Tuesday, December 24, 2013

High school sports public address announcers roll with evolving nature of job

Chris Shorette has been the public address announcer at Old Town High School basketball games for the last 15 years.
And short of taking advantage of technological advances to add music before and during breaks at the games he works, little has changed in how he has approached the job.
“It’s basically common sense,” he said. “My goal is just to add a little something to the game, to make the kids feel like they’re playing somewhere bigger than just another high school gym.”  
Such PA duties vary from high school to high school in Maine. Many announcers merely announce the participating teams’ lineups before the games, while others provide more detailed, game-related information throughout the contest such as naming the player scoring a basket or committing a foul.
It’s the latter information that has drawn some scrutiny from those who oversee the contests.  read full story here

1 comment:

Christopher J. Nesi said...

I conduct myself as a professional at all times. The games in my gym are of MSG quality in terms of production and presentation. It's not about me but rather creating something special for the boys and girls teams.
I would like to see more freedom for HS announcers, who can handle it. I would love to mix in sound bytes and organ music for example - but I might be too enthusiastic in my desire to create a college or pro atmosphere.