Ranking the DC Sports Newscasts

Back when there was a movie theatre on the corner of Wisconsin Ave. and Van Ness St. (where AU's Greenberg Theatre is now), I went to see a sneak preview of Jetsons: The Movie. I found the best spot in theatre: two seats hidden by themselves on the right side aisle which were practically in the middle. The theatre had a weird slanted wall that cut what would be the right rear half of the theatre off.

So I was sitting there and this guy comes walking right up to the seats and when he gets there (it was already dark by then) he seemed a little shocked to see me. He says something to the effect of "Ahh! Those are my favorite seats." And then walked away a little sad I guess but not at all mad (at least he didn't seem mad). Anyways, that was my one time run-in with Arch Campbell. Seemed like an alright fella, but he still creeps me out when his teaser (always ending with an overenthusiastic "NEXT!") and his wide-eyed reviews which I frequently disagree with.

This week I found out he's joining George Michael in leaving NBC 4. I was even surprised to find out that Susan Kidd and I.J. Hudson were leaving. Sad really. Not that I particularly liked them, but I grew up on them.

Well in light of this I've decided to rank the DC sports newscasts with my two cents on each:

4. WRC Channel 4 / NBC - With George Michael leaving this group is left floundering with Lindsay Czarniak and Dan Hellie. If you read my ramblings you know how I feel about Czarniak. Put it this way, there's a reason why I have "Czarniak's quote of the Day/Week/Etc" and its not because she's witty. Hellie is not bad, but he's a little too proper and doesn't seem to do much more than just read copy. In fact, I think he would do much better as an anchorman.

3. WJLA Channel 7 / ABC - I don't know what else to say but this: Vanilla. Not bad, but certainly not outstanding. Tim Brandt is fairly unanimated, but at least he knows his stuff. Greg Toland is serviceable but you're not winning a Super Bowl with him. He's a more animated but less "pretty boy" version of Hellie. And sometimes channel 7 throws a screwball by pulling crazyman Glenn Harris out of his crypt. (Mostly though, I see him on his Newschannel 8 show... is that even still on?!) These guys really took a tumble after Rene Knott left.

2. WTTG Channel 5 / Fox - I've always thought Dave Feldman is a better sportscaster than he is a soccer play-by-play man. (Maybe it's because I'm not a fan of his "It's in the net!" goal call.) Not that his play-by-play is bad, but he's got a very good personality for sportscasting. Lou Holder is good. He's a slightly more enjoyable newscaster than Toland. Finally, I'm not 100% sure how I feel about Dave Ross so we'll give him a solid C.

1. WUSA Channel 9 / CBS - Brett Haber used to be on ESPN's SportsCenter and he still announces like it. Most of those guys have "it" (what it takes to be a good sportscaster), but unlike a lot of those guys he doesn't come off sounding like such a tool. Levan Reid is stiff but has a good delivery and comes off seeming genuine. Sarah Walsh is also a very good sportscaster and, I think, earned her spot for her abilities instead of her looks (I'm looking at you Channel 4!).