Brian,
I appreciate all you do. Keep up the good work.

Dear Mr. Williams: Contrary to the majority of comments on this blog, I thought your comments during the opening ceremonies were relevant and appropriate. You simply said what most were already thinking. My wife and I interpreted the commentary almost as a point-counterpoint between you and Mr. Costas. You addressed real world implications of the countries, and Mr. Costas spouted out the more idealistic references to the Games. If I have any criticism it's that I felt as though you should have participated more in the commentary. At moments, I wondered if you were still there.

Forget these other people who say your comments were inappropriate. These games cannot be separated from what happens in the real world. If you believe that, then you are someone who will buy anything.

Kudos to you, Mr. Williams. I think you've done an outstanding job both as anchor and commentator.

It used to be that one picture was worth a thousand words but NBC seems to think that viewers are blind and that each picture requires 10,000 words. Sometimes, during a breath-catching second, one can actually hear the music that the skaters are skating to.

Brian Williams from NBC is taking some heat and hostility from a few in the "blogosphere" for mentioning current events and relating them to the carious countries performing at this year's Olympics during the opening ceremony. I guess some would prefer to keep their sports and their news separate. Like Anna Johns from TVsquad.com...

What do you think?

It is frustrating to watch most of NBC olympic coverage. They have so limited what and when we can see or hear anything that is going on in the olympics. Often neglecting to report on an event at all if it is not a strong one for American athletes. Sure, we all want to know how our teams are doing, but it is equally interesting to know about other countries' athletes and their achievements.
Also,I agree that Mr. Williams' political comments were out of place, and "old news". For example,talking about Denmark and the cartoon issue, to the point that it completely eliminated any mention about the countries' teams that followed Denmark. The olympics belong to athletes, not politics.

Dear Mr. Williams:
After having to endure your constant, nasal,ever monotone downbeat diatribe when introducing the Parade of Nations, I hope that NBC has the sense to send you back to the US before the closing ceremonies. I'm sure the only reason your there is just in case that special riot or protest or terrorist attack should happen for you to swoon over.
For one who is suppose to be such the brilliant broadcaster, he would learn that the Olympics is a time of celebration of hard work and a time for the athletes to come together and compete in peace.
They don't want to listen to some political garbage that happened twenty years ago. But I'm sure you'll be on Mr. Speilberg's Christmas card list for plugging his movie, tho. What a jerk. Please. NBC pull the plug on this Tom Blowhard wanna-be.

Brian for every athlete in the parade, that was THEIR one moment. They are the sole focus. You totally misread what the Olympics and the ceremony is about. You and Bob needed to know as many athletes by face and name as possible. You needed to tell your viewers their personal stories. Your unneccesary references to current affairs trivialised the achievements of the athletes. Also, there was far too much emphasis on summer games information. All that did was take away from the importance of the winter games. I am constantly amazed by the lack of strategic thought and effort put into these types of broadcast events given the amount of money that goes into securing rights for them.

Hoping we have heard the last of Brian Williams.His commentary was out of place and downright annoying.

Love the latest version of Root's USA Olympic Team gear, but geez... couldn't the US have found ONE willing American company to outfit our Olympic team this year? Nothing against Roots, but they're a Canadian fashion icon, not an American one. I'm sure a company like Nike, Columbia Sportswear, Mountain Hardware, or Patagonia could have some up with something equally stylish for the team, and while I'm sure it would have all been manufactured in China and Taiwan (just like the Roots stuff), it would have been nice to see our athletes in something sporting an American logo this time around.

OK, Brian, and everyone else, maybe covering the Olympics isn't exactly your forte, but all in all I still think you did a pretty decent job of it. For what it's worth, I had way more of a problem with some of Bob Costas' inane comments, where it seemed like he was saying things just to say SOMETHING.

