Chairman Mark Lazarus defends NBC Sports’ decision for tape delay

NBC Sports Chairman Mark Lazarus defended his network’s decision to show some marquee Olympic sports, like swimming and gymnastics, on tape delay in NBC’s prime-time window.

Addressing the topic for the first time since the London Games started, the NBC Sports chief told SportsBusiness Journal that the early TV ratings show that most Americans are comfortable with the way NBC develops stories around the Games. “I think what we’ve proven is that the American viewing public likes the way we tell the story and wants to gather in front of the television with their friends and family — even if they have the ability to watch it live either on television or digitally,” Lazarus said. “I inherently trust that decision is the right one and that people want to see these events.” Lazarus said that he has heard the complaints from Twitter, where tweeters protesting NBC’s decision to tape delay certain events added “#NBCFail” to their tweets. But Lazarus said he trusts NBC executives and their years of Olympic experience with making programming decisions that are based on years of research.