," as it has 13 staffers in London. USA Today also is "applying full-court treatment." USA Today Sports Media Group Senior VP/Content & Editor-in-Chief Dave Morgan said the publication's staff is 84 in total. Sherman noted that is "up from 60 in Beijing" (SHERMANREPORT.com, 7/30).
VISION OF LONDON: The GUARDIAN's Robert Booth noted NBC has "built sets to match" the Games' "iconic" London backdrops. The primetime evening set "is modelled on a long-ago gentleman's library." There is "faux wood panelling, walnut desks, lead crystal decanters and sepia portraits of Victorian ladies." It is a "vision of Britain familiar to generations of US tourists, but the antithesis of the image LOCOG has tried to project with its neon colour schemes and graffiti-style 2012 logo." The daytime studio "is fresher and features a 28-screen video wall" (GUARDIAN, 7/30).
LET'S SEE THAT AGAIN: The GUARDIAN's Josh Halliday noted the Opening Ceremony "racked up 1.7 million viewing requests on the BBC iPlayer since Saturday, setting a new record for the corporation's online catchup service." The BBC said that there "had been 925,000 iPlayer requests to view the opening ceremony on Saturday alone, from people who either missed Friday's opening extravaganza or simply wanted to replay the occasion." The Queen's "surprise acting debut alongside" Daniel Craig as James Bond has "so far been viewed 650,000 times on the BBC's YouTube channel" (GUARDIAN, 7/30).
