The new coronavirus has caused a global
pandemic that has sickened at least 1.68 million
and killed over 101,000 worldwide, halted sports
and forced restrictions on the movement of
millions of people in an effort to stop the virus
from spreading further and overwhelming
health care systems.
The rapid postponement or cancellation of most
sports meant those who were booked for events
through the spring and summer now have
an open calendar. Besides audio technicians,
those affected include camera operators, stage
managers and producers.
Some networks have paid crews for cancelled
games. CBS and Turner paid staffers for lost
NCAA Tournament games while NBC paid for
all canceled events. ESPN and Fox Sports are
paying most of their technical people through
the middle of April.
While most technicians at national networks feel
like they can weather short-term cancellations,
those who work for local or regional networks
are feeling the biggest pinch.
AT&T SportsNet, Yes Network and SNY are
paying crews for missed baseball home games,
but that doesn’t cover those who work on
broadcasts for visiting teams.
Sinclair Broadcast Group, the nation’s largest
holder of regional sports networks, has only
paid crew members through March 15. April
is traditionally the biggest month for regional
networks with the baseball season getting
underway and overlapping with the end of the
NHL and NBA regular seasons.
Those regional networks hold the local rights
to 42 professional teams — 16 NBA, 14 MLB