ESPN's Hannah Storm and NFL Network's Andrea Kremer will make their debut on Amazon Prime's live stream of the Vikings-Rams "TNF" tonight, and the duo will "use their years of experience as reporters" to provide a "unique perspective," according to Lindsay Jones of THE ATHLETIC. Storm said it was important that the opportunity "wasn’t some kind of gimmick." Storm said she and Kremer are "very appreciative of the opportunity," and "knew that if we didn’t do this, then when is that next person going to get a chance?" Storm: "We had to do this." Jones noted the game feed will be simulcast from Fox, with Kremer and Storm "calling the game from a studio" in Stamford, Conn. Kremer: "We’ve been in this business for 30-plus years, we have taken risks, we have embraced challenges, but we’re not interested in being a sideshow." She said Amazon "made it abundantly clear that that was not the case" and that they would provide the "resources that we felt that we needed." Kremer said they are "not trying to be" Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, who will call the game for Fox. She added, "We are truly an alternative. We see the game differently, we have a different perspective, and, absolutely our voices, literally and figuratively, are different." Kremer also said the pair is approaching the broadcast "as though it is a world feed," similar to Olympic events. Storm noted the broadcast will go to 200 countries, so they "don’t know who is watching" or "how much they know about football." But she said feedback that the NFL has gotten is that "people want more storytelling" during broadcasts. Storm said fans "want to get invested in what they’re watching, and that’s something that both of us excel at" (THEATHLETIC.com, 9/26).
A DIFFERENT STORY: Storm said since the pair will be using a simulcast, they will be "talking about things that might not necessarily match the picture on the screen." She said there will be "a lot of conversations" and they will "have guests at times." Storm: "We are not at the game, so if you are expecting to turn it on and see some of what you’ve been used to seeing, that’s not what is going to be happening." But Kremer said viewers "will be able to follow the game" and they are "not losing sight of the fact that there is a game." Kremer added, "The really important thing is, it’s not like Amazon set out to, 'Wow, let’s put women in because the Me Too movement is going on.' It’s not what the intent was. The intent was, look at it from a business perspective. They spent $50 million to stream. Why would you have streaming rights to a tremendous Fox broadcast and then try to do the same thing? You don’t want to do the same thing" (N.Y. TIMES, 9/27). Storm: "The first thing they said to us was, 'This isn't a gimmick,' and that's what both Andrea and I wanted to hear" ("OTL," ESPN, 9/26).