Then again, this is only my opinion. Dennis Miller told me I might be wrong :)

Brian - It was obvious that you were speaking your own words last night and not the NBC/Sports/Olympic "talking points". Thanks for being yourself!!! These Olympics aren't sports as I know them, they are just commercials interrupted with tapes of some kind of activity. The real sports story of this Olympics will begin when Gretzky arrives - illegal betting with the Jersey Mob?? That's news :)
JC

Dear Mr. Williams,

It is understandable that you would be at the Olympics considering the weight of the games, the worldwide attention, and the fact you work for the host broadcaster. However, your commentary at the Opening Ceremony was less than stellar. In fact, it was at odds with fellow broadcaster Bob Costas, who continually elevated the games above the politics of the day. Your comments, sir, came off more like USA propaganda. With NBC's arsenal of talent (and minus Katie Couric) I think NBC brass should have paired Costas with Ann Curry or even Jane Pauley (who I think would be a wonderful "special events" personality for the network: articulate, attentive, and warming.)

The contrast between the pleas for peace and fairness by Yoko Ono and Olympics officials and your introduction of politics into the games was dramatic. The purpose of the games is to bring athletes together in a spirtit of peace and comradery. These athlethes have nothing to do with the actions of their government.
You should be ashamed of yourself. Stick to spinning the political news and stay out of sports.

Brian,

I've respected you as a news person. However, I have to take exception to what I just heard during the opening cermonies.

I believe your comments about Iran were way out of line. We are enjoying a sporting event that is meant to trancend politics and bring us all together. Polictal affilications aside, I just can't believe you used this as a forum to insert politics into your broadcast.

We would love to hear more about the atheletes then the countries politics.

Thanks, and keep up the good work.

Chas

I was actually layghing at the Telecast tonight.
Brian was like "Debbie Downer" a character on SNL.
Bob Costas was upbeat as usual, and Brian would chime in with some horrible news - political or otherwise of the same country. He kept doing it with more and more countries. I think Brian is an excelent broadcaster, I just couldn't help but notice, he'd bring everything to a "downer" after Bob Costas said something upbeat. Good Times.

Brian, your opening ceremony coverage was terrible! Do you have anything good to say about anyone or anything? Death, destructions and politics were all you could talk about while those happy, smiling faces were marching for their countries. Please SHUT UP you know it all! You will never post this because the truth hurts.

Hello!
As someone who has watched your "Olympic participation" many times, I was surprised to hear you tonight making comments about nations positively except for two of them : Costa Rica and Portugal. I believe both have had summer medal winners, which was mentioned for all the smaller delegations. I undersand oversights due occur...but if I'm not mistaken eventhough Portugal has attended the Olympics several times, this may Costa Rica's first, since it is the ONLY Central American country attending.
Sorry...just disappointed in someone usually so well informed to have overlooked minor details in their narrations.

Brian -
I hope to NEVER have to endure your commentary at another Olympic game (Summer or Winter).

This is the Olympics - a time when all nations are to come together in peace.

BUT, for some reason - you feel compelled to "inform" (it really is remind but you seem to have the notion that you are the only one that knows some of this data) the Nation of all the bad things that are happening. Examples - comments about Iran and the cartons, comments about Israel and Spielberg movie, comments about China, Italians and "Italian Americans" during the bloodshed of WWII, etc.

I would hope that you would get the idea that this is a time of celebration and not your dooms day predictions.

ENOUGH!

Brian, you also had a story tonight about the root of the Muslim anger, or what's behind the violent protests. But it didn't help. I still don't understand. Please find someone who understands both Arab/Muslim culture AND American/Christian culture to "translate."

The fact that Muslims' reaction to the cartoon images seems astonishingly extreme to me tells me that there is a real gulf between what I THOUGHT I understood of Islam and Muslims and what I really understand.

It is the same striking realization I had during the OJ Simpson trial when I had to reconcile how very different I felt from my African-American friends who maintained he was innocent, when it seemed so obvious he was not. That taught me about how little I really understood of some of their feelings and experience, their convictions and mindset.

I feel the same way now about Muslims and their reaction to this cartoon. I hope I can learn something from it that will help me understand them better.

Hey Brian,

Have fun co-hosting,be sure to enjoy yourself